Beijing Boyce

A slew of people have recently asked me why I write this blog, how much money it makes, the “downside”, and so on. Some are thinking of creating their own blogs, some are simply curious. In case other people are interested, here are five common questions and some brief answers.

Why did you start the blog?

I like to write (and have penned many columns, newsletters, and newspaper and magazine articles), I frequent bars for both work and play, and I felt the local scene lacked a consumer’s view. The Beijing scene is ever-changing and I enjoy talking to bar owners and patrons about it. Plus, bars and wine are universal topics: most everyone can opine on which is best (and worst), who makes great drinks, who has the best happy hour, and so on.

How much time do you spend on it?

It’s hard to tell, since it fits seamlessly into my regular life. I go out a few nights a week, usually for non-blog purposes, and then write about these visits. Other time is spent at wine tastings, dealing with email from readers, reporters, bar owners and wine distributors, or responding to people who want to start a bar, distribute wine in China, find event space, and so on. I would guess I spend upward of two hours of computer time per day on the blog.

Why a blog? Why not write for a newspaper or a magazine?

I enjoy the independence of a blog - tone, content, and posting frequency are up to me.

Actually, the blog evolved from a biweekly e-newsletter I began in October 2005. I started this blog one year later to provide more “real-time information” and launched sibling blog, Grape Wall of China, about six months later to cover the wine scene.

The newsletter is “opt in.” I don’t build my list using email addresses that I find on the Web or business cards. A person needs to request the newsletter, either verbally or by email. In some cases, I send a sample, but require a “sign me up” email before I send a second issue. My list makes up in quality for what it lacks in the quantity possible via spamming.

There are exceptions - I mixed up my Excel file and pasted nonmember addresses into the mailing list several times. It affected less than 1 percent of my list, but taught me an obvious lesson - always backup your files.

(To get the newsletter, email beijingboyce@yahoo.com with “sign me up” in the subject line.)

Do you make money from the blog?

No, the blog is a financial drain. I have no advertisers. I have no sponsors, except those who provide prizes for my irregular contests. I cover the costs, whether these are for domain names, hosting, wine dinners, and so on.

I considered moneymaking programs like Google AdSense and Amazon Associates, but I thought the links would look messy. I considered a PayPal donation button to help defray site costs, but worried a bar owner might give money and put my objectivity into question. I considered banner ads, as companies both in and outside of the bar and wine sectors have asked about this. If there were a way to generate revenue without compromising the site, I would consider it (if anyone has suggestions, please let me know!).

What is the “downside” of the blog?

Personal attacks by people who own or work in bars and wine companies - these tend to arise after I criticize their bar or company, or praise that of their competitors.

Over the years, such people have accused me of being in the pocket of First Café, Browns, ASC Fine Wines, Torres China (specifically the Grace Vineyards brand), The Rickshaw, and others. They have sworn at me, in private and public, sent nasty emails, “trash talked” about me to others, and refused to answer emails or cooperate in any way. The mindset among these people is that if someone has an opinion about a place, he or she must also have some kind of hidden agenda.

To be fair, such people represent a small minority. Overall, I have good relationships with the majority of bar and wine people. They are in a highly competitive business, usually love what they do, and have improved the Beijing scene since I started to write over two years ago.

Nonetheless, if you want to start a blog like mine, you can expect some abuse.

Overall, I have found my blog worth the time, money and occasional attack. I try to stick to my mandate of writing from a consumer’s perspective, though I obviously get some inside information from readers and people in the industry, and I try to be fair to bars and wine distributors no matter how they treat me. Even if the bar and wine scenes are inconsistent, that doesn’t mean that I have to be as a blogger.

Blogging isn’t all fun and games (funnypart.com)

Week 5 of the Celebrity Pub Crawl contest saw readers recommend bars for Jack “I was born ready” Burton. Bus Bar, Sunset, The Den and Alfa all were suggested as drinking holes for the man behind “The Pork Chop Express.”

As is usual, the names of those making recommendations were included in a draw and I asked Bjørn Stabell of Exoweb to pick the winner. The winner gets:

- A bottle of Grace Vineyard Tasya’s Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon from Torres

- A package of four books - Insider’s Guide to Beijing 2008, Mandarin Phrasebook, Healthy Chinese Cuisine: A Restaurant Ordering Guide, and Spicy Chinese Cuisine: A Restaurant Ordering Guide - from Immersion Guides.

This week’s winner: froog.

Congratulations and thanks to everyone who participated. The last edition of Celebrity Pub Crawl starts tomorrow.

They say there’s no such thing as a free lunch. But you can go hungry even if you have money.

I popped into The Rickshaw yesterday at noon for Taco Tuesdays (three tacos for RMB40 with good portions of sour cream and salsa). I went upstairs and found a construction crew buzzing and pounding near the pool table, so I retreated downstairs, grabbed a chair, and popped open the laptop.

I called the manager to find out what was going on and learned that the place was closed. I missed the sign on the door as did everyone else - more than a dozen people – who showed up during the 20 minutes I sat there. Anyway, The Rickshaw should have its side deck opened and be back to normal hours from 4 PM today

Since tacos were not in my immediate future, I decided to go to nearby Revelations. I phoned ahead to see if the wireless was working - last time, it wasn’t - and was told it “should be.” It wasn’t.

I packed up my laptop again and went to Sugar, in 1949: The Hidden City. The place had wireless and food, seemingly a rare combination on this day. I had chicken Caesar salad (RMB32) and a coffee (RMB25), both of which were good. The wait staff is a bit over-attentive and unable to recognize English words such as “water” and “toilet”, but is friendly enough. What is annoying is getting the bill and finding a 10 percent service charge… at a cafe.

Today, I planned to go to Café St. Laurent for lunch. Luckily, I called ahead because the place is closed while the kitchen and menu are overhauled. CSL will open this weekend. Fortunately, the eggs Benedict will remain on the menu although there will be a few new twists to the recipe.

I headed for The Saddle Cantina, then remembered it is not open for lunch during weekdays, and redirected myself to Luga’s. This place is also under construction. I saw a patron eating a burrito, but didn’t see any employees. I yelled “hello” and went back to the kitchen, where everyone was crouched over the floor intensely discussing something, so I left.

For the third time in two weeks, I ended up at Sequoia Café (Sanlitun branch). The BLT (RMB30) is delicious and comes with soup, and a large American coffee (RMB22). Fortunately, there is no service charge. The only downside: Sequoia is full of hard surfaces and thus loud at times.