Beijing Boyce

In the latest episode of Top Five Watering Holes, former restaurants editor for The Beijinger and current freelance writer Tom O’Malley lets us know where he grabs something to drink after he’s had something to eat. Learn about every O’Morsel O’Malley O’Masticates by following him on Twitter at tomomalleyBJ. By the way, he sent me this list two weeks ago, so he’s even further ahead of the curve than he appears, perhaps so far that’s he’s almost all the way around and sneaking up behind us. Here are his top five…

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O'Malley's O'Margaritas...

“Amigo

“My muse, my goddess of inspiration, is called Margarita. She is cheap and intoxicating. Her lips are salty and her bosom is broad. And she lives in a shoebox on Gulou Dongdajie. To drink from her 15 kuai cup on a Saturday, Monday, or Wednesday is to experience twice the pleasure for half the price. Or at least it was until Amigo’s laoban sneakily tried to do away with half-price drinks after the World Cup. The gall of it! Until he undoes this madness, I for one will only be attending once a week. Maybe twice, but that’s it.

“Amilal

“Nothing groundbreaking here: boss is a cool dude (he bought me Sichaun noodles the other night), place is homey and cosy inside and out, cute cats, nice Mojito for the ladies, good whiskey selection (and feels like a place to sip liquor), and occasional live minority music. The older crowd is generally free of those Zara-shirted BMW execs you find at Bed Bar. Concealed alleyway location adds to the fun, plus, it’s the sort of haunt that still gets a crowd when all else is offline for the night.

“Bar 59 / El Nido

“Newish hipster dive on Fangjia Hutong in Andingmen has around 80 different beers, a dozen brands of absinthe, plus a mid-sized Jenny Lou’s worth of wine — all in a place with three bench tables in the alley, a few fairy lights, and a sheet strung up between lampposts showing Neil Young youtube videos. Right now, the kids are drinking Kwak beer from Belgium at RMB30 a bottle. Full-bodied and dark as hell, it packs a kick at 8.4 percent. If you’ve never experienced getting pleasantly sloshed on three small bottles of beer, give it a try.

“Enoteca

“Manager Tomaz is an exceedingly nice man, and his wine menu is compact and fun to browse. Friday Wine Fever with unlimited snacks for RMB200 per bottle is a choice deal, especially if you’re in a group of three or four — stay long enough and you can pretty much skip dinner. Lack of toilets might stress out some folks, and live music can be intrusive, but few better or more affordable places to imbibe the ruby nectar in Beijing.

“Tao Yao Bar

‘I’m here every Friday for the RMB50 open bar featuring Harbin beers and five cocktails plus top London DJ (me, ha ha). I know the manager well but this isn’t just a shameless plug — Houhai could almost be a nice place to drink if a few more venues tried to break the mould. Tao Yao Bar does with a great drinks deal and that’s why Fridays have a really friendly, chaotic vibe into the early hours, with a cool mix of Western and Chinese patrons. The outdoor garden has lake views and big sofas, and inside is Tibetan-styled with private booths and lots of trinkets. But no Yak. They’re working on it.”