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Dining hall of fame pingyao vintage shopping bombino

出版发行: 云南出版集团 As the dust 云南科技出版社有限责任公司 settles a year in f&B defined By 地址: 云南省昆明市环城西路609号, Bricks, resilience, and resurrection 云南新闻出版大楼2306室 责任编辑: 欧阳鹏, 张磊 书号: 978-7-900747-88-4

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2 nov/dec 2017 What’s Happening: The most important dates this month 04 CITY SCENE Stat: China’s growing Christian trend Best of the Blog: The most popular stories from theBeijinger.com Scene & Heard: Take a look at yourselves, you beautiful people

Take a look back at Beijing’s year in flux as we talk to historians, 12 COVER FEATURE preservationists, and venue owners to try and make sense of why The Brickening happened and where the city’s F&B businesses are headed next. Dining Hall of Fame: The venues and people inducted into this year’s Dining Hall of Fame

Nibbles and Sips 22 Food & Drink What’s New Restaurants: Ramo, Lievito Prov Gov: Qinghai Provincial Government Restaurant Wokipedia: Y What’s New Bars & Clubs: Jing-A Brewpub Xingfucun, Zhao Dai Back for More: Karaiya Spice House P.S. We Ate You Just Desserts: Art de Sweets Maovember Pizza Cup Champions: Pie Squared Advertorial: InfraRouge

Feature: Revisiting Thirsty Ghosts 37 Go Get Out: Pingyao Get Out: Luang Prabang Feature: 2017 Gallery Roundup Feature: Vintage Shopping Guide 48 Playlist: Alice Tingting of Borderless MEET Interview: Bombino A Drink With: Ethan Liu of Proof and Company Old China Hand: Moto Uchiyama of Mokihi

56 rear view Testin’ times

Cover photograph taken Dining hall of fame pingyao vintage shopping bombino Daily updates, by Dave’s Studio. Design by Tom Arnstein. As the dust settles a year in f&B defined By events, and Bricks, resilience, and resurrection classifieds on thebeijinger. com

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3 nov/dec 2017 The most important upcoming dates WHAT’S HAPPENING Nov 18 Loreli 2ndAnniversary The Loreli crew celebrate two years of art, interviews, sardonic wit, and of course, drunken poetry at their default home (read: the only people that will have them): Temple Bar. Head on down for all of the above, plus bands, DJs, and some supervised coloring to keep things light. Nov 25 T.A.U.M. Indoor Festival Techno + Advance + United + Massive is a three-day united showcase of Chinese techno labels from various cities (prajnasonic (Beijing), 4x4x4x4 (Shanghai), rom303 (Shanghai), atmen (Chengdu), and Konekt Asia). The Nov 25 party at Dada Beijing will focus on powerful live and DJ sets from these talented local producers. Photos courtesy of Lore l i, courtesy of the hutong, courtesy p residentmommy.com of p rajnasonic, Dec 10 Hutong Winter Fayre Though this beloved annual Christmas bazaar was almost canceled – due to neighborhood demolitions that claimed parts of the venue’s terrace – the Hutong’s staff soldier on regardless. Drop by for Christmas wares and a mug of mulled wine to wish them the best for the new year. Dec 16-Jan 28 Cirque du Soleil’s Kooza The famed acrobatic company is back in China after making its debut a decade ago, and this time it’s here to stay. Yes, Cirque du Soleil will bring a new show to China every year, kicking things off this winter with Kooza, the story of a young clown who delves into the world of magic. Visit theBeijinger.com for even more events and details. 4 nov/dec 2017 Letter from THE Editor

nd just like that, another year in Beijing is coming to a close, except this time we’re left to piece together Awhat’s left of the city after having the planning equivalent of a brick upside the ol’ noggin’. In total, 2017’s “beautification” onslaught brought F&B business in the hutongs, as well as in a number of other notable hubs, to a messy and frustrating end. But the effect has been bittersweet, with many of those affected having since started looking elsewhere for new opportunities or already settling into new digs, bringing great food and drink to new communities. We’ve decided to make that resilience the focus of our cover feature this issue, taking a deeper look at what is left as the dust settles, and interviewing those who were unlucky enough to be in the line of concrete fire. Elsewhere in the issue, Jeremiah Jenne frames the recent renovations within the context of Beijing’s former commercial hub, Dashilan. We also honor those venues and individuals that have demonstrated their staying power prowess via our annual industry-insider balloted Dining Hall of Fame awards. In contrast, Tracy Wang gives us a look at Beijing’s newest contenders on the scene, including Jing-A’s Xingfucun Brewpub and the almost-too-pretty-to-eat cakes of Art de Sweets. There’s also Lievito, Ramo, and a first look at what promises to be a jolt to Beijing’s underground club scene in the form of Zhao Dai. In our Get Out section, I’ll guide you through China’s (if not the world’s) best-preserved walled city, Pingyao; Robynne Tindall details what to see, eat, and do in Laos’ UNESCO Heritage city of Luang Prabang; and Tautvile Daugelaite rummages around Beijing to bring you the city’s best vintage shopping opportunities. Finally, in Meet, Kyle Mullin speaks to the incredible Nigerien troubadour Bombino before his show at Yugong Yishan on Dec 12, as well as Mokihi’s effortlessly cool proprietor, Moto Uchiyama. With that, we here at the Beijinger would like to say thank you to all of you that made 2017 special for us and we can’t wait to continue bringing you the best of Beijing come 2018.

Tom Arnstein Managing Editor

5 nov/dec 2017 CITYSTAT // BEST OF THE BLOG SCENE // SCENE & HEARD

70 million he approximate number of practicing to this day. Christians in China today, accounting for 5 However, a third, and increasingly powerful Tpercent of the population. Not a huge fraction element has come into play in the battle between of China’s 1.3 billion citizens, you might say, but government, people, and religion: money. China’s proselytisation is on the rise and some estimates powerhouses of commerce have a vested interest decree that China will be home to the world’s in making Christmas just as successful as the other PHOT largest Christian population by 2025, overtaking holiday-centric orgies of consumerism – think o c

America’s 240 million (where, in contrast, Christians Alibaba’s own and unabashed Double 12 (Dec o ur

now account for 70 percent of the population 12), and Singles’ Day (Nov 11), the biggest day for t esy o f H ly Transfigura compared to 86 percent in 1990). e-commerce on the planet. Subscription to such ideologies presents a Regardless of whether China’s Christian complex problem for the Chinese government, population and a general taste for Christmas which is officially atheist, and sees religion as continues on its ascent or is forced further something to be monitored, controlled, and underground by tightening of policies, one thing is counterintuitive to their own staunch political for sure: bible makers are also cashing in, big-time, t i o n M nas ery agenda. However, as varying beliefs are tolerated with the Nanjing-based Amity Printing Company rather than banished outright, symbols of worship, producing its 150 millionth copy last year, half of including 56,000 churches, exist across the country which were sold in China.

6 nov/dec 2017 7 nov/dec 2017 best of the blog best of the blog

Every issue, we tally the hits from theBeijinger.com and bring you the most-viewed blogs from our website.

2. Two Divers Missing at Underwater Section of the Great Wall Two scuba divers went missing in early September while exploring a little-known underwater section of the Great Wall in Hebei province. The two divers, identified as Denovo Xu and Sun Hao, failed to surface and after four days missing, underwater searches were suspended.

1. Beijing Bans Airbnb Bookings, Forces Clubs and Bars to Shut, and Boosts Security in Advance of 19th Plenum Demonstrating how important the 19th Party Plenum was for the future of China, weeks of disruptions and inconveniences were prepared for Beijing residents. Those included new security measures restricting Photos: Daily Mail, Colin L ee, c transportation, communications, internet use, and lodging, as well as bans on fireworks, the forced closure of bars and clubs, and even the deployment of cattle prod-wielding robots. The end couldn’t come soon enough.

3. Beijing-Based Photographer Luo Yang Shoots to ourtesy of L Smash Stereotypes of Chinese Girls Ahead of the successful funding of the Kickstarter uo Y

campaign for her new book, we spoke to Shenyang-born, E ase, c ang, N ew Beijing-based photographer Luo Yang about her images, which often pose subjects partially clothed, atop overpasses, in back alleys, on rooftops, or simply relaxing at home. ourtesy of Bru c e Connolly, c Through her photographs, Yang captures the exceptional, the benign, and most importantly, the truthful fragments of what compose modern women (Asian or otherwise). ourtesy Ed 4. Snowing is Half the Battle: Beijing Receives Year’s First Snowfall Another notoriously short autumn drew to war c n, N ew d E . Duke, N ews. a close this year as Beijing welcomed its very first snowfall early in October. Snow of up to 6cm was reported in the Haituo Mountain area in Beijing’s northern Yanqing District, as well as on Mentougou Mountain, located just 100 Y kilometers west of the city’s center. ork T i m es

For these stories and more, check out theBeijinger.com/blog 8 nov/dec 2017 best of the blog best of the blog

6. Activists in Beijing and Wuhan Successfully Spike Art Exhibit That Compared Africans to Animals A Hubei Provincial Museum exhibit in Wuhan this October displayed works by Chinese photographer Yu Huiping, whereby photos of animals and people from Africa were placed side-by-side, in a manner swiftly deemed derogatory. Members of the African expat community in both Wuhan and Beijing rallied together and, via diplomatic channels at embassies in the capital, 5. Spiffed-Up Dirty Bar Street Gets Mixed were able to reach the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Reception as Businesses Struggle to convince them to remove the exhibit. Rebound Lush, freshly planted flowers. Wide, manicured walkways. A perfect place to take your date for a stroll. All of these descriptions would never, ever spring to mind when most Beijingers thought of the strip north of Taikooli infamously nicknamed “Dirty Bar Street,” yet they are now shockingly apt, as rampant construction wound down on the once-wild party throughway.

7. So Crazy, It Might Actually Work: Beijing Proposes Exclusive Cycle Path for Northern Commuters In early October, it was announced that Beijing is considering building a “bicycle highway” that will allow northern residents to commute to downtown areas on their own exclusive road, independent of vehicular traffic. Currently in the research phase, the proposal would construct a dedicated bike path that would begin at Huilongguan, located on the northern arc of Beijing Metro Line 13, and follow through to Shangdi before terminating at Zhongguancun, Beijing’s newly allocated high-tech area. 8. China, China, China, China: US President Donald Trump to Visit Beijing in November The White House confirmed that US President Donald Trump would make his first visit to Beijing on Nov 8, a year to the day since being elected to office, for a three-day visit. The trip will include meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping where the two “will participate in a series of bilateral, commercial, and cultural activities.” According to the White House, the US President “intends to reaffirm his commitment to US allies and partnerships and its leadership in the region.”

9 nov/dec 2017 SCENE & HEARD SCENE & HEARD

Boxing Cat Pop-Up Launch Oct 18, Boxing Cat. Photos courtesy of Boxing Cat

Beijingkids Halloween Party Oct 28-29, Canadian International School of Beijing. Photos by Uni You

10 nov/dec 2017 SCENE & HEARD SCENE & HEARD

The Beijinger Pizza Cup Launch Festival Sep 16-17, Wangjing Soho. Photos by Uni You

11 nov/dec 2017 hough the wall had gone up to cease their business partner Zak Elmasri have relocated their Fangjia rowdiness, Rain and Xiaoshuai refused to be Hutong cocktail bar Fang south to Jiaodoukou, and he Tsilenced. Yes, the renovations of Fangjia Hutong tries to remain optimistic. have long since pushed the respective owners of Cellar “The hutongs are colder and colder,” Xiaoshuai said, Door and El Nido out, turning the once vibrant party alley clearly not referring to the weather. “There’s hardly into a barren byway. But they're both unafraid to speak anything here in Fangjia anymore, except for the public about, and against, what they deem to be business- toilets! Many interesting businesses are gone. But it’s a busting, culture-slaying bricklaying. process. I can’t recover what we had, but maybe we can The pair returned to the now all but empty hutong for keep going and maybe eventually it will be better. After all, a photo shoot and interview in October, a few months I’m still living in the hutongs, and am determined to stay.” after the chai-ing forced them out. Rain said: “Maybe The same can’t be said for many other former street- the authorities think it is good for themselves to not to level business owners like Rain, who plans to move to the have to manage too much, and to get more tax revenue UK with her family. Nor for Ross Harris, who relocated to by making Beijing like a standard international city. But Cambodia after his Beixinqiao Toutiao cocktail bar Más the way they manage the problem is quite brainless was shuttered. Before his departure, he recalls “arguing and careless.” She feels that the citywide street-level with a construction crew trying to keep the front from renovations only benefit prosperous Beijingers. “They being bricked for at least a few more nights. I pleaded just smash down little businesses by using some excuses and got just enough time for a cathartic final few closing

which they themselves know are all lies. Soon the rich, parties.” good, proper Chinese people can just do everything in Such bittersweet farewells for Ross and his Más cohorts the big shopping malls.” were fleeting, however, especially as construction on Rain had spent much of this past summer struggling to Beixinqiao Toutiao began in earnest. He was especially keep her bar Cellar Door open despite both intensifying galled by how laborers sledge hammered and destroyed complaints of the local residents living nearby, colloquially the bar’s bathroom, despite his pleas, in what amounted referred to as “the neighbors,” and renovations that to “a vicious free-for-all with no recourse. If you were partially blocked her business’ doorway, leaving only a licensed and paid taxes like we did, or operated in a DIY small gap through which to peer inside. She cheekily way, it was irrelevant in the end.” set up a ladder outside for patrons to climb onto and Though such refrains reverberated throughout the place their orders, renaming the place Cellar Window, hutongs in 2017, several streetside businesses in Sanlitun but business slowed. In mid-September, she and her and other neighborhoods met similar fates. Claudia neighboring bar and restaurant owners were finally Masüger, CEO of Cheers Wines, recalls how Sanlitun North ordered to vacate. was one of the first haunts to be hit by bricklaying this Xiaoshuai, her neighbor and owner of one of the alley’s past April. Though she has many other branches of her photos:UNi yo u longest-running bars, El Nido, accompanied Rain for the wine shops around town, she says that one was special interview and photo shoot. Despite having lost El Nido because “it was the store which made us famous within after owning and operating it for years, Xiaoshuai and his the Sanlitun area. It was the place to meet friends and

12 nov/dec 2017 have a drink before partying in Sanlitun, a kind of foreplay nightlife without tearing down either.” in the city.” She adds that the bricking up of the area is a Many business owners, like Harris, can sympathize “heartbreaking memory.” in that regard. However, he’s quick to point out: “the Not everyone was sad to see such businesses gone, most affected by demolitions near Más were residents, especially on that ground-level Sanlitun strip once not businesses. Our neighbors lost their front door and occupied by Cheers, the Turkish Doner, and several shops. kitchen. It happened quickly and spiraled into almost a The Beijing Radio 774 FM Lifestyle program, for instance, blood lust, with piles of rubble in every alley.” conducted touching interviews with everyday tenants That’s the kind of nuanced take that hutong historian living in apartments above ground-floor businesses, Zhang Jinqi has spent much of his career on. The Dashilan some of whom contended with backed up plumbing resident and author of numerous books about those because the unlicensed restaurant below didn’t have its famed Beijing courtyards and alleyways says that everyday pipes up to code, while others dealt with so much noise hutong dwellers will, if they don’t already, grow to miss from neighboring businesses that their children had the small shops, restaurants, and other facets of street life trouble studying for the gaokao and other crucial exams. that have been razed along with noisy bars and careless While such sentiments may not have occurred to (and eateries that back up the plumbing of nearby apartments, might give pause to) much of the throngs of foreigners and other businesses that they’d rather see gone. who frequented streetside businesses, little of it comes For Zhang, chai-ing and wall-building are only as a surprise to Michael Meyer. After all, the travel and superficial measures that in no way address the true

history writer began researching such relentless hutong issues plaguing Beijing streetside proprietors and redevelopment more than a decade ago for his 2009 dwellers – incoherent property laws, population book The Last Days of Old Beijing, a project that helped density, and concentration of resources and economic him realize the redevelopment’s “pattern has remained opportunity. Zhang wishes the authorities would focus unchanged since the early ‘90s, when Beijing's modern on all that, rather than chai-ing neighborhood noodles makeover began: a lack of transparency, and no debate shops and hipster expat bars. “Urban ecology must be in public forums or in the media about the shape the naturally born, and it should be like an ecosystem. You city is taking. What's different this time around is the can’t just rely on executive orders, like a grand knife that targeting of businesses which, by and large, were started comes down from on high to carve the solutions out.” by migrants to the city. The hutongs have always excelled Instead, Zhang – like so many other Beijingers that at making more Beijingers; migrants start businesses, prefer vibrant streets to glossy shopping centers – says settle, and buy into the status quo. But officials have long he would at least like to see “more houses and properties wanted migrants out of central Beijing.” in the hutongs of Beijing classified as heritage areas. Meyer goes on to concede that “Beijingers often feel Yes, of course it's harder to protect history than to build like tenants in their own city, unable to shape the place something new. But I feel that the UK, France, Italy, and to their community's needs. No one should have to other countries have done well to solve these problems. live above a noisy bar, but as other global capitals have Although China has many differences from them, I still proven, there are ways to assimilate residences with think we can do it, too.”

13 nov/dec 2017 he shakeup to Beijing’s food and planning, or lack thereof, had beverage industry in 2017 allowed over the past 20 years Twas unprecedented, even of growth. to those most seasoned and Since 2008, there has hardened to the fluid nature of been a conscious decision the scene. For those of us who by the government to watched on, it was difficult polish over some of the to keep up with the closures, more unsightly aesthetic fatality after fatality squeezing details – chai-ing of some owners and taking away their unlicensed properties, the projects of love as authorities painting of walls and doors, swept through the city with a vow repaving of the streets etc. to “beautify” and reclaim. For those – but this newest iteration of directly affected by the tumult, answers the campaign has taken a much were elusive but the results couldn’t be deeper line of attack, prioritizing clearer – windows disappeared, business dried spatial organization through the removing up, and licenses were ultimately revoked. However, doors and reassignment of courtyard entrances, and we can see this episode as more of a reshaping of the making it difficult to predict what comes next. landscape rather than a complete decimation. Many of Rosie Levine of the grassroots NGO Beijing Cultural the businesses that fell have since cut their losses and Heritage Protection Center (CHP) explains that the gone elsewhere to begin again, this time working outside development that is occurring in the hutongs stems of the loopholes and gray areas that Beijing building in some part from the “long-set ideology that hutongs are bad, they’re slums, they’re overcrowded and overpopulated and the future is more in high-rise buildings. Anything that is culturally of value in the hutongs is the aberration, rather than the norm, and that attitude is still quite prevalent in some aspects of city planning in Beijing … It’s a very narrow vision of what the city can look like rather than allowing for the diversity that had blossomed.” Levine subscribes to the official line that the project is in effect an attempt to reduce and cap the city’s population at 23 million, saying, “That would mean removing those migrant workers and laborers who come in and often set up more informal photos: Dave's S t ud io businesses. There’s a general idea of modernization when it comes to the city which doesn’t involve a lot of the things that have been features of the city up until now: smaller local

14 nov/dec 2017 markets and The authorities community-based are well aware of xiaomaibu, preferring that tourist potential, to have all the commerce gradually tapping into happen on main streets rather than in it with large site-specific the hutongs themselves.” F&B businesses renovation projects like Qianmen’s were therefore just one victim swept up by the bricking. Pedestrian Street, Wudaoying, and of course, the Despite being fully licensed, Paca Lee of Fangjia infamous, albeit for different reasons, duo of Nanluogu Hutong favorite Ramo, was one of those forced out, since Xiang and Sanlitun Dirty Bar Street. It’s safe to assume that reopening in a designated business building in Jintai Xilu, once the small fish are out of the way, a standardization Lido. Lee laments having to leave the hutongs, but what of commercial and residential centers will continue to she was most disturbed by was some of the reactions from emerge. people in the neighborhood. Tearing up, Lee describes From these examples, it’s clear that this year was a how, “I saw comments about the bricking [online] that marked departure in the way that businesses, F&B or said this was the best thing that had ever happened. I saw otherwise, would be permitted to operate in Beijing, the worst side of people - lots of people that I don’t even now foregoing hutong-based spaces for larger, more know, not even my neighbors, came and were laughing legitimate premises. The scheme’s opaque workings, outside – people who had nothing to do with it.” Lee coupled with permissions that operate outside of the law adds, “The older generation perhaps see the hutong as mean that the industry will continue to guess where lines somewhere that should be quiet and they prefer it the lie and what steps will be taken next to elevate Beijing to old way. I think most people are happy with the changes the heights of an archetypal city. Thankfully, Beijingers are but Beijing is a modern city – what was best 50 years ago a hardy bunch, and as Elsmari surmises, “I’ve seen stages may not be the same now – it has to change.” where things have gotten tough … but everyone seems Zak Elsmari, a Beijing resident for 11 years and owner to find a way.” of the deceased Fangjia Hutong rendition of his Fang Bar, but who has since moved to Jiaodaokou’s Shoubi Hutong, takes a less sentimental stance. He says he has noticed a shift in the kind of people that were hanging out in Beijing’s alleyways and the proliferation of what he calls “popcorn hutong-goers,” those who frequent trendy watering holes because “it had become a thing.” That’s compared to past patronage; “people who knew their history and knew their language,” a change from “when I would find a small bar that only people in the hutongs knew about or had made the effort to go to.”

15 nov/dec 2017 eijing has seen a lot of changes this year, but is Beijing was just emerging from the Mao era. On the this something new? Beijing has always been in a map, shops are represented by icons, watches for sellers Bstate of flux. Sometimes the busiest areas in one of timepieces, bicycles for those selling pedal-powered era give way to quiet lanes in another. Danish historian transportation and … well, you get the idea. Lars Thom of Beijing Postcards has spent over a decade “It’s not that old, but this book of maps is a fascinating researching the evolution of the capital, tracking the rise historical document,” says Thom. “It triggers so many and fall of the city’s residential and commercial centers memories. You show it to people in the neighborhood from century to century. and they immediately can recall such-and-such a shop, Thom’s research has recently focused on Dashilan, long since gone, but alive in the collective memory of where Beijing Postcards has its new public history space. the local residents.” The neighborhood is a warren of hutongs and lanes According to Mr. Liu, who Thom interviewed for his

located just to the southwest of Qianmen Gate and today’s new research project on the commercial community in PHOTO s: Je n s S chott k nud se n / Bei j i g postcar d s Tiananmen Square. The area was once one of Beijing’s Dashilan, the main shopping drag would be an endless most vibrant commercial neighborhoods, along with stream of consumers. Shoppers would get caught up Wangfujing and Xidan. in the flow of humanity which descended on Dashilan According to Thom, “Items such as leather, shoes, on a daily basis, one stream of pedestrians flowing west, watches, and bicycles could be found in the neighborhood another rolling east, each on their own side of the streets, stores and shops. And the lanes have been a destination so thick were the crowds. for those seeking specialized commodities since the Ming And yet today, areas such as Wangfujing and Dashilan dynasty (1368-1644).” are tourist attractions or afterthoughts to the current On a recent research trip to Japan, Thom found a book generation of Beijing uber-consumers. of Beijing souvenir maps published in 1982, a time when The beginning of the end, according to Thom, was

16 nov/dec 2017 the opening of the new Beijing Railway Station in 1959. This system persisted throughout the first half of the The old train station, built in 1901, was located just 20th century, ending in 1949 with the founding of the outside the Zhengyangmen Gate, close to the Dashilan People’s Republic of China. Neighborhood. The area was the often the first point Thom takes a long view when looking at the changes of arrival for visitors to Beijing and the neighborhood in the city this year. thrived with not only shops, but also guesthouses, taverns, “Going back to the 1950s and 1960s, a lot of the restaurants, temples, theaters, and a lively red light district. development was haphazard and chaotic. Cleaning up the city makes a certain amount of sense; you can’t develop until you do. But the way it has been handled hasn’t always been carried out humanely.” Currently, Thom is working on developing a walk based on his most recent find, combining interviews with local residents and archival research based on the establishments listed on the 1982 Dashilan map. “One place you can find a lot of stuff is Taobao,” Thom says as he holds up documents and artifacts from a long-since defunct local factory. He found the documents by doing a search for the factory name on the popular e-commerce platform and was amazed at what was available. Currently, Thom is displaying some of these artifacts at the Beijing Postcards Public History Space located at 97 Yangmeizhu Street, Dashilan The construction of the new railway station, 2.5 as part of their Beijing Arrivals exhibit. kilometers to the west, shifted the commercial center of gravity in the direction of nearby Wangfujing. But even up until the end of the last century, Dashilan remained an important and bustling space for trade, even as the construction of gleaming new malls and shopping plazas in Chaoyang and beyond signaled a new era of consumer culture. It can be hard running a hutong business in 2017, but in the days of Old Peking it wasn’t any easier opening a shop in your local hutong – in fact, it was in many ways much more difficult. Thom is researching how commercial guilds controlled the trade in different products and services and regulated the opening of shops and businesses in Beijing. “You had to be approved by the guild to learn a trade. There was a strict hierarchy. You started as an apprentice and even that wasn’t easy. You needed to not only find someone to hire you but to also stand as your guarantor. There were quotas and licenses. Just opening your own shop without going through the guild system just didn’t happen.” Renegade shop owners – or bespoke cocktail makers – who tried to buck the system could find themselves in deep trouble with both the city authorities as well as with the guild bosses the authorities relied on to keep economic order.

17 nov/dec 2017 his year’s Dining Hall of Fame inductees are between the Chinese and Indian governments. towering restaurateurs, known not only for the Joining the company of these elite insiders that Tdelectable cuisine of their venues but also their voted them in, prompted Trinh and Chaudhury to charismatic, dynamic personalities. They both brought think back on the feats they’ve achieved in Beijing’s exotic fare from another region to Beijing, and they have ever-tumultuous restaurant scene. also worked to make their restaurants into cultural hubs Trinh tells the Beijinger he and his partner at 4corners, for likeminded throngs to gather. Tavey Lean, “were the first to do a lot of things in this In terms of a space for events, 4corners’ Jun Trinh city. From opening the first Western restaurant bar deep (pictured above) is well ahead of his fellow 2017 in the hutongs, offering the first big band experiences Dining Hall of Fame inductee Gireesh Chaudhury of in the city, unique parties and dining experiences, Punjabi (pictured opposite). Indeed Trinh, a Canadian supporting local crafters, musicians, and martial artists of Vietnamese descent, has worked to make his long- and offering a platform for them to showcase.”

running hutong venue not only a destination for pub Before all that, he was the head chef at Lugas Pho Pho UN I YOphotos:U B EI J I N GER , THE grub with innovative twists and fusion Southeast Asian in the early 2010s, before gaining a name for himself on fare, but also a haven for live music, pub quizzes, and his own, not just through 4corners, but also starring in comedy. And yet Chaudhury should be lauded for his the Chinese travel show Who Will Lend Me a Kitchen? ambitious plans to make Punjabi not only a hub for Chaudhury is also a culinary pioneer worthy of the authentic Indian food, but also a cultural center offering documentary treatment. CCTV did just that a few years official yoga and dance classes as part of a collaboration back, dedicating a segment of their Laowai Not series

18 nov/dec 2017 to the Punjabi proprietor. In the clip, he reminisced about being invited to China in the summers by his father, who owned factories on the Chinese mainland. He found himself swept up in the exotic flair and fast pace of China at the turn of the century, and it didn’t take long for him to be tempted to pursue opportunities here, first at a small Indian joint in Zhejiang run by a Chinese owner looking to sell. From there, Chaudhury ope ned branches across the country. Chinese clientele in the capital especially charmed Chaudhury with their curiosity, recognizing the curry and some other fare, but being shocked by how Indians eat without cutlery. “It’s about breaking the mindset, about education,” he said in the clip, a sentiment that clearly persists through his plans for the forthcoming cultural center. Chaudhury’s success can also no doubt be attributed to, as one tbj reviewer put it, a forgoing of “cut-and-paste Indian dishes like chicken tikka masala” in favor of “light, modern Indian cuisine” like barbecue king prawns, samosa burgers, and more. When asked about his proudest achievements, however, Chaudhury slyly asked: “Does downing a hundred shots of Jägermeister over the years count?” Yes, that down-to-earth, tongue-in-cheek nature is every bit as much a hallmark of Beijing’s biggest restaurant personalities as their creativity and culinary innovation.

19 nov/dec 2017 e started our Dining Hall of Fame back in 2015 Eight Beijing personalities also sit pretty as past as a means to bring light to the unsung heroes recipients of our Dining Hall of Fame award, including Wof Beijing’s F&B scene. Sure, it’s likely that we are Alan Wong, creator of Hatsune, Karaiya Spice House; already familiar with the places being voted in, and we Annie Lee, the founder of Annie’s; Ignace Lecleir, likely visit them frequently when looking for nourishment creator of the esteemed TRB Hospitality Group (TRB from food and service that we can trust, but how much Hutong and TRB Forbidden City); Rich Akers, the do we know about the people behind the scenes, their marketing guru behind Lush, Pyro Pizza, and backstories, and why they chose Beijing as the Gung Ho! Pizza; Avi Shabtai, the founder of city to build their small culinary empire? Peking pita pioneers Biteapitta; Dong In order to dig a little deeper Zhenxiang, the larger-than-life brains as well as honor some of our behind Da Dong Roast Duck; longstanding eateries and Christophe Rovan, proprietor personalities, in mid-October of the French-facing Café we asked F&B professionals de la Poste and O'Steak; – principal shareholders and both Alex Molina and and investors, presidents, or Daniel Urdeneta, for their operations managers – to ongoing efforts as team vote once in an open ballot. Mosto. Each voter, under the condition A few notable leaps have been that they disclose their position, made by the aforementioned F&B put forward 10 individuals and lifers since their induction into our 10 venues that had been involved Hall of Fame; Alan Wong has gone in Beijing’s F&B scene for the past seven on to launch Hana, a new Japanese years (since October 2010). Those people dining concept with a focus on premium and venues that received 50 percent of the vote were raw ingredients in China World Mall; Ignace Lecleir and elected, which this year only encompassed two venues co. will be making their first foray into Sanlitun dining and two individuals (read more about the lucky four in with Hulu, which is due to take over Cantina Agave’s old the adjacent pages). space in early 2018; and a short three months after their Previous winners already include some of the best- induction, Alex Molina and Daniel Urdeneta opened up regarded venues on the scene, including Beijing Duck La Social, tucked just behind Mosto, and Beijing’s answer maestros Da Dong Roast Duck; longtime Japanese to a small slice of Colombia, complete with arepas, potent standby Hatsune; Italian stalwarts Annie's; Nali Patio cocktails, and no-holds-barred dancing late into the night. brunch aficionados Mosto; world-famous xiaolongbao Such rapid advances demonstrate the continuing vigor makers Din Tai Fung; high-end French restaurant Maison and abundance of Beijing’s F&B scene, and for better or FLO (formerly Brasserie FLO); café-by-day, rowdy pastiche- worse indicate a trend of success that is being molded slingers-by-night Café de la Poste; and legendary Belgian by drastic change elsewhere in the city. However, that’s beer bar and pizza pioneer The Tree (which was sadly a not to say the small fish aren’t nominated for success victim of the forced closures that swept through Sanlitun either, which is just one part of what makes these awards in mid-October). so special …

20 nov/dec 2017 side from being this year’s Hall of Fame Venue owner Avi Shabtai told he had been inducted the inductees, one would be forgiven for thinking that Personality category of our Dining Hall of Fame in early AMigas and Biteapitta have very little in common. 2016, he told the Beijinger that his restaurant’s must-tries After all, much of Biteapitta’s appeal stems from the included such Israeli staples as a “mezze platter (a tasting wholesome, affordable Middle Eastern fare (pictured set of 10 unique salads and spreads), hummus and falafel, above) that makes it one of the best bangs for your buck grilled lamb kebabs served with Majadra rice and spinach in Beijing (so much so that it was named “Outstanding patties, homemade lemonana (mint lemonade), not to Value” in our 2016 Reader Restaurant Awards). mention their Middle Eastern coffee and a taste of their Migas (pictured below), on the other hand, is a baklava. Many of the restaurant’s regulars, however, rely devilishly good indulgence, with upscale tapas galore and on Biteapitta for its simple yet dependable falafel pita or chic, elegant décor that makes it a perfect brunch spot chicken shawarma lunch. Filled to near capacity with such to, if not hold court, at least see and be seen. warming, Middle Eastern ingredients, either is sufficient But all this doesn’t mean that both venues are polar to hit the spot when nearly any hunger pain strikes, and opposites – at least not when it comes to their achievements. continue to provide a rare bargain in the increasingly Their menus are testaments to their successes as niche pricey Sanlitun area. restaurants, arguably the best in their respective realms, Shabtai also shares his bread prowess across Beijing different as their approaches may be. Aside from tapas, by selling his pitas in Western markets like April Gourmet Migas’ authentic black rice, grilled octopus, roast chicken and Jenny Lou’s, the Israeli restaurateur demonstrating leg, and other such varied lunch dishes work magic on ways in which he can reach customers all the more transporting patrons’ tastebuds to Spain. Back in 2015, frequently (and adeptly) to further his brand. Migas executive chef Aitor Olabegoya told us he was most has also, of course, branched out from its restaurant proud of the restaurant’s barbecue beef and thoroughly- beginnings, becoming equally well known for its bar, researched seasonal products, including locally provided sprawling terrace, and DJs – both local and burgeoning fresh artichoke and white asparagus. Such offerings have to foreign and world-famous – all under the backdrop of grown and evolved along with the Sanlitun’s lights. By opening their Mercado branch in the restaurant since then, though CBD earlier this year, they now have even greater claim longtime favorites have to some of the best views in town, their new terrace been highlighted, and picture windows capturing the CCTV Tower greatest hits-style, and other skyscrapers among the increasingly on a new set lunch bustling neighborhood. menu that doubles Indeed, by staying true to their regional roots as a showcase while also never shying away from other for Migas’ well- high-risk but ultimately popular endeavors, established both Migas and Biteapitta have more than O F M IGAS U RTESY CO U, YO scope. earned their rightful place in this year’s Dining When Biteapitta Hall of Fame. photos: UN I photos:

21 nov/dec 2017 Sip, nibble, gulp, chew, guzzle, savor, feast

FOODRAMO // LIEVITO // JING-A BREWPUB & XINGFUCUN DRINK // ZHAO DAI // ART DE SWEETS PHOTO co u rtesy O F

THE CUT’S THANKSGIVING DINNER AND TURKEY TAXI The Fairmont Hotel gives you the chance to celebrate Thanksgiving (or Christmas) in the traditional way this year either from the comfort of your own home or in their luxurious The Cut Steak and Seafood Grill. Play host with their exclusive “Turkey Taxi,” which, with THE C U T STEAK A ND SEA F OO D GRI LL 48 hours notice, will deliver a perfectly prepared bird (RMB 1,588, feeds six to 10 people) delivered to your door alongside all the holiday fixin’s: gravy, cranberry sauce, and sides including confit potatoes, glazed red wine cabbage, sweet potato mash with raisins, caramelized apple and chestnuts, or sautéed Brussel sprouts with bacon. You can also opt to add pumpkin and pecan pies. Otherwise, head to The Cut on Thanksgiving (Nov 23) and dig in to a four-course turkey feast for a family of three (RMB 888 net). Fairmont Beijing Hotel, 8 Yong’an Dongli, Jianguomenwai Dajie, Chaoyang District (8507 3617)

22 nov/dec 2017 Nibbles and Sips The Georg has released a new menu for fall and, as usual, the flavors and presentation are both on point. The menu is full of autumnal ingredients like truffles, caramelized onions, and Jerusalem artichokes. The sharing dishes, including a classic beef wellington and tender New Zealand lamb rack, are of particularly good value at RMB 205 per person.

Tribe have also updated their menu for colder climes, adding a series of dishes inspired by the color purple and featuring purple fruits and veggies like beets, red grapes, and purple sweet potato. We’re big fans of the salmon eggs Benedict with beet tofu hollandaise, which comes on potato rosti rather than the usual English muffins (good for gluten-free diners), and the mackerel and arugula salad, with quinoa, pomelo, and roasted root vegetables.

Our other favorite healthy dining venue, Obentos, has also launched their warming winter menu, adding a teriyaki salmon seasonal bento, a grilled chicken salad, and a tuna poke grain bowl, as well as set of bento side dishes, and a number of shared plates, including the best of winter foods: roast pumpkin, charred onion, walnuts, sesame organic tofu, and honey soy glazed mackerel and lotus root.

Hatchery’s newest location at Guomao in Beijing’s Central Business District is currently under construction and is set to launch in late November. The new dining and entertainment concept, called Arcade by Hatchery, will occupy the former F&B space of Trader’s Hotel (now 5Lmeet Guomao at China World) and house two of Hatchery’s validated full-time food concepts, Common Burger and Canteen. They are also expanding to Shanghai, with a space on Huaihai Lu opening in early 2018.

Parkview Green finally has an exciting new opening in the form of Hong Kong restaurant brand The Butcher’s Club, which specializes in grain-fed, dry-aged beef steak imported from Australia, along with burgers made from those beef steaks. It’s brave for a restaurant to try to enter Beijing’s saturated burger market, but those that we’ve tried so far are worthy challengers. Alongside their burgers they also serve salads, steak sets, and duck fat fries.

Also in Parkview Green, Opera Bombana’s bakery counter has reopened after brief renovations, offering a range of desserts and pastries such as pistachio mille- feuille alongside their popular bread selection (our favorite being the rye bread with walnuts).

23 nov/dec 2017 WHAT’S NEW restaurants Ramo Former Fangjia Favorite Goes Family-Friendly in Lido 9-2 Jiangtai Xilu, Chaoyang District (6436 1299) 朝阳区将台西路9-2号 o say it’s been a rough year for Ramo would be an especially standing out), and wholesome sandwiches understatement. In recent years, Paca Lee’s brunch (RMB 58-78). The main attraction will likely still be what Thaven by day, DJ destination by night, was a fixture helped Ramo make its name back on Fangjia: the pizzas. on Fangjia Hutong and known for nourishing eats and Those doughy and generously-topped pies go for flavorful beats in equal measure. Then, once Beijing’s around RMB 100 for a large (give or take, depending on bricklaying laborers were done with it, Ramo was no more, the toppings), and now come with the added bonus of like so many other hutong mainstays in 2017. being made with Italian imported flour. That added care Nevertheless, Lee and her team rolled up their sleeves and effort is certainly reflected in the comfort-rich food, and in record time opened Ramo 2.0 by mid-October. while the approachable pricing still ranks Ramo as an Perhaps even more surprising than the speed with which essential part of your routine, rather than a splurge-worthy this new iteration was readied is just how much it differs occasional indulgence. from its predecessor. For one, it’s way bigger, with a huge First impressions indicate that Ramo 2.0 will satisfy patio, a soon-to-be-completed second floor (with DJ all types – Lido folks looking for a new local with more booth and function space), and nearly double the number personality as well as longtime Ramo devotees that of tables on the ground floor alone than its former Fangjia have missed their favorite brunch and party joint since Hutong haunt. It has also been designed with nearby it was chai-ed. The vastly different location and fancier, residents in mind, the children’s ball pit all but within arm’s yet simultaneously more family-friendly vibe may at reach of the bar, and a space that is positively dog-friendly. first throw Ramo die-hards off, but the bold and colorful On the menu, old favorites like flatbreads (RMB 68) design, friendly service, and same irresistible eats will all and hearty breakfasts (RMB 88) remain, along with new ease that quickly enough. Best of all, it’s exciting to have must-tries like the tastebud-bursting cheese-stuffed seen this well-deserving hutong mainstay survive a tough beef meatballs and spaghetti (RMB 88), a half-dozen year and live on in a grander, more accomplished form. new burgers (the RMB 65 lamb patty with goat cheese Kyle Mullin photo co u rtesy oF RA photos: un i yo u M O

24 nov/dec 2017 WHAT’S NEW restaurants

Lievito Mercante and Fiume Veteran Opens Gourmet Pizzeria by Liangma River Tue- Sun, 11.30am-2.30pm and 5pm-11pm. 1/F, FX Hotel, 39 Maizidian Xijie, Chaoyang District (6585 8927) 朝阳区麦子店西街39号富驿时尚酒店1层

here are creative pizza toppings, and then there’s There’s also a classic selection of more conventional battered fish. Well, battered cod, to be precise. Italian pizzas like the margherita (RMB 68), the bufala dop TLievito’s “south flavors” gourmet pizza is so offbeat (RMB 128, made with sweet Sicilian cherry tomato sauce, that it shouldn’t work, and yet it does. The success of buffalo mozzarella, fresh basil, and extra virgin olive oil), and that creative choice is due to none other than Omar our favorite of the bunch, the 1999 In Love With Pizza, its title Maseroli, a veteran Beijing restaurateur who assuredly referring to a point-in-time recipe that Maseroli’s nostalgia entered the scene back in 2012 with his rustic Italian forced him to try and recreate, featuring sautéed porcini fare at the hutong staple Mercante, following it up with mushrooms, fresh basil, cherry tomato sauce, and buffalo Fiume in Liangmaqiao in 2014. His new Lievito pizzeria mozzarella. The generously filled calzones also proved a neighbors the latter and shares its enviable view of a treat, though we’re fonder of their deep-fried cousin: the tree-lined section of the Liangma River (bookmark this panzerottos. Ranging from RMB 58-88, and made with spot for spring). Otherwise, Lievito differs considerably, the particular yellow flower that Maseroli also uses in his skipping the pastas and slightly upscale features of the handmade spaghetti at Fiume, their texture is a sumptuous older restaurant and zeroing in on a casual, pizza-centric balance between a crisp outside and an indulgently soft and alternative with a sleek, minimalistic ambiance. gooey inside, which, unlike its hulking calzone counterpart, That’s not to say the pies aren’t high-end, with higher- boasts subtler flavors due to more sparing use of ingredients. than-average but still affordable prices. You won’t pay second There’s enough dedicated variety here to satisfy pizza mind though once you sample the rustic, semi-whole-grain lovers on the hunt for something special – most notably dough made with imported Italian flour and toppings – any option on the seafood gourmet page – making Lievito divided into land and sea – that skip the oven and are instead especially distinct in an increasingly crowded Italian culinary marinated, cured (in the case of the ham on the RMB 168 landscape. In that regard, Lievito’s ability to stand out through o u Parma deluxe), or fried (à la the aforementioned fish-topped its lovingly crafted and indulgent offerings is in itself no small U n i Y pizza, which also features capers, Leccina black olives, yellow feat. Kyle Mullin

photo: photo: cherry tomatoes, and Fiordilatte mozzarella, RMB 148).

25 nov/dec 2017 Provincial Government

Shaanxi Provincial Government Restaurant Hearty Food Lacking the Love it Deserves Daily 10.30am-9.30pm. 103, Shaanxi Bldg, Huawei Li East Lane, Chaoyang District (5728 0858) 陕西驻京办餐厅：朝阳区华威里左安东路陕西大厦附属楼103号 f Xinjiang cuisine is the perfect accompaniment to for ultimate flavor satisfaction. hazy summer nights accented with cheap beer and The roujiamo here – what should really be the bastion Ilamb and fragments of cumin lodged deep under the of the entire Shaanxi Prov Gov brand – disappointed with nail to be excavated the next day, then Shaanxi food is a sad, albeit well-spiced, showing of meat and an encasing the hearty reward for rheumy eyes and reddened faces bun that had plenty of potential to serve as a sponge after stomping through a frigid and gray Beijing. During with which to soak up the juices of its sloppy insides, but those wintry months, nothing can beat eagerly pulling was never given the chance, arriving and remaining a dry your gloves off to cradle a roujiamo dripping with gravy, vessel for parched pork. or devouring a steaming and mountainous bowl of Unfortunately, where these two staples had somewhat biangbiang noodles. succeeded in conveying the true spirit of robust, stodge- Sadly, the Shaanxi Provincial Government Restaurant heavy Shaanxi dining, the standard vegetable and meat near Panjiayuan is unlikely to be the place you’ll want to dishes left much to be desired. The dipicai – soft black partake in such simple pleasures given that its yellow fungus fried with scrambled eggs – had the unfortunate décor and curtains, used only to conceal bricked-over effect of mimicking the exact consistency of the eggs windows, do little to mirror the inherent wholesomeness without adding any noticeable flavor, making for a of Shaanxi food and its unmatched soul-soothing abilities. spongy and unappetizing combination. The fatty pork Of the dishes we ordered, the biangbiang noodles with peppers didn’t fare much better, the spice from the – long and wide bouncy tongues of never-ending peppers accounting for just about the only redeeming carbohydrate bliss drizzled in chili oil, chili flakes, and quality of an otherwise oil-drenched dish.

garnished with the requisite too little, too late singular Given that the remainder of the menu consisted of PHOTO : TO M head of bok choi and a sprinkling of chives – was the most items you could find at any old zhongcanting, you’d be gratifying with its slow burn, but weighed in smaller than advised to continue to head to your local noodle haven we’re accustomed to at family-run restaurants. Far more for your fill. They may be a little dirtier but then again, our AR Ns TEI N heinous was the fact that not a single table was adorned waitress did hock a farewell loogie straight into the bin as with the necessary chili or vinegar to be splashed around we left. Tom Arnstein

26 nov/dec 2017 wokipedia A ` y … yin’er 银耳 Jelly-like yin’er (or “silver ear”) mushrooms fall firmly into the “purely textural” category of Chinese ingredients. Like the more common wood ear mushrooms, silver ear mushrooms are usually bought dried then rehydrated in hot water before being added to soups or stir-fries. Silver- ear mushrooms are a yin, or “cooling,” ingredient and are used to combat an excess of hot, yang energy in the body. They are often combined with pears and rock sugar to make a sweet soup that is used to treat dry winter coughs.

… youpomian 油泼面 No Shaanxi-style restaurant menu would be complete without youpomian (literally “oil-splashed noodles”), one of the province’s most famous noodle dishes. Thick, belt-like wheat noodles are cooked until tender then placed in a bowl and topped with ground chili, raw garlic, scallions, and other seasonings. To finish, a ladle of hot oil is poured over the top – the “oil splashing” part of the name. A simple dish, perhaps, but certainly a satisfying one.

… youtiao 油条 Calling youtiao “Chinese donuts” does them a disservice, as these deep-fried delights have a texture and allure all their own. The simple wheat dough is augmented with baking powder or alum to help the youtiao crisp up when they are fried. In northern China, youtiao are colloquially referred to as guozi and you will often find them wrapped inside Tianjin-style jianbing.

… yuenyeung 鸳鸯 This popular Hong Kong drink is perfect for the sleep- deprived, as it combines both coffee and strong milk tea. The name “yuenyeung” (or yuanyang in Mandarin pronunciation) originally refers to Mandarin ducks, which symbolize pairs of unlike items that go together perfectly, as the male and female ducks look very different yet are always seen in pairs. The traditional recipe calls for three parts coffee to seven parts milk tea, although you can often ask to change the ratio according to taste.

27 nov/dec 2017 WHAT’S NEW BARS & CLUBS Jing-A Brewpub Xingfucun Newest Location Exceeds Our High Expectations Mon-Wed 5pm-midnight, Thu 4pm-midnight, Fri 4pm-2am, Sat 11am-2am, Sun 11am-midnight. Lee World Building, 57 Xingfucun Zhonglu, Chaoyang District (152 1090 7612) 朝阳区幸福村中路57号楼利世楼

s a local beer drinker or foodie, you may already be cocktails on tap! All priced at RMB 50 (one of the most familiar with their story: Jing-A started out brewing reasonable prices in Sanlitun), the potent takes on classics Ain their humble 700L facility at The Big Smoke in – mixed by guest bars like The Tiki Bungalow and Mao Mao 2013. They soon flew the coop (in 2014) to open their Chong – include the Mala Mule, margarita, and Cargo Hold, first independent venue: Jing-A Taproom at Courtyard 4, among others. now home to their popular year-round beers, as well as In the kitchen, new chef Andrew Dilda (winner of the their small-batch, seasonal, and experimental brews. Now, People’s Choice prize at the Meat Fight Pro Barbecue Cook- Jing-A has returned to its roots, taking over the Big Smoke Off for the past three years in a row) works his magic on a venue that gave them their start, transforming it into their near-completely revamped menu that consists of authentic, second proper brick-and-mortar location, dubbed Jing-A smoked Texas barbecue, such as sliced beef brisket and ribs Brewpub Xingfucun. (RMB 400) as well as pork in a variety of incarnations: pulled, The spacious, revamped venue consists of several parts: sausaged, and ribbed (RMB 70-130). Those go great with the beer bar with its 16 taps of Jing-A brews (expected to any one of the starters (RMB 30-50): chips and salsa, Lao also house rotating guest beers in the future), high bar stools Ma’s cornbread, crispy Brussels sprouts, loaded fries, wings, and tables along the wall, as well as ample counter space and Jing-A’s Chop Chop salad. Otherwise, go big with a for drinkers to mingle down the corridor. Groups can dine sandwich (RMB 50-70), including barbecue brisket, chicken and sit comfortably in the two large dining rooms, which salad, classic cheeseburger, the “Where’s the Meat?” veggie craftily include a window through to the bar for quick and burger, and the Jing-A BLT. frequent refills. Overall, the welcoming atmosphere, as well as the Another fun addition is the space’s back bar, tucked away on-point beers, cocktails, and food have already helped at the far end of the hallway, and home to extra beer taps solidify this step in Jing-A’s slow and steady evolution as and draft cocktails. Yes, you read us right: cross-eye-inducing one of our favorite go-to brewpubs in Beijing. Tracy Wang photo co u rtesy o f J I N G - A

28 nov/dec 2017 WHAT’S NEW BARS & CLUBS

Zhao Dai Beijing’s Newest Underground Club Gears Up For a Second Run at Greatness Event days, 11pm-late. 1/F, Glass Hotel, 19 Xinyuanli Xilu, Chaoyang District 朝阳区新源里西路19号1层

hen Zhao Dai opened in Xinyuanli at the end lease of life at the beginning of November will see the of September, the anticipation of having a new combined effort of this crew reemerge with a new vigor Wworld-class underground club among Beijing’s and determination to provide Beijing with a simple but electronic music lovers and partygoers was palpable. effective design: a safe space for club-goers wanting When opening night arrived, however, it was sadly marred to live out their dance fantasies (ergo the no-camera by a number of issues that tempered what had otherwise policy, see above), a place for open- and like-minded promised to be a new shot of life into the scene, not least people to gather and escape their lives outside (ergo because its second-floor basement location was far too the door policy), in a venue with minimal intervention hot, but also because it was proving a police magnet, and or the presence of buzz-killing security (ergo a hands-off most egregious of all, the much-hyped Void Acoustics approach from the powers that be once you’re inside). sound system had apparently shaken the walls off their For guidance, management have looked toward some fixings and provided them an unwanted and violent of Germany’s most cherished clubs – Berlin’s Berghain rattling voice from all sides. or Frankfurt’s Robert Johnson, for example – taking a After a forced closure, in part to fix what needed minimalist approach to providing as close to an all- to be fixed but also because of the city’s late-October encompassing dance night as possible through the thing crackdown on organized fun, the dream team of Gouzi, that counts most: the sound. In the eyes of Zhao Dai, it’s founder of Yugong Yishan; Fu Yan, co-founder of the now- the sound that carries the weight of club culture and defunct but renowned White Rabbit and Haze clubs; and reverberates among those looking for an experience not Zhi Qi, founder of Beijing-based promoter Shadowplay, necessarily yet found in China. It is their hope that over and the Goethe-Institut’s Carmen Herold, acting as time, with small counsel of their own through rigorous music directors, regrouped to put right the venue’s programming and provision of a utilitarian and egalitarian shortcomings and address the compromises that had space, Zhao Dai will influence the next generation of been made for a premature opening – an admittance that Chinese beatmakers and their listeners. That’s no small

AR N STEI the journey to prestige doesn’t come after one, slightly pledge, but there’s little doubt (and much hope) that once wonky, sweat-drenched night. the kinks are ironed out, the wherewithal to do just that Determined to do right, it’s clear that Zhao Dai’s second will be firmly in place. Tom Arnstein M TO photo:

29 nov/dec 2017 Back for more Karaiya Spice House ‘Foreigner-Friendly Hunan Food’ Maintains Eight-Year-Strong Reputation in the Heart of Sanlitun Daily 11.30am-10pm. S9-30, 3/F, Taikooli Sanlitun South, Chaoyang District (6415 3535) 辣屋湖南料理：朝阳区三里屯太古里南区3层S9-30

all us exhibitionists, but when dining out with ambiance, presentation, and English menu might have friends, we love to order the kind of dishes that been prepared with foreigners in mind, the spice level of Celicit gasps of delight when they hit the table; the the dishes might still put the fear into fresh-off-the-boat pork ribs with peanuts and pickled vegetables (RMB 168) visitors. This is particularly true of the stone pot mapo at Karaiya Spice House is one such dish. The long ribs form tofu (RMB 48), which has a sharper chili heat than the a bridge on the plate, just waiting for you to dive in with tongue-tingling Sichuan version many of us will be used your chopsticks and pick off the meat, which is so tender to. Luckily, the menu is marked with a handy spice scale that even those with tenuous chopstick capabilities will so you can avoid the fieriest dishes if necessary, although be able to strip the bones clean. those that do brave the spice will be rewarded with great Those pork ribs have been on the menu since Karaiya flavors, such as the salty-sharp heat of the steamed fish first opened in Taikooli (then known as The Village) in 2009 with two-toned pickled chilies (RMB 188-288). and our recent revisit demonstrated that they and many Karaiya’s refined atmosphere and affordable-if-higher- other dishes are just as good as they were eight years ago. than-average prices make it a great spot for a special Previous reviews have often described Karaiya as occasion, especially when you add in a fairly broad wine serving “foreigner-friendly Hunan food” and while the list and Jing-A beers on tap. Robynne Tindall phot O CO U RTESY O F KARAIYA SPICE HO U SE

30 nov/dec 2017 p.s. we ate you float like a fruity smoothie bowl Tribe, RMB 58 In addition to looking great, this Float Like a Fruity Smoothie Bowl embodies Tribe’s purple winter theme, which in this case comes from butterfly tea powder, an Asian flower that has become popular for its iridescent and organic coloring as well as purported anti-aging qualities. Quinoa is added to the base of the slightly-sweet smoothie bowl, and fruits and nuts sit on top, making for a more filling breakfast than your average fruit and milk blend. face-off coffee Vase, RMB 40 More of a novelty item than anything you’d actually really want to buy for your morning coffee fix, Xingfucun’s Vase café allows patrons to scan their face (or, more highly recommended, a picture of their face), which is then rendered in all its frothy glory into the foam of your chosen coffee to be consumed one weird gulp at a time. If those vorarephilic tendencies don’t do it for you, head upstairs to buy some pretty flowers instead in the adjoining florist.

300g steak Meat Mate, RMB 100-300 (depending on the cut) Now that the floodgates of US beef imports have been blown well and truly off their hinges, Beijing is slowly realizing its steak lover’s dream. Meat Mate is just one of many restaurants now cashing in on such provisions, albeit dabbling in the Australian variety, lining its walls in Indigo Mall with fridges packed with high-quality beef, waiting to be cut and sizzled into the perfect steak. Beautifully sautéed, our ribeye had a golden-brown outside and a nice pink inside and needed no sauce to boost its juicy texture and bold flavors. grilled gruyere cheese toastie and tomato soup Boxing Cat Pop-Up, RMB 65 Sometimes nothing beats a crunchy toastie that’s overflowing with cheese, whole grain mustard, and sweet pickled onions, which is exactly how Boxing Cat’s rendition of this down-home American classic comes. Pair it with a creamy tomato soup with a dollop of pesto and a pint of King Louie Imperial Stout for good measure, and you’ve got yourself a combination fit to see you through Beijing’s numbing winter.

31 nov/dec 2017 Just Desserts

Art de Sweets Edible Jewels That Shine Bright Like a Diamond Daily 10am-10pm. L1-51, 18 Jiuxianqiao Lu, Indigo Mall, Chaoyang District (6437 9599) 朝阳区酒仙桥路18号颐堤港购物中心L1-51

t’s clear that Eatalia Group is dedicated to all things possibly taste as perfect as it looks. This diamond is, delicious and beautiful. Alongside their art gallery-slash- unfortunately, not forever; after admiring the shiny, Irestaurant space Galleria, and their flagship Roman- geometrically flawless eye candy, you must break the style pizza restaurant Eatalia, the team continues in their hard red-dyed white chocolate crust to spoon out the aspiration to make great-looking food with perhaps their soft inside of passion fruit and black tea cream, which is most ambitious project yet: Art de Sweets in Indigo Mall. well worth the pain of breaking this gemstone. Bookmark The space itself is bright and elegant, decorated with this one for your bestie or fiancé. marble and bronze, and reflecting their pursuit of culinary The chocolate whisky macaroons (RMB 22), in addition and visual art. The desserts are displayed similarly to how to looking gorgeous, come with a strong alcoholic kick a jewelry store or a design shop would present their thanks to the whisky-infused crème, balancing out the wares – lined up in a spotless, brightly-lit glass counter, bite-sized cake’s overall sweetness. The passion fruit with white-gloved staff ready to serve and pristine white and black tea macaroons substitute booze for zest and

tables at which patrons can carefully inspect, appreciate, were equally easy on the eyes. The millefoglie al tiramisu photos CO U RTESY ART D E S W EETS and eat their purchases. (RMB 56), with its spongy base, creamy and flaky layers The eye-catching sweets include macaroons (RMB 22), of millefoglie, strong coffee notes, and a velvety topping éclairs (RMB 26), pastries (RMB 8-18), and desserts made left us too full and satisfied, truth be told, to taste anything in collaboration with the 3D Food Company using 3D else.We therefore left the hazelnut diamond cake (RMB printing technology (RMB 48-65). The most breathtaking 65), peach cake (RMB 48), and the apple cheesecake (RMB of the bunch is their stunning 3D-printed red diamond 56) for next time. cake (RMB 60), which had us doubting whether it could Not everything here is glitz and glamour though, and if

32 nov/dec 2017 Just Desserts

you do choose the humble route, there are also croissants (RMB 12-18), fruit Danishes, pretzels (RMB 8), baguettes (RMB 15), and coffee (RMB 22-36), as well as birthday cakes (RMB 369-420) on offer. Whatever your need, Art de Sweets makes for a bakery sure to leave your belly full and your eyes dazzled by some of the best-looking treats Beijing has ever seen. Tracy Wang

33 nov/dec 2017 MAOVEMBER

Hairy Charity Practices Grow Your Fluff to Raise Money for Maovember

Using small change for big change is the principle Maovember is also a spin on the annual “Movember” behind the annual Maovember charity campaign. The charity initiative, during which men worldwide grow “mao” refers to the coins worth a tenth of a renminbi – mustaches throughout November, more than a few not much on their own, but they add up quickly. The events revolve around facial hair. In any case, Maovember idea is that minor donations can lead to major results. policy is that all work is done by volunteers and, in turn, Since Maovember launched in 2013, it has helped with all funds raised go to charity. everything from furnishing reading rooms in needy Given its focus, Maovember attracts a diverse group schools to financing cataract surgeries for the elderly in of supporters, including many entrepreneurs. This rural China. mish-mash of people typically results in a campaign This year’s campaign runs the duration of November, with elements of chaos and creativity – for example, a from the pin launch party that took place at XL Restaurant simple event last year to decide whether or not Thierry & Bar on Nov 1 to the closing bash at Paddy O’Shea’s on de Dobbeleer, then owner of Beer Mania, should shave Nov 30. The charity partners are The Library Project, which his substantial beard. Expected to be a low-key affair, it furnishes those reading rooms, and Bread of Life, a bakery saw a flurry of activity and passionate debate between that trains and employs disabled people. And while the the “shave” and “no shave” camps that raised over RMB campaign started in Beijing, events have since been held 20,000, nearly 10 times the anticipated amount. (In case photo co u rtesy o f the orga n izers in other major cities like Shanghai, Taipei, and Tianjin. you missed it, the “shave” vote won and Thierry had his Maovember is a team effort between bars, restaurants, beard lopped off immediately after the money was suppliers, and customers. While some funds are raised counted.) This kind of event, featuring an entrepreneur, via personal donations and Maovember pin sales, most more than a hundred donors and a great deal of fun, is come from events. The strategy is for bars, restaurants what Maovember is all about. or shops to feature a drink or food special as well as an You can find more info on this year’s campaign at activity like a pub quiz, a road hockey shootout or a poker, thebeijinger.com and maovember.com. corn toss or beer pong tournament. Given that the name

34 nov/dec 2017 2017 pizza cup Pie Squared A Worthy Winner of This Year’s Pizza Cup Champion Title By Tom Arnstein

his year’s Pizza Cup proved to be one hell of a ride and one not left unscathed by upset and drama (hey, Twhat kind of competition would this be without some tears?) with underdogs Pie Squared snatching the title of Pizza Champion from reigning champions Bottega, who placed a close second. The Shunyi-adjacent Pie Squared's ascent up the rankings saw them knock down the likes of Eudora Station, Great Leap, and Gung Ho!, before clinching victory from the formidable Bottega. The win is even more admirable given the final two venues' varying trajectories over the past year, with Bottega going from strength to strength, opening not one but two new venues, including their massive 180-plus-seat space in Xinyuanli. But even that was not enough to unravel Pie Squared, which, since its founding in 2013, has been quietly building a dedicated following among Shunyi residents as well as pizza lovers in general, a spectacle that was obvious at this year’s Pizza strong foothold in that expat-rife neighborhood over Festival, where a perpetual line snaked from their stand the years, through his work and sponsorship of sports on both days of the event. leagues such as Beijing International Ice Hockey (BIIH). Their success at the Pizza Festival may very well have Word quickly spread among the area’s American-centric been Pie Squared’s breakthrough in the eyes of many residents of Gillespie’s warm demeanor and his “taste of Beijingers who queued up to try it for the first time. After home,” authentic Detroit-style pizzas. all, the pizzeria currently only delivers in the Shunyi area That pizza in itself is noteworthy for its square shape, via its own drivers, limiting its exposure compared to many a byproduct of spare industrial parts trays being used of its competitors. Owner Asher Gillespie has secured a to bake the pizzas back in 1940s Detroit, according to the city’s lore, and delectable for the cheese that slowly bubbles outwards as the dough rises, finally caramelizing on the pizza’s chewy crust. Looking back at this year’s competition and the way the votes fell, it’s apparent that the Pizza Cup changed just as many hearts and minds as it did expand voters’ waistlines, with 87 percent of voters stating that they learned about new pizza restaurants, and 77 percent went out to try new pizzerias they had not tried before. In the process, nearly half (48 percent) changed their opinion on their favorite pizza in Beijing. Interestingly, all of the top 12 pizzerias in the final rankings were locally born and bred – a testament to the character, class, and vitality of Beijing’s food and beverage scene. And with that, Pie Squared becomes our fourth different champion in the five years we’ve held the annual poll, joining Bottega (2016), Gung Ho! (2014 and 2015), u un i yo and Kro’s Nest (2011). Congratulations to them for joining

photo: photo: the greats!

35 nov/dec 2017 advertorial

InfraRouge All-New Gastro-Lounge Lights up Taikooli North Daily 11.30am-11pm (restaurant), 6pm-2am (club). 3-5/F, N8, Taikooli Sanlitun North, Chaoyang District (6468 1619) 朝阳区太古里北区N8 3-5层

aikooli Sanlitun North, which has been hovering on the Taikooli North and the Intercontinental Sanlitun in the distance edge of our radar for some time now, was finally cemented once the sun goes down. The menu transitions from day to night Tas a landmark destination for Beijing’s discerning gourmets as smoothly as the space, from competitively-priced business and lovers of the good life early this fall with the opening of lunch sets to Instagram-worthy afternoon teas to exclusive à la InfraRouge, the maiden Beijing venture from Shanghai-based carte evening dining. VOL Group, operators of renowned Bar Rouge. After finishing dinner, ascend the brass-framed feature Located on the third and top floors of one of Taikooli staircase to the top floor, where Beijing’s premier new party spot Sanlitun North’s central towers, InfraRouge presents itself as awaits. InfraRouge, infrared in French, is designed with those a “gastro-lounge” that offers guests an all-in-one dining and seductive hues as its central color tone, mixed with a variety nightlife experience. Their restaurant can be found on the third of textures and materials to create an environment that, just floor, offering contemporary French cuisine, while the lounge like its namesake light, radiates out into Beijing. InfraRouge’s and club on the top floor carry the spirit of InfraRouge’s sister team of talented mixologists mix delicious cocktails that, along brand, Bar Rouge. If you’ve ever been out for a night on the with a roster of international DJs, are sure to get you up onto tiles in Shanghai, then it is highly likely that you will have paid the starkly lit, jet-black-painted dance floor. Fans of Bar Rouge’s a visit to Bar Rouge, a Bund-side bar and nightlife hotspot that popular themed parties will be excited to hear that InfraRouge demonstrates the pedigree that InfraRouge is bringing with is bringing them to Beijing, including their signature Thursday them from Shanghai to Beijing. In addition to Bar Rouge, VOL night ladies night and their infamous jungle party, when the Group operates a number of popular restaurants, including Mr space is transformed into a tropical rainforest of vines and trees photo co u rtesyu ge o f i nf raro & Mrs Bund and Ultraviolet by Paul Pairet, which was awarded and becomes a home for Beijing’s wildest party animals. three Michelin stars by the 2018 Michelin Guide to Shanghai. From lunchtime, through to pre-dinner cocktails and on into This culinary DNA is on display at InfraRouge’s restaurant, the night, InfraRouge is a one-stop shop for those who enjoy which serves contemporary French dishes with the occasional the finer things in life. Suffice it to say that InfraRouge – with its Far Eastern twist. The restaurant is the perfect spot at any time understated yet elegant touch of red – is silently capturing the of day: The south-facing floor-to-ceiling windows offering ample hearts of pleasure-seekers in Beijing. natural light in the daytime and a view of the sparkling lights of

36 nov/dec 2017 Things to do, places to be, stuff to try

GO THIRSTY GHOSTS // PINGYAO // LUANG PRABANG // VINTAGE SHOPPING

The Elimination of Violence Against Women Art Exhibit Nov 25-Dec 10 – The organizers behind the China Women’s Film Festival (CWFF) return with their annual art exhibit, focusing this year on the comic books Priya’s Shakti and Priya’s Mirror. The Mirror installment tells the story of how Priya, a rape survivor, joins forces with victims of acid attacks in an empowering tale that also borrows aspects of Hindi mythology. Key panels and pages from the comics have been enlarged and framed for the exhibit, and author Ram Devineni will be on hand for discussions and various related events throughout the week. The Crossroads Center photo courtesy of the organizers of courtesy photo

37 nov/dec 2017 FEATURE

“I’m not from here to meet and complete an illegal purchase that evening, but people tell me it’s not like followed that up by yelling out in his best Animal House it used to be impression: “Yo! Edu! My Man!” The dealer scowled and they say I should have been here back about 10 years ago ducked down an alley. before it got ruined by folks like me.” “He doesn’t seem very friendly,” my half-bright classmate reported. B., turned, took a long drag of his – James McMurtry, “I’m Not From Here” Zhongnanhai 10, and suggested, not unkindly, that even in Sanlitun, drug dealers generally don’t like their names I remember my first time visiting Sanlitun South Bar shouted down busy streets. Street nearly 15 years ago. It was Saturday night and I Those days – and that street – are, of course, long took a date. Not one of my better ideas. My then date/ gone. Replaced by “A New Age” and Sanlitun Soho, future wife looked down the neon-lit lane of drug dealers, respectively. When South Bar Street was finally torn down, hookers, drunken retching, and general depravity, turned we lamented that Beijing’s nightlife would never be the to me and said, “This is what my whole country would same. The fun was gone. The dream was over. look like if Chiang Kai-shek had won the war.” Sometimes change can be good. I miss South Bar Street I was still in school so this was a group date (also not a lot, but it was the kind of place where backroom drug my best idea). Several of my fellow Chinese language negotiations were sometimes sweetened by an offer to learners had joined us for the evening. One of those buy a knock-off Glock. (True story. One also involving, not classmates, B., a little savvier and more experienced in the coincidentally, my friend B.*) ways of South Bar Street in the early Naughty Aughties, Time of death has been prematurely called on Beijing’s saw a friend/dealer of his and discreetly waved. One of nightlife so many times that it’s worth perhaps taking a the less savvy – and drunker – classmates, with an intent few deep knee-bends and a round of Qigong breathing before we call it again. Yeah, the Great Brickening sucked. Especially for the people who were working in the businesses affected. But you know what? Life goes on. Old places move. Ramo just had a soft opening near Lido; Slow Boat and Arrow Factory are pulling beers in larger, and frankly more comfortable, Chaoyang locations. There are still bars in the hutongs, just not as many and that is, frankly, sad, but not surprising. PHOTO s: B RUCE CONNO LL Beijing has always been a city in flux. Bar streets rise, clubs close. If you want a fun history lesson, go back through the past winners of this fine magazine’s Y

38 nov/dec 2017 FEATURE

Bar and Club Awards or the archives of Beijing Boyce. For all the stalwarts of this city’s F&B scene, the records are littered with the names of the hundreds of fallen. Some burned brightly for a moment, some became fixtures, many others barely registered a blip on our collectively pickled livers. Every new crop of fresh-faced arrivals getting off the plane in Beijing with their Chinese chengyu and unscarred internal organs revels in finding the perfect hidden bar emblematic of their unique connection to the “real” Beijing. Then when that closes, gets raided, commercializes, starts doing pub quizzes or showing re- caps of popular TV shows, the word goes out that Beijing is dead. It is Westernized. It is Pyongyang-ified. This sole oasis of culture has dried up, only desert remains. I know. I was that guy in my 20s. And my 30s. And my 40s. No mas. Dirty Bar Street is now a flower garden. Fangjia Hutong is a throughway for douchebags in SUVs looking for a shortcut to Guijie. The Den has been renovated into a brand-new abandoned building. We mourn. We pour one out. We go to the bar next door. It’s been a tough year for Beijing, no doubt. But I have a feeling that in 2022, those of us who are still here will tell the newbies coming in for the Winter Olympics about how you really should have been here back in 2017 when things were really rocking. The one constant is change. The big difference in Beijing is the speed of that change and the suddenness with which policies shift. But all cities evolve. Beijing does it perhaps faster than most and maybe not always for the better, but the more you live here, the more you realize that half the excitement is simply being along for the ride.

39 nov/dec 2017 get out

hen a friend described Pingyao to me as the “Dali of the north,” I didn’t quite know what to expect. Sure, Dali is a beautiful ancient Wcity, but one that failed to capture my imagination, which I put down to visiting 10 years too late or not being stoned out of my mind. However, while the comparison to Yunnan’s backpacker escape du jour wasn’t completely incorrect, driving the short distance from the train station through the neon glitz of Pingyao’s western district to the old walled city – considered the best-preserved in the whole of China – didn’t prepare me for how remarkable it would actually be. PHOTO s: W I LL G riffith, T om arnstein om

40 nov/dec 2017 and servants ever saw each other, which was maybe the point. Seven kilometers out of the city lies the UNESCO Heritage Site of Shuanglin Temple (RMB 35). At 1,500 years old, the temple is most notable for the 2,000- plus Ming dynasty terra-cotta and wood sculptures that are crammed into its halls and still cling to their original and vibrant colors. The surrounding intricate dragons, flames, and symbols give each Bodhisattva the impression of being enveloped by a stalagmite-riddled cave while hundreds of smaller figures look on, half threateningly and half at peace. As for accommodation, the city center has no shortage of guesthouses, but a good bet, and one of the newer openings (albeit still within a near-300- year-old courtyard) is the City Wall Old Sitting a four and a half-hour train ride west of Beijing, House, a two-bed en suite costing RMB 298. An added in Shanxi province, Pingyao has managed to escape the bonus of staying here is that the owner, Baal, a Beijinger, commercial ravaging of cookie-cutter tourist shops and is no stranger to adventure and if you ask kindly, he may dead-behind-the-eyes bongo drummers that similar take you out to one of his finds: an outer-lying abandoned cities have fallen victim to. What you have instead is village, buildings from which date to the beginning of local tourism that is, for the most part, restricted to the the Qing dynasty, their residents having since relocated intersecting North, West, East, and South Streets, and to more comfortable dwellings nearby. therefore easily avoidable (especially in the off-season, A visit to Pingyao during its colder months is a surefire minus the buggies that zoom every which way, carting way to avoid the hordes (and admittedly get your fair groups between destinations in lieu of taxis). However, share of coal-filled lungs) but its abundant sights and they do act as the best place to sample the local delicacies: unmatched feel make it a truely “ancient” Chinese city, daoshaomian “knife-cut noodles,” and Pingyao salt-cured matched by none. beef, which are not wholly dissimilar to corned beef, dipped in soy sauce. Belly now full, explore the one square mile of largely untouched Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644- 1911) dynasty architecture – composed of 3,700-plus courtyards, shops, and temples – surrounded by the largely original 600-year-old wall (enter via a single RMB 130 ticket, purchased at various locations across the city, and valid for three days). Pay particular attention to how high each structure’s surrounding walls are or if they boast a tall, curved entranceway for horses, both indicators of how affluent the founding residents had been. For a singular and exquisite example of the lofty wealth some of Pingyao’s Qing-era aristocracy achieved (the city was home to China’s first banks) head to the Ma Zhongxuan residence. Only open to the public since 2014, the Ma household was constructed in the formation of the character for horse, “马”, and contains 197 rooms; a warren of chambers, stairs, and balconies that boggle the mind as to how merchant Ma, his three wives, children,

41 nov/dec 2017 he UNESCO World Heritage city of Luang Prabang in northern Laos is close enough to Beijing for a long weekend getaway, yet feels a world away. Sitting at the confluence of the Mekong and Nam Khan Rivers, the sleepy city Tis a wonderful blend of gilded Buddhist wats and crumbling colonial architecture. China Eastern offers four flights per week to Luang Prabang from Kunming. If you are traveling in the rainy season, be aware that flights on this route are often cancelled due to unpredictable weather, so you may want to consider flying via Bangkok instead. photo: w ikimedia

42 nov/dec 2017 What to see: The best way to experience what Luang What to eat: Even if you haven’t visited Laos before, many Prabang has to offer is simply to wander the streets of of the signature dishes of Lao cuisine – green papaya the peninsula where the Nam Khan meets the Mekong, salad, larb, sticky rice – will be familiar to fans of the cuisine stepping in and out of temples and stopping for a coffee of neighboring Thailand, as there has been considerable and croissant in one of the many French-influenced cafés. interplay between the two cuisines. Popular dishes local Rise with the sun to catch the alms-giving ceremony, to Luang Prabang include deep-fried river weed with chili when locals gather and kneel along the street to offer sauce, roasted eggplant and chili dip, and or lam, a mildly food to the city’s more than 200 resident monks. Visitors spicy and bitter stew flavored with a type of peppery are welcome to take part, but the ceremony is a sacred local wood bark. To learn more about the flavors and affair so be sure to be respectful – wear modest clothing, ingredients used in Lao cuisine, take a hands-on cooking keep your distance, and don’t use flash photography. If class and market tour organized by Tamarind restaurant you want to learn more about Luang Prabang’s history and (approx. USD 35), held in a beautiful garden just outside culture, adventure and eco tour providers Green Discovery of the city. offer half and full-day heritage tours in Luang Prabang. Where to stay: Luang Prabang is crammed with boutique hotels and guest houses, most at the mid- to high-end of the price spectrum. On the Nam Khan side of the peninsula, Burasari Heritage offers well-appointed rooms in charming traditional Lao teakwood houses (the on-site spa is also excellent). Note that if you want a hotel with a swimming pool, you may need to stay slightly outside of the peninsula due to planning restrictions. However, this won’t be a hardship in a hotel like the Luang Say Residence, which has five pavilions spread out among lush gardens, a 15-minute walk from the center of the peninsula.

43 nov/dec 2017 his year certainly wasn’t lacking in shows; from both to the likes of this year’s Self Criticism exhibition, Inside the old, well-established art spaces around town, to Out grabbed our attention for its role as an incubator the newcomers that helped map out contemporary for innovative curatorial approaches. In Self Criticism, a

T PHOTO s courtesy of m Woods, I nside- art production in China via thought-provoking shows. series of smaller exhibitions were comprised within a However, there are three spaces that stood out in larger macro exhibition concept; curators were invited particular in 2017, in part thanks to their consistency to generate ways in which to involve people in a self- in the face of ever-changing circumstances and fickle criticism process and allow them, according to the curator, political winds, and their ability to find new ways to convey to “transcend the constant flux of information and events evocative messages and engage audiences. Some did so that bury their sense of awareness and the much needed by catering to viewers’ most hedonistic side – appealing action to produce change.” to their acute sense of criticism – or by creating room for In order to achieve the desired effect, the exhibitions conversation about not-so-commonly addressed issues were laid out without clear limits, connecting them O ut M useum, UCCA within the Chinese mainland art scene. in unexpected ways. One of the standout pieces was Our first hat tip goes to Inside-Out Museum (IOM), a “Adequate Instructions,” a video installation of Alvin Tran’s nonprofit museum that opened in 2007 and, after two work, curated by Yuan Fuca and Han Xinyi. In the story, moves, is now located in the northeast of the city. Home the protagonists stage a representation of the awakening

44 nov/dec 2017 of consciousness in robotic creatures that go on to fight Particularly remarkable among the new works at humans within a Westworld-inspired subtext. the gallery space is “Electromagnetic Brainology,” an Perhaps the piece that garnered the most attention installation that incorporates motion sensor technology was the sound-art project curated by Edward Sanderson, and is displayed in a sort of temple-like arranged space “Grounds for Sound,” in part thanks to Rong Guang that blends together the world of the sacred and the Rong’s intense but quite remarkable metaphor through profane (a regular theme in the artist’s work). In the video and sound installation of the violent tension video installation, Lu Yang personifies four deities and between confronted needs and realities. Through these pieces, IOM’s remote, lone-standing space solidified its worthy standing through a strong group of curatorial respondents. M Woods, founded in 2014, has this year made noteworthy strides into the local art arena thanks to its approach of combining exhibitions with a particularly diverse program of related activities. This netted consideration from art aficionados as well as a younger crowd looking for new experiences in art-related spaces. One such experiment was the well-received (albeit hard- on-the-wallet) FAT Music Festival (pictured opposite), held in unison with some of Beijing’s finest live music venues Lu Yang's "Encephalon Heaven" at M Woods – DDC, Temple, School Bar, and Fruityspace – cleverly drawing out crowds from their Dongcheng havens and introducing them to the gallery. In addition, 2017 has seen superheroes, and different areas of the human central talks, educational programs, vintage bazaars, experimental nervous system, bringing a sort of intersection between food fairs, and noise shows occupy the space – you name superstition and cutting-edge science. The characters it, they’re doing it. dance in choreography inspired by the games found in Whether these complementary activities grip you or any respected arcade game center while combating the not, M Woods is also building its name by hosting young troubles of mankind. artists that encapsulate the China zeitgeist. For example, Following the news of the UCCA’s recent ownership Shanghai-born new media artist Lu Yang’s Encephalon deal, we look forward to seeing how one of the most Heaven (through Feb 11) solo exhibition – the first for reliable art providers in the city expands on its vision of a Chinese artist at the space – made up of three new contemporary and diversified programming given the commissions alongside many of the artist’s previous works new resources and renovations promised by its new in sculpture, film, installation, performance, and even administration. Since its opening in 2007, the center video games. Yang’s visions are worlds in themselves and has brought a stream of shows (approximately 100 are heavily populated by a constellation of “pan-cultural” exhibitions since its founding, according to its website), creatures influenced mainly by Buddhist and Hindu The New Normal (or as its Chinese title dubbed it, State iconographies, neuroscience-imbued concepts, and of Exception) early in the year remained one of 2017’s anime-styled references. All this is presented with a touch Beijing art highlights. That show brought a constellation of dark comedy and the visual impact of popular culture. of emerging artists to the scene with works that explored the status of art today against a set of unprecedented social realities experienced worldwide. The UCCA in that regard, still has the ability to showcase critical works that no other space would be able to flaunt so easily. On a final note, the UCCA’s open program offers opportunities to engage in themes and topics that are not part of the ongoing discussion at big institutions. Recently, for example, we were able to catch a glimpse of Inivisible, a series of talks, panels, and screenings dedicated to raising awareness about the current status of queer art, filmmaking, and the spaces where LGBT realities are visible (and where they are absent) in the city. We hope the edgier aspects of their programming continue to grow inside-out museum bolder with new themes and questions that are relevant to the current world and its anxieties.

45 nov/dec 2017 feature

t should hardly come as a surprise that finding a genuinely old object is a serious mission in Beijing. And we’re not even talking about antiques, but 30- to 40-year-old knickknacks that aren’t simply shabby-chic looking things (just Istroll through Nanluogu Xiang or the other “fixed-up” hutongs). Sadly for those “there’s-beauty-in-the-old” types, it seems like the general Chinese public is not yet a fan of fixer-uppers, in part perhaps due to the inauspiciousness of owning secondhand clothes. Nevertheless, it is indeed possible to organize a weekend walk around the hutongs dedicated to vintage shopping. Pro tip: If you are looking for an authentic secondhand (二手, ershou) piece, always ask the shop personnel to make sure your eyes aren’t fooling you.

Base Vintage Best for: Men’s clothes It might not be the most suitable-for-all vintage store, but boy is it cute. While their Gulou Dongdajie neighbors have their skirts and ties arranged by colors and patterns, Base Vintage is extremely cluttered, slightly messy, and damp. Disclaimer: You might need to go in alone and walk sideways – just how real vintage shopping should be! This tiny two-story shop uses every possible centimeter of space and certifies its authenticity with the photo S : b ike adventures, unmistakably musty smell when you first walk in. Besides racks of leather jackets and coats, you can also find a solid collection of backpacks and some vintage designer labels. Bags mostly come from Europe while other clothes are

usually imported from Japan. Prices are slightly lower TAUTVI L E DAUGE L AITE than high-street vintage brands and hover around RMB 300-400 with designer bags starting from RMB 700-800. Daily 5-10pm. 11 Dajingchang Hutong, Dongcheng District 东城区大经厂胡同11号

46 nov/dec 2017 Beixinqiao Secondhand and Antiques Best for: Vintage bicycles Retro-style Flying Pigeon (Fēigē) and the fancier Phoenix (Fènghuáng) bikes have long been staples among older hutong residents, since catching on between their younger, hipper brethren. While both varieties are attainable on Taobao, they can also be picked up right by Beixinqiao Subway (Exit D), between the convenience store and the bakery. The dusty gray store stocks antique vases and furniture on the left side and bikes and wheelchairs on the right. Phoenix bikes start at RMB 500, or try your luck with imported Japanese (RMB 1,500) or Raleigh (RMB 2,000-plus) gems. Built to outlast the owner, secondhand Phoenix bicycles might need some TLC, but once they’re born again, they’re sure to fly. Daily 9am-5pm. 43 Dongsi Beidajie, Dongcheng District 东城区东四北大街43号

Me Too Vintage Best for: Discount rack This suspiciously clean and odorless store may first strike you as an ersatz secondhand haunt. However, upon closer inspection, washed out labels and greenish earrings confirm the shop keeper’s words – it’s all used. Lighter clothes in the store go for around RMB 300-400 and coats for up to RMB 900. However, the best finds are on the rack of discounted coats and jackets, afford- ing warmth for RMB 300-500. Daily 4-9pm. 42 Gulou Dongdajie, Dongcheng District 东城区鼓楼东大街42号

Spring Cameras Best for: Cameras, duh Spring Cameras is the hands-down winner when it comes to buying film and digital cameras in the hutongs. Their small but organized store asserts its spot as a go-to for any camera-related matters, from developing film to filling out your vintage collection. With an occasional family member lounging on the sofa in the back of the room or a young couple curiously inspecting cameras they’ve picked out, it lures you in with a casual and friendly vibe. Cameras on display range from newer point-and-shoot Minoltas and Nikons from the ‘90s to Chinese Pearl River (珠江 Zhūjiāng) or Zenit oldies from ‘70s and ‘80s, including a whole shelf full of lenses, not to mention the wall of neatly lined-up Polaroids that make for a great historical timeline. Film goes for RMB 16-50 a roll and cameras start from a little over RMB 300, going up to RMB 800-1,000 for the best finds. Noon-9pm (closed Mon). 52 Cheniandian Hutong, Dongcheng District 东城区车辇店胡同52号

47 nov/dec 2017 Introducing the people who matter

"BIG LOVE AND SMALL HATE RELATIONSHIP" See p60 "the medical gown. ugh" see p61 "I'LL NEVER GET TO ATTEND HOGWARTS" See p62 "A Cold War, anti-nuke comedy with surreal puppetry" See p63

MEETALICE TING TING // BOMBINO // ETHAN LIU // MOTO UCHIYAMA photo COURTESY OF ne A Place to Bury Strangers Dec 14 – Brace your ears for New York’s loudest band. That’s right: A Place to Bury Strangers (APTBS), described by The Washington Post as one of the most “ear- shattering” shoegaze act you’ll ever hear, are bringing their barrage of noise to Beijing. That notorious reputation was tempered to an extent when the band released its 2015 album Transfixation, which one critic praised for “having no shortage of consideration w noise behind the chaos.” RMB 120. 9pm. Yugong Yishan

48 nov/dec 2017 Playlist

ew live shows go unnoticed by Alice, known to most 龙神道 (“màn màn fēi” by Lóngshéndào). It’s a great tipsy as Ting Ting, given that she frequents and organizes clean-up song that instructs listeners to “fly slowly,” so I would Fmusic and art events around Beijing. Her fiery red in all likelihood tidy up slowly since I would be pretty drunk. hair can often be spotted in the front rows of gigs and her Their keyboard player is now considered somewhat of a key seemingly never-ending energy often drives fellow fans out opinion leader in the scene, making him an authority on to the dance floor. The creator of the Borderless music label Beijing’s underground rock music goings-on. knows the name goes far: “I believe music is borderless,” she says when asked about her current work with Japanese and We are in a buzzing but a nicely relaxed brewery. What Russian bands she brings in to tour China. “You don’t have to would you want to hear when you are out drinking craft understand the lyrics to enjoy the music.” beer with your friends? I meet Ting Ting on a cool October evening, her layers of I recently went to the new Jing-A [Xingfucun Brewpub] baggy clothes first catching my attention. “My favored genre and they played all of my favorite songs, so I’m wondering of choice can often be quite narrow since I mostly promote who is making their playlist. I used to listen to a fair amount rock, so now I am trying to immerse myself into hip-hop,” of Britpop and it would have to be Supergrass’ “Alright” for she laughs. Since she is rarely lounging home alone, we brewery tunes. talked about her favorite party-related songs and her love for Temple Bar. What would you throw on for a cozy winter dinner party. You are throwing a hot summer rooftop party, what is I love dinner parties! My roommates are always up to cooking your crowd listening to? and dining together. I’d put on some jazz, specifically a track Is it a crazy and wild rooftop party? I would play Queen Sea that my friend recently shared with me called “La Mer” by Big Shark’s “E Ocean.” They sing “Give me all your love tonight, Charles Trenet from the soundtrack of the movie Dreamers. I will show a new part of your life,” and I think it’s a perfect line for a summer rooftop party. What was the last song you heard while you were out that you asked the name of? The fast-approaching aftermath of the party is an I even took a picture. It was obviously in Temple! In October, inevitable part of any outing. What would you play while when Temple bar was closed [due to the 19th Party Congress] cleaning up with your friends as the sun comes up? it was quite strange as I usually go there every week. The song Oh, definitely reggae. My first choice would be慢慢飞 “ ” by I asked about was Butthole Surfers’ “Pepper.” photo: uni you photo:

49 nov/dec 2017 Interview PHOTO s: MAR J IE KUIPER , VITTORIO CATTI

50 nov/dec 2017 Interview

obert Plant of Led Zeppelin. Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys. David Longstreth of Dirty Projectors. RThese are but a few of the rock stars with whom Bombino has collaborated or shared the stage. And while he has yet to attain their fame, the Nigerien troubadour would surely become a household name if Hollywood ever made a film about his life. The highlights of his harrowing and eventually triumphant journey include: fleeing to neighboring Algeria with his family, as members of their fellow Tuareg minority rebelled against the Nigerien government; teaching himself to play the guitar while living as a refugee; showing so much promise that top Tuareg What did you love most about working with Dan guitarist Haja Bebe became his mentor; continuing Auerbach of the Black Keys? to perform even after the government banned guitar He would have an idea, like “I know! We need a lap steel playing as a dissident act, and two of his musician friends on this song!” or something very strange and foreign were executed; starring in a documentary and releasing to me. And, within a few minutes, someone would be his critically acclaimed album Agadez; being invited by there recording something wonderful on my song. I had Auerbach to work on a new album, Nomad, in Nashville; never been in a proper music studio before, forget about and headlining a cathartic concert in his hometown of a situation like this where we could have anything we Agadez to celebrate the resolution of the region’s conflict. could imagine. That was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. This singularly inspiring troubadour tells us about all that and more ahead of his Dec 12 gig at Yugong Yishan. Since then, you’ve been an opening act for superstars like Robert Plant. What was that like? Just how significant was it to have renowned Tuareg I had listened to Led Zeppelin since I was a child, but I guitarist Haja Bebe as a mentor? had not heard of Robert Plant or any of his music outside He was like a father to me in the first years of my Led Zeppelin. He is an older guy now, but still very cool. career. He was a very kind and soft-hearted man, and You can tell he has lived a very complicated life just by he had an incredible knowledge of both traditional shaking his hand and looking at his face. To share a stage Nigerien and Western music. He brought me into his with him was an honor I can never forget. band as the lead soloist even though I was so young and inexperienced. This gave me a lot of courage that I have Tell us about headlining the concert in Agadez and carried with me throughout my career. celebrating the end of the conflict. I cannot describe the feeling of joy and of pride that I felt After that, your government deemed guitars in playing that concert, to signify the return of the free to be tools of dissent. You once said that Tuareg people to Agadez. I can remember that everyone crackdown inspired you to “see my guitar as came, even from surrounding towns, and the party lasted a hammer with which to help build the house well into the early morning and we could see the sun of the Tuareg people.” Tell us more about that. rising. There is no feeling like a return to a home from I am merely walking the path that was laid out for me. I which you were banished. We did not know if we would am not an educated man and I have no other skills that I ever see our home again. To this day I get emotional can really use professionally. So all that I can do is to play thinking about this, and tears begin to form in my eyes. music and direct my efforts with music toward the goals Bombino will perform at Yugong Yishan on Dec 12 that I wish to see achieved for the Tuareg people, for Niger, at 8.30pm. Tickets are RMB 120. Visit yoopay.cn/event/ for all of humanity. bombinobj for more information.

51 nov/dec 2017 A Drink With

than Liu doesn’t merely work in the bar and club driving Singapore’s hipster booze transformation.”

biz. Instead, he calls himself a “spirits evangelist” Below, Liu tells us about attempting to parlay Proof photo courtesy of ethan l iu that spreads the good news about booze to a vast and Company’s Singaporean strengths to Beijing. He E also dishes on his humble beginnings – how he’d make Beijing congregation. His employer, Singapore’s Proof a buck by mixing liquor in a bathtub, what it was like to and Company, bills itself as “an integrated luxury spirits swill cheap booze at Beijing’s Banana club back in the company,” and has achieved so much success in the Lion ‘90s, and being a former face of cognac. City that one local reviewer credited it as “the business

52 nov/dec 2017 So what the hell is a ‘spirits evangelist,’ anyway? [Laughs] We are involved in creative work, brand training, planning, execution, and most importantly, industry education. My company’s goal is to raise the standard of drinking in our markets. Now we are excited to collaborate with Sarment Wine to do the same in China. Some of my clients in Beijing are Janes and Hooch, Equis, Mei Bar, and The Black Moth.

Tell us about the first drink you ever had. It was at this club called Banana in Beijing. That must have been ‘96 or ‘97. I took a shot of tequila that night, for some unknown reason, though I’m pretty sure I was persuaded by a young lady. Let’s just say, it was very rough. I’m pretty sure it wasn’t 100 percent blue agave [laughs].

You went to university in Minnesota. What was the party culture like there? While there, I learned how to make this punch that the other college kids called “Whoop.” You’d line your bathtub with plastic and then pour in juice, liquor, ice, fresh fruits and anything else you could find. We’d call it a “Royal Whoop” if we had a bottle of Crown Royal to pour in there [laughs]. Then we’d charge USD 10 at the door. You’d get a plastic cup, and you could help yourself to the “Whoop” all night.

After that you came to Beijing, and worked your way up to manager at Flamme and then D Lounge. What did that teach you? It’s all about reading your customers, and noticing the little things. I am bad with names, but I can always remember a regular’s favorite drink. Another major lesson: tend to your guests, but don’t overdo it, unless it’s 2am and they are in a party mood. And, of course, it also taught me to pay attention to how much alcohol the customers are consuming, because a happy buzz is always better than a raging drunk.

Before working at Proof and Company, you became a brand ambassador for Cognac Ferrand in 2015. What did that teach you about cognac’s strengths as a spirit? Mr. Alexandre Gabriel, the owner of the company, is a walking encyclopedia when it comes to spirits. I never used to drink cognac, but Alexandre spent a whole afternoon telling me about it, and I fell in love. From the soil its grapes are grown in, to the way that trained servers bring it to you, every second of its process amazes me. I can go on all day about its strengths and complexities, not to mention how important it is to the history of cocktails and bartenders around the world. But I think I should explain all these over a glass of Sazerac with you sometime. I’m always up for a good drink with good company! Kyle Mullin

53 nov/dec 2017 old china hand

oto Uchiyama should count himself lucky, because wood grain and strong whisky to let any patron indulge his two most successful bars – the long-running their inner Hell’s Angel. MMokihi in Liangmaqiao, and the newer Mokihi Those outlaw days came to an abrupt halt in late No. 3 in Sanlitun’s 3.3 Mall – are still going strong, even as September, however, when the authorities demolished so many other Beijing mainstays succumb to this year’s 1%ers. Uchiyama got the bad news over the phone because endless rounds of municipal renovations. But Uchiyama he was travelling in America at the time, and he was all the has by no means been immune to the constant chai-ing. more shocked to learn that he only had 20 days to vacate photo: His most ambitious bar yet, the street-level Mokihi 1%ers the premises. off Xiaoyun Road (near Maison Flo) was hidden next to “I hope Beijing can keep its Chinese flavor,” says Uchiyama UNI YOU a scooter and motorcycle garage, and featured enough during our visit to Mokihi No. 3. Sharply dressed in a vintage

54 nov/dec 2017 cap and leather jacket, he gestured out the window to Dirty Bar Street below, which was marred by construction, saying: “Beijing is the capital city, and it has so much character and history. If you make it like any other city, why will people bother to come?” He knows about the supposed benefits of such slicker municipal setups, having recently opened a Mokihi branch at a mall in Shenzhen. “It’s in a building like Guomao’s Kerry Center, and it’s very good for business.” Despite that, he’s quick to add: “I prefer places with a local flavor.” His own passion for drink-making and hospitality began long before he co-owned and operated landmark Beijing venues like Apothecary. Prior to all that, he was merely a young boy in Tokyo that had a penchant for mixing up booze-less juice cocktails for his pals, or inviting those friends over for a few rounds of chuan’r. China’s booming economy loomed large as he grew older, and it looked like an exciting place for Uchiyama to realize his restaurateur dreams. Although Uchiyama is allergic to alcohol, a friend who ran a local Tokyo restaurant implored him: “Open a bar. Meat spoils, but whisky just keeps getting better.” Uchiyama found he enjoyed the smell of high-end liquor, and could stomach a glass or two and relish the flavors before it began bothering him. It coincided with his greater passions for hospitality, mastering a craft, vintage décor, and more. China’s ripe opportunities led Uchiyama to seek out Mr. Hattori, the Japanese owner of a small Beijing bar called Ichikura. After arriving in Beijing in 2005 and working at Ichikura, Uchiyama went on to opening bars with a who’s who of Beijing cocktail vets – first Er with fellow Japanese expat Daisuke Onishi in 2007, then Apothecary in 2009 with a Taiwanese-American cocktail virtuoso named Leon Li, the first Mokihi in 2010, then Mokihi No. 3, Mokihi 1%ers, and the co-founding of Vinvino all in 2016. He only remained as an investor at Apothecary after moving on to those other endeavors, but the Nali Patio project became a crucial springboard for much of Beijing’s current cocktail stars – Jeff Ji of Parlor, Eric Liu of Mao Mao Chong’s, and Douglas Williams of the now-defunct BBC. Being such a major part of that esteemed Apothecary collective is a major point of pride for Uchiyama. But when asked about other highlights of his Beijing bar career, he spoke of his venues off the main drags, like 1%ers, and the original Mokihi and Vinvino in the Maizidian area. “I like places that feel like part of a neighborhood. And I’m hoping Beijing will one day become like Italy, where any street you walk down there’s a good café, or that you can get a good drink almost anywhere.” And while he’s galled by the barrage of bricklaying that laid waste to 1%ers and so many other local favorites this year, Uchiyama still remains upbeat. “In my time here, over and over again there was chai-ing, and some people had to close their places. I hope this has now been enough. I hope that we can now begin again.”

55 nov/dec 2017 rear view

ere at the Beijinger, we love food and drink, down to tea with the Queen and Simon Cowell. All dishes especially when it’s free. For this month’s Rear are served by snooty butlers on silver trays and are flavored HView we have scuttled around town, creeping with the bittersweet tang of post-imperial decline. The through drains and into kitchens to snatch whatever we Cornish cream tea comes with a subtle Chinese twist, can lay our greedy paws on, before returning to our lair to as the strawberry jam is substituted by red bean paste. prepare this for you: a veritable smorgasbord of Beijing’s lesser-known bars and restaurants. Quebec to the Future The full range and variety of Canadian cuisine can be Trumpburgers sampled at this authentic and atmospheric establishment, This new outlet brings the authentic taste of from fries with cheese and gravy, to authentic Quebecois contemporary America to the streets of Beijing. The poutine. “There’s more to Canada than just maple syrup, burgers are guaranteed to be pure beef, with no trace of eh?” the proprietor told us, before admitting that, in a witty brain, heart, or backbone – just like the POTUS himself. fusion with local fare, the fries are in fact steamed bamboo. And like the Donald, they’re topped with an indeterminate yellow substance. One bite, and you’ll see why the words Imperial Tailor Whisky Bar “American cheese” go together as naturally as “Scottish Inspired to share his passion for fine Scotch, hutong wine,” or “Australian diplomacy.” Specially made to be held hipster Cameron Trustfund opened this exclusive bar, by tiny hands, the Trumpburger includes a nod to local where prices range from a very affordable RMB 200 cuisine, with the onion replaced by slices of fresh durian. for a shot of Johnnie Walker Red Label, to an exclusive 50-year-old single malt, aged in the sporrans of Speyside Pizza Fasulla crofters, “for which,” Trustfund said, “you might as well just For his award-winning dough, Chef Davvero Cinese hand over the deeds to your house.” He served us with a uses only authentic 00 flour from Tuscany, mixed with glass of Macallan, which, he told us, was so refined that water drawn from the Trevi Fountain in Rome and to uneducated palates it would taste just like cold tea. As transported on Venetian gondolas. “It’s-a a good-a pizza-a,” professional food writers, we enjoyed the many and varied he told us, adding: “Capisce?” before riding off on a Vespa notes of peat, heather, and haggis which we detected, to hack down a striker just outside the penalty area. and will certainly return, if a rich uncle dies or something. Although he’s definitely authentically Italian, and not from Hebei as has sometimes been claimed, the chef has The Fidel Castrato Cocktail Shack made a concession to Beijing tastes in his pizza; instead This hip new lounge adds a local twist to traditional of mozzarella, he uses stinky tofu. cocktails, as the owner has filled empty bottles of western spirits with Beijing bathtub hooch. We enjoyed an Ye Olde Dickensian Shakespeare Tearoom authentic mojito, with the traditional mint ingeniously This authentically English establishment gives replaced by danggui, and we’ll be back for more, if we can Beijingers a chance to experience everyday life in Great remember where it is. And where we left our credit card. Britain, traveling to wizard school by Tardis before sitting

56 nov/dec 2017