Health and tradition on the menu

"During Chunfen, leek is delicious and fresh. It's the best time to cook food with it," says Zhang.

Also, the round pancake placed on a round plate signals reunion and happiness in Chinese, adds Zhang.

The restaurant Zhang works promotes a noodle for Chunfen. It's cooked with long-tailed anchovies, a migratory fish found in the Yangtze River.

After the Awakening of Insects, fish wake up from the winter and eat a lot to prepare to spawn. A well-known poem by Zhang Zhihe from the Tang Dynasty (618-907) says that in peach blossom-mirrored streams, mandarin fish have fully grown up.

"During Chunfen, fish in rivers are the best food for a spring flavor," says the chef.

The 41-year-old has worked in Beijing for two decades. In 2011, he resigned from a five-star hotel and worked for a restaurant offering solar term recipes.

On each solar term, Zhang will provide a particular menu, cooking with seasonal food and vegetables. Thanks to fast transportation, Zhang can get the food he needs quickly and easily.