Beijing Boyce

Plastered T-Shirts marks its second anniversary this Friday in Nanluoguxiang with two DJs, a VJ, and Shed Simove (of Big Brother fame) doing stand-up comedy. Donations to the Magic Hospital welcomed. The party gets started this Friday at 7:30 PM. This is a good chance to enjoy the weather and patronize Salud, 12SQM, and other area bars. (See also: Getting Plastered on a ‘hutong catwalk’)

Meanwhile, regular reader 8 Songs reminds that Stone Boat’s “Tunes in the Park” will feature the Beijing return of his compatriots, folk musicians Jane Germain and Ian Simpson, tonight from 9:30 PM. (Germain’s most recent album is called Chinese Whispers and was recorded with Mongolian band / local scene-sters Hanggai).

The ground has thawed, the leaves are out, and that means The Stone Boat “Tunes in the Park” series is up and running again. The May lineup includes Hussy Hicks (May 1, 9:30 PM; “They actually rock quite clean with hints of country and Celtic Rock”),  Jane Germain and Ian Simpson (May 9, 9:30 PM, “grassland blues”), “Brasil Nite” (May 10, 9 PM, samba, jazz, and bossa nova), Hedgehog (May 16, 8 PM, “pop-punk”), Panjir (May 17, 9:30 PM, “insanely free jazz and Flamenco guitar solos”), Woodie Alan (May 23, 9:30 PM, blues-rock), Enfants Terrible (May 24, 9:30 PM,  “jazz electronica”),  Panjir (May 30, 9:30 PM), and Hanggai (May 31, 9:30 PM, Mongolian throat singing).

The Stone Boat is also holding “Boat Paridiso Video Shorts“, on May 15 at 9 PM, “featuring film/video art, vidcasts, animation, and other shorts highlighting local life and talent.”

All of the events listed above are free. Fishing in the pond next to the Stone Boat is extra.

I jumped into the back of a cab near the St. Regis Hotel last Friday and asked the driver to go to Workers’ Stadium.

We made it as far as the northwest corner of Ritan Park when the driver pulled over, shook his head, and pointed at the door to indicate I should get out.

I didn’t like the idea of looking for a new cab on an empty street at night in the cold. I repeated the address in the hope that might do the trick. He shook his head again. I asked if he knew the location of Workers’ Stadium. He said he didn’t and indicated the door.

Unable to convince him to go further, I took out my phone to record his taxi license number.

Big mistake - he became agitated, started shouting, and grabbed my arm. I shouted back at him, pulled my arm free, gathered my computer and groceries, and exited the taxi.

I stood about ten meters away and dialed a friend.

Another big mistake - he came after me and, fifty meters later, latched onto my arm. If he wasn’t pulling the sleeve of my coat, he was gripping my computer bag or grabbing at my cell phone.

This tug-of-war lasted about five minutes, as I tried to hold onto all my bags while dragging him down the sidewalk. We passed some locals and he started talking to them. Like me, they were unsure of what he was saying. Finally, as he had a coat sleeve pulled six inches past my wrist, one woman had an “a-ha!” look and said, “He wants to be your friend — your pengyou.”

My Mandarin level precluded me from explaining I don’t link friendship to damaging people’s coats, public harassment, or being dropped off on a dark corner on a cold winter night. In any case, the presence of the woman and a few other people calmed him slightly and I escaped. For all I know, the driver did feel bad or wanted to explain he had other matters to deal with and thus wanted to drop me off, or… whatever. In any case, once he got out of control, I simply wanted to get away.

What’s the point of the story? I am NOT making a generalization about China, its citizens or, even more narrowly, its cab drivers. I take two or three cabs a day, which translates into about a thousand per year, and this is the first time I’ve experienced something like this. While I have issues with cabs in Beijing – particularly in terms of inconsistent service - I don’t feel unsafe in them.

No, my point is that this situation soon saw me alone, in the cold, beside Ritan Park, with no taxis in sight. And I realized… this is the perfect time to go to Stone Boat and start my winter wireless series.

The series is called The Good, The Bad and The Wireless - not the most creative title, I know - and looks at options out there for those seeking to get food, coffee, and online.

First up: Stone Boat

The good
- It’s a sedate getaway in the city center and lies beside an ice-covered pond
- You can feel tourist-y / a sense of history in its Qing Dynasty surroundings
- The atmosphere is cozy, the place kept warm by heaters and double doors
- A pot of Whiskey and tea is 30 kuai
- If you stay late enough, you’re within a five-minute walk of a Maggies hot dog

The bad
- The bathrooms are outside, they are cold and, at least on this night, they reeked
- If business is slow, the staff gets bored, so don’t be surprised if they mindlessly bang something on a table or make other annoying noise

The wireless
- The access is good and, frankly, there is something cool about parking on a bench in this building, gazing out at the pond and trees, and being online.

Next review: Le Petit Gourmand

Ritan Park’s Stone Boat Cafe tonight (Wednesday) features indie bands from the Midi Music Festival. The following bands “go acoustic” from 8 PM (no entry fee): Kava Kava (UK), The Crimea (UK), Good Time Charlie (Norway), and The Soundtrack of our Lives (Sweden). Sambasia will bring its big-drum sound to Stone Boat on Friday, from 9:30 PM (entry free).

Meanwhile, Shunyi-area The Pomegranate will hold its Rynostock Music Festival on May 19, 1 PM to Midnight. Organizers promise a BBQ, drink specials and a lineup that so far includes Beta, Black Cat Bone, End of the World, Far from Home, Humble Mike & the Rhythm Dogs, The Moonshine Drifters, The Red Bean Ramblers and The Berlin Mummies. Call Mike at 138-0110-3933 if you’d like to play at Rynostock.

I number among those poor souls without home Internet access. Getting online thus means packing the laptop, bundling up and heading *out there*. Here are three recent wireless experiences, followed by some favorite spots for surfing the Web. 

Vineyard Cafe
Given the coverage the free English-language magazines have heaped on this place, particularly for its “full English breakfast,” I recently popped in. The breakfast is indeed hearty, with egg, sausages, bacon (soft, not crispy), beans, mushrooms, tomato, two slices of toast, and choice of coffee or juice, though with a price tag of 65 kuai, another egg and bottomless java would be nice.

Vineyard Cafe is unpretentious and cozy, keeps the music at a reasonable volume, offers a good selection of cocktails, beer and wine, and had a strong wireless signal during my three-hour visit. The wildcard is the location. Some might get annoyed searching for a spot hidden in a hutong on a side street near Lama Temple. Others might see it as nicely secluded and rustic.

In any case, I experienced two cafes. The first was at brunch: crowded, comfortably noisy and saturated with a good vibe. The second was in late afternoon, when the human warmth (literally) was gone: the few customers shivered as the front door continually swung open and faced headaches as the back door slammed every 30 seconds or so. Management seems receptive, so odds are it will get a handle on this. A map to the cafe is available at www.vineyardcafe.cn, one of the town’s better bar blogs.

The Stone Boat
After a quick cocktail at The Press Club a few weeks back, I headed down the street, into Ritan Park and to The Stone Boat, where many a winter eve I spent two years ago as a newcomer to Beijing. I wanted to check it out after seeing an ad in that’s Beijing titled “Stone Boat Winter Myths.”

“Myth: Too cold. Reality: New heaters.” The Stone Boat was, indeed, much warmer than in previous winters, and a small foyer at the front provides two sets of sliding doors to keep in the heat, although a slight draft persists.

“Myth: No food. Reality: Homemade dumplings, soup, gluwein, etc.” True again. The vegetarian dumplings were maeyo, so I tried the beef ones (25 kuai per plate) and Boat Beef Noodles (25 kuai), both of which were fine.

“Myth: Dead. Reality: Parties. Stay tuned.” I was the only patron, but it was a Tuesday night and I was grateful this myth had yet to become reality.

Here are two more realities. Reality: I couldn’t get online. There was a signal, my computer apparently connected to it, and for an hour, I futilely tried to access Web sites while the staff smacked the wireless box, but no luck. Reality: entertainment is free. One employee repeatedly held a deck of cards above her head and let it drop onto a table, with a resounding crack, in attempts to get it to stand upright. Unfortunately, it got tiresome after the twentieth drop. In any case, I’m chalking up these last two realities to a bad night, as I’ve often found tranquility (and wireless) at Stone Boat.

Le Petit Gourmand
Longtime readers might remember my last story about this Sanlitun North spot included a bug falling out of a Parmesan shaker and onto my (up to then vegetarian) pizza. I’ve returned sporadically for coffee, but decided to give the food another shot after hearing the place has a new chef.

In my mind, any place positioned along the lines of The Bookworm, as is Le Petit Gourmand (LPG), should have wireless. Unfortunately, the only access I could get was via a weak intermittent signal from Bar Blu, one floor up. As I waited for my food, I mentioned this to Waitress One (W1), who motioned to an empty table 10 feet away. Hmmm. Perhaps she hadn’t understood, so I pointed to my computer screen and warped my face into a look of frustration. She nodded and zipped off, only to pass my table five or six times during the next 10 minutes, obviously having forgotten our conversation. No worries, I thought, I’ll go to the counter and ask Waitress Two (W2). I did, explaining verbally and in sign language, while she stared blankly at me. Perhaps she was considering my quandary, thought I. I thought wrong. W1 approached and asked W2 for two coffees, ending my brief relationship with W2 as she turned her attention elsewhere. I returned to my table and, seeing that W3 and W4 appeared as helpful as W1 or W2, decided to take action. As W1 passed, I caught her attention:

“Excuse me. I want to cancel my order.”
She looked confused.
“My order.”
“Water?”
“No, I want to cancel my order.”
“No water?”

She left and a few seconds later brought my club sandwich and soup (both passable). I made a few more attempts at getting a wireless signal, but it simply was not to be, which was too bad, because LPG has an okay drink, food and book selection and I would have stuck around all afternoon.

Here are some good spots for wireless, all of them in the Gongti area (I’m a homer when it comes to surfing the Web).

The Bookworm: The signal is generally good, but finding a seat can be tough, the music is sometimes too loud, and weird foreigners are attracted to the place like drunken moths to a Flaming Lamborghini. I tend to head there when I want to run into someone I know, crave potato gnocchi, feel like browsing books, or need to be near people who make me feel normal (“Did that guy just *snort* his sugar!?”).

Browns: While known for late-night shenanigans, this place is good for Web surfing. A strong signal, high ceilings, comfortable seats, and decent food and beer choices make it my default choice when The Bookworm is crowded. (Except tonight, as I write this newsletter, when the wireless is “broken” and a medical company is holding its year-end party - the emcee just yelled “wei” 20 times into the microphone as a test.)

Beer Mania: Wireless plus Belgian beer on draft at happy hour prices equals online fun.

Q Bar: I often meet acquaintances for an after-work drink at the Q and can check my email and sip a Horse Neck while I wait for them.

Sequoia Cafe: This place serves good coffee and sandwiches, even if the chairs are hard on the behind.

(From Beijing Boyce XXVIII, first emailed on December 23, 2006.)

File this in the “just when you think you know a guy” drawer. Jon Tsao, who I’ve known since arriving in Beijing two years ago, nonchalantly mentioned a while back that he once co-owned a bar called Keep in Touch. I asked last issue if any readers remembered the place (my bad for stating it opened in 1966, rather than 1996). Here are the replies:

Email: “I think you may have saved me something in the region of 300 to 400 RMB by telling me how badly overpriced Face is. A girl I had a date with cheekily suggested the place! I counter-recommended the old Black Sun.” - JB

BB: Beijing Boyce is happy to help. Black Sun seems a rather extreme drop-off from Face, however, akin to skipping blue cheese martinis at Centro in favor of vodka and Red Bull at Kai Club or rejecting her suggestion of The Orchard for dinner and going instead to Steak and Eggs. There is middle ground and I recommend The Tree or Stone Boat as such. In any case, I hoped you kicked her butt at foosball!

Email: “I concur with the Stone Boat terrace option [mentioned in the last BB]. I went with two visitors for a wine ‘tasting’ on Saturday and the location is sublime.” - AH

BB: I was among the first people to hang out at Stone Boat (Amy and Jonathan era), not because I have a knack for finding new spots, but because former that’s Beijing Cai Guy and current ASC Fine Wines Guy Perri Dong introduced me to it. I was new to town and, given chilly nights and stressful days, Stone Boat was a warm and relaxed retreat from reality. It helped that I was in “tourist” mode, thus making a sedate Qing Dynasty-style teahouse set on a pond in a park in the center of a morphing world capital of fifteen million seem pretty cool. The Stone Boat also had (and has) wireless. However, those were the heydays of First Café. In The Legendary Battle for Beijing Boyce’s Liver, George and Echo’s martinis routed Stone Boat’s hot chocolates. Thus, I traded caffeine-laced serenity for a shadowy interior, dizzying jazz and blues, and intoxicating vodka potions. Oh, how young and reckless was I then!

Email: “This is the best place in Beijing.” – PA (sitting beside me in The Bookworm)

BB: The Bookworm has top-notch seminars, an excellent selection of food and drink, and a pleasant rooftop garden, but to be “the best” requires a crucial step: hiring me as a security guard with total discretion as to which patrons to bounce down that long flight of stairs. Take last night, when the woman across from me verbally galloped for an hour at high volume and with a voice reminiscent of a squeaky door. Bounce. Take last week, when two lovebirds sat in front of me and shared a toasted sandwich that they ate with mouths open, molars revealed and masticated tomatoes, cheese and bacon visibly and audibly on churning display. Bounce and bounce. Take the people who avoid sneezing on their own laptop screens and instead send the mist toward yours, who scream “Wei!” into a cell phone a half-dozen times, or who for hours lightly sing, hum or tap out with their pencil some annoying Black Eyed Peas’ song. Bounce, bounce and bounce. Thus, PA, until justice reigns – and service is more consistent – The Bookworm will only be “one of the best.”

Email: “This is Alex (the former American bartender at Phil’s)… I’ll be coming back to Beijing soon but I’m not too sure when. I’ll keep you informed.” – AK

BB: To those who missed it, Alex suddenly showed up at Phil’s earlier this year and for a few months helped Sally whip up cheap but good drinks. He also wore the diplomat’s hat and quelled rowdier patrons, making him a nice addition to a nice pub. Let’s hope he has time to mix a few cocktails at Phil’s when he returns to our fair city.

Email: “I always read your newsletter, but I too find it difficult with that font. Can you change it to Arial narrow perhaps?” - PM

BB: You got it. Ladies, Gentlemen and Barbarians, this issue of Beijing Boyce sports this fall’s most fashionable font - Arial narrow.

These are the nights to enjoy a drink on a rooftop, deck or patio, and my favorite spots remain Pavillion and Stone Boat Cafe, with other good options being Drum and Bell, Frank’s Place and Q Bar. Remember, our lungs filter pollution from this city’s air and a strong collective outside drinking effort might allow us to spot a star or two some evening. (Note: Pavillion offers the added flashback value of hearing Wham!, Huey Lewis, The Vapors and Jackson Browne within an hour.) / John Bull Pub, run by legendary bar proprietor Frank Siegel, is saying toodleloo London and hello Houston as it transforms into a Texas BBQ joint (see “We Got Email” / Zing by Doodoo, an esteemed member of the Bad Bar Name Hall of Fame, is also changing identities and will reemerge as Thai restaurant Serve the People, which is hardly a better name given that it evokes cannibalism. / 49 kuai for a pint of Carlsberg at Face. Ouch! / The Bookworm celebrated its one-year anniversary yesterday. With tasty food, interesting lectures, live music, plenty of books for sale or loan, and an extensive beverage menu, this place has been a runaway success. Not surprisingly, its incredible popularity can make it tough for wireless seekers to get a seat, and that can mean occasional forays to Le Petit Gourmand or SPR Coffee. / Browns now serves “jungle juice” during Wednesday ladies’ nights, which means people may soon be swinging from the rafters as well as dancing on the bar. Speaking of Browns, the foam party two weekends ago saw bubbles upon bubbles for most of the night, but they had burst by Sunday brunch. The place was virtually empty, yet it took over 20 minutes to get a simple breakfast and the COFFEE MACHINE WAS BROKEN! “If this had been my first visit to Browns, I would never go back,” said a downright bitter and caffeine-withdrawn M-Dawg. / Nearby, The Loft has renamed itself Hot Loft. I have no punch line to do justice to this marketing brilliance. / Reader K.S. aka Killer Schoolmarm has spoken to the owner of recently chai’d The Big Easy and says the Louisiana-style hotspot will again grace our city, retaining the spirit of its original interior, but with a new outside look (more to come on this). / M-Dawg and I visited Q Bar two Saturdays ago and waited not only 15 minutes to order, but also 30 minutes in vain for our drinks. With parched throats, we went to Phil’s Pub and soon had Gin Tonics at one-third the cost. It seems to me that Q Bar is best when providing quality cocktails in a tranquil environment, which suggests a need to focus on speeding up drink delivery rather than on, say, hiring a DJ to play house music. Translation: I want my dry martini and John Lee Hooker! Fortunately, the drinks were coming fast and slightly furious during a visit earlier this week. / Speaking of which, Trevor and Kenn from Alternate Paradigm will slip into aprons and host an end-of-summer BBQ on Q Bar’s rooftop (September 23, 2 PM-late). Twenty-five kuai gets you a cheeseburger, two hot dogs, grilled veggies or six wings, all of which come with a baked potato. / Skipping back to Phil’s, I visited several times recently and rediscovered the joys of cheap but decent cocktails, 30-kuai Erdinger, and a friendly neighborhood pub atmosphere. Moreover, after a long stint in Qingdao , owner Phil is back and teamed up with Sally. My only recommendation for this place: vaporize the PlayStation console, or at least anyone using it. / The new branch of Raj held a party last Saturday night with the expected buffet of Indian food and traditional dancing. The rooftop is ideal for enjoying a few brew (from 15 kuai for Qingdao to 25 kuai for Kingfisher) or some wine (though those puny glasses have to go), before heading to nearby Bed or Drum and Bell. / The Stone Boat has upgraded its wine and cocktail menu over the past year and credit goes to Amy and Jonathan. The Martini and Mojito are better, though the latter is still light on alcohol, and it is nice to enjoy wine in a proper glass in such a relaxing spot.

(From Beijing Boyce XXIV, first emailed on September 21, 2006)

The lady bar touts and substance pushers seemed sparser on Sanlitun North the past few weeks. A recent stroll down the main drag attracted only six “sexy girl” solicitations, in contrast to the usual dozen, and not one “Hey man, want some stuff?” was muttered as I walked the side streets to Apertivo. Where hath the intrepid intruders gone? Perhaps they took advantage of the new Beijing-Tibet express and are on summer leave. Or maybe they were turfed by the notorious security guards at nearby Tongli Studio (true, no bodies have been found, but a telling sign would be if the area’s kebabs suddenly tasted gamey). Whatever the reason, any break from these — let’s be generous – carbon-based life forms is as refreshing as when strong winds occasionally dilute Beijing’s air pollution. Unfortunately, it’s usually just as short-lived. / Speaking of Apertivo, I’ve been there twice this month. The service is reasonable, it’s a nice place to chat with friends on a pleasant summer evening, and things would be even better with an upgraded by-the-glass wine selection. / Across the street, Saddle offers a minimalist menu of burritos, Spanish fried rice, salsa and chips, and fajitas as well as Pepe Lopez, Camino, Jose Cuervo, Olmeca and Conquistador tequilas. These brands cover the less-than-100-percent agave end of the tequila spectrum and some premium varieties would surely be welcomed. Saddle also has something called “Brett funnel” on Fridays, which involves chugging a beer via a tube for 10 kuai, and is not for the faint of stomach. / The Pavillion has a two-for-one happy hour, 5 to 8 PM, that covers house wines, cocktails, soft drinks, and beer, excluding Guinness and Kilkenny. In addition to an excellent patio, The Pavillion also has: 1) proper wine glasses; 2) one of Beijing’s more impressive Whisky selections; and 3) a slight identity crisis, since upon arrival patrons may come across anything from an alcohol-free graduation party to a beer-fueled rugby-mad crowd, with things thankfully tending toward the middle. / Maggie’s has upped its bottled Qingdao to 30 kuai from 20 kuai. Otherwise, it’s the same old, same old, which means hot dogs out front, reliable music inside, and an ambience that doesn’t live up to the former locale on Gongti East. / Shunyi-based sports bar The Pomegranate had a high-tech summer as it added a video projector, 42-inch flat screen, and wireless Internet access. My suburban friends tell me this is a good spot to sip a few beers, eat some pub grub, and catch a game. / DJ David Lindinger will spin all-plastic sets of “nujazz, groove and house music” at Q Bar on Fridays during September. This is a bit surprising since some owners were once strongly opposed to a DJ and since patrons seem to love the current ambience, which includes blues and jazz tunes. Q Bar seems to be drifting from the cocktail-first culture of First Cafe and Midnight, where two of the owners cut their teeth, and this will no doubt worry some long-loyal customers, including yours truly. I mean, this is like the city-specific that’s Beijing putting a huge brochure-like picture of Thailand on its cover (oh wait, it just did that, or do I have a copy of that’s Bangkok in my hand?). Or like me adding a dozen book reviews to my bar newsletter (oh wait again…). / Speaking of which, rumblings abound that Keiko Shirata, who owned First Cafe until it was chai’d about a month ago, is planning to open a new spot in Beijing. / Each of my four visits to Rui Fu has found this lounge/club increasingly busy and fun. My initial reservations have been cancelled by its spirited groove, interesting clientele and decent music (though a bit loud last time). The cocktails are a problem. As oft mentioned elsewhere, Rui Fu is a place to see and be seen, with last Friday featuring a marathon of seeing and being seen that left my ocular nerves exhausted and thus, having saw and been sawn, I resolved to wear an eye patch next time and thus maximize seeage and being seenage while minimizing strain (that is, when I return from my vacation at a coastal apiary - a sea and bee scene.) Putting preening aside, Rui Fu’s menu includes numerous pricing oddities such as Johnnie Walker Red and Johnnie Walker Black both at Y35, suggesting the latter will increase in price with the club’s popularity. Let’s wait and see (and be seen). / Capone’s plans to open a restaurant in Beijing. The general manager says his aim is to have “one of the biggest if not the biggest wine selections in Beijing.” / Also coming to the Jing: Hong Kong’s Park 97 and Middle-class America’s Hooters. / Finally, there are lots of choices out there for tonight, Friday, September 1. Frank’s Place will hold an end-of-summer party with all-you-can-drink Freixenet sparkling wine (7PM, 100 kuai) and its weekly pool tournament (8 PM, 50 kuai per person, winner takes all). Summergate will have a tasting of South Australia’s Kingston wines at Face Bar (7-10 PM, 100 kuai). Stone Boat has Muwen playing (9:30 PM), Q Bar sees its inaugural DJ night, and Rui Fu apparently has DJ Edmund, a friend of a friend from Taipei, spinning tunes.

(From Beijing Boyce XXIII, first emailed on August 31, 2006)

China Daily reports that Louisiana-themed The Big Easy will be chai’d on Sunday. Chaoyang Park authorities voided the bar’s 13-year lease, signed in 1998, in order to make space for a “peace plaza,” although they didn’t reveal whether this will be a government or commercial venture, states the newspaper. The creative layout, spirited music and Bloody Marys of The Big Easy will be missed. / Before losing its trio of capable bartenders earlier this year, Midnight packed in partiers and pumped out 50-kuai cocktails. Now, a signboard out front advertises 10-kuai drinks, including — and some might prefer this one with two paramedics, stomach pump and stretcher – Gin and Coke. / Browns, bursting at the seams last Saturday night, smartly anchored an ice-filled claw-footed bathtub of bottled beer just inside the door and thus siphoned off some of the thirsty patrons teeming at the bar. (Suggestion: Sell bottled water from the tub, too.) / Berber N, home of tasty kebabs before construction forced its closure on Sanlitun North earlier this year, has reopened across from Tongli Studios. Never have skewered chicken butts been more savory. / The last time I saw words such as “closed for maintenance work,” they were plastered on the door at First Cafe, which shortly thereafter pounded into coaster-size bits. That is, until Tuesday — and I hope it is coincidence — when I spotted them in neat longhand beside the entrance to Mojito, a fairly new place that has Beijing’s only draft Weihenstephaner. (Could a beer have a better name for the China market? The first half sounds delightfully Mandarin and the second evokes the Deutschland.) / Contrary to popular belief, Beijing does have table hockey, courtesy of W Sports Bar, where it is buried amid the ping pong table, dartboard, big-screen TV, pool table, art, grand piano, foosball table, etc. Is there anywhere else in town where you might simultaneously hear “Who’s serve?”, “bull’s eye!”, “I’ll have two beers, please”, “eight ball, corner pocket” and “this is simply too Dadaist for my taste,” all while someone chops out Mozart and a Formula 1 race shows? / Deep in Sanlitun South, a new bar is opening on the second floor of the building that Beer Mania calls home. With W Sports Bar, Q Bar and Yes Club nearby, a new party zone seems to be forming. / Speaking of Q Bar: one crane, four hours, and a dozen people. That’s about what it took to get a five-meter tree and some stone flower beds atop this bar’s increasingly green sixth-floor deck a few weeks ago. Fortunately, should the day come, it will only take a few seconds to get them back down. / With its latest Chicago blues act having returned stateside, Icehouse, the bar part of RBL, now features a mix of local and foreign talent in the form of the Rhythm Dogs (Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays). Meanwhile, the employee turnstile spins on as Chef Dan Segal, who joined RBL this year after working at the former Louisiana restaurant in the Hilton, has left for Hong Kong. / Stone Boat continues with its funky live music line-up. The next three Fridays feature Enfants Terribles (electro-jazz, August 11), Muwen (traditional instruments, August 18) and Hanggai (”Mongol roots,” August 25), while Panjir Trio plays Saturdays all month. / Speaking of which, shortly after announcing the readers’ choices for its recent bar and club awards, that’s Beijing (TBJ) published its “editor’s picks.” Top spot of the year honors went to Stone Boat (good ambience and music, though the drinks and service are spotty), with honorable mentions to Area (was it on the ballot?) and Club Football (known primarily for its soccer pitches) [Ed. The bar was in fact Redball]. Nothing against those places, but I don’t think collectively they had the impact of Browns. It exploded onto the bar scene this year, is busy beyond belief, appeals to most every age group, nationality and profession, influences and attracts as customers other bar owners and employees, offers decent food and a good draft beer selection, and, last but not least, won the readers’ vote. Love it or hate it, the place has made a mark. By the way, TBJ deserves kudos for organizing these awards. Cynics claim the magazine uses them to placate sponsors, but since each of the 20 categories has one winner and seven losers, more clients are likely to be upset than pleased. (And if you don’t believe it, then a band of TBJ staffers will roll up their gargantuan 250-page magazines and knock you about like a pinata. Or, maybe not.) / Fromage fans must be quick on the return key trigger when they get Beijing Cheese Society invites. Next week’s California-themed event at Palais sold out in a few hours. / Correction: Last issue, I wrote that 5:19 Bar and Grill was starting a darts league. In fact, it is one of the hosts of the Beijing International Darts League, which welcomes new teams and venues (email Chris “Elvis” Milward at commish@beijing-darts.com).

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

Bar and club owners and employees were out in force at the Kunlun Hotel two weeks ago for the annual that’s Beijing awards. More than 30 establishments took home prizes in 20 categories that each included a winner and two or three honorable mentions (HMs). Centro (4 wins, 2 HMs), Suzie Wong (3 wins, 2 HMs) and Browns (2 wins, 4 HMs) led the way, followed by Bed (2 wins, 1 HM), Pavillion (three HMs) and Aria (3 HMs). Bar Blu and The Tree each won two categories. None of the winners seemed unduly unjustified, although I was surprised that Bar Blu won for best outdoor space, given that its deck has been halved since last year and there has been a recent (perhaps too recent) proliferation of excellent patios and rooftops. The place obviously has a loyal clientele, so good on them. The winners, with honorable mentions in parentheses:

Bar/Club of the Year: Browns (Centro, Suzie Wong’s) 

After-Hours Club: Suzie Wong’s (Bed, Maggie’s) 

Bar Snacks: The Tree (Souk, The Den) 

Beer Selection: The Tree (Beer Mania, Browns) 

Cocktails: Centro (Alfa, Q Bar) 

Dance Club: Vics (Babyface, Coco Banana, Destination) 

Decor: Bed (Redmoon, Suzie Wong’s) 

Cheap Drinks: Nanjie (Black Sun Bar, Kai) 

People Watching: Suzie Wong’s (Browns, Maggie’s) 

Happy Hour: Bar Blu (Browns, Centro) 

Hotel Bar: Centro (Aria, Redmoon) 

Live Music: Yugong Yishan (D-22, Icehouse) 

New Bar: Browns (D-22, Frank’s Place) 

Outdoor Terrace: Bar Blu (Pavillion, Stone Boat) 

Business Networking: Centro (Aria, Pavillion, The Bookworm) 

Place to Bring a Date: Bed (No Name Bar, Souk) 

Place to Find a Date: Suzie Wong’s (Browns, Destination) 

Sports Bar: Goose & Duck Pub (ClubFootball, Pavillion) 

Student Hangout: Lush (Kai, Propaganda)

Wine Selection: Centro (Aria, CourtYard, The Cellar)

Afterwards, I ended up at Indian Kitchen for dinner (this place should get an HM for Best Dance Club given the number of people bopping about) and then popped into Q Bar to congratulate bartenders-owners George Zhou and Echo Sun, who were prominently displaying their HM for best cocktails (not bad for a month-old bar), and to meet Roger Dutton and Kevin McCartan of Frank’s Place, which received its own HM in the best new bar category. Congratulations to all of the winners and the honorable mentions.

(From Beijing Boyce XXI, first emailed on July 27, 2006)

that’s Beijing announces its annual bars and clubs awards tonight. Below, in capital letters, are the places I think deserve to win (all in my extremely humble opinion, of course).

Hotel Bar

I usually frequent hotel bars for work-related reasons and have to give Centro credit: there is always a decent number of people, usually decent martinis and sometimes decent live jazz. In terms of slickness, it’s about as dependable as Beijing bars get. Expect this category to be much more crowded next year with new bars in the Crowne Plaza, Hilton and other hotels competing against older ones such as Centro, Hyatt’s Redmoon and Shangri La’s Cloud Nine.

Bar Snacks

Saddle (burritos) and Fish Nation (our fine-finned friend with chips) both offer good filler in Sanlitun north, Bellagio has the Taiwanese angle covered, Cafe Pause, while technically not a bar, has tasty snacks up in the 798 Art District, and there are innumerable kebab stands where night owls may bulk up on meat and fat, not to mention a week’s worth of salt. Decent eats these are all, but I’m giving a slight edge to two places: Mojito, which despite it’s somewhat car-park like feel offers up the super tasty Mexican hamburger, and The Den, which pumps out the pizza and deep-fried goodies 24/7.

Place to Dance

A few years ago I did the White Man Shuffle as well as any endomorph. Alack and alas, I have now regressed to a mere wiggle, usually in the shadows, and what could be more ideal than a place where everyone else’s eyes are glued to the writhers busting moves on the bar top. The award thus goes to Browns, with honorable mentions to Suzie Wong’s and Maggie’s.

Cheap drinks

Phil’s Pub: A standout among the plethora of 10-kuai drink joints, with friendly owners, a decent layout and better-than-average drinks, not to mention a convenient location just 200 yards from my apartment (how selfish). Plus, the place lets patrons order in kebabs.

People Watching

Apertivo, No-name Bar, Centro, Maggie’s and numerous other places all merit mention in this tough category, but if a winner must be named, and if it counts as a bar, this award goes to The Bookworm, where you can not only scope out the patrons, but also overhear phone calls and conversations, discover a potential mate’s reading preferences (“Dan Brown? Next!“), and see if their caffeine fix comes from lattes, Diet Cokes or Irish coffees. (Yes, yes, The Bookworm is not exactly a bar or club, but they do sell ample quantities of beer, wine and cocktails, and besides, that’s Beijing has the place listed on its ballot, so blame them!)

Happy Hour

Centro offers great high-end value with their two-for-one cocktails, Beer Mania has 500 ML of Belgian draft for 40 kuai and discounted bottled Belgian Beer until 8 PM, The Den offers two-for-one pizza and beer, and Cheers pours two Wild Turkey shots for 30 RMB until 10 PM. What makes a happy hour superior depends on where you feel comfortable and what you like to drink, and the places all above excel in their own ways, so this is a four-way tie.

Best Outdoor

Another tough category, with contenders such as Bar Blu and Top Club (nice rooftops, same building), Q Bar (an even bigger rooftop, though the chairs are a bit hard), Hai Bar (a dark horse that offers cheap beers and views of Houhai on one side and the drum and bell towers on the other), Nuage (the same views, but fancier decor and higher prices), Suzie Wong’s (a nice getaway from the crowds inside, plus some of the best plastic plants in town), and The Pomegranate (for those in Shunyi). But the best of the bunch are Stone Boat, a small Qing-dynasty era spot set on a pond surrounded by trees and rocks in central Beijing‘s Ritan Park, and The Pavillion, with a lovely backyard made extremely cozy with comfortable wicker seating, elegant trees, and mellow lighting.

Business Networking

For drawing a diverse crowd that includes business executives, English teachers, homemakers, writers, MBA students and most everyone else, the award should go The Bookworm. There is no place, except perhaps for First Cafe last year, where I have made more connections.

Best Place for a Date

Le Cafe Igosso: Above-average food and a good wine list in a low-pressure atmosphere. If you’re looking at a Sunday afternoon, rather than a weekday dinner, then it’s No Name Bar. And if it’s an evening drink, rather than a meal, try the Q Bar, although going through that somewhat seedy hotel in which it is located might send some messages (possibly wanted, possibly not) to your significant other.

Student Hangout

The Loo: A bar that is long-closed and from another lifetime (not to mention another country). For this category, I’ll make like a soccer player and pass.

Best Beer

Browns, for its draft selection (including recent additions Stella Artois and Beck’s), and Beer Mania for its wide range of bottled Belgian beers and its Belgian draft.

Best Cocktails

This depends more on the bartenders than the establishments. I’ve had solid drinks at Centro, great mint-based cocktails at Garden of Delights, and some good but cheap beverages, courtesy of Sally and Alex at Phil’s Pub. I also remember tasty cocktails at Alfa, Jazz Ya, Browns (hit and miss), 5:19, The Big Easy, and places too numerous to mention. But in the end, only one place consistently pumps out a wide range of high-quality drinks, and thus the award goes to George Zhou and Echo Sun at Q Bar.

Bar of the Year

This bar has raised its beer prices, lost key staff, struggled with its interior decorating, dealt with DJ turmoil, faced numerous other challenges and, despite it all, had a greater impact on Beijing’s drinking scene than any other establishment in the past year. This bar has exerted influence because it consistently provides good clean fun, because it scores well in terms of design, atmosphere, food and beer selection, and because it is frequented by a sizeable number of the city’s bar owners, managers and employees. Love it or hate it, this bar has firmly planted itself in the party landscape, providing not only great value for patrons, but also food for thought for those in the industry, and this combination should earn it the bar of the year award. This bar is Browns.

(From Beijing Boyce XX, first emailed on July 13, 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) 

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 Tuesda