DINING NIBBLES ARRIVALS Remember Ras Ethiopian? Restau- rateur Danny is back, this time at Chaoyang Park North Gate, right beside music venue 2 Kolegas. With a new outdoor kitchen, the signature Ethiopian stews and injera flat breads are joined by kebabs and fresh off the barbecue. They’ll be open all day on weekends with plenty of garden space for the kids to run riot. Upscale Shunyi eatery H a r u Teppanyaki has opened a new branch in Sanlitun Village North, a smart contrast to recently opened teppanyaki party spot Tairyo. Haru comprises six elegant private rooms, offering lunch sets from RMB 85-120 and pricier dinner sets that feature foie gras and Kobe beef. Va Piano, the Italian restaurant at the InterContinental Beijing Beichen by the Olympic Park, has just completed a full facelift and is running a Sicilian food promotion all summer. Barefoot entrepreneur and student fancier Jade Gray has formed an unholy alliance with ex-Domino Sith Lord and lad-about-town John O’Loghlen to create, well, something special down Sanlitun way. Keep an eye out, especially if you see John’s black van loitering outside your house. DEPARTURES Maison Boulud is scouting for a new GM following the departure of Belgian front-of-house maestro Ignace Lecleir. Theresa Valiante, from QUACK ADDICTS, REJOICE Daniel Boulud’s DBGB in New York, will be taking over in the interim. Union Bar & Grille’s much-admired chef, Zachary Lewison, has moved on. The good news is he’s only moved CAPITAL BITES as far as Lido, to Park Side Bar & Grill TOM O’MALLEY CAN’T FACE THE MUSIC (see What’s New: Restaurants, p24). On Lewison’s watch, Union won an Expert’s Pick for “Best American” in f music be the food of love, what Sunday brunch buffets, “Champagne of the week, with raucous Cuban tbj’s 2010 Reader Restaurant Awards. does that make Phil Collins? Supernova” by Oasis is much too standards in the Buena Vista Social I Something between heartburn and obvious. Instead, go for “Rock Club mold. On my visit, I sat through a stomach ulcer, I’d guess. Creating ” by the B52s. Better yet, a quarter-hour bass guitar instrumental the ultimate dinner party playlist is no “Spread” by Outkast. Sandwich joints of Eric Clapton’s “Wonderful Tonight.” easy task. The Smiths’ “Meat is Murder” can’t go wrong with “Mayonnaise” by It really wasn’t. Carmen in Sanlitun isn’t the song for a garden barbecue. the Smashing Pumpkins. “You Can’t is a venue I keep endorsing – Similarly, Weezer’s “Pork and Beans” Always Get What You Want” by the and yes, it has live flamenco guitar is rarely a hit at a bar mitzvah. And Rolling Stones might help assuage music. David Bowie’s “Life on Mars,” whilst a disappointed customers at Panino For something a little different, top tune, is the sort of diet that ends Giusto. And Led Zeppelin’s “How Many Kiev has live Ukrainian organ music with a talk show host airlifting you to More Times” should be mandatory (though as far as I’m concerned, the a hospital. at any restaurant on its second “soft only organs at a restaurant should Restaurants are notoriously poor opening.” be in the sausages). And Amigo at choosing the right music, so here A handful of Beijing eateries go regulars will know that, despite NEW MENUS are some suggestions I’m putting out so far as to hire a live band, which boasting just one CD of well-worn W Dine & Wine’s new summer menu there. Use at your own risk, Beijing. to me seems all wrong. How often Mexican standards, local bluegrass includes avocado, arugula and Firstly, if it’s afternoon tea, stick to do you see cooking demonstrations band The Redbucks have been known cucumber soup, Alaskan crab cakes something British, so anything by at a rock festival? I’m told that Latin to break out the banjos near closing with zucchini, and new French classics either The Jam or Cream. Or just play band Habana en Clave sets the house time. After one too many margaritas, like grilled sirloin with W fries. “Afternoon Tea” by The Kinks. For on fire at Casa Latina most nights that’s my exit music. PHOTO: JUDY ZHOU JULY 2010 23 WHAT’S NEW RESTAURANTS EUROPEAN PARK SIDE BAR & GRILL 园景 Daily 10am-late. 9-6 Jiangtai Xilu (opposite Rosedale Hotel), Chaoyang District (6444 6555) www.parksidebeijing.com 朝阳区将台西路9-6号（珀丽酒店对面）

Park Side ups the stakes in the pub grub battle. And “grub” shouldn’t be taken as disparaging. Chef Zach Lewison, previously of Union Bar & Grille, helms the kitchen. Try his Caesar salad, with wafer-thin slices of grilled chicken, or the plump beef medallions, perched atop mustard seed- laced mashed potatoes. The menu provides trusty classics, presented with class, but portions aren’t enormous, so don’t come to line your stomach. Park Side may be a restaurant, but it’s also a pub, and a grand-looking one. It’s hard to imagine coming for dinner without also planning to stay for several drinks. There may be diners who find TVs a turn-off, but the alfresco eating will be a unanimous hit. It’s all part of the package – good food, service and family-friendly fun, rather than Maison Boulud elegance. Iain Shaw Also try: Union Bar & Grille, Morel’s

VIETNAMESE LUGA’S BANH MI NOW Daily 10am-11pm. Above Luga’s (opposite Tongli Studio), Sanlitun Houjie, Chaoyang District (6413 2786) RAISING THE STEAKS 朝阳区三里屯后街同里对面

STEAKHOUSES Luga is a man after my own heart: never settling, THE CUT always striving. His many transformations some- Daily 6-10.30pm. 2/F, The Fairmont Beijing, 8 Yong’an Dongli, Jianguomenwai Dajie, Chaoyang District (8511 7777) times baffle, but I wholeheartedly approve of 朝阳区建国门外大街永安东里8号 his latest, Banh Mi Now, where they serve this much-missed staple of Vietnamese street food. Good banh mi sandwiches are all about the ow. I’ve just eaten a steak that cost Fairmont’s new restaurant seeks its niche in peerless ideal combination of fillings, and Luga’s gets it RMB 638+15%. It was fabulous. It cost prime cuts served in a truly intimate environment, mostly right, with generous servings of pickled twice the price of my new bicycle. To be for dinner only. The burnished gold interior, dim W daikon radish and carrots, pate, cucumbers and fair, it was a 10-ounce Wagyu rib-eye, The CUT’s lights and electronic beats get the mood just right, cilantro, as well as your choice of protein, all on flagship slab, selectively bred for its high degree and the service from manager Faisal Majeeth and his a crusty loaf (RMB 26). The grilled pork is a nicely of succulent marbled fat, and is flown in fresh, team is exemplary. charred, juicy delight, while fried eggs, another not frozen, from Australia (business class, I assume). Canadian chef Graham Kruse kicked off the classic, arrived tenderly scrambled with scallions. Eager to break the established ranks of Steak meal with a delightfully deconstructed Caesar salad Disappointments were few. (Unless you’ve been Exchange, Grange and CRU Steakhouse, The (RMB 95) – crisp romaine leaves and pancetta strips nursing a raging nostalgia for “white pork loaf,” lay beside a puree of parmesan and anchovies, I’d advise against this spongy, bland cold cut.) and tart, oven-dried cherry tomatoes. Foie gras on Do try the guava shake (RMB 25), though, after caramelized apple (RMB 135) did seem rather wintry, which Sanlitun Houjie might almost be mistaken but the goose liver was among the finest I’ve had

for the back alleys of Hanoi. Shelley Jiang CUT THE OF COURTESY AND JIANG SHELLEY ZHOU, JUDY PHOTOS: in Beijing. The steaks are wonderful, especially a grain-fed New York strip loin, also the cheapest on Also try: Nam Nam, Muse, Nuage the menu at RMB 308. Of the sauces, the rich truffle morel jus, though awesomely flavor-packed, rather overpowered the meat; we found the homemade tarragon mustard a better companion. Admittedly, this tip only applies to those with the means to dine here. For the rest, be nice to your boss and maybe he’ll treat you one day. Tom O’Malley

Standout dishes: Crab & coconut , 7-ounce New York strip loin, “CUT” apple tart Also try: Steak Exchange, Grange, CRU Steakhouse

24 JULY 2010 SAUSAGE FEST GERMAN HOPFENSTUBE 慕尼黑啤酒屋 Daily 11am-midnight. 3 Sanfeng Beilu (opposite Cashbox KTV), Chaoyang District (5909 6666/22) 朝阳区三丰北里3号（钱柜KTV对面）

sn’t this the second time ‘Go West’ has schnitzel and potato-based sides, with five soups steal. RMB 48 affords diners unlimited trips to a salad played?” and as many salads. Our “Bavarian Brewhouse Platter” bar of fresh greens, pickles and Swiss cheese; a bread “I “Dunno. Maybe this one’s the World Cup (RMB 88), eschewing plating niceties for sheer protein, basket with delicious salty pretzels; a daily soup and a remix.” looked like someone had rolled a hand grenade into trio of main course options (go for the Nuernberger I don’t think it was. But the music shows the vibe a barnyard and caught as many flying bits of animal sausage). What’s more, it’s just RMB 10 on top for a this huge German restaurant is gunning for. With as they could on a plate. Pork knuckle, chicken breast, glass of excellent home-brewed beer. In fact, the 300 seats, a dozen plasma TVs showing sports, and a frankfurter and Thueringer sausages, shards of pork only real disappointment was the apologetic splat copper microbrewery, it’s all about thigh-slapping, crackling and processed German meatloaf were all of lukewarm mashed potato. Fortunately, this side glass-chinking revelry of the Munich beer hall variety. tumbled together over mashed potato and sauer- dish turned out to be surplus to requirements … we Though not entirely. A sparse design scheme, kraut. Apart from a scandalously underdone sausage, were stuffed. Tom O’Malley equal parts upscale hotel buffet and Bavarian church everything tasted fine, especially the tender pork (think stained glass and faux-medieval chandeliers), knuckle with accompanying boat of meaty gravy. Standout dishes: Bavarian Brewhouse Platter, indicates a more formal dining intent. The menu is a Prices do seem a shade higher than competing pork escalope with French fries typically red-blooded selection of sausages, steaks, German joints, but Hopfenstube’s lunch menu is a Also try: Schindler’s Tankstelle, Paulaner Brauhaus

BEIJING DUCK XIHE YAYUAN 羲和雅苑 Daily 11am-2pm, 5-10pm. Rm 302, 3/F, IFC Mall (opposite Kunlun Hotel, next to Jiayi Market), 1 Xinyuan Nanlu, Chaoyang District (5976 1355) 朝阳区新源南路1号都汇天地商场3楼302号(燕莎桥西) In a city where style increasingly trumps substance, the meat tender during cooking. On his advice, we this jaded diner set little store by Xihe Yayuan’s first dipped the skin in a blueberry coulis and let it handsome Ming nouveau decor and cushy window melt on our tongues in sweet, rich bliss. Next, we booths. While waiting for our duck (RMB 203), we rolled the lean breast meat with scallions and plum grazed on a refreshing cold winged bean salad and sauce in wonderfully textured, non-sticky pancakes a masterful rendition of daoxiao mian, thick knife- (plain and spinach-flavored). By the time the juicy shaved in a caramelized sauce of eggplant, leg meat was served, conversation had given way red pepper, garlic and pork. The arrival of a bird to grunts of joy. Surfacing for air, one 12-year Beijing roasted over pine wood to resplendent shades of resident declared this the best duck she’d ever had. brown and tan announced the moment of truth. As Later consensus was that Da Dong has a worthy rival a masked chef set to carving, the manager explained indeed. George Bai that the duck had been filled with date sauce to keep Also try: Da Dong, Peking Duck Private Kitchen PHOTOS: JUDY ZHOU JULY 2010 25 WHAT’S NEW RESTAURANTS EUROPEAN MANA Daily 11.30am-10.30pm. 2 Sanlitun Beixiaojie, Chaoyang District (6460 0799) 朝阳区三里屯北小街2号

To my mind, Mediterranean cuisine addition of the watermelon worked is typified by small restaurants tucked well with the other flavors but proved down quiet alleyways in seaside a little too far from my comfort zone. villages with menus that change More traditional were the mains – an according to whatever produce earthy roast chicken on a tagine is available. This seems to be the of artichoke hearts (RMB 55) and a thinking behind this intimate eatery hearty homemade goat’s cheese on the sleepier side of Sanlitun. ravioli with fresh sea bass (RMB 78). Having missed the prix fixe lunch (RMB The dishes were well presented, tasty 68/88), I tried an early dinner by way of and playful in their use of ingredients, the a la carte offerings. A Greek salad boding well for a second visit – most (RMB 39) that included watermelon – likely for lunch. Pete Reilly apparently a well-known Hellenic export – opened the evening. The Also try: Alameda, Mosto

THERE’S ROOM FOR EVERYONE CONTEMPORARY INTERNATIONAL ROOMBEIJING ROOM北京 Sun-Wed 11am-2am, Thu-Sat 11am-4am (food served until 1.30am). Rm 301-302, 3/F, Park Life, Yintai Centre, 2 Jianguomenwai Dajie, Chaoyang District (8517 2033) 朝阳区建国门外大街2号银泰中心301-302室

OOMbeijing has had a more plenty of scope to flash their cash on labored opening than Edward imported Iberico ham, Wagyu steaks, RScissorhands getting into a fresh lobster and a huge wine list. Capri-Sun. Each false start (several of Shades of McKenna’s molecular WHAT'S NEW: RESTAURANTS ... WHERE THEY ARE which we’ve publicized) only served cooking are evident too, in particular to feed the hype bubbling around the delectable black cod with garam this CBD nightspot – a benefit not lost masala (RMB 190), cooked sous-vide on Brian McKenna, the boss and local (under vacuum) at a low, constant PARK SIDE celeb chef. temperature for several hours. But BAR & GRILL With a fortune spent on its design, it’s the aesthetic touches that really the interior does a remarkable job of impress: the funky water glasses, the blending disparate elements. The bar hanging balloon sculptures, and the becomes a DJ lounge, which in turn “ROOM signature fruit tree” (RMB 200), gives way to the main dining area and with cubes of pineapple, melon and XIHE YAYUAN then a long runway of open kitchen, all more poked onto the end of each unified by striking wall murals, graffiti wire branch – sure to be a hit with MANA and contemporary art pieces. Chinese guests. LUGA’S BANH The core appetizers, mains and Up until now, few Beijing restaurants MI NOW are available in small, medium have tried this hard to cater equally ROOMBEIJING OF COURTESY AND ZHOU JUDY PHOTOS: or large portions, (RMB 50, 80 and 100 to Chinese and Western customers of respectively), a neat system that aims disparate incomes – if ROOM works, it’s to facilitate any dining situation from sure to be a blueprint for many more HOPFENSTUBE late-night tapas to a multi-course venues to come. Tom O’Malley romantic soirée. It’s gratifying to know you can come to a place this Standout dishes: Whisky-glazed roast ROOM plush, eat beef carpaccio with celeriac chicken with Indonesian spices, chilli THE CUT BEIJING and wasabi followed by Asian-spiced bean noodles with barbecue pork risotto, and drop just one Also try: LAN, IFW (International Food pink bill. That said, big spenders have Warehouse)

26 JULY 2010 CHEF’S SELECTION

ADAM XIAO CHEF, TORO BAR

eijinger Adam Xiao honed Best Value – Xibei Youmian Cun his knife skills for five years in You can find fantastic, less well-known BJapan before landing a job at northwestern cuisine at this restaurant, Nishimura. After nearly a decade slicing like steamed oatmeal noodles, yoghurt and rolling at the Shangri-La’s famous dishes and their signature casseroles. Japanese restaurant, Adam now helms The decoration is Mongolian in style the kitchen at Sanlitun’s latest sushi and my family loves it. spot, Toro Bar. Daily 11am-2pm, 5-9pm. 8 Anhui Beili (corner of Huizhong Beilu), Yayuncun, Special Occasion – Taka Kura Chaoyang District (6498 4455) 西贝莜面村, 朝阳区亚运村安慧北里小区 Everything I know about Japanese 安园8号楼 cuisine I learned from the executive chef there who was my master for Guilty Pleasure – Haowei Tianxia several years. All his sushi is fantastic, As a chef, I know eating too many especially the goose liver sushi and can be bad for the health, but mango salmon roll. He’s very strict I really love this food. The place is a bit when it comes to the ingredients, so difficult to find – it’s very exclusive, shall the quality is extremely consistent. we say – but the oysters are very fresh You can really experience the soul of and juicy and the price unbeatable. Japanese cuisine there. I always order the grilled corn and Daily 11am-2pm, 5-10pm. B110, Kunlun Apartments, 2A Xinyuan Nanlu, rice too. Chaoyang District (6593 9435) Daily 11am-11pm. 35 Gulou Dongdajie 朝阳区新源南路甲2号昆仑汇B110 (in the adjacent alley), Dongcheng District (8401 2437) 蚝味天下, 鼓楼东大街35号（交道口十字路 Top Chinese – Dazhaimen 口西40米路北） They serve private cuisine here with dishes from Sichuan and A Quick Bite – Jin Ding Xuan as well as Beijing. You’re greeted Each time I go, the place is always full of by girls in traditional dress and the customers. The shrimp dumplings and atmosphere is great. My favorite dish spareribs with black bean sauce are my is the flavorful pork must-have dishes. It’s a great spot to made with seasonal vegetables and catch up with friends even if you just crispy fried meat – not too sweet, not have a glass of milk tea. The best part too sour … just right. is they’re open 24 hours so I can come Daily 11am-2.30pm, 5-10pm. Bldg here for a late supper after work. 3, Huixing Beili (east of Luoma Daily 24hrs. 77 Hepingli Xijie Huayuan), Chaoyang District (north of The Star Live), Dongcheng (6495 2166/0018) 大宅门, 朝阳区惠新北 District (6429 6888) 金鼎轩，东城区和平 里3号楼（罗马花园东侧) 里西街77号(地坛公园南门) PHOTO: JUDY ZHOU JULY 2010 27 FEATURE THE REAL DA DONG BEIJING’S ROAST DUCK MAESTRO BRANCHES OUT by Tom O’Malley, reporting by Emily Young

he name Da Dong might be synonymous Da Dong became a chef on the advice of his father, with roast duck, but Da Dong is a man. A who told him, “With that job, you’ll never go hungry.” giant of a man at 193cm tall, hence the And he wasn’t wrong. An estimated 800 ducks are nickname da (“big”). Dong Zhenxiang is roasted daily at Da Dong’s trio of restaurants. The Twidely regarded as one of China’s greatest chefs, with branch we’re sitting in can handle 400 covers at a a vast repertoire of internationally influenced dishes time and employs around 300 staff. that stretches far beyond Beijing kaoya. Perhaps even more astonishing, the famously “Understanding Chinese food is much more tome-sized menu boasts over 200 dishes, begging the difficult than understanding Western food,” question: How can his chefs maintain the quality and Da Dong assures me as we slurp cappuccinos in a consistency of a Western restaurant that has a menu white-upholstered private room at his Jinbao Place one-tenth of the size? “Many European chefs visit our applies to food.” I’m not so sure about that. I do, after restaurant. Well, he should know. The Beijing-born restaurant and cannot believe the scale of our kitchen,” all, come from the country that invented custard chef has travelled far and wide in pursuit of what Da Dong replies impassively. “That’s why we’re the best powder. his menu proclaims is his “artistic conception of – we can do many dishes well, not just a few.” Da Dong has a tendency to flit between ,” drawing upon diverse infl uences, from philosophical insight and cliché as he speaks, but Sichuanese peasant dishes to the molecular cooking HOW CAN DA DONG’S CHEFS that doesn’t stop me hanging on each softly spoken masterminded by French chemist Hervé This. MAINTAIN THE QUALITY AND word. “Food is like language. You feel comfortable “I’m a Chinese chef, so my philosophy is to always when you speak your mother tongue.” He elaborates focus on Chinese food,” he says, “but I draw upon other CONSISTENCY OF A WESTERN with an example. “The sea cucumber is not easy places and peoples, ingredients and techniques to RESTAURANT THAT HAS for foreigners to accept, just like a bloody steak is make my food great.” Indeed, Shandong, , problematic for the Chinese.” I second that. Especially Sichuan, Huaiyang and even classic French cooking A MENU ONE-TENTH OF THE SIZE? as, moments later, I’m looking down at a sea are all part of the chef’s repertoire in a food career cucumber on my plate. that has spanned 30 years. The only A bold claim to be sure, but one backed by scores “When you’re tasting it, please imagine it as , son among nine children, of awards that literally wallpaper the restaurant’s truffles and the best steak in the world rolled into one,” reception. One seemingly inconsequential plaque Da Dong told me before he headed off to his next simply says “12th Place.” It was awarded last year appointment, leaving me in the hands of his all-girl by the Miele Guide – a new, -wide restaurant PR entourage. They tell me it’s the best: a thorny survey compiled by votes from 100,000 diners sea cucumber from Kato in Japan, dried and then across the continent. Most of the other top 20 Miele rehydrated for several days, and finally cooked and winners have celebrity-chef backed kitchens (three served with braised spring onion and a zingy lemon restaurants belong to French legend and culinary sorbet. The first mouthful of spiky, viscous otherness super-brand Joel Robuchon). In fact, Da Dong slips and slides on the tongue – it’s satiny and spongy stands out for being perhaps the least “inter- in equal measure with a lingering richness. Frankly, it’s national” big-ticket restaurant. But would delicious. A seemingly unending procession of dishes Da Dong deserve any Michelin stars if follows: sashimi dressed with lime; sliced – or, more likely, when – the French clam served inside a globe of ice; a crystal- guidebook covers mainland clear, intensely flavored soup of pricey matsutake China? “Michelin is a bible of mushrooms; a raw wafer of Kobe beef blowtorched Western-style dishes. If it comes tableside to a medium rare. As soon as I’m done with here, the inspectors should one course, another instantaneously appears. I’m be experts in Chinese food starting to understand what an Aquitaine goose must and culture in order to go through in the noble pursuit of foie gras. judge,” Da Dong answers, Not everything comes off. Despite sounding a a shade defensively. clever dish on paper, noodles made from lobster meat “Everybody knows are overawed by a cloyingly sweet zhajiang mian-style you can’t judge a sauce. But my breathless banquet is unquestionably nationality and say which is Chinese. Ingredients are largely local. Service is neat better or which is worse,

and tidy with absolutely no waiting on ceremony. DONG DA OF COURTESY AND ZHOU JUDY PHOTO: and the same And the food, Zen-like in its presentation, is at worst accomplished and at best, divine. On this evidence, Da Dong really does come across as the quintessential modern Chinese restaurant. Not afraid to imitate or borrow, it prides itself on quantity as much as quality, and boasts a good deal of both. Whatever the Michelin man may think, the nightly queues here speak for themselves. And we didn’t even have the duck.

28 JULYJULY 20102010 Q&A

DANIEL KUSER EXECUTIVE CHEF, ST. REGIS BEIJING

wiss-Italian chef Daniel Kuser What’s going to be your signature brings his 25 years of experience dish? Sto the St. Regis restaurants this It’s too early for me to determine month as their new executive chef. my signature dishes. Developing a Chef Kuser is returning to Beijing after signature dish takes more time, to 12 years working in Egypt, Jordan and adjust to customer tastes in different Thailand. We chatted with him recently countries, to see what ingredients are about food and music. most interesting.

Do you have a philosophy that you Do you listen to music when you bring to your cooking? cook? My philosophy is to keep it simple and At home, I like cooking to many cook with fresh, seasonal and natural types of music. Sometimes Pavarotti, products. Now Beijing is like every because it brings back good memories. other big city, and I can find almost any Sometimes more fun music. For ingredient, such instance, I love as fresh Italian “WHEN I WAS YOUNGER, [Italian pop products, easily. star] Vasco Rossi I COOKED FOR because he was How do you keep ELTON JOHN” a rebel, and he yourself excited plays music about food after so many years in everyone can identify with. the industry? Gastronomy is always evolving, like Which real-life rock star do you most fashion, and looking at all the trends, admire? designs, and architecture in the global This is hard to say because you can food industry makes me excited to admire someone for their life or for evolve with them, and make them a their music. And I love many bands for source of inspiration. There is just so their music – for instance, The Beatles, much happening around the world. Pink Floyd … It’s impossible to name just one. What restaurants do you visit in Beijing when you’re not working? Have you ever cooked for a famous At this time of the year I enjoy al fresco musician? dining regardless of the type of food. When I was younger, I was working at But honestly, I’ve been so busy this a hotel in Zurich and cooked for Elton month there is no time to eat out! John. But I can’t tell you where ... it’s Sometimes dinner is just some bread confidential. and a slice of cheese. PHOTO: COURTESY OF ST. REGIS BEIJING JULY 2010 29 GRAPE PRESS GET RUDDY FOR SUMMER REFRESHING REDS FOR THE WARMER MONTHS by Edward Ragg

s the summer temperatures red fruits, medium acidity and low rise, Beijing wine lovers typi- tannins. Acally turn to white and rosé wines for refreshment. But what if you One to drink want to drink red wines in an increas- 2007 Montana South Island Pinot ingly warm climate? Refreshing reds Noir, New Zealand usually have less tannin and enough RMB 170 (Pernod Ricard) acidity to cleanse the palate. Wines Available at Grand Millennium Hotel, made from Pinot Noir tend to fit that Da Dong, Jianguo Hotel description, and Gamay, although less It’s not often you see New Zealand acidic than Pinot Noir, offers wines Pinot priced this favorably here. with abundant red fruits but similarly Medium red in color with perfumed low tannins. red fruits, nice oak, refreshing acidity Beyond grapes, certain styles of and low silky tannins. wine (sparkling reds, for example) are good options, such as Italy’s One to savor Lambrusco or Australia’s sparkling Shiraz. NV Mount Langi Ghiran Cliff Edge The art of sparkling red wine-making is Sparkling Shiraz, Victoria, Australia to extract enough color from the RMB 338 (The Wine Republic) grapes without yielding those mouth- Available at Alameda, Capital M, puckering tannins. In the searing heat of Ritz-Carlton Beijing an Australian Christmas, sparkling reds Mount Langi Ghiran is one of Australia’s are the drinks of choice. top producers. This hugely drinkable sparkling Shiraz is an attractive purple One to quaff color with a generous mousse (a 2007 Beaujolais-Villages, Joseph sparkling wine’s effervescence). Lovely Drouhin, Burgundy, France blueberry and black cherry fruit with RMB 162 (Torres) various spices and a refreshing palate. Available at Jenny Lou’s, April Gourmet, Annie’s, 1949 – The Hidden City, Edward Ragg runs Dragon Phoenix Fine Brasserie Flo, Capital M Wine Consulting, Beijing’s first independent From reliable Burgundy house Joseph wine consultancy (www.longfengwines. com) with Fongyee Walker. They are Drouhin, this Gamay is typical of authors of the Dragon Phoenix Wine Blog Beaujolais-Villages, but better priced and write for Decanter and The World of than some examples in China. Attractive Fine Wine. PHOTOS: COURTESY OF THE SUPPLIERS THE OF COURTESY PHOTOS:

30 JULY 2010 HOME COMFORTS

PERFECT PAPAYA SALAD by Joel Shuchat

om tam (Thai-style papaya salad) 2. Place the whole garlic cloves and is zesty, spicy and tantalizingly chillies in a ceramic mortar. Pound with Stasty, not to mention great the pestle a few times to mash them, for stimulating your appetite in hot then add the long bean pieces. weather. This recipe serves six, so why 3. Pound the mixture few more times, not invite your friends over for an and add a pinch of papaya – this alfresco summer snack? helps mix the garlic and chillies. Add a spoonful of peanuts and pound Ingredients (serves 6) some more. 1 cup unripe papaya, shredded 4. Add the palm sugar, or . (青木瓜 qing mugua) Keep pounding. Make sure everything 3 cloves garlic (蒜 suan) is well mixed. 2-10 small, fresh red chillies (红辣椒 5. Add the tomatoes, and – you’ve hong lajiao; bird’s eye are best) guessed it – pound some more, but 1 Chinese long bean, broken into not so hard. 4cm pieces (长豆角 chang doujiao) 6. Add the lime juice, and 3 tbsp roasted peanuts the rest of the papaya. Gently pound (花生仁 huasheng ren) about 10-15 times while mixing with 1-2 tbsp sugar (糖 tang; palm sugar a spoon. You’ll want to evenly coat is best) the papaya strips with the juices, but 2 tbsp fish sauce (鱼汁 yu zhi) don’t pound so hard that the papaya or 2 small tomatoes, halved tomato disintegrates. Now eat! (小西红柿 xiao xihongshi) 1-2 limes, juiced (小酸橙 xiao Joel Shuchat is head chef at The Hutong suancheng) cooking school. For info on monthly 1 tbsp dried shrimp (干虾皮 gan classes and events, see www.thehutong. xiapi) com or call 159 0104 6127.

Method 1. Prepare the papaya by peeling the dark green skin. Discard the seeds and core. Use a shredder to make long strips (2-3mm wide) out of the entire papaya. PHOTOS: SUI JULY 2010 31 GOOD FOR YOU feelings of sluggishness and apathy – making it easier not to do things than to do them. This, the most common pattern of imbalance in the developed world, is related to modern diets, excessive mental processing and relatively sedentary lifestyles. Therefore, if the wisdom of TCM can offer a single tip about getting your life together, it would be to tone the spleen/stomach, the main motor that converts fuel into energy. When you realize that balance, health and energy form the core of human happiness, productivity and success, you understand how vital it is for this motor to be working at the highest possible level. Here’s how to do it.

1. Get up early with the sun, and don’t work before 9am – this is “stomach time” and is about “arriving on earth.” 2. Take gentle exercise in the morning before breakfast. 3. Maintain regular meal times. Eat a big porridge breakfast, a lunch dominated by cooked grains and vegetables, then a light, early dinner. 4. Warm food should dominate your diet. Eat SPLEEN CLEANING fewer sandwiches, salads, fruit and juices and more porridge, soups and stews. by Alex Tan 5. Switch off your work brain by 5pm and enjoy time with friends and family. o you suffer from lethargy and apathy in functions – its connections and relationships. 6. Avoid ice-cold drinks. the summer? The solution, according to The spleen is a yin organ of the Earth (central) 7. Avoid overeating, especially late in the evening. DTraditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), is to element, which is about being grounded and solid; 8. Keep the feet warm (and head cool). Take hot foot tone the spleen. it rules adaptation, nourishment and support. An baths before bed if you suffer from cold feet. But what has this seemingly insignificant organ unhealthy environment for the spleen can give 9. Avoid dampening foods in excess, especially got to do with your health, life and well-being? you poor digestion, flabbiness, chronic tiredness, dairy, wheat, sweets and beer (sorry, guys). When we say the “spleen” we are not simply talking nausea, insensitive taste buds, loose stools, abdominal 10. Make good food a central pleasure to enjoy with about the physical organ but rather a set of functions distension, easy bruising, dry lips, apathy, anxiety, friends and family. and relationships that the spleen rules – think of it as worry, obsessive thoughts and more. If your spleen the function of digestion from a Western perspective. is not working as well as it should be, we say you Alex Tan is a TCM practitioner at The Hutong and Chinese medicine is much more about how the body have “dampness” in the body. Dampness manifests in Kocoon Spa. Contact him at [email protected]. BAD FOR YOU ALL YOU CAN ORIGUS by Tom O’Malley

n TheBeijinger.com forums, there’s a thread with the comment: “The only thing more disgusting Ithan the food at Origus is watching fat little kids wolf down insane portions.” That fat kid was me. The year was 1985. It was my birthday party, I was buzzing on food additives and very, very happy. That was the last time I saw chicken nuggets, fish sticks, plastic pizza, and beakers of fizzy drinks on the same table. Until now. With its 40 branches around Beijing, Origus is like the children’s birthday party that never ends … only with beer. You can fill your face daily with the sort of reckless abandon your mum thought prudent to permit just once a year. The food is … generously seasoned. And sweet. Sweetest of all is the pizza. Even their meat feast equivalent, peculiarly named “Western Scenery,” tasted like cake. On a scale of “real” to “processed,” it’s somewhere down near bubble gum. Almost everything else is deep-fried, nugget- shaped and drying out under lamps. The desserts PHOTO: TOM O'MALLEY TOM PHOTO: are utterly unfathomable, like a wedge of something spaghetti. And it’s possible to assemble a passable deal. The best bit is serving yourself ice cream from yellow with the texture of bicycle tire, and another salad of cherry tomatoes, hard-boiled egg, corn the soft-serve machine. For a seven-year-old fatty thing with olive slices on top. But they do have and dill pickle. Combine that with lots of beer and having the time of his life, that would have been the some real food: hot wings, spicy chicken breast, half-decent egg tarts, and your RMB 49 seems an OK biggest treat of all.

32 JULY 2010 WOKIPEDIA

C IS FOR … … Changfen 肠粉 first heated and kept soft in a warm Steamed rice rolls are a classic dim wok, and then the blower uses a sum dish from Guangdong and Hong combination of breath and fingers to Kong, usually served before noon. Soft, shape the sticky blob into figurines, silky rice sheets wrap around zodiac animals and other shapes. fillings of shrimp, barbecue pork and spicy beef, and are topped with sweet … 粥 . Cooked in special steamers This “porridge” of boiled rice with lots shaped like sets of drawers, the rice of water serves as the backdrop for rolls should be eaten the instant a host of other foods, including fish, they’re cooked. The best examples shrimp, chicken, peanuts, sesame seed are ethereally light with a slippery, and salted duck eggs. Besides being a unctuous texture and savory filling. popular breakfast staple, congee is the Try Xiao Che’s Shop in Dongsi proverbial “chicken soup” of China – (see directory under “Cantonese”) for the perfect food when you’re feeling delicious chashao (BBQ pork) rice rolls under the weather. To make it in your for around RMB 10. rice cooker at home, use a 10:1 ratio of water to plain white rice, and boil … Chuitang 吹糖 for around 25 minutes. Serve with It’s remarkable that the ancient art of salty pickles or sweetened red bean blowing sugar can still be seen on the paste to taste. streets of Beijing today. Molasses is

YOUR CALL READER REVIEWS FROM THEBEIJINGER.COM Nola American

simonc: Saturday morning, 11am. Nola’s empty except for Graeme and me. We both order eggs hollandaise, mine with sausages. 20 minutes later, only one dish arrives. Eventually, yelling in the kitchen results in a bowl piled high with sausages presented to me several minutes after Graeme's finished. Exasperated, we asked for Sukhothai the mai dan and are overcharged. Thai American owner was embarrassed, and his staff completely perplexed rwong1628: Considering all the (although excellent at grinning). We bastardized Thai food in Beijing. I won't be returning. would recommend Sukhothai. The was perfect, the tod mun ( cakes) were the right texture and included kaffir lime leaves. I would stay away from the sizzling beef steak, however, since it came covered in some sort of toxic radioactive red sauce. Register at www.thebeijinger.com to have your say. Top prizes are given each week for the best review. See our “7 Days in Beijing” e-newsletter and the Beijinger blog.

JULY 2010 33 BACK FOR MORE CAPITAL MMMM ... SANDWICHES GO TOPLESS THIS SUMMER

EUROPEAN CAPITAL M Mon-Fri 11am-2.30pm, 6-10.30pm, Sat-Sun 11.30am-5pm, 6-10.30pm. 3/F, 2 Qianmen Pedestrian Street, Chongwen District (6702 2727) 崇文区前门步行街2号3层

penness” of any kind (emotional, spiritual, and more besides. Available a la carte for lunch and the fridge door) tends to gnaw at my inner brunch, it contends with other sensuous summer “OPuritan. But especially sandwiches. To me, bites like a beetroot puff pasty tart heaped with hunks an open sandwich is like leaving the house with no of crumbly goat cheese and dark sprigs of watercress, trousers on – before long, everything starts to wilt, and lemony Wiener schnitzel with capers and something which no amount of mayonnaise can mustard potato salad (all RMB 128). Desserts are just disguise. as provocative, especially a dainty threesome of That was before Capital M’s Danish-style smørrebrød, coffee brulee, rich chocolate mousse and apricot panna however. Now I imagine the wafers of dark rye bread cotta (RMB 48). Beijing’s sexiest lunch? Oh dear, I think as little rafts upon which balance lots of delicious I need a lie down. Tom O’Malley castaways: pinky roast beef with crisp shallot shards Standout dishes: Danish-style smørrebrød, and horseradish cream, folds of smoked salmon with battered baby squid with parsley salad a piquant dill sauce, just-boiled egg with pearls of eel Also try: Domus, Maison Boulud caviar, plump shrimp with miniature chicken escalope, ALLEYWAY GOURMET ICE TO EAT YOU A TRIO OF CHILLED TREATS by Emily Young

s summer heats up, skip the Magnum ice BINGFEN (冰粉) cream bars and cool off with one of these local Achilled treats instead. A traditional snack from Chengdu, this sweet, gloopy dessert is made in an unusual way. Plant seeds are wrapped up in clean gauze, put into cold water and JASMINE TEA ICE CREAM rubbed by hand until the seeds secrete a sticky liquid, (huacha bingqilin 花茶冰淇淋) which turns the water into a jelly. The wobbly jelly Wuyutai Tea Shop was first established in 1887. The is then carefully put in a bowl with ice cubes and founder would probably never have imagined that sprinkled with roasted peanut powder and melted one of their signature products – jasmine tea from brown sugar. The way it slips and slides on the tongue, Fuzhou and Suzhou – would be made into specialty together with the aroma of roasted peanuts, makes soft-serve ice cream. Available only at two shops, the for a delightful sensation. RMB 2 flagship Wangfujing and Qianmen branches. RMB 5 Try it: Ba Yu Dandanmian. 29 Xinjiekouwai Dajie Try it: Wuyutai Tea Shop (Wangfujing branch). 186 (inside the Xiaoxitian decorated archway), Haidian Wangfujing Dajie, Dongcheng District (6525 3961) District (no tel) 吴裕泰茶庄（王府井店）, 东城区王府井大街186号 巴渝担担面, 海淀区新街口外大街29号(小西天牌楼内)

ICED CHEESE TEA (nailao cha 奶酪茶) This unusual drink is the creation of a Taiwanese couple who run a cozy cafe in Houhai. Cheese and

cream are beaten into a fluffy foam that floats on the M CAPITAL OF COURTESY AND YOUNG EMILY PHOTOS: surface of iced black or green tea. Don’t try to sip it – you’ll barely get any tea through the thick cheese layer. The trick is to bury your face in it, open your mouth and take a deep glug. Unlike typical sweet iced tea drinks, the cheese foam tastes lightly salty and savory, while the red tea retains its original flavor. RMB 25

Try it: Cafe de Sofa. 12 Yinding Qiao Hutong (south of Yinding Qiao), Xicheng District (6203 2905) 沙发咖啡馆, 西城区银锭桥胡同12号（银锭桥南）

34 JULY 2010