Beijing Boyce

I’d heard from several sources that Beijing bar legend Henry Li (Neo Lounge, Vogue, and Public Space) was looking to sell his latest spot, Rui Fu, and move on to other projects. I ran into Henry at Centro on Tuesday and indeed it is true: the cavernous bar that mixes historical digs with what I once dorkily penned as the combined spirt of a “plush karaoke, generic hotel casino, and modernized opium den” is up for sale. (Incidentally, my review of Rui Fu inspired this angry letter). Although I had early reservations about the place, it was a regular stop for about two months, until the neverending theme parties scared me off — honestly, how many times can I dress up as a schoolgirl? Even so, of Rui Fu there will always be the memories…

Welcome to Readers’ Writes week, starring the collective wisdom of 17 fellow bar-goers who answered my survey about their favorite Beijing drinking holes and the city’s nightlife scene. They include men and women, span five decades in age, hail from four continents, and provide some appreciated insights. (Note: This first appeared in last week’s newsletter. To get the newsletter, send an email with “Eat, Drink and Be Merry” in the subject line to beijingboyce@yahoo.com.)

Without further ado…

OLIVER SEDLINGER, Austrian, 6 years

Favorite Beijing Bar(s)
Cafe Pause and Cafe Europa for wine from home (Austria), Q Bar and Bed for drinks and cocktails, Maggie’s for 80s music and eye candy.

All-time Favorite Bar(s)
First Cafe, Neo Lounge

The Beijing scene
Beijing needs a place like YY in Shanghai

BH, American, business manager, 9 years in China

Favorites
As a thirty-something ex-pat, the Pavillion works for me. Nice atmosphere (especially during the warm weather months), few if any twenty-something riff-raff, lots of screens playing sporting events, and a “real” bar with footrests. For similar atmosphere (a la Lost in Translation), Red Moon is also a nice spot. Centro has somehow managed to retain its reasonably hip and comfortable “see-and-be-seen” atmosphere.

All-time
No Name at Houhai - the low-key atmosphere is the perfect alternative for those who can’t stand Babyface (or similar). Goose and Duck is, IMO, the single best “drinker’s bar” in Beijing. Good cheap draft beer. Genuinely friendly staff. Always a fun crowd (as opposed to Suzie Wong’s, across the street, where it seems everyone is itching to get into a fistfight - over girls, perhaps? Could that be possible in a town that has Maggie’s?). And pretty good snacks to match (best Sloppy Joe in town, IMO).

The scene
There are truly, positively, 100 percent without a doubt, not enough “real” bars in Beijing. And by “bars” I mean places where people go to unwind after a long day, perhaps catch a game on TV, chit chat with the bartender, etc. This must be the case if I find the bar at Friday’s (by St. Regis) to be among the best “bars” in town. At some point, the night scene here became usurped by an obsession with fashion, design (often bad), and bar-owner narcissism. Beyond that, the “pure” dance scene seems to be great. However, it is clear (from comments made to me by both men and women) that there is very little here between the traditional “bar” and “can’t hear you screaming over the music” nightclubs. There is a large group of frustrated singles out there who find it virtually impossible to find a nice little place with good music where nice people can mingle (The Tree comes to mind here, in terms of what Beijing needs more of).

STELLA GUO, Chinese, freelancer, 20 years

Favorites
Q-Bar: The place to end the evening (slumped over the bar ;- ) ). Great mixed drinks and friendly owners / bartenders
All-time
The Tree: Stinky four cheese pizza and Belgian beers
Touch Bar by Houhai: Not for the drinks, but a place to relax and watch the world go by, especially good on a warm spring afternoon
The scene
While there’re lots of bars in Beijing and new ones coming up every day, most kind of run together and good drinking spots are still hard to come by.

CHELSEY “LIVING THE DREAM” MARK, Canadian, performer / host / actor / singer / artist / model / freedom fighter / nightlife writer, 7 years

Favorites
Zeta, mainly because my friend is the manager there and the DJ is also my friend… ha! It’s like my Cheers in Beijing. I’ll always know that Sammy, Norm and Cliff will always be there… :)
I usually follow my party friends, which have finally moved from Suzie Wong to China Doll, which is nice… People at China Doll seem to be more polite and a little less “tipsy.”
Goose and Duck … John is going to rock it with the new space … he also sponsors my ice hockey team here! Go Hot Wings! The Jerseys are the coolest thing on ice…

All-time
Kai, because you can drop in any time, the staff are always calm and will never give you attitude, the drinks are cheap, the music is always an adventure, in a good way! And people are always ready to have fun and meet people. The size is perfect. Summer time … man, look out!

The scene
Beijing’s drinking scene is vast, don’t get sucked into always frequenting the same bars, have some fun and go to random places. Stick the bar list on the wall, and take your pick. Get used to having bad cocktails - there are few places in the city that can actually mix proper drinks, i.e. Centro, Zeta. Also, be aware of the fake alcohol, so if you want play it safe, stick to bottled drinks. When ordering, speak slowly, check it twice, and get used to the slow service in receiving your drink and change.

High-end hardship: The closing of RBL, including Chicago blues bar Icehouse, was just a hint at the trouble faced by big, upscale, multipurpose establishments in this city, including numerous visionary projects launched in 2006. nhu, positioned as everything from restaurant to lounge to concert venue, is now open only for private functions as the owners look to remodel the place and better fit it to the Lido market. Rui Fu, brainchild of bar legend Henry Lee (Vogue, Neo Lounge and Public Space), has not taken off like his earlier spots. TRIO, a three-floor establishment anchored by Frank’s Place at ground level, has fared better, but scaled back its initial prices at the ritzy Park Grill upstairs and wine-centric The Cellar downstairs. Meanwhile, Palms, which aimed to be the Chaoyang South answer to Centro, has closed after one year - its mall location brought high rents and low turnouts, and the owner is looking to reopen in April near the East Third Ring Road. Given this, Face, Capone’s, LAN, and any number of hotel bars and high-end outfits either in or about to enter the market have their work cut out.

Opening Shots comes from the Beijing Boyce biweekly e-newsletter. To subscribe, send an email to beijingboyce@yahoo.com with “Eat, Drink & Be Merry” in the subject line.

I toiled beyond the borders of China during the heydays of Neo Lounge and Vogue, the venues that shot Henry Li to the top of the Beijing club-owner charts a few years ago. Even so, I am intrigued by the history of those two places, about which so many friends rave ecstatic. I had high expectations for Li’s new club, Rui Fu. I wanted to like this joint, to understand the buzz created by my friends. And since it is named after and based in the abode of an early twentieth-century Chinese leader, I envisioned a spacious place that welded the modern to the past, had layers of character and, given Li’s bar experience, served good drinks.

One thing is true: the club is spacious. The ceilings are lofty, the lounge areas sprawling, the 1000 square meters ample. But any homage to the past is absent. Rui Fu is a virtual reality. It evokes the spirits of the plush karaoke, generic hotel casino, and modernized opium den, places where losing track of time, forgetting the complexities of every day life, and finding indulgences are givens. The main floor is divided into two large narrow rooms joined by an opening. From the near side’s perspective, tables and chairs, then lounge areas, flow until they meet that opening, beyond which figures appear as silhouettes. A row of toffee-colored octopi-like “chandeliers” crowned with donut-shaped lights crawls spans the ceiling, framed by a strip of soft lights along the trim and a neon glow from the rafters. And a room-length curtain flows in front of what is mostly likely a wall, but could be a hiding spot for a Wizard of Oz type, calmly keeping the lights just dim enough, the house music just restrained enough, so that things stay on simmer. It all seems a bit unreal, as though pulling a lever might dissolve this scene. I’ll end my comments on ambience here, for my time at Rui Fu was short, my quota for being pretentious has been met, and a proper evaluation will require several return trips.

As for Rui Fu’s bar, it is L-shaped and seats about 15 people (fans of reddish velvet framed by white piping look will love the chairs). My only cocktail was, in theory, a vodka martini with a twist: the bartender inexplicably squeezed a lemon into the shaker with the alcohol rather than, as is proper, placing a strip of peel in the glass as a final touch. (*This* was the time for a lever that would make something, namely my drink, disappear.) It might be best to stick to wine, beer or spirits, which are reasonably priced (a serving of Johnnie Walker Black is Y35).

Rui Fu, still to have its official opening, will rank among the year’s top bar stories, one with a high-falutin’ plot if the free English magazines are any indicator (that’s Beijing got in the first “see and be seen” reference, while Timeout used “glitterati” and expressed seeming displeasure that “some guests [at the soft launch] obviously missed the whole point of Rui Fu as they slobbed around in jeans, trainers and t-shirts, not quite reflecting the A-list celebrity hang out that Lee has envisaged”). Throw in the general consensus that serious guanxi is behind the club, that Henry Li is a brand name in and of himself, and that plenty of old-time party-goers will be looking to re-live the days of Vogue and Neo Lounge, and it’s going to get interesting.

(From Beijing Boyce XXII, first emailed on August 12, 2006)

that’s Beijing held its restaurant awards, at Champagne bar, on May 11. Hatsune, Alameda, Steaks and Eggs, and Green T. House came away as multiple winners. Bellagio took top prize for late-night dining. / Cafe Pause has started wine tastings and the first featured German wines accompanied by German-style tapas (more on this event next time). This place now has outdoor seating and is a cozy spot to enjoy some Fleischer Secco sparkling wine. Speaking of which, I mistakenly wrote that the cafe stopped serving its cheese and spinach dumplings with pesto sauce. The delicious item I had been thinking of was the pork filet roll filled with spinach, Parmesan and almonds, and topped with red pesto sauce, and it remains on the menu. / John Bull Pub is holding a Taco Party all day Friday (May 12), with tacos (10 kuai) and frozen Margaritas (20 kuai). / Palette Vino will hold a South African wine tasting on May 12 (8 PM) and a Terrazas Argentinean wine tasting on May 19 (8 PM) in its Shunyi location, which will soon offer tapas and pasta. / ASC Fine Wines and House by the Park will pair Henri Bourgeois wines with Chinese cuisine on May 17 (7 PM, 688 kuai per person), with estate owner Jean Marie Bourgeois on hand. Also on the schedule: A Louis Jadot wine dinner, with winery president Pierre-Henry Gagey, at Tian Yi Di Jia on May 19, and a Guigal wine dinner, with winery president Marcel Guigal, at Aria on May 26. / Rui Fu, the new bar from Henry Li (Neo Lounge; Vogue; Public Space) is about to open, will open in June, will open in spirit but not in body, or is simply a figment of our collective imagination. Does anyone really know? In the meantime, it remains, according to many, “highly anticipated.” / It’s nice to see bar owners occasionally out doing research, with Dave McCullough of 5:19 spotted at Browns, The Den and The Bookworm last weekend. / One year ago, a trip to Tongli Studio meant a night at Bar Blu. Now when I hit those steps, I’m thinking Top Club or Cheers. / One year ago, a trip to Bar One found the place virtually empty, but a trip two weeks ago found it comfortably populated and the music fun. Call it Maggie’s sans Mongolians. / I hear that Stone Boat, in Ritan Park, has been drawing sizeable crowds with its live music series, particularly last Friday’s post-MIDI party. / Inner Affairs has renamed itself I [Heart] Beijing, thereby joining Zing by Doodoo’s in Beijing’s Lame Name Hall of Fame. / Maggie’s dance floor was under construction two weeks ago, but should now be open. / The Pomegranate was a bit claustrophobic in the winter, with those oil-burning heaters, but better weather means those in Shunyi have a nice outdoor option for enjoying a few pints and some decent pub grub. / Kranzler’s Restaurant and Bar, named after a Berlin Cafe started in the twenties, will soon open in the Kempinski Hotel. / Together, a fairly new bar with a Reggae theme, will have 12 hours (2 PM to 2 AM) of Marley-type music by DJ Herbie on May 13. / Garden of Delights joins the list of more-than-happy happy hours: two-for-one, from 6 to 7:30 PM, on weeknights, with floor manager Alex making one mean Mojito. / that’s Beijing held its bar and restaurant awards today, with Alameda, Steaks and Eggs, Green T. House and Hatsune coming out multiple winners. Bellagio took home the prize for late-night dining. / Just in case some people forgot, Mother’s Day is this Sunday. / And as always, if you like this newsletter, please pass it on to others you think might enjoy it. One need only send me a simple email to get on the list. Eat, drink and be merry, BB.

(From Beijing Boyce XVI, first emailed on May 11, 2006) 

Is it just me or is Sanlitun South Street going through a renaissance? The past six months have seen Midnight, Browns (see review below) and The Bookworm open, all good places and nice complements to decent longer-established spots, such as First Cafe and The Pink Loft. A reader calls it a “golden age” for the area, especially as the beggars, fake-CD sellers and “lady bar” touts are conspicuously absent. Enjoy it while it lasts, my friends. / Speaking of which, that entire plot of land, which encompasses the aforementioned spots as well as places such as Banana Leaf and The Loft has apparently just been bought. What does fate hold? ~ Henry Li, the brains behind the now-defunct Vogue and Neo Lounge, as well as Public Space in Sanlitun, will open a new spot at February’s end. He said the 800-square-meter will be named after Duan Qirui, an early twentieth-century premier and warlord, on Pingan Avenue, four blocks west of Poly Plaza. ~ Mike W. reports that the Red Capital empire’s - comprising the Red Capital Club, Red Capital Guest House and Red Capital Ranch - has grown by hiring a new GM (from Indonesia) and floor manager (from Britain). Expect a full write-up next issue about Red Capital’s most interesting bomb shelter bar (and its “Lin Biao’s Crash” cocktail). / One year in and the Beijing Cheese Society, co-founded by Sharon Ruwart and Perri Dong, has matured into a most excellent club. With events featuring Spanish, South African, British, American and French cheeses under its belt, the society now fills its 50-seat events within two hours of sending out invites. Join the events list by emailing sruwart@gmail.com. / Speaking of which, Perri, formerly known as that’s Beijing’s Cai Guy, is now working for ASC Fine Wines. / Yvonne C passes on info that Le Palais Desserts and Lounge (www.lepalais.cn) has opened close to the Kerry Centre and has excellent sweets prepared by a Belgian pastry chef. / Phil, of Phil’s Pub fame, is opening a bar in Qingdao. I suspect the main reason is to be closer to his beer source. / Last issue, I mentioned that IKEA is moving. Reader Eric H reports that the new store will open in Wangjing in April and will be IKEA’s largest store in Asia Pacific and second largest worldwide. / I’m hearing good things about Saddle, across from Apertivo, whether the place is filling up for NFL playoff games or doling out breakfast burritos. It’s a snug spot. / The Pomegranate, in Shunyi, has an e-newsletter covering its televised sports schedule, weekly quiz and directions on finding the bar. Email the_pomegranate@yahoo.com with “subscribe” in the subject line. / Based on my careful observations of the past six months, about half of the men in Beijing bars do not wash their hands after using the toilet. Be careful with whom you share those complimentary peanuts.

(From Beijing Boyce IX, first emailed on January 26, 2006)