Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang was spotted by the public and local media at No. 69 Fangzhuanchang Noodles, for a bowl of “zhajiangmian” – a Beijing specialty that features noodles covered in a thick soybean-paste sauce mixed with veggies and meat. “It’s so good,” he said, as he dug into the bowl, standing in front of the restaurant entrance. Onlookers crowded around filming him and taking photos.
But the “douzhi’er,” a fermented soybean drink that’s slightly sour and gray-green in color, made the Nvidia CEO wince.
Videos of his reaction were trending on Weibo, the Chinese social media platform, Friday afternoon. The drink is a Beijing classic, but only liked by some.
Huang then quickly bought a sweet drink from Chinese beverage chain Mixue Bingcheng to recover. Huang was touring the Nanluoguxiang area in Beijing’s eastern district, known for its distinctive traditional low-rise homes called hutongs.
The area is a mix of shops, restaurants and also home to some city residents. Many of the houses had been demolished across the years, but Beijing had preserved a small section. Jensen Huang became the world’s seventh-richest person Monday, overtaking LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault and his family as Nvidia shares jumped amid a larger tech stock surge. Huang’s estimated net worth reached $165.8 billion Monday afternoon, leapfrogging past Arnault’s estimated net worth of $164.6 billion, according to Forbes. Huang was among a select group of the world’s most influential CEOs who accompanied US President Donald Trump on his visit to China, which concluded on Friday.