Chengde is located in Hebei's most fertile area, which mainly produces maize and sorghum but also yields excellent local chestnuts, mushrooms and apricots. This fresh produce, plus the culinary legacy of the imperial cooks, means it is possible to eat very well here. The town is also noted for its wild game , particularly deer, hare and pheasant, and its medicinal juice drinks : almond juice is said to be good for asthma; date and jujube juice for the stomach; and jinlianhua juice for a sore throat. Date and almond are the sweetest and most palatable. Local cakes , such as the glutinous Feng family cakes, once an imperial delicacy but now a casual snack, can be found in the stalls on Yuhua Lu and Qingfeng Jie. Rose cakes - a sweet, crisp pastry cake and a particular favourite of Qianlong - are sold in Chengde's department stores.

There are plenty of restaurants catering to tourists on Lizhengmen Lu, around the main entrance to the mountain resort. The appalling food at the large canteen opposite the Shanzhuan Hotel is best avoided, but the small places west of the hotel are fine, if a little pricey, and lively on summer evenings, when rickety tables are put on the pavement outside. A meal for two should be about ¥60, and plenty of diners stay on drinking well into the evening. Alternatively, head down Lizhengmen Lu to Qingfeng Restaurant Street , an alley signposted in English. Just about every building here is a restaurant, and there's enough variety to suit most budgets and palates. Inside the mountain resort, the Fangyuan offers imperial cuisine, such as pingquan frozen rabbit, in an attractive environment. Finally, the restaurant of the Xinhua Hotel has a good reputation for Shandong cooking.