Beijing Boyce

Browns offers two-for-one drinks tonight (February 10). This is a chance to check out (cheaply) what may well become one of Beijing’s best bars. I’ll be there around 8:30 and would love to meet people who get this newsletter (look for me in the gold jacket). Browns’ Glenn Phelan writes, “It’s all night long. It only excludes full bottles of spirits, wines and Champagne,” and adds, “I have got a funky DJ so it should be a good gig.” Two Guinness for 35 kuai: that’s the “good gig”! (Note: Browns, which is pretty much a knock-off of the very popular Carnegie’s in Taipei, is on Sanlitun South, 50 meters from The Bookworm and above The Loft). / After a nearly two-month hiatus, icehouse will reopen on February 13, with Melvin Taylor and the Slack Band providing the blues. A recent ad described RBL, of which icehouse is a part, as “a distinctive modern life-style concept with a unique combination of a Restaurant, Bar and Lounge under one roof.” Yes, yes, but can they make a martini? Another ad, in Beijing Talk, shows pictures of superstars with whom band member Felton Crews has played: Buddy Guy, Bruce Springsteen, Miles Davis and (bizarrely) “Fresh Whole Tuna” (yes, it’s a picture of sushi). / CD Jazz Club will be without live music for a month or so, apparently due to nearby subway construction, and that means Ah-Q fans must get their fix elsewhere. You can reach the club at 6506-8288. (Thanks to Matt R for the tip.) By the way, I hear CD’s pasta is excellent. / I’ve written numerous times that Midnight has excellent drinks, but that the owner’s omnipresent cronies can be off-putting. An inside source tells me the bar is going through what might be called “human resource adjustments” and will soon be “crony-free.” (A shakeup was inevitable between the quality-loving bartenders and the owner and the former seem to have won out.) Expect some changes to the bar’s layout as well. / According to that’s Beijing, Pass By Bar will soon open Pass By Restaurant and serve tapas. / Richard Xavia, former manager of RBL (which includes Icehouse), is consulting for The Pavillion, while the aforementioned Glenn Phelan, brought in from Ireland a few months ago to manage Pavillion, has jumped to Browns. / Last issue, I wrote that the land on which Midnight, Browns, Bookworm, First Cafe, Pink Loft and others sit was apparently sold. Update: it was apparently the nearby plot behind Pacific Century, with bidding starting at 250 million and ending at 500 million (thanks to Eric H for the info). / Valentine’s Day is a marketer’s wet dream and a cynic’s dry heave. Instead of blowing your cash on some over-priced lovers’ package at a hotel, restaurant or bar, why not but some candles and wine (a nice Fleischer from Palette Vino would be nice) and do it yourself at home? As for food, nothing says love like a few slices of Buona pepperoni pizza.

(From Beijing Boyce X, first emailed on February 10, 2006)
### Pizza Buona The Pavillion Midnight Browns Icehouse Pass By Bar CD Jazz Club

Riverside Cafe has closed and will, it appears, become another Schindler’s. Good news for sausage and sauerkraut lovers, bad news for fans of the cafe and its excellent RMB20 wine glasses. (I should have stocked up. Anyone know where I can get more?) / Black Jack Garden (where I once coaxed a bartender into making me a Jagermeister martini. Ah, the memories) has also been uprooted. / The back loft in Le Quai (inside Gongti West) is a great place to spend a few hours while watching people ice fish, skate and play hockey on the river outside. Cozy couches and a good selection of drinks (RMB25-50; try the fruit cocktail), the only drawback is that sound really carries from the room below. / Until Chinese New Year, icehouse will only open for events, such as the Chopschticks comedy shows (next one: January 14). The owners have hired Guy Duarte as GM. The restaurant and lounge to which icehouse is attached are open as usual. / It started with Babyface a year ago and now Gongti West is becoming club central. Angel, Cargo (backed by Mix), Queen Club and the soon-to-open Coco Banana (backed by Banana) and Cutie Club are like peas in the pod there, with Vics and Mix around the corner. That hundred-meter strip could become the world’s biggest market for Chivas and green tea. Good. We must isolate such drinkers from society at large. / That gargantuan, half-finished and long-dormant building behind the Sanlitun beer mug is now host to a flurry of construction, the attendant noise intruding upon The Bookworm. There could be a double whammy on book and wireless lovers when drilling starts on the huge nearby Sanlitun South project. The Bookworm has a growing collection of new books and magazines for sale, a jewelry corner by Things of The Jing and 2006 seminars planned with Kent Kedl (The China Ready Company), Tim Clissold (Mr. China) and “Maggot Detective” Mark Benecke (his slide shows are not for the weak of stomach), among others. / Jenny Lou’s continues to expand its empire with a takeover of Eight over Eight’s space (Sanlitun North). (Note: I went there and four other stores in a vain search for a plunger – the staff at each spot were amused as I used body language to demonstrate unblocking a toilet. I tell you, there’s nothing worse than having a dozen full-bladdered house guests waiting for the maintenance guy to come and fix the loo.) / Thanks to BB readers Ro King, Agent Hidden Dragon and Agent Gold Monkey for donating money to help fund a heart operation for a two-month-old orphan named Tian Yue. (See last issue for the Scrooge-like details as to why an extra drive for cash was needed.) GE also came through with major support. Tian Yue had surgery on Boxing Day and so far, so good. / Thanks also to my boss, who seemed to be the only laoban in Beijing who didn’t require the staff to wear Christmas hats – as was required by workers at Shin Yeh, Le Quai, Starbuck’s, ad infinitum – the past few weeks. (I simply don’t look good in red with white fringe.) / Torres Wine has moved its office to near Green T. House (I couldn’t find the actual address since, like that of Summergate Wines, the Torres website is not working. C’mon guys, it’s almost 2006!). Torres will have a free tasting every Friday, 4-6 PM and until the end of December (short notice!) offers “buy two, get one free” on Baron Philippe de Rothschild Maipo Cabernet Sauvignon (RMB67), Signos Shiraz (RMB55) and Prosecco Angela Viano (RMB 85). / I went to Pinnacle Plaza with friends to buy a Christmas tree and popped into Palette Wines (good deal on Stickleback: RMB85 per bottle) and then into Jenny Lou’s where, lo and behold, they had over 500 different wines and a wine tasting to boot (it consisted of a “blind tasting” where one guessed if the wine was a Merlot or Cabernet Sauvignon. Okay, I guessed right. Now what? Do I win something? No? I don’t get the concept). / Finally, I was busy apartment hunting and moving the past two weeks, so this issue is heavy on First Impressions and light on in-depth pieces. I’ll have more next time around.

(From Beijing Boyce VII, first emailed on December 29, 2005)

Sharon Ruwart, co-founder with Perri Dong of the Beijing Cheese Society and popularly known about town as The Cheese Vixen, brought a full load of fromage from New York to the latest BCS event, November 14 at icehouse. While in the Big Apple, Sharon visited Artisanal, which, she writes, “[is] not only a wonderful cheese-focused restaurant, but also boasts the only cheese-maturing “cave” in the United States.” Sharon picked up five cheeses for our tasting pleasure. She also gave us a quiz, in which we learned, among other things, that a woman in Wisconsin wore a “cheese bra” to a sporting match. (“I bet it was made from Swiss cheese,” quipped the woman beside me). In any case, here are the cheeses, in tasting order, with excerpts from her handout and some notes of my own.

Azaitao, Farmstead, Portugal: “Coagulated with thistle rennet, the interior should be smooth and almost runny at room temperature: Raw milk, aged 90 days.” Yep, it was smooth and almost runny. Being a people person, I asked my tablemates – Lisa, Yuntao, Mike and Toni – to rank each cheese from a low of 1 to a high of 10. (We were like a Little Cheese Society within a Big Cheese Society.) We gave the Azaitao a 6.75.

Bouc Emissaire, Chaput Dairy, Quebec: “You’re got to love a cheese called “the scapegoat,” creamy, buttery: Raw milk, aged 60 days.” “Smells like ammonia,” said Mike, and I had to agree. I thought this one was more chalky than buttery. We gave it a 7.1. The Bouc-E was great with Chardonnay (see the wine list below), but gross with the Merlot-Cabernet.

Constant Bliss, Jasper Hill Farms, Vermont: “[Made from] uncooled evening milk: The cheese ripens from the outside in, going from a bone-white to an ivory color as the cheese ripens and softens. The cheese is named after a Vermont settler killed by local natives in 1718 when guarding a local military road. Raw milk, aged 60 days.” All I can say is that Bliss got a bum deal with this tribute: salty attack, gluey finish, 5.75.

Gruyere, Farmstead, Switzerland: “Hand-selected by a Swiss farmer named Rolf (cue Sound of Music), firm but supple texture [the cheese, not Rolf] and complex taste.” Sharon got tricky, putting this side-by-side with a Gruyere from Jenny Lou’s. We hemmed and hawed about which tasted best, which shows how much we know. Our scoring system fell apart, but it didn’t matter because the king of cheeses was up next. Ladies and gentleman, presenting:

Shropshire Blue, Colston Bassett Dairy, England: “We picked this because a cheese plate should always have a blue, and because with its deep orange color, it’s gorgeous. It’s a modern cheese, invented in the 1980s [the decade that gave us Duran Duran, the Breakfast Club and the BBO – “bottom bottle opener” – a groove in the glass of a beer bottle’s bottom that could be used to open your next brew. Pure genius! Pure 80s! But I digress] – meaty and tangy. Pasteurized cow’s milk. Aged 90 days.” This crumbly cheese was, as Sharon put it, “gorgeous.” According to my notes, “It started off with a tangy cheddar taste that quickly morphed into a blast of dirty diaper-stoked stinkitude.” I had three helpings. Score: 9.5.

The three wines for the night came from ASC, with the able Karen Nelson on hand and the icehouse staff keeping the vino flowing. The wines were: Santa Rita Reserva Chardonnay (Chile) 2004 (128RMB), Columbia Crest Two Vines Merlot-Cabernet (Washington State) 2001 (151RMB) and Taylor’s Special Ruby Port (Portugal) (192RMB). Sharon gave special thanks to Jackie Connar for helping with admin and to Susie Jakes and Jeff Prescott for bringing the bread. Sharon is on the lookout for “mules” to hand carry cheese into China, so if you’re interested, send an email to sruwart@gmail.com. (There, I wrote that whole story without a single “who cut the cheese” or “who moved my cheese” crack.)

(From Beijing Boyce IV, first emailed on November 18, 2005)

Icehouse got its name because during the Qing dynasty the place was apparently, surprise surprise, an icehouse. Maybe that’s the problem. After all, if it had good feng shui, then emperors past would have used it for a dining room or guest quarters, instead of a place to store frozen water. I know, I know, the lounge is partially owned by Handel Lee, who is associated with all that is high class in Shanghai and Beijing. Thus, my discomfort is obviously due to a personal deficiency in taste. Even so, I’m not the only misfit, because numerous other people have found Icehouse to be too boxy, too flat, too vacant, too much like the cement-floored, soulless events room in my hometown’s ice hockey arena (of course, only I made this last connection).

While I’m griping, why does Icehouse make it so hard to tell apart the men’s and women’s toilets? I went into one toilet only to run into a woman. I headed into the other toilet only to run into — another woman. I then realized that the first woman was cleaning the place and went back. The result is a terrible dilemma: either I have to use valuable memory space to remember which toilet to use or I have to start wearing adult diapers. This is all the fault of Icehouse!

Finally, there’s that hallway, which I’m guessing is 80 meters long. It’s impressive going in, although some oxygen tanks along the way would be nice for the less fit. Coming out, especially if you’ve had a few drinks, you could end up bashing your head off the walls a dozen times and/or be sober by the time you reach the door.

Okay, to be positive, I know some people who like Icehouse and I’ve had a few good times there, too, notably at the Chopschticks event a month ago and at that’s Beijing‘s launch of their 2005-6 Insider’s Guide to Beijing a few weeks back. The latter event featured Grey Goose vodka, and saw plenty of happy people, including a magazine editor who described Icehouse as “fantastic!”

Still, the feng shui factor remains. I dunno, Icehouse reminds me of the New York Yankees baseball team. They spend outrageous amounts of money on their product, they have lots of strong backing and they have a good customer base (Icehouse has Chopschticks comedy shows, ASC wine tastings, Beijing Cheese Society events, etc.). The stars are aligned, but something just doesn’t feel right.

(From Beijing Boyce III, first emailed on November 3, 2005)

Four times, I went to Phil’s Pub last month. Four times, I enjoyed it. For a great neighborhood feel, go to this spot near the southernmost end of Sanlitun South. / Thanks to Martin, Shayne and Karen for passing on my newsletter. / Channel V just showed Wham!’s Wake Me Up Before You Go Go. Is it just me or did George Michael and Princess Diana have the same hairdresser? And wouldn’t it be fair to say that Ricky Martin was the George Michael of his generation? / My co-worker Kate treated me to lunch at Riverside Cafe to celebrate my first year in Beijing. What a pleasant spot, with a lounge, dining area and good selection of wines on sale. We had the daily special — a tasty steak that I decided would be better marinated in Guinness (I accomplished this by pouring two pints of this most excellent brew down my throat). The visit’s highlight: finding 16-ounce wine glasses at RMB20 per piece, which I used for my Schandlicious party. Excellent value! / I attended the oriented.com event at Bodhi’s Terrace, across from Outback Steakhouse. The spa inside was pretty fancy, for all you massage maniacs. / The next Chopschticks is 7:30 PM, November 19, at Icehouse, with comedians Al Lubel (Letterman, The Tonight Show, even back when Johnny Carson was host: “Al’s so old school he’s new skule, peoples!” writes organizer Rich Robinson) and Joe DeRosa (Late Night with Carson Daly, Comedy Central). Tickets: 250RMB at the door; 220RMB before November 17. Email Tickets@TheComedyTour.com. (I’ve been to two shows so far and they’re good, clean – well, maybe that’s the wrong word – fun.) / Monday, October 31, 2005: Remember that as the day HBO put on consecutive movies so horrendous that the universe almost imploded. Catwoman was a farce, but at least was somewhat Halloween-esque. But to follow that up with – IRON EAGLE! This movie ranks among the ten worst of all time and there it was in all its bad plot, bad acting, bad special effects glory. And there I was watching it because the soundtrack has that great Queen “One Vision” song. The horror! / Not much to report on the First Cafe / Midnight situation. I’ve passed both about 20 times during the past two weeks and judging by the window, Midnight is averaging zero to five customers. Time shall tell. For now, I can’t bring myself to visit either place. It’s like (and non-baseball fans, please forgive me) you are a Boston Red Sox fan and the team trades its heart and soul player, Big Papi, to the New York Yankees. You can’t go to the Boston games anymore because the management screwed up and let Big Papi go and you can’t go to the Yankees games because that stadium just doesn’t feel right. You know what I’m saying? / I’m putting together a charity event that will involve people getting tipsy and helping children, all at the same time. More details to come. Cheers.

(From Beijing Boyce III, first emailed on November 3, 2005)

Time is running out for spending fantastic fall nights on a rooftop or deck. Options include The Big Easy (relaxing), Suzie Wong (people watching), Nuage (views of Hou Hai and the drum and bell towers) and Hai Bar (the same, but more rustic and cheaper). / Want to see the Astros win the World Series? Be a benchwarmer at the Goose and Duck or John Bull Pub. / Wine industry bigwigs constantly come to town since everyone wants a drop of China. I’m working on putting together wine tasting listings. / If you haven’t seen Ah-Q bring down the house at CD Jazz Club, catch their show on Thursday nights. Trombonist Matt Roberts says the house has been packed of late and he’s trying to figure out an encore. Ah-Q was playing at icehouse but the club, being a blues bar, wanted an, um, blues band, which makes you wonder why they hired a jazz one to begin with. / Steak and Eggs vegetarian omelet with hash browns and toast: RMB19. Get this and three other breakfast specials before 11 AM, or four RMB25 lunch specials, all October, as the place celebrates its anniversary. / Would Summergate wine please get a web page? You guys have some nice Antinori products, but make it too hard to find out about them. / The Starving Artists Party on September 15 at Yan Club was another finely run event by that’s Beijing, which includes the restaurant awards at Bar Blu and bar awards at Zing by Doodoo’s. It helps to partner with ASC Fine Wines, who poured Chilean Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon, and Sculpting in Time, which provided the eats. Funnily enough, I ran into a pair of Italian journalists were had just arrived in Beijing that day. And where did they hear about the party? From another journalist in North Korea. / The next issue includes Marketing Beverages on the Great Wall, Beer Mania, Books: Those Things Made Out of Paper, $10,000 wine glasses, A Bar with an Identity Crisis, and more. / Build the community: If you know people who would like this newsletter, pass it on. They just need to send a message to me to get on the mailing list. / Again, your comments and questions are welcome. I do realize that this issue is nearly 3,000 words long. Believe me: my fingers barely have the strength to pick up the single shot of 10-year-old Balvenie Single Malt I allow myself each month. Cheers, BB.

(From Beijing Boyce II, first emailed on October 20, 2005) 

Another guy making Beijing better is Rich Robinson, who for the love of humor organizes the Chopschticks comedy shows here and in Shanghai. There were two hundred people at icehouse on September 17 to see John Bush and Tom Shillue, the two comedians Rich flew in from the U.S. (Tom equated being denied sex by a particular sweetheart in high school with him carrying two increasingly swelling mailbags – with every letter in them addressed to her and eager for delivery.) Kudos to Rich and Cherry for making the project a success: check www.chopschticks.com for the next show.
To my horror and delight, Rich bought me a martini: horror, as my last icehouse martini had “notes of kerosene”, delight, as I rarely get free drinks and this one was good. Take this as a sign from Buddha that icehouse is poised to be, as many expect, a major player on Beijing’s high-end bar scene.

After the show, a few of us took John and Tom on a tour of some Beijing nightspots. It’s hard to beat the spacious rooftop deck at Suzie Wong’s on a cool fall evening. Funnily enough, my colleague Lige arrived and remembered Tom from a show he did on 72nd Street in New York – five years ago. If that feat of memory wasn’t enough, she recalled three of his jokes, two of which he had told us at the show just a few hours earlier.

(From Beijing Boyce I, first emailed on October 6, 2005)