Beijing: Alameda Revisited, Red Chamber, Wine & Cheese
This weekend, the Shuangjing branch of Carrefour again hosts their bi-annual wine fair. That means free tastings all weekend, as well as a 20 percent discount on all imported wines in the shop, so it's a great time to stock up.
This week, I headed back to Alameda for the first time in ages. Chef Thomazini there had been telling me about the new outdoor dining area, and I couldn't imagine where they put it. Turns out, they took over the entire Nali Mall. On my Tuesday visit, they kept moving out additional tables and chairs, since everyone wanted to eat in the nice weather. Today, maybe not so much ... I tried the legendary set lunch, which is RMB78 for two courses, RMB98 for three. It's a great value, not just for the portions, but also the quality of the ingredients.
Here is my Greek salad. The feta quality was absolutely superb, which is all too rare in Beijing:
My dining companion's fish cake with fennel was light and tasty, with great presentation:
The grilled mackerel was an enormous portion, which I could not finish:
A duck dish, which my dining companion loved:
This week, I also visited The Red Chamber, the latest restaurant at the China World Hotel Summit Wing. I thought this place would be very fancy, private-dining style, but instead found it to be affordable, and packed at lunchtime. It's mostly Cantonese food, but with other cuisines thrown in as well. For me, the best part of the restaurant is the Noodle Bar. It's actually separate from the main restaurant, but I think you can order the noodles in the regular dining room, too. You get a huge choice of Shanxi noodles, broths, and add-ins, for RMB38. A set that includes a drink is RMB50. I had the "cat ear" noodles, which sound like a cruel Guangdong specialty, but actually don't look anything like my cat's earsand have a great texture. The "preserved vegetable gravy" I ate them with is delicious. This is really a great affordable lunch option for the Guomao area.
And lastly, new wine club TasteV held their first monthly event today at Gramercy, a new Chaoyangmen U-Town place specializing in wine and cheese. I cannot wait for a visit, so expect a review on its way soon.
Comments