Beijing Boyce

After enjoying a heart attack on a plate - that would be deep-fried camembert followed by a load of meat and carbohydrates - with Special K at Schindler’s last night, we popped into Paddy O’Shea’s, the Irish bar headed by man-about-town Glenn Phelan, whose previous gigs were at The Pavillion, Browns and Frank’s Place.

Paddy’s offers a high ceiling, an L-shaped bar, and dozens of stools on which to park and enjoy a pint or watch a game of pool. It’s a bar - plain and simple. I had a pint of Kilkenny (Guinness was maeyo: I hear numerous places are short due to problems at Customs) and tried a shot of Irish single malt (nice stuff!)

Paddy’s will be able to swing open its facade of windows in nice weather to make the place even more spacious. The ‘disco’ upstairs officially opens December 7.

By the way, Shamrock lovers will be pleased - such images abound. So many, in fact, that I plan to help the bar and cover a few of them with stickers and posters of Ireland’s* most famous band ever - The Bay City Rollers.

More on Paddy O’Shea’s soon.

* I still need to confirm the nationality of the band members.

Popular bartenders George Zhou and Echo Sun left Midnight bar two weeks ago, following a run-in with management, about six months after they left First Cafe, following a run-in with management. It’s a serious situation for those who enjoy quality cocktails. Echo continues to manage Cafe Pause in the 798 art district, while George is doing consulting. Their next moves are eagerly awaited. / Dawn breaks after even the darkest midnight and new bartender Alex at 10-kuai Qingdao joint Phil’s is a ray of sunshine. He can mix up a tasty Mojito, Bloody Mary and Long Island, the latter coming with a splash of Grand Marnier and impressing finicky Agent Red Wolf. Alex is usually (no guarantees) behind the bar on Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday nights, the latter best avoided given the rowdy all-you-can-drink-Qingdao-for-30-kuai crowd). / Cajun cooking and wasabi together at last? Chef Dan Segall, whose photo is a mainstay in Beijing’s English-language magazines, has left Hilton Hotel’s Louisiana Restaurant and next month will join the Japanese-focused kitchen at RBL. / John Bull Pub is holding “entry-level” wine tasting on some Fridays (6 to 8 PM), with takeaway bottles at 80 kuai or less. Chilean, Australian and Chinese wines have been featured. Call 6532-5905 for details. / This could be the year of outdoor eating, drinking and reading in Beijing. Owner Alex Pearson gave me a tour of Bookworm’s new rooftop garden, which has a flagstone path, seats 48, and should be open by today. (By the way, given how loud and crowded the Bookworm is at times, how long before someone–Alex herself?–opens a similar spot elsewhere?). Alongside favorites such as Bar Blu, Steak and Eggs, Stone Boat and numerous Hou Hai spots, Bookworm joins newcomers Le Petit Gourmand, Frank’s Place, 5:19, Pomegranate, Browns, Pavillion and others in the great outdoors seating competition. / Pavilion will add an extension in order to add a Mediterranean restaurant. Richard Xavia (ex-RBL) and Richard Mills (ex-Aria) are consulting. On one hand, the shift is understandable as about-to-open Frank’s Place will siphon some of Pavillion’s sports-loving patrons (Frank’s Place investor Roger Dutton and Pavillion proprietor Russell Probert were once co-owners of the old Frank’s Place). On the other, this smacks of yet another attempt to bring Shanghai not only to Beijing (see RBL), but also to an establishment that already lacks focus and staff training (example: the numerous occasions when no employees on hand were able to work the TVs). / As for Dutton, he says Trio, which will house a New York-style grill, the new Frank’s Place and the wine-centric The Cellar, should be open by early May. Nicole Pang has been hired as part of the PR and marketing team. / No frowns at Browns as the large empty space meant for tequila and Whisky rooms has instead been quickly finished to handle overflow from the main area. The place was packed to the gills on St. Patrick’s Day. My biggest gripe after a dozen visits: the music. My advice: forget the muddled DJ sets and instead put in a “Funky 80s Hits” CD, hit random play and let people have fun. (For more on Browns, see We Got Mail.) / Wine whiz Ethan Perk writes that the new Schindler’s, on the old Riverside Cafe site, is hopping, even on a Tuesday night at 6:30: “They were packed, not a seat in the house.” / Shunyi is starting to blossom. An upcoming that’s Beijing map lists more than 100 shops, restaurants and bars in the district. While Shunyi is still a bit light in the latter two categories, Palette Vino, Jenny Lou’s and Pomegranate are leading the way, and the first fixed location for caterer Harry’s Kitchen is apparently set to open. / Sequoia Cafe has a tasty 30-kuai chicken pita and salad combo at lunch. The place delivers, but if you order by fax, follow-up by phone, as the machine is sometimes off. / Finally, if an afternoon spent listening to 1950s German folk songs sounds like fun, try Cafe Pause in Dashanzi. You can slowly go mad while using the free wireless.

(From Beijing Boyce XIII, first emailed on March 24, 2006)

This two-floor Mongolian-themed bar is the former location of Zone de Confort. Part of a restaurant chain from Ulan Bator, it offers less than authentic fare, given ingredients such as peach slices, Granny Smith apples and mayonnaise, but offers eclectic entertainment and decent drinks. The decor includes pseudo leather table covers, wagon wheels and various horse-riding gear, and is hard to describe, though M-Dawg and I had fun trying. Mongo-kitsch? Ulan Boutique? Mod-golia?

We had a grill set (memories of Schindler’s), which included slabs of pork and beef on a hot cast iron plate, and side bowls of rice and potatoes (80 kuai). “Mongolians know how to do meat,” said M-Dawg. My dumpling set included three varieties, which were savory but too chewy, as well as some ribs and a carrot salad (48 kuai). More interesting were the Mongolian vodkas, including Chingis, available straight up (25 to 30 kuai for 50 ML) or in cocktails (20 to 30 kuai), including the Bad Boy Martini (vodka and Jack Daniels) to the Bhaktan (vodka, Kahlua, Coke and milk). Knock back a few while watching a man throat sing and play a Matojin (a stringed instrument) or the four-piece band perform Mongolian and Western pop songs, including “Venus.” Add in an eccentric crowd that includes locals and foreigners, including many Mongolians, and you have the makings of an interesting night.

(From Beijing Boyce XIII, first emailed on March 24, 2006)

Fancy an assault on your heart and liver? Go to Schindler’s (south gate, Ritan Park) and down a platter of grilled meat and spuds (85 kuai), accompanied by a steady supply of German draft (22-27 per pint). If you’re not a big eater, you’re best splitting a dish with a friend. Schindler’s offers solid fare and good brew in an atmosphere where being noisy seems mandatory. Lebe das guten Leben. (By the way, another branch will open in the old Riverside Cafe spot.)

(From Beijing Boyce XI, first emailed on February 23, 2006)

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)