This two-story venue, opened by a Spanish-Chinese owner, offers an extensive list of Spanish sparkling, red and white wines, as well as a basic menu of salads, soups and tapas. While you’ll find plenty of imported products here, Real Vino seems more targeted to a local clientele.

There’s ... Read more »

Smack in the middle of Sanlitun Village, the new location of Yunnan restaurant favorite Middle 8th intimidates with a massive menu of modern Chinese food, but thankfully there are more hits than misses.

The Yiliang duck with matsutake mushroom and tender bamboo shoots (RMB39) is a delicious starter. Rich mouthfuls ... Read more »

There’s no getting around the fact that Al Safir is a hole in the wall. But the divey venue belies a standard of food that is rare for Beijing’s Middle Eastern restaurants and left us truly impressed.

The place is run by two veterans of the Beijing restaurant ... Read more »

The original Geba Geba is the Japanese restaurant we recommend most to our friends. But despite having an identical menu and solid food quality, the second branch didn’t impress us the same way.

The odd location of the first branch and its labyrinthine layout makes diners feel like they ... Read more »

This cute American roadside diner is a step back to Route 66, but the sleek presentation and extensive menu masks mediocre food that only manages to tease you about the real thing. This is the second installation of the Shuangjing stalwart which has been satisfying the foreigner desire for burgers ... Read more »

The latest on the growing hot dog vendor scene is Dog on Fire in the Sanlitun Village South. The hot dogs are either beef or pork sausage imported from the U.S., or soy-based veggie dogs. In addition to regular-sized hot dogs, you can order the mini combo (¥78), a ... Read more »

Beijing’s first-ever Kazakh restaurant offers a delicious taste of Central Asia. The menu, ambiance and location are likely to draw a largely Kazakh and Russian crowd, but you definitely don’t need to be post-Soviet to enjoy this place.

With a Kazakh owner and chefs from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan ... Read more »

One of the city’s fanciest dim sum dining destinations, Cuisine Cuisine focuses on seasonal ingredients, private luxury dining and dishes created by the Michelin-star chef who heads the restaurant’s original location in Hong Kong. The Beijing branch is a maze of private dining rooms ornately decorated with hand-painted ... Read more »

The newest arrival to the small Japanese restaurant enclave off of Xinyuan Xili, Hideyoshi is a tiny, four-table joint that serves up okonomiyaki, a Japanese-style omelette loaded with pork, seafood and other good stuff, lightly brushed with sweet sauce, and topped with mayonnaise and bits of seaweed. The décor is ... Read more »

Khajuraho joins Beijing’s Indian dining scene with quite a few memorable dishes to make up for a name so hard to remember. It’s the fourth branch of an international chain that also has outlets in Russia and Mongolia. Khajuraho boasts sophisticated though eclectic décor and a Western-influenced menu ... Read more »

When the Yi House Hotel became Grace Hotel, its restaurant changed its name from Fennel to Yi House Bistro. Although it has new owners, most aspects of the restaurant have stayed the same, from the commendable aesthetics to the sophisticated European menu.

The seafood platters are truly impressive, with exceptionally ... Read more »

The environment at this rustic hutong trattoria couldn’t be better for an after-dinner espresso and dessert, but the gourmet Italian cuisine might leave you hungry going home.

Located in the hutongs around the corner from Great Leap Brewery, the restaurant has a somewhat limited handwritten menu which is constantly ... Read more »

One might find it hard to visit this mini sushi bar after it actually opens (which is in most cases after 5pm—no matter what opening hours are listed on the door) and before its seating capacity—10 people—is filled. You House only has three tables, a waiter who ... Read more »

The décor is humble at this unassuming little Lebanese restaurant, as is the menu of Middle Eastern staples, but the food is good, and extremely affordable. The hummus (¥17) is very smooth, and the large portion is attractively presented. The mouttabel (¥17) is tahini-heavy and very tangy, with chunks of ... Read more »

Switch Grill offers a cool ambiance, great service and a killer wine list. The menu is extensive and very attractive, but while there are deals to be had, the restaurant’s still working to balance prices with quantity and quality.

Switch is going for something between Flamme and an upscale ... Read more »

With an ideal location for the Guomao office crowd and excellent food quality, The Sweet Spot is already incredibly popular. There are only three little tables, but lunchtime business is great thanks to convenient grab-and-go options. The name of the restaurant is a little misleading—there are about two dozen ... Read more »

A Japanese friend once told us that foreigners may like ramen, but they could never truly understand it, because appreciating a fine ramen for a Japanese person was akin to foreigner appreciating an excellent steak. We’re not necessarily sure he’s right, but we do tend to notice that ... Read more »

An all-day buffet restaurant often feels like an afterthought at a hotel, but Feast stands out as our first choice for F&B at the new Sheraton Dongcheng. Thanks to the hotel’s Japanese restaurant, Miyabi, there’s a good sashimi selection, sushi rolls that boast tastier rice than you ... Read more »

You can’t help but feel sympathy for 4corners owner and chef Jun Trinh—he seems to be the only person there who has any idea what he’s doing. He’s even installed the restaurant’s insulation himself and is halfway through carving the sign, but too busy to ... Read more »

The décor is humble at this little two-story restaurant, and the food is a few small steps above Annie’s, but the real draw is the wine selection. The restaurant’s operated by Gelipu Wines, and there’s an impressive selection of Australian and New Zealand wines that you won ... Read more »

Two floors underground and housed in a former bar, Strawberry Butterfly isn’t exactly the cutesy cake shop you might imagine. Sure, the waitresses are in adorable maid-esque outfits, but all the seating is bar-style and there’s a massive fish tank looming in the middle. There is no menu ... Read more »

A good bowl of pho is hard to find in Beijing, but this bright, friendly restaurant does a great job with the classic Vietnamese noodle soup. It’s much more flavorful than the version at Susu, the meat’s a lot better than at Nuage, and you really won’t ... Read more »

Da Giuseppe is owned by, run by and even named after the chef that established La Pizza as the best pizza place in town. But while the menu here is identical to La Pizza’s and ingredients of high quality, we were hoping for better ambiance and food.

The décor ... Read more »