Alba: Cocktail surprise
The last thing I expected to find at Alba, the new Italian joint behind fellow eatery Bella in China View, were good cocktails.
(That’s not exactly true: The last thing I expected was a passed-out Michael Phelps using his eight Olympics gold medals as a pillow while he slept off a heavy month-long all-you-can-drink binge at Paw Paw disco across the street, but let’s be realistic here.)
The spicy Margarita, which comes with a “Chamomille infusion” and a chili pepper garnish, provided excellent late-summer refreshment. Fellow beverage researched 8 Songs tried a Beijing Island Ice Tea (RMB50), which includes five spirits and lychee liquor, and gave it a thumb up.
Alba offers a modest menu of wines, with about eight by the glass (all from East Meets West), as well as beer from RMB15 for a Tsing Tao. We enjoyed several plates of antipasto, with a decent mix of meats and cheeses, as we sipped our cocktails on the patio.
The downsides: The at-times slow service, especially given the light traffic on this night, and bathrooms that are about 20 meters away and have a “rough and ready” feel, in contrast to the spotlessness of Alba itself.
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