Bamboo fungus with salted onion and elderberry cucumber.[Photo provided to China Daily]

"However, I want to enhance that feeling of the changing nature in the dietary sense. With the arrival of a new solar term, different food in turn can also show off its best taste. I also want to add a sense of ritual in the dining."

Claret selects 12 of the 24 solar terms and crafts 12 corresponding menus, so that each one can last one month, she says.

Claret, in Aio Space of the 798 Art District in Beijing, is likely to put you in a good mood as soon as you arrive, with its ample light, and its simple but artistic decor. Paintings on the wall are changed in accordance with the solar periods, in order to make guests feel the rhythm of nature, Sakashita says.