Beijing Boyce

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On Thursday night, I found myself stuck in Wangfujing (no cabs) in a funk (bad week) after a wine tasting (bad idea during a bad week). I decided to visit the cathedral. When I first moved to Beijing, I stayed at an inn near this church for more than a month while I checked dozens of potential apartments. I spent some time hanging around Wangfujing, drinking coffee and reading newspapers, but Thursday night was the first time I had seen it this busy. There were hundreds of people line dancing. That provided a nice distraction. But what eventually drew my attention was a couple who showed up and, rather than follow everyone else, did their own thing. They were quite good with their twists and turns, free spins and dos-à-dos. And they provided a welcome contrast to that mechanical line dance behind.

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Like it says, Dead Guy Draft at Grinders. This time our fantasy league focused on Sweden. I started off explosively with my first pick, Alfred Noble, then followed up with former UN Secretary General Dag Hammarskjöld and, in what was the surprise move of the day, Olof Skötkonung. (First-millennium son-of-Eric-the-Victorious Swedish royalty? Oh yeah, I went there.) After that, things fell apart. I was penalized for taking actor Dolph Lundgren and former NHL defensemen Borje Salming — apparently they are alive — and almost did the same with Hans Blix. Then I was penalized yet again when I confused director Ingmar Bergman and actress Ingrid Bergman, with a fellow player noting that the latter is “not a guy”.  I picked painter Isaac Hirsche Grünewald and Jacob Magnus Sprengtporten simply for their names and finished by grabbing — I couldn’t believe he was still left — Tetra Pak founder Ruben Rausing. Not the best, or worse, Dead Guy Draft I’ve been involved in although it pales to our New Zealand session where I managed to get explorer Edmund Hillary, Sinologist Rewi Alley, mathematician Alexander Aitken and runner Jack Lovelock with my first four moves.

By the way, you have no doubt realized that this is all bullshit and that the Dead Guy draft at Grinders refers to a tasty pale ale, the tap through which it will flow installed less than an hour ago. Owner Trevor Metz says the regular price of a pint will be rmb50 , while during happy hour it will drop to rmb35. I know how much this stuff costs to bring in and that is a fair price.

Also of note, the new Blue Frog at Chaoyangmen is open for business, says manager Greg Dover. It might take a week or two, however, before that two-for-one Monday burger deal starts.

And a new date has been set for an event that will see Beer Mania turn into Wine Mania. That event will feature 15 wines from distributor La Caumette, start from 6 PM on November 25, and will see The Beijing Beatles play at around 9:30 PM.

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Zimbu is exhausted after a week full of days spent manipulating the global currency markets and nights spent partying hard with those (still unemployed) Fuwa, thus Halloween might not be in the cards for the monkey this year. Not that there is a shortage of events. From tonight’s Yugong Yishan bash with Randy Able Stable, Not There and Christmas to the Yen Fetish party in 798, from Saturday’s Spooked party at Lantern to the 20rmb Sangria for the costumed at Enoterra, there is lots going on. Even new bar Real Wine on Workers Stadium West went all out on decorations. For dozens of parties, see these posts on The Beijinger and City Weekend.

One not listed there is the second annual Subway Loop Party on Saturday. This is a chance to share that Angry Birds, slutty nurse or Green Lantern costume — or even that Lady Gaga-inspired chuanr dress  — with the general public. The starting point: Dongzhimen Station, at the Xizhimen-bound end of Line 2, at 9 PM. From the invite:

You can join the party at any station on line 2. The Halloween party train will be traveling COUNTER-CLOCKWISE from Dongzhimen. The second stop on the party train is Yonghegong Lama Temple. Board through the LAST CAR of the train. After the party leaves Dongzhimen station, we don’t know how long we’ll stay on line 2. (Last year some of us stayed on the subway for two loops). But if you want to be at the party, try to be there on time…

Needless to say, this event is BYOB.

Photos of dishes recently eaten — except that ox bone one: The French Connection ordered it — in Beijing…

Beijing Hilton will focus on fists and food on November 19 when it holds its first “Black Tie Charity Brawl” in the hotel ballroom. Inside the ring: a series of mixed martial arts fights organized by Black Tiger Muay Thai. Outside the ring: a four-course meal paired with wine. Tickets range from rmb888 to rmb1288. For more info or to book seats, contact Emile Otte at Emile.Otte@hilton.com or call 5865-5120. See poster below for details.

Expect booze with maybe a touch of burlesque, sort of, at Fubar on Thursday night as Lulu Galore of the Moonglow Burlesque show will lead a jazz trio from 10 PM. I’m no expert on jazz but I do know a bit about happy hours and Fubar has a half-price deal from 6 PM to 9 PM. Those planning to catch the show, and who do not have to get up early Friday, would do well to invest in a couple of those heavy-duty Long Island Iced Teas.

Mao Mao Chong will go from pizzas to pies for two nights. On October 31, the deal is a meat pie (the beef is stewed in a concoction that includes Worcestershire sauce, nutmeg, white wine and onion), mashed potatoes, white beans and relish for rmb65. You need to book your pie(s) a least four days in advance, which means a deadline of October 27 (email maomaochongstore@yahoo.com).The focus on November 14 will be veggie pies, with the same fixings, for rmb5o. On both nights, diners can add a Vedett beer for rmb25, a glass of Mountain Pass Shiraz for rmb30 or a house cocktail for rmb35.

When The Rauch Potato and I went on pair of pub crawls / farewell tours a mere six weeks ago, it represented a last few chances for me to drink beer and talk basketball with the author of China Sports Today until, well, May. Yeah, we have a pool, and I picked that as the month she gets bored of New York and moves back here. In the meantime, here are her top five Beijing bar picks. (You can see the full list of “top fives” here.)

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Wain Wain: On its own, the view of the CBD from the 35th floor of Xiandai SOHO would warrant a trip to this Japanese bar. But there is so much more to recommend Wain Wain. The service is attentive without being obtrusive — you can usually dispense with yelling “fuwuyuan,” and simply get the servers’ attention with a nod. The food (I usually opt for udon noodles) and drinks (always sake and Asahi for me) are good enough, and not too expensive. The wifi works and the atmosphere is great. The layout gives every patron a nice view of the floor-to-ceiling windows, and despite the small space it’s easy to have a private conversation. They look after the practical details, too — the bathrooms are impeccable, and they will hang your coat in a bag when you arrive to keep it from picking up any smoke or other bar/restaurant aromas.

Jin Fan (Golden Sail) Water Sports Club: Houhai has so much potential — pretty much all wasted. An urban lake surrounded by willow trees and stone fences, with views of some historic buildings and gardens, should be a pleasant place to have a drink, even if the water looks and smells like a biohazard. Instead, it’s lined with obnoxious, tacky, unimaginative bars with so little to distinguish them from one another that touts have to stand outside and beg you to come in. In more than two years living just north of Houhai, there was only one place I ever went to deliberately— Jin Fan Water Sports Club. It’s the boathouse all the way at the north end of the lake, where Beijing’s dragon boat racers train and where you can rent kayaks by the hour. No neon lights, no touts – just a small selection of beers, and tables close enough to the water you could reach out and touch it (if you’re brave). Sitting on their homely little turf carpet-covered dock, you can barely see the lights of the bars at the south end of the lake, and it’s easy to feel like you are sitting on the dock at a friend’s lake house.

El Nido: Lots of imported beers for cheap, some pretty good homemade infused liquors, and a friendly Chinese proprietor get this place off to a great start. The fact that you can sit outside and watch a Beijing hutong just being a Beijing hutong, as opposed to a tourist attraction (I’m looking at you, Nanluoguxiang), makes it an even more special. That and the fact that you might find a jam session going on at 4 a.m.

Mao Mao Chong: Cocktails have come a long way in Beijing since I moved there long, long ago in early 2008. There are now lots of places to get a good one in the capital city. I like Mao Mao Chong’s creative, China-inspired mixes, the bartenders’ willingness to invent something new that fits your personal taste, and Stephanie’s scary ability to remember what you drank last time you were there. The fact that you can order one of the city’s best pizzas here makes it easy to forget the time and stay longer than you should.

Heaven Supermarket: It’s a liquor store. With seats. And glasses you can pour your drinks into. And a bathroom. Who would have thought that garish fluorescent lighting could be so charming? I’m sure it has a doppelganger somewhere in the world, so I don’t want to say “only in Beijing,” but this joint is refreshingly freewheeling, unpretentious, straightforward, and a great bargain to boot.

What, no sports bar on the list? That’s right. I can’t think of a single Beijing sports bar that deserves a “must try” endorsement. Time zones and satellite TV hijinks mean that you can rarely count on a place to be showing the game you want to see, unless they have aggressively advertised it ahead of time. And when you do get to the right bar to see the game you want, there’s a good chance you will be one of less than a dozen people watching. It doesn’t help that sports bar “culture” has not taken hold in China. All of my most lively game-watching experiences have been soccer games at Paddy O’Sheas, but I can hardly say the place is a must-visit.

Quite a few readers in the Lido area have been asking when exactly when Gung Ho pizza will open in the former Peter’s Tex-Mex. The date is set: Rich Akers says the pizzas will start flying from the ovens on November 9. As with the original location near Workers Stadium, the focus will be on delivery, although there will be seating for upwards of 40 diners. Also of note, I haven’t yet tried it but several readers tell me they like the new crust recipe.

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Any visitor to Mao Mao Chong has probably seen the song lyric painted above the bar by owner Stephen Rocard. Well, the times they are a-changin’, and so is that lyric, and we are looking for suggestions as to what should go up next.

Maybe it should be “She’s filing her nails while they’re dragging the lake” from “Watching the Detectives” by Elvis Costello, or “And the whole damn place goes crazy twice / And it’s once for the devil and once for Christ” from “Closing Time” by Leonard Cohen, or even “Mix-a-Lot’s in trouble / Beggin’ for a piece of that bubble” from “Baby Got Back“?

Well, perhaps none of those. But let us know in the comments section what you think should go in that space and you have the chance to win two prizes. First, the pride of walking into Mao Mao Chong and seeing your recommended line on the wall. (Imagine being on a date and saying, “Look up there. See that ‘And I was like baby, baby, baby, oh / Like baby, baby, baby, no / Like baby, baby, baby, oh’? That’s mine!”). Second, a bottle of Martin Miller’s gin, originally donated by Liquid Luxury and won in the Charlie Sheen Celebrity Pub Crawl by Euclid, who “paid it forward”.

Leave your entry / entries by 5 PM on November 1 and we’ll select a winner. And if you would like your favorite song lyrics hanging above your bed, desk, sofa or jacuzzi, talk to Rocard about commissioning a piece.

What fish only swims at night? A starfish!

Yes, a terrible joke, but nevertheless an opening to report that Starfish, the new seafood restaurant in the former W Dine and Wine space, is now open for dinner. For those who want to do some taste tests, the menu this week includes three sampler plates: one features hot foods, including a crab cake, a piece of flounder and a fried oyster;  another features cold items, including cured salmon, scallop ceviche and shrimp cocktail; and yet another features a trio of  oysters. Each sampler plate is rmb98  and comes with a glass of French sparkling wine. And if you are at Starfish on Tuesday, you can precede or follow your meal — or both — with cocktails from Stephanie Rocard of Mao Mao Chong, who will be tending bar one day a week.

Welcome to part thirty of the Must Tries Series, where I ask people working in the Beijing bar and restaurant business for the top picks from their menus. This time up is gregarious Aleksandar “Sasha” Unkovic of Workers Stadium area restaurant Kiosk — home of The Big Bite Burger. (Note: Kiosk is closed on Mondays.)

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What is the “must try” food at Kiosk?

The grilled chicken sandwich (rmb31). It includes fresh, not frozen, chicken breast, original Hormel bacon, onions, cheese and homemade marinated peppers — spicy or non-spicy– in a grilled baguette.

What is the “must try” drink at Kiosk?

The gin tonic (rmb35). I don’t skimp on the gin and I add a lot of lime.

What are three “must try” items at other bars and restaurants in Beijing?

The Long Island Iced Tea at Jazz-Ya. For me, this is the only real Long Island Iced Tea in Beijing because they make in a proper traditional way and haven’t changed it for 15 years. We should respect that.

The sirloin steak — the “Eve cut” — at Morel’s across from Workers Stadium. I think this is the best, and best-value, steak in Beijing. It is the right size — not too big and not too small — and there is a wide range of sauces, including the best Bearnaise sauce. You can choose from mashed potatoes, baked potatoes or fries.

Finally, he is not a drink or food, but I also want to mention Andy Bright of Union Bar & Grille as a third good thing about the bar and restaurant business in Beijing. He really knows how to run the business but he’s still “real”. There are many professional managers in Beijing who would score a “ten” but they don’t provide a personal connection like Andy.

Stephanie Rocard of Mao Mao Chong created this espresso-vodka-toffee liqueur cocktail for new seafood restaurant Starfish, where she will be tending bar on Tuesdays. One of the better start-to-finish drinks I have tried, from the coffee-toffee aroma up front to the mildly bitter finish.

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Paul Mathew of Flamme had the smoke gun out last week and one of the better concoctions turned out to be this Hendrick’s gin martini with rose tea smoke.

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The hot Coke and ginger combo is thought by many to have medicinal purposes. I asked for Jack Daniel’s in this one to add a kick.

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This Yunnan papaya wine is about 20 to 25 percent alcohol and among the drinks offered by owner Ryu at relatively new bar Jam.

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The same drink over the bar’s built-in cocktail light…

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Some of the best booze I have tasted this year is the beer schnapps distilled as an experiment at Drei Kronen 1308 from leftover Oktoberfest brew. It had a pleasant malt / bread aroma and, even at nearly 40 percent alcohol, was as smooth as hot yak butter on a shaved panda… or, um, something really smooth.

Anyway, wine maker Li Demei told me quite a long time ago he had an extra 50-liter American oak barrel and I finally arranged to get it on Wednesday. We met at Workers Stadium and transported the barrel across the street to DK1308 and beer maker Andreas Roehrl. He’ll team up with Carl Setzer of Great Leap, who has distilled some of his pale ale, to see if maybe they can turn some schnapps into something even better. Or maybe they’ll age beer. I’ll post updates on — given the barrel was donated by Li — Project 桶李.

Finally, I’ve talked to several people, notably Chad Lager of Fubar, about getting smaller barrels — say five-liter ones — for aging rums and cocktails. Not easy to find, but I have a few contacts out and will hopefully be able to provide good news soon.

Three weeks to this hour, I will be limbering up — loosening my elbows and wrists, doing taichi to flex my inner organs, stretching my lower back in preparation of standing a half-dozen hours — to get ready for the Beijing Hilton Food & Wine Experience the next day. This is my favorite public tasting of the year, not only because it includes the chance to sample from among more than 1000 wines, but also because I always meet people I haven’t seen for ages as well as a few I know only by corresponding online. This year’s event is November 12, from 1 PM to 7 PM, and costs rmb260. See the poster below for more details.

Finally, everyone who won prizes in the Theme Team Contest, which had the goal of coming up with a name for this year’s event, should have received an email from me by now. And great to see the Hilton Beiing used the winning entry, Vinopolitan. If you won a prize and did not get an email, let me know at beijingboyce (at) yahoo.com. If you do not know if you won, see Pretty Much Everyone’s a Winner, Baby. I apologize for being slow in getting the tickets out. I’m blaming this guy.

(See here for write-ups of Food and Wine Experiences past.)

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http://www.beijingboyce.com/2011/08/25/hilton-theme-team-contest-pretty-much-everyones-a-winner-baby/

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Bartender Laurent Greco has advice for next time you order a bottle of Perrier – don’t add ice. “In France, we use a tall glass, a slice of lemon and cold Perrier – no ice cubes,” he says. After all, if you are ordering such mineral water, why add something that might possibly be made from tap water – or, if living here, from “Chateau Beijing” as he puts it?

Greco was in town to demonstrate a series of cocktails that use Perrier, which is distributed in China by Summergate, organizer of the event. He played – and I use the word deliberately since he is quite entertaining – to about 70 people in one session and provided plenty of “water for thought.” For example, he suggested serving a bottle of Perrier with three glasses, each of which contains an item – in this case ginger, cucumber and a chili pepper. This give the customer the chance to do mini infusions. The idea could easily be adapted to use seasonal fruit or other items.

Greco also demonstrated cocktails that utilize everything from compressed cotton candy that is dropped, and almost instantly dissolves, into a drink, to liquid nitrogen to transform a mojito into gelato, to a smoke gun to infuse drinks (see Smoke on the Water). He said such cocktails should “wow” the customer. In fact, he says, they should be wowed three times: once when they get the drink, once when they get the food, and once when they get the bill. And he was only half joking about the last part. “People are willing to pay if you give them good service,” he says.

Cotton candy in a coconut scented glass...

... quickly becomes part of the drink.

Pudao Wines is marking its official opening on the north side of The Office Park with a line-up of 23 wines that received recognition at Decanter magazine’s World Wine Awards and will be rotated into the enomatic machines over the next few weeks. There are 16 available at the moment, including Jia Bei Lan 2009 from Helan Qing Xue in Ningxia, the first Chinese wine to win an “international trophy“. I just called Pudao Wines and was told a sample of Jia Bei Lan is rmb20, while a bottle costs rmb380. Look also for wines from Casillero del Diablo (Chile) to Trimbach (France) to Heinrich (Austria) as well as Chinese wines Grace Vineyard Tasya’s Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2008 and Domaine Helan Mountain Chardonnay 2008, both of which won “silver” this year. Sample pours start at rmb7. This is the second branch of Pudao Wines, with the first in Shanghai, and stocks primarily wines distributed by Summergate though it does have some bottles from about a half-dozen other distributors.

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Rich Akers says the second branch of Gung Ho, in the former Peter’s Tex-Mex spot in Lido, will be ready to open next month (check the delivery area map here). Also of note, the most recent GH e-newsletter says: 1) the pizza dough has been changed as a result of John O’Loghlen going to Scuola Italiano Pizzaioli in Italy a few months (good news as the dough gets far too brittle far too fast) and 2) prices are going up (not so good news but then again pretty much everything is getting pricier in Beijing). Waiting to see if there is a Gung Ho! Kiwi pizza special after New Zealand beats France in the World Rugby Cup final this weekend.

Meanwhile, Annie’s is bringing its Italian fare to The Office Park as it will take over the former Speyside bar and restaurant.

Nick Papa of Duvel Moortgat says La Chouffe, a blonde beer that checks in at around 8 percent alcohol, will soon be available as draft in Beijing.

Great Leap Brewery is holding “Taster Thursday” with rmb5 off off its new beers, including Fighting Tong Black Ale, The Aggressor Scottish Ale and Liu the Brave Coffee Stout. Also, there are still tickets available for Great Leap’s Harvest Fest at The Great Wall this weekend (see here).

Finally, Beer Mania will wait a bit longer to turn into Wine Mania for a night. The event slated for October 21 will be held instead next month. I’ll have more details soon. In the meantime, that draft Chimay Red is a good alternative.

(Hat tips: Mr Miyagi and Wise Bartender)

Cooking at Migas: From classroom to kitchen.

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Few restaurants have tried as hard to boost the local dining scene in the past year as Spanish restaurant Migas in Nali Patio. Yes, Migas is known for its awesome rooftop, but this project started by Eduardo Gutierez and Jordi Faus has also invested a good deal of time and money to bring excellent guest chefs to China from Spain, including El Quim, Carles Tejedor, Angel Pascual, Carlos Sanllehy and Jean Pierre Castillo. (I especially liked the dinner that featured dishes by “the chef, the butcher and the sausage maker” — worth every renminbi and more.) Now the kitchen, headed by Aitor Olabegoya, has organized an anniversary menu that will fuse together dishes from those visits, that is available during lunch and dinner through October 23, and that costs rmb320. Here is the lineup:

Migas has a funky website, too.

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After a stop at Starfish on Sunday night (post here), I met Monsieur Carre and we went on a tour of Sanlitun-Workers Stadium in search of a drink or two. Places visited…

Paddy O’Shea’s: Our starting point and home to that French delicacy known as draft Kronenbourg (large: rmb35; small: 25). Paddy’s offers two menus: one with pub grub (I’ve had better luck with the burger than the pizza) and one with Indian food from Ganges upstairs.

James Joyce: Just a warning to the proprietors — don’t be surprised if you find the second “J” in the sign replaced by a “B” come April 1. A modestly sized but boisterous crowd here.

The Tree: I long ago migrated to Nearby the Tree and this marked my first time back in more than six months. As usual, it required the obligatory walk past an idiot pissing in the street and a beggar outside the door. Much better, and also as usual, the place was warm, cozy and busy. By the way, did this place change its pizza crust recipe? Anyway, The Tree  still has a good range of Belgian beers, plus those rmb15 Tsingtao pints.

Ciro’s Pomodoro: After the “plunger” incident and several other mishaps I tended to give this place a miss. But I hear there is new management and on this night we found a good blues band and more people than expected. More research needed.

Dainty Bistro: I just peaked my head in to get a business card and this place, in Nali Studio in the old Tapas space, turned out to be the busiest of the night.

Ole: We walked in on a Wall Street English party and grabbed two stools at the second floor bar. A friendly staff and decent Tempranillo — it got a nod of approval from Monsieur Carre — at rmb35 per glass.

Tun: We peaked into Heat, found it empty, and instead went to Tun. I dunno: adding a dance pole to the stage and replacing that Great Wall of China DJ booth with some generic semi-private rooms doesn’t really work for me. Nor, apparently, for others as there was only a handful of customers in the place.

Titanium: Two small railway cars, giant eggs in which to sit, chair legs that look like, well, human legs — and no customers. Welcome to Titanium. And it’s not just Sunday nights. Good drinks and marketing might help though this Sanlitun Soho location is a tough one.

George’s: I went with my go-to drink — a dirty gin martini (rmb50), while Monsieur Carre had the Mango Mash (rmb55), ultimately describing it as “refreshing”. (We decided to forgo the rmb320 Long Island – with Grey Goose vodka, Hendrick’s gin, Patron tequila and Mount Gay rum – for later. Specifically, for when we, too, are nouveau riche.)

Fubar: Our last drink was thwarted as some floor boards were being torn up from behind the bar. What can I say? It was a late-night construction job and you can expect new floorboards behind the bar on your next visit.

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A magazine asked me for a “wine” shot so I grabbed about three dozen Chinese bottles in my apartment, a.k.a. Chateau Double-B, arranged them on bookshelves, then clicked away. Needless to say from the photo quality above, the job required a professional. But I thought I’d share that one because if you are interested in Chinese wines you might have seen, tried or heard of some of the labels, such as Grace Vineyard, Bolongbao, Catai, Huadong, Xi Xia King, Yunnan Hong, Dragon Seal, Bodega Langes, Suntime and Champs D’or. There are also a few wines I’m not sure (if?) I’ll drink again, including that Yeli Spumante and Domaine Franco-Chinois Marsellan. As for the Taillan Malbec 2003, I do have full bottle, though I don’t imagine it was made with an eye to aging.

Being a bartender seems to validate both imbibing alcohol and playing with fire. French mixologist Laurent Greco demonstrated this aptly today as he visited Xiu Bar to share — during  a fun session organized by Summergate — cocktails that include Perrier. I will have a longer post on that session, including consumer tips and drinks ideas, but for now six photos — taken from a distance so a bit grainy — that involve smoke, fire and tricks of the trade.