Beijing Boyce

I went to the Beijing Pop Festival in Chaoyang Park two weeks ago and happily found proletarian beer prices: 4 yuan for a can of Blue Diamond. As for the bands, CJ was OK, Supergrass was Supergood, and Sebastian Bach should not wear a bright yellow Mandarin robe as it makes him look like an over-rouged blond-maned tranny with a cultural identity crisis. Other observations: I bought my official ticket not from a booth, not from a table, but from a silver gray Elantra. The security included PLA-looking guards, bao-an in poorly fitting uniforms, and secret service guys in dark suits, and I wondered what they thought about Bach swearing, screaming, prancing about stage and throwing microphone stands into the wings. The fans drank responsibly and behaved, with the most blatant sign of alcohol being the very relaxed guy with a pup tent and a small table holding four glasses of tequila. The music is rock, not pop, and anyway, if the promoters want to get out the locals, why not splash out for some act that was popular in the eighties band and has plenty of KTV standards, such as Whitney Houston or Air Supply?  Pizza by the slice should be a given at these things. Discovery of the day: that my friend’s wife used to play in a Japanese band that did Skid Row covers! 

(From Beijing Boyce XXIV, first emailed on September 21, 2006)

The Beijing branch of Face opened a month ago and complements its brethren in Shanghai , Jakarta and Bangkok . Just south of Workers’ Stadium in a refurbished school, this is a pleasant if pricey place to while away a few hours. Decorated with art and antiquities from Asia, it will take time for Face to acquire the necessary scuffs for the worn-in look, and friends who frequent the Shanghai branch find this one far less architecturally impressive. Seating options include a long narrow dimly lit deck outside and plenty of nooks and crannies inside. A pool table and bar break up what might otherwise come off as an overly stuffy environment. On a Saturday night, tolerably loud house music played as the wait staff efficiently made drinks for a fairly well dressed and generally older crowd. An ice-filled stainless steel beer held the beer and Mojito ingredients were ready to go should an order come in. M-Dawg gave a thumbs-up to the cocktails, though my dry martini came without the twist I requested, and a martini on an earlier visit was sub-par. They are expensive at 60-70 kuai, not including an annoying 10 percent service charge, and a pint of Carlsberg comes in at 49 kuai. Overall, Face offers decent drinks, ambience and service (though teetering toward overly keen at times), but at these prices, this place is likely to be an irregular stop.

(From Beijing Boyce XXIV, first emailed on September 21, 2006)

The neon Che Guevara profile at the door suggests something revolutionary inside, but this place delivers the same mediocrity found elsewhere in Beijing . The place itself gives a good first impression, striking one as cozy and warm, as the sort of spot that could become your local pub with its standup bar, table seating and big screen. Unfortunately, some problems on the service side need to be overthrown. On my first visit, the staff seemed bothered that we even ordered food. Then again, perhaps it was a subtle warning, given that the tapas included a firm white substance that defined blandness and was apparently cheese. On my second visit, the Parma ham salad came with incredibly fatty meat, off-the-shelf olives, canned tuna, under-ripe tomatoes, and a 55-kuai price tag that would have been fairer with the first “5″ removed. The food, thus, needs some work. The drinks, however, are definitely worth a try. There are plenty of Cuban specialties and the efficient bartender whipped up a refreshing golden Mojito (Y35), made with orange juice and mint. Unfortunately, his helper stood nearby eating peanuts (mouth wide open), staring blankly at customers and seemingly unaware of the art of removing empty glasses. Then, oddly, A-Che offered me a VIP card. What would that get me? Another green tomato slice? The chance to toss whole lemons into the bar helper’s gaping keghole? It seems to me that this place should first learn to handle non-important people. Anyway, despite all these criticisms, I have hope for A-Che. Some staff training and a rethink of the menu would go a long way to turning that hope into reality. In the meantime, this place is still worth a visit to try some cocktails.

(From Beijing Boyce XXIV, first emailed on September 21, 2006)

Cafe Pause will feature German music and Jagermeister cocktails on September 23 (8 PM on), and co-owner Stefan Fleischer is offering a free shooter to anyone wearing Leiderhosen. / Crowne Plaza Hotel’s Champagne Bar has 鈥渂ubbles for babes鈥?every Thursday from 9 PM, with free Van Gogh vodka cocktails and Champagne cocktails for women. / Zeta Bar starts with 鈥渮,鈥?which apparently requires the Hilton Hotel’s zany marketers to zealously use this zippy letter a zillion times (yes, I can do it, too). Thus, the bar has half off martinis on Mondaze, two-for-one Zeta-themed cocktails on Tuesdays, and 50 percent off Whizky on Wednesdays, all before 9 PM. There’s Champagne and Zequins (sequins? sea queens? segues?) on Thursday, with two-for-one Moet Chandon for ladies from 6 PM to midnight, and half off select bottles from 9 PM to midnight on Pingzi Fridays. By the way, if you have not checked out Zeta, the decor alone is worth the trip. / The wine will flow free courtesy of Summergate at that’s Beijing ’s five-year anniversary and starving artists’ party at C5 Gallery (2-6 PM), between Peter Pan and Serve the People in Sanlitun. The event will include performances by Panjir Trio and Ah-Q, with the latter about to release its first CD. / Jebsen will hold a tasting of six Rosemount wines on September 23 at Stone Boat (7-9 PM, 100 kuai). Ethan Perk, formerly with Montrose, has joined Jebsen as deputy general manager. / YPHH and The Tree will hold a Belgian beer night on September 26 on the Youyi Hostel terrace (6:30-11 PM; 100 kuai YPHH members, 150 kuai non-members). / China World Hotel and Torres team up on September 28 for a five-course gourmet dinner, by Aria Chef de Cuisine Nicholas Blaira, paired with Peter Lehmann wines (888 kuai). / ASC Fine Wines has a full slate of wine tasting events, including a Penfolds dinner at Garden of Delights (October 13), a Skalli dinner at Aria (October 18) and a Bollinger dinner at Jaan, Raffles (October 24; 988 kuai). / Montrose sent me emails about a Herradura tequila launch party at China Lounge and a wine club event on September 21, but I was unable to access the company’s Web site (www.montrosechina.com).

(From Beijing Boyce XXIV, first emailed on September 21, 2006)

City Weekend has published a Restaurant & Bar Guide that not only is good, but also is free! I have long griped about City Weekend, including to the managing editor, who is no doubt tired of my free “cnstructive” criticism whenever I run into him in the local bars. Happily, the guide and the magazine’s recent design upgrade deserve praise as a major step in the right direction, though the content still needs a boost, something I am told is forthcoming. The guide itself includes useful lists such as “Where you drink if you are a sport fanatic” (Goose and Duck, Pavillion, Bar Blu) and “Over 30… but not over the hill” (Browns, Q Bar, Suzie Wong, East Shore Live Jazz), as well as nightlife itineraries for couples and singles. / I am again delaying my review of the Wine and Spirits Education Trust class I attended late last month, mainly because I’m too swamped to transcribe my notes, but I do hope to have it and the long overdue review of Bed next issue. / Last year, that’s Beijing organized a Christmas funk party to raise money for a heart operation for an orphan named Tian Yue. Unfortunately, the Scrooge-like venue undermined the magazine’s Santa-like intentions, and the call went out for donations. Several newsletter readers helped out, including Agent Hidden Dragon and K-Ro, and will be happy to know that I attended Tian Yue’s birthday party last week and found her healthy, happy and, since was recently adopted  about to move to the U.S. and start a new life. / Whether you are hanging out in Beijing or heading out of the city, have a safe and happy holiday. Eat, Drink and Be Merry. Cheers, BB.

(From Beijing Boyce XXIV, first emailed on September 21, 2006)

The lady bar touts and substance pushers seemed sparser on Sanlitun North the past few weeks. A recent stroll down the main drag attracted only six “sexy girl” solicitations, in contrast to the usual dozen, and not one “Hey man, want some stuff?” was muttered as I walked the side streets to Apertivo. Where hath the intrepid intruders gone? Perhaps they took advantage of the new Beijing-Tibet express and are on summer leave. Or maybe they were turfed by the notorious security guards at nearby Tongli Studio (true, no bodies have been found, but a telling sign would be if the area’s kebabs suddenly tasted gamey). Whatever the reason, any break from these — let’s be generous – carbon-based life forms is as refreshing as when strong winds occasionally dilute Beijing’s air pollution. Unfortunately, it’s usually just as short-lived. / Speaking of Apertivo, I’ve been there twice this month. The service is reasonable, it’s a nice place to chat with friends on a pleasant summer evening, and things would be even better with an upgraded by-the-glass wine selection. / Across the street, Saddle offers a minimalist menu of burritos, Spanish fried rice, salsa and chips, and fajitas as well as Pepe Lopez, Camino, Jose Cuervo, Olmeca and Conquistador tequilas. These brands cover the less-than-100-percent agave end of the tequila spectrum and some premium varieties would surely be welcomed. Saddle also has something called “Brett funnel” on Fridays, which involves chugging a beer via a tube for 10 kuai, and is not for the faint of stomach. / The Pavillion has a two-for-one happy hour, 5 to 8 PM, that covers house wines, cocktails, soft drinks, and beer, excluding Guinness and Kilkenny. In addition to an excellent patio, The Pavillion also has: 1) proper wine glasses; 2) one of Beijing’s more impressive Whisky selections; and 3) a slight identity crisis, since upon arrival patrons may come across anything from an alcohol-free graduation party to a beer-fueled rugby-mad crowd, with things thankfully tending toward the middle. / Maggie’s has upped its bottled Qingdao to 30 kuai from 20 kuai. Otherwise, it’s the same old, same old, which means hot dogs out front, reliable music inside, and an ambience that doesn’t live up to the former locale on Gongti East. / Shunyi-based sports bar The Pomegranate had a high-tech summer as it added a video projector, 42-inch flat screen, and wireless Internet access. My suburban friends tell me this is a good spot to sip a few beers, eat some pub grub, and catch a game. / DJ David Lindinger will spin all-plastic sets of “nujazz, groove and house music” at Q Bar on Fridays during September. This is a bit surprising since some owners were once strongly opposed to a DJ and since patrons seem to love the current ambience, which includes blues and jazz tunes. Q Bar seems to be drifting from the cocktail-first culture of First Cafe and Midnight, where two of the owners cut their teeth, and this will no doubt worry some long-loyal customers, including yours truly. I mean, this is like the city-specific that’s Beijing putting a huge brochure-like picture of Thailand on its cover (oh wait, it just did that, or do I have a copy of that’s Bangkok in my hand?). Or like me adding a dozen book reviews to my bar newsletter (oh wait again…). / Speaking of which, rumblings abound that Keiko Shirata, who owned First Cafe until it was chai’d about a month ago, is planning to open a new spot in Beijing. / Each of my four visits to Rui Fu has found this lounge/club increasingly busy and fun. My initial reservations have been cancelled by its spirited groove, interesting clientele and decent music (though a bit loud last time). The cocktails are a problem. As oft mentioned elsewhere, Rui Fu is a place to see and be seen, with last Friday featuring a marathon of seeing and being seen that left my ocular nerves exhausted and thus, having saw and been sawn, I resolved to wear an eye patch next time and thus maximize seeage and being seenage while minimizing strain (that is, when I return from my vacation at a coastal apiary - a sea and bee scene.) Putting preening aside, Rui Fu’s menu includes numerous pricing oddities such as Johnnie Walker Red and Johnnie Walker Black both at Y35, suggesting the latter will increase in price with the club’s popularity. Let’s wait and see (and be seen). / Capone’s plans to open a restaurant in Beijing. The general manager says his aim is to have “one of the biggest if not the biggest wine selections in Beijing.” / Also coming to the Jing: Hong Kong’s Park 97 and Middle-class America’s Hooters. / Finally, there are lots of choices out there for tonight, Friday, September 1. Frank’s Place will hold an end-of-summer party with all-you-can-drink Freixenet sparkling wine (7PM, 100 kuai) and its weekly pool tournament (8 PM, 50 kuai per person, winner takes all). Summergate will have a tasting of South Australia’s Kingston wines at Face Bar (7-10 PM, 100 kuai). Stone Boat has Muwen playing (9:30 PM), Q Bar sees its inaugural DJ night, and Rui Fu apparently has DJ Edmund, a friend of a friend from Taipei, spinning tunes.

(From Beijing Boyce XXIII, first emailed on August 31, 2006)

Email: “Your comments on Rui Fu suggest powers of observation so weak that you would no doubt have trouble matching socks, finding Waldo or counting the fingers on one hand, let alone reviewing a club. “The main floor is divided into two large narrow rooms joined by an opening,” you claim. In fact, there is but one room. “…tables and chairs, then lounge areas, flow until they meet that opening, beyond which figures appear as silhouettes,” you claim. In fact, the “beyond” is actually the first room reflected in a mirror. Nice work, Sherlock Holmes. If you could learn to develop some characters, you might have a future in fiction. (By the way, I loved your “plush karaoke, generic hotel casino, and modernized opium den” reference — kisses!)“ - B. Boyce

BB: I thought I’d beat someone to the punch on that one. Rui Fu does, in fact, have one room. In my own defense, I’m easily distracted, the mirror on the far side is *really* shiny, and it does look like a passageway. Here’s the worst part: Around 10 PM one night, I was writing a review of Rui Fu based on a single one-hour visit and felt that was unfair, so I decided to delay the newsletter, threw on some decent clothes, headed over there, ended up taking to owner Henry Li for an hour, got a better feel for the club, and then came back and ADDED the part about two rooms. Yes, in this case, more research resulted in greater inaccuracy. Go figure.

Email: “W Sports Bar does not have a pool table.” - W. Thomas

b: I was wrong (again). Last issue, I wrote that W has a table hockey game buried amid enough stuff to make for a most excellent yard sale, including, “[a] ping pong table, dartboard, big-screen TV, pool table, art, grand piano, foosball table, etc.”

My bad: mae yo pool table.

Nevertheless, I won’t retract the ensuing comment: “Is there anywhere else in town where you might simultaneously hear “Who’s serve?,” “Bull’s eye!,” “I’ll have two beers, please,” “Eight ball, corner pocket,” and “This is simply too Dadaist for my taste,” all while someone chops out Mozart and a Formula 1 race shows?”

Even without a table, that “eight ball” comment could still easily be heard from a confused ping pong player, coverage of the world pool championships on the big screen, or… actually, forget it, there’s no way I’m going to make a cheap baggy pants joke.

Email: “You’ve listed Club Football as one of our editor’s picks - NO! It’s the unique RED BALL BAR - can you issue a correction?” - H. La

BB: I was wrong again (again). (People should be used to this by now, but no, in flood the emails.) This time, an eagle-eyed staffer from that’s Beijing (TBJ) pointed out that I listed Club Football, rather than Red Ball Bar, as an honorable mention as bar of the year.

(”I love the Ball because it’s so unique and different. There’s a smashing atmosphere, the staff are so friendly and helpful, it’s superb value [where else can you get a bottle/carton of decent wine for RMB 50?] and it’s so different from any other bar I’ve been to,” he/she enthused.)

Fair enough. Correction issued. To err is human, they say, as TBJ itself showed by not giving a single editor’s pick to Browns, even though that place won the popular vote, is frequented by other bar owners and employees… well, you know the story (and yes, that was a cheap shot).

Aside 1: Most of my British friends hate Browns. They disdainfully describe it as typical of this or that horrible bar in London, Muckchester, Corkingham or wherever they call home. Message received — about a million times so far. And I’m sure the Beijing natives living in the Isles aren’t overly fond of the Chinese restaurants there. Such is life. The thing is, we’re not in Britain, nor do most of us hail from there, and Browns is what it is — a place for good, clean fun. Where else will you find seven young guys raucously celebrating a birthday while nearby two couples in their seventies happily boogie to eighties tunes? Not cool, you say? Well, some people dislike pretentiousness or simply aren’t trendy, thus we need Browns, the great melting pot of bars in this city. So, for the love of Buddha, and Ben Elton, please stop the hating! Pretty please? Pretty please with Boddington foam and frozen blood pudding shavings on top?

Aside 2: The mainstream media must be disheartened when amateurs such as yours truly turn on their powers of perception and score a major news scoop. Take my expose on the White Man Overbite dancing epidemic at several Sanlitun hot spots a while back. The China Daily, Wall Street Journal and their kin completely missed that one. Then there’s my most recent scoop: uncovering a direct link between eyeglass-wearing styles and bar success. The evidence accumulated during my lengthy investigation would fill multiple volumes, but let me present two pieces. First, a recent TBJ story about its bar awards ceremony shows not one, not two, but three victorious owners wearing eyeglasses atop their heads, as though they had visually challenged hair follicles that were looking at the ceiling and possibly to a vote-producing deity beyond. Second, numerous other winning owners not pictured in the story were spotted at the ceremony wearing glasses in a similar manner. The link is obvious, but what of its significance? While it is difficult to quantify the positive effects of, for example, a pair of Ray-Ban bifocal sunglasses on revenue, my guess is 22.7 percent, give or take 0.3 percent. (Rose-colored lenses and those for nearsightedness would obviously have less impact.) Contrast this to bar owners who wear baseball hats backwards: I estimate that such low-brows typically see their businesses go bankrupt in a matter of weeks and also stand a fifty-fifty chance of spontaneously combusting. The lesson is simple: bar success is yours if you keep your glasses pointing upward and keep your ball caps pointing forward, and ideally do both (glasses over caps, of course). And remember, you heard it here first.

Email: “It is tres terrible to hear about the Big Easy. It easily had some of the best jazz and singers since my days on

before heading for Vietnam in ‘67. Are they going to open somewhere else?” - J.W.

BB: That’s a really good question and I don’t have a clue as to the answer. Maybe The Big Easy will relocate beside the new Latinos! Anyone out there have some inside information?

(From Beijing Boyce XXIII, first emailed on August 31, 2006)

People frequently ask me to recommend bars for their visitors to Beijing. Whether it is an incoming friend, client, parent, fellow Scientologist, long lost uncle, mail order bride or paroled pen pal in question, I would dearly love to answer such requests by spouting out a perfect itinerary. (Actually, paroled pen pals are easy: take them to The Bookworm, since its fully-loaded shelves will appeal to their literary side and the clusters of MBA students can help an ex-con who is long on ideas but in short supply of professionally written business plans. Class project!)

But I have a hard time figuring out where to take my own guests, let alone those of other people. I generally skim through bar listings, ask co-workers, call my friends, throw oracle bones and endure cold sweats as I create a decent plan. That plan, once in action, invariably runs into the great wall of harsh reality, built from the bricks of snap decisions and the mortar of compromise. An experience some time ago reminded me of this wall and re-taught me some basic principles for getting over it.

The situation: A group of six middle-aged business types visit Beijing. I know two very well, two fairly well, and two not at all. The mission: take them out for dinner and drinks on two consecutive nights.

Night one: I take the two I know very well and one of the strangers to dinner at Xihe Yaju. Beijing duck is a safe bet that becomes a guaranteed winner when you have beautiful weather, a table out back and an excellent bottle of wine — as we did. Next stop: The Pavillion. Two more people joined us, and we shared another bottle of wine while enjoying the spacious patio and the serenity amid the trees. Nice. Most of the group then headed to the hotel, while two survivors and I hit one last spot, Suzie Wong (thanks to Agent Red Wolf for the idea). With its interesting decor, cozy deck and top-notch people-watching opportunities, this is a good stop for almost any visitor to Beijing, even on a slow Sunday night. The end result was a night that included some classic Beijing food, a cozy patio, and a landmark bar.

Night two: I began this one as a guest, rather than a host, as we had some Xinjiang food and then took a stroll down Sanlitun North on our way for a drink at Apertivo. Our host then headed home and the onus for picking the next spot fell on me. Our group included four people: two that I knew well, considered my main guests, and thought would best like a good drink; and two that I didn’t know well and who were a bit restless. My gut feeling was to take the first pair to a reliable spot such as Browns or Q Bar, but the second pair seemed lukewarm with that, so we instead headed to another spot that turns up in guidebooks, Maggie’s. As it turns out, Maggie’s was sparsely populated, the music didn’t match our mood, it wasn’t really this group’s style, and the evening was as anticlimactic as it gets. And it happened because I ignored a few simple rules from the “common sense” category.

1. Take control. Choose the itinerary or surrender responsibility to your guests, but don’t be a wishy-washy Charlie Brown. If everyone has read in their guidebooks about Suzie Wong and wants to go there, then the decision is made for you. But if they’re new to town and forget their books at the hotel, take charge, and when doing so…

2. Stick to the tried and true. Even better, stick to the tried and true that offer the most acceptable worst-case scenarios. For Browns, a reasonable worst case would be that the place is empty, but still comfortable and with a good beer selection. For Q Bar, it might be that rain has closed the deck, but patrons can still sit at the pleasant bar and drink some excellent cocktails. In both cases, the worst isn’t so bad. This helps to..

3. Avoid the great unknowns. I have had fun times at Maggie’s, usually with Agent Red Wolf or O-Zone at 3 AM on a Saturday night when the place is full, we’ve already had a few cocktails, and hearing Welcome to the Jungle sounds like a good idea. But in this case, it was a Monday at 10:30 PM, and I even qualified the visit beforehand by saying it wasn’t likely to be good. As a former boss used to be fond of saying, “when in doubt, leave it out.” Instead, I left Maggie’s in, and by doing so, forgot another key rule…

4. Focus on the core group. By sidestepping Browns and Q Bar, I gave up what was likely to be a good experience for the two people that I knew best, and possibly for all four, in exchange for a gamble on behalf of the two people I knew least. That’s like hitting on 17 in blackjack.

In hindsight, this all seems pretty simple. (Then again, so does making a decent martini, though how many people can do it?) But if you’re handling a group that is impatiently waiting near some taxis, or trying to get people in different parts of the city to one spot, or dealing with people from different age, cultural or other groups, it can get pretty tricky. So maybe falling back on a few basic rules can keep your night out going forward. In any case, I’m going to start contacting numerous party animals and bar and restaurant experts that I know, and in future newsletters will list some possible itineraries for a fun night in Beijing.

(From Beijing Boyce XXIII, first emailed on August 31, 2006)

I had planned to review Face, Bed, L’Etage and A-Che in this issue, but have simply been too busy of late and this newsletter is already one week overdue. I’ll aim to include them next time, along with a write-up of the Wine and Spirits Education Trust course I finished last night. I was in the inaugural/guinea pig class and will opine on whether it was worth the 1488 kuai (and yes, unless otherwise noted, I do pay for these things). / I had my first newsletter-related interview with a Chinese newspaper. I have one thing to say: I am WAY better at writing about the bar scene than at talking about it. / Finally, Eddie-O, Kris Tan and I met about the Whisky and Bourbon Society, and came up with a basic plan. I’m now working on a venue and before the next newsletter will send out details to those on the society’s mailing list. / As always, Eat, Drink and Be Merry. BB.

(From Beijing Boyce XXIII, first emailed on August 31, 2006) 

China Daily reports that Louisiana-themed The Big Easy will be chai’d on Sunday. Chaoyang Park authorities voided the bar’s 13-year lease, signed in 1998, in order to make space for a “peace plaza,” although they didn’t reveal whether this will be a government or commercial venture, states the newspaper. The creative layout, spirited music and Bloody Marys of The Big Easy will be missed. / Before losing its trio of capable bartenders earlier this year, Midnight packed in partiers and pumped out 50-kuai cocktails. Now, a signboard out front advertises 10-kuai drinks, including — and some might prefer this one with two paramedics, stomach pump and stretcher – Gin and Coke. / Browns, bursting at the seams last Saturday night, smartly anchored an ice-filled claw-footed bathtub of bottled beer just inside the door and thus siphoned off some of the thirsty patrons teeming at the bar. (Suggestion: Sell bottled water from the tub, too.) / Berber N, home of tasty kebabs before construction forced its closure on Sanlitun North earlier this year, has reopened across from Tongli Studios. Never have skewered chicken butts been more savory. / The last time I saw words such as “closed for maintenance work,” they were plastered on the door at First Cafe, which shortly thereafter pounded into coaster-size bits. That is, until Tuesday — and I hope it is coincidence — when I spotted them in neat longhand beside the entrance to Mojito, a fairly new place that has Beijing’s only draft Weihenstephaner. (Could a beer have a better name for the China market? The first half sounds delightfully Mandarin and the second evokes the Deutschland.) / Contrary to popular belief, Beijing does have table hockey, courtesy of W Sports Bar, where it is buried amid the ping pong table, dartboard, big-screen TV, pool table, art, grand piano, foosball table, etc. Is there anywhere else in town where you might simultaneously hear “Who’s serve?”, “bull’s eye!”, “I’ll have two beers, please”, “eight ball, corner pocket” and “this is simply too Dadaist for my taste,” all while someone chops out Mozart and a Formula 1 race shows? / Deep in Sanlitun South, a new bar is opening on the second floor of the building that Beer Mania calls home. With W Sports Bar, Q Bar and Yes Club nearby, a new party zone seems to be forming. / Speaking of Q Bar: one crane, four hours, and a dozen people. That’s about what it took to get a five-meter tree and some stone flower beds atop this bar’s increasingly green sixth-floor deck a few weeks ago. Fortunately, should the day come, it will only take a few seconds to get them back down. / With its latest Chicago blues act having returned stateside, Icehouse, the bar part of RBL, now features a mix of local and foreign talent in the form of the Rhythm Dogs (Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays). Meanwhile, the employee turnstile spins on as Chef Dan Segal, who joined RBL this year after working at the former Louisiana restaurant in the Hilton, has left for Hong Kong. / Stone Boat continues with its funky live music line-up. The next three Fridays feature Enfants Terribles (electro-jazz, August 11), Muwen (traditional instruments, August 18) and Hanggai (”Mongol roots,” August 25), while Panjir Trio plays Saturdays all month. / Speaking of which, shortly after announcing the readers’ choices for its recent bar and club awards, that’s Beijing (TBJ) published its “editor’s picks.” Top spot of the year honors went to Stone Boat (good ambience and music, though the drinks and service are spotty), with honorable mentions to Area (was it on the ballot?) and Club Football (known primarily for its soccer pitches) [Ed. The bar was in fact Redball]. Nothing against those places, but I don’t think collectively they had the impact of Browns. It exploded onto the bar scene this year, is busy beyond belief, appeals to most every age group, nationality and profession, influences and attracts as customers other bar owners and employees, offers decent food and a good draft beer selection, and, last but not least, won the readers’ vote. Love it or hate it, the place has made a mark. By the way, TBJ deserves kudos for organizing these awards. Cynics claim the magazine uses them to placate sponsors, but since each of the 20 categories has one winner and seven losers, more clients are likely to be upset than pleased. (And if you don’t believe it, then a band of TBJ staffers will roll up their gargantuan 250-page magazines and knock you about like a pinata. Or, maybe not.) / Fromage fans must be quick on the return key trigger when they get Beijing Cheese Society invites. Next week’s California-themed event at Palais sold out in a few hours. / Correction: Last issue, I wrote that 5:19 Bar and Grill was starting a darts league. In fact, it is one of the hosts of the Beijing International Darts League, which welcomes new teams and venues (email Chris “Elvis” Milward at commish@beijing-darts.com).

(From Beijing Boyce XXII, first emailed on August 12, 2006)

I toiled beyond the borders of China during the heydays of Neo Lounge and Vogue, the venues that shot Henry Li to the top of the Beijing club-owner charts a few years ago. Even so, I am intrigued by the history of those two places, about which so many friends rave ecstatic. I had high expectations for Li’s new club, Rui Fu. I wanted to like this joint, to understand the buzz created by my friends. And since it is named after and based in the abode of an early twentieth-century Chinese leader, I envisioned a spacious place that welded the modern to the past, had layers of character and, given Li’s bar experience, served good drinks.

One thing is true: the club is spacious. The ceilings are lofty, the lounge areas sprawling, the 1000 square meters ample. But any homage to the past is absent. Rui Fu is a virtual reality. It evokes the spirits of the plush karaoke, generic hotel casino, and modernized opium den, places where losing track of time, forgetting the complexities of every day life, and finding indulgences are givens. The main floor is divided into two large narrow rooms joined by an opening. From the near side’s perspective, tables and chairs, then lounge areas, flow until they meet that opening, beyond which figures appear as silhouettes. A row of toffee-colored octopi-like “chandeliers” crowned with donut-shaped lights crawls spans the ceiling, framed by a strip of soft lights along the trim and a neon glow from the rafters. And a room-length curtain flows in front of what is mostly likely a wall, but could be a hiding spot for a Wizard of Oz type, calmly keeping the lights just dim enough, the house music just restrained enough, so that things stay on simmer. It all seems a bit unreal, as though pulling a lever might dissolve this scene. I’ll end my comments on ambience here, for my time at Rui Fu was short, my quota for being pretentious has been met, and a proper evaluation will require several return trips.

As for Rui Fu’s bar, it is L-shaped and seats about 15 people (fans of reddish velvet framed by white piping look will love the chairs). My only cocktail was, in theory, a vodka martini with a twist: the bartender inexplicably squeezed a lemon into the shaker with the alcohol rather than, as is proper, placing a strip of peel in the glass as a final touch. (*This* was the time for a lever that would make something, namely my drink, disappear.) It might be best to stick to wine, beer or spirits, which are reasonably priced (a serving of Johnnie Walker Black is Y35).

Rui Fu, still to have its official opening, will rank among the year’s top bar stories, one with a high-falutin’ plot if the free English magazines are any indicator (that’s Beijing got in the first “see and be seen” reference, while Timeout used “glitterati” and expressed seeming displeasure that “some guests [at the soft launch] obviously missed the whole point of Rui Fu as they slobbed around in jeans, trainers and t-shirts, not quite reflecting the A-list celebrity hang out that Lee has envisaged”). Throw in the general consensus that serious guanxi is behind the club, that Henry Li is a brand name in and of himself, and that plenty of old-time party-goers will be looking to re-live the days of Vogue and Neo Lounge, and it’s going to get interestin