By Li Hongmei

On Saturday, President Xi Jinping dropped in unexpectedly at a traditional Beijing stuffed bun (or 'baozi' in Chinese) shop, where he queued up, ordered and paid for a simple lunch of 'baozi' stuffed with pork and onions, green vegetables, and stewed pig livers and intestines.

On Sunday, the store welcomed long lines of diners, some posing for photos in the room where Xi was and others wanting to order what he had bought. A group from southern Guangdong province who were visiting Beijing had gone to have a look after hearing about Xi's visit online.

The manager of the Qing-Feng stuffed bun shop, surnamed He, said that President Xi and a small entourage arrived at the no-frills eatery in western Beijing at around noon Saturday without prior notification. She said that Xi paid 21 yuan (US$3.40) for his lunch.

"There was no special security measure during his stay," the manager said. "Customers could freely enter and leave the restaurant, and many took photos with him."

After spotting Xi on Saturday, fellow diners took photos of the president and shared them on China's social media. State media reposted the photos on their microblog accounts, and the Xinhua News Agency reported about Xi's lunch on its Chinese-language news site.

"Had it not been for the photos, it would be incredulous to believe Xi, as a dignified president and Party chief, should eat at a stuffed bun shop," author Wu Xiqi wrote in an editorial carried by the People's Daily website. "Xi's act has subverted the traditional image of Chinese officials, ushering a warm, people-first gust of wind that is very touching indeed."

Since taking office in March, President Xi has been dedicated to carrying out the "mass line" he proposed by constantly touching with regular people.