Healthy ingredients are essential for broth bowls at both Glo Kitchen locations. [Photo by Mike Peters/China Daily]

Bone broth is something of a nutrition craze, prized for being dense with nutrients and a boost for digestion.

Is it "Jewish penicillin" or ancient Chinese medicine?

Both, says Shirley So, CEO of Glo Kitchen and Fitness. So has been researching the topic after noticing that bone broth is not promoted as much in China as elsewhere, despite having deep cultural roots here.

Made from animal parts including bones, marrow, skin and feet, tendons and ligaments, bone broth is inherently consoling and nurturing. It's the chicken soup that is every Jewish mother's cure-all, but old cultures everywhere turn to such slow-simmered broth for its restorative powers.

As the new year starts, Glo is pulling together a lot of restorative power. The company's latest opening in Beijing's Wanda Plaza is right next door to Raw Fitness, a shiny-new gym and cross-fit training center with a holistic bent. The companies are not a joint venture but complementary enterprises, says Raw's CEO Jason Wang.

"It fits our idea of building a fitness community," he says. "People can come together, have a workout that's tailored to their needs, and enjoy healthy meals and snacks before or after the workout."

His team at Raw is already planning expansion, and they envision a Glo Kitchen at their new sites as well.

The new Glo at Wanda Plaza is the second in the budding restaurant group. The original is not far away, at Guanghua Lu Soho, but on a less ambitious scale.

"I wanted bone broth to be the focus of the hot food dishes," says consulting chef Brandon Trowbridge, "since our original concept was built on salads."

For this month's soft opening, there is a 36-hour chicken-ginseng broth, a 48-hour beef-bone broth, and a mushroom-vegetable broth. Besides being cooked for up to two days with bones and marrow, the broths incorporate vegetables, herbs and vinegar to release minerals, collagen and essential nutrients, says So.

"However," she adds, "out on the market most soups are made with MSG and a lot of additives to make it taste better, whether it's the instant soup powder you can buy in the store or the cooked one in the restaurant."