BJ FOoDiEs ‘Magic’ Dinner & Hilton’s Charity Auction

The first BJ FOoDiEs event of 2012 is setting up to be a double-whammy!  Switching things up, this is one of the very first times that a BJ FOoDiEs dinner will not be held on a Sunday, but on a Friday night. And since most of those in attendance have a charitable heart and generous spirit, it only makes sense to see BJ FOoDiEs teaming up with the Hilton Beijing, The Beijing Beatles, and Hoegaarden for the 2012 Charity Auction!

So mark you calendars for next Friday, February 10 for a night dedicated to the spirit of generous giving and good food. Not only will foodies be spoiled with a special dinner, those who make the highest bids for Beijing’s Dashing Bachelors and Bachelorettes will again be once again rewarded with another dinner at One East!

The night’s rundown is quite packed in, so by signing up for the BJ FOoDiEs dinner, you’re also signing yourself up for a full-on charitable evening with all proceeds going to two very special charitable organizations: Morning Tears and Magic Hospital.

First off, foodies are treated to an indulgent, 3-course contemporary American meal at One East in the Hilton Beijing hotel.

While the restaurant is said to specialize in Steaks & Burgers, the BJ FOoDiEs dinner unfortunately will be serving neither.  But alas, you can enjoy everything from a crustacean sea platter this eatery combines hearty US dishes with a swig of innovative californian flavors

“Be WARNED – This is going to be a night of feasting, drinking, debauchery & party-tastic times.  It’s going to be one of the best TGIF CELEBRATIONS so do join us for the night….we’ll hopefully all remember it the next morning. WoOT WOOT ” – Xixi Cheng, Founder of BJ FOoDiEs

Make a Difference with Chi Fan for Charity

 Founder Michael Crain Presents CFFC Donation to New Hope Foster Home

Last month, Chi Fan for Charity (CFFC) made it’s first donation to New Hope Foster Home (see picture above). Founder Robin Hill accepted the donation of RMB 155,000 on behalf of the children of New Hope.

The second donation will be made to Bethel Foster Home on Wednesday, January 11, 2012 at 10AM. All supporters are both invited and encouraged to attend. These donations are making a huge difference in the lives of others and both your time and presence would be appreciated by the entire CFFC team.

If you can make it, please email ChiFan@chifanforcharity.org. Click here for directions to Bethel Foster Home.

Background of CFFC Donation Recipients: 

If you are interested in joining the Chi Fan for Charity team and serving on the serving committee for CFFC 2012, please email MDC@chifanforcharity.org 

Click here for my LumDimSummary of Chi Fan for Charity 2011.

LumDimSummary: Chi Fan for Charity 2011

 First I was waiting on all the beautiful pictures and before I knew it, work started piling on and somehow one of the most important events of 2011 has slipped under the radar for a complete LumDimSum re-cap (or as I like to call it – LumDimSummary), but I refuse to let this one go.  Better late than never right?  I swore I’d complete this post before the end of 2011, so I figure it would be an appropriate time to finish off 2011 with a post dedicated to one of the most inspiring and exciting events of this year – Chi Fan for Charity (CFFC)!

Originally founded by Michael Crain, Chi Fan for Charity quickly made a name for itself as one of Beijing’s most highly-anticipated culinary and charity events of the year. Already in its third year, CFFC 2011 was beyond magnificent and I beam with pride every time I think about the dedicated team of volunteers and all the people who donated so much of their time, energy and resources to make this event such a success.

Rallying together over 500+ Beijingers to dine in Beijing’s top dining establishments with all proceeds going to support local Chinese charity organizations in need, they exceeded their goal of raising over RMB 300,000 in just one night.  Involving 39 generous and charitable restaurants in Beijing, we were able to raise a substantial amount to be donated to two very worthwhile charities – Bethel Foundation and New Hope Foundation.

 Not only was CFFC able to make a difference in Beijing, but the event was also expanded to Shanghai for the first time this year thanks to the help of organizing sponsor Austen Morris. Check out my recap of my weekend in Shanghai just to reserve my seat at Shook! together with my table host Alan Wong here.

“What started in Beijing by Michael Crain three years ago as an idea to raise a bit of money for worthy causes has mushroomed into a two city effort which this year engaged 26 of Shanghai’s best restaurants, many of the city’s most influential movers and shakers and over 200 fine-diners and late night revelers. 

Chi Fan for Charity Shanghai was able to raise over 200,000RMB with all profits going directly to Heart to Heart Shanghai, Chi Heng Foundation and Compassion for Migrant Children.  With these funds, Chi Fan for Charity has already been able to:

• Donate three life saving heart surgeries to Heart to Heart Shanghai for Chen Wenyu, Wang Zhi Yuan and Jiang Yu Han at Yodak hospital earlier this month.

• Help operate Compassion for Migrant Children’s Shanghai’s Xinan Community Center and enable:

Migrant babies and pregnant mothers to participate in CMC’s Early Childhood Development program which is designed to help migrant parents provide the best possible start for their children and covers health education, literacy, socialization and learning through play activities. 

Migrant children aged 5-13 to receive academic assistance and an opportunity to participate in creative activities (such as music, arts & crafts, dance, sports, field trips) which are aimed at helping them develop healthy social and character skills) 

We are also proud to announce that the combined efforts of Chi Fan for Charity Beijing and Shanghai raised over 500,000RMB for charity.”  - Kelly Olver, Katie Littlefield and the CFFC Team 

With all that said, here’s a recap of Beijing’s third annual Chi Fan for Charity Event.Check out photos from many of the dinners that took place throughout the city and of course my favorite part, the Official After Party at Hatsune Sanlitun with DJ Patrick Yu.

Chi Fan for Charity 2011 Dinners:

(listed in alphabetical order)

Agua:

Barolo:

Chef Too:

Cru Steakhouse:

Carmen:

Grange:

Hercules:

Kagen:

Kagen Teppanyaki:

Karaiya Spice House:

Modo:

Mosto:

Nobu:

Punjabi:

ROOMbeijing:

Sureno:

Transit:

CFFC After Party at Hatsune  Sanlitun:

Photos courtesy of the very talented Helen Couchman & Lakshitha Tharindu

BJ FOoDiEs: “Dream” Charity Dinner at China Lounge

BJ FOoDiEs Monthly Charity Feast is normally held on a Sunday, but with the Christmas holiday just around the corner, they are hosting their first ever dinner on a Thursday – Dec. 22!

To celebrate the end of 2011, they are closing the year with a big, fancy Chinese feast featuring China Lounge’s signature dishes.  Price per person is bumped up slightly to RMB 150 per person, but with the following spread below, should definitely be worth it!

“We don’t know where the time has flown but can only wish everyone an VERY MERRY early XMAS & the happiest of new years  Hopefully 2011 has been a great one for all ya’ll – We hope ya’ll can join us as this is going to be a super special feast that….the final 2011 feast to say bye to everyone this year” - Xixi Cheng, Founder of BJ FOoDiEs

XMAS-XTRAVAGANZAAAA! 

China Lounge Set Dinner + Drink = RMB 150

 | APPETIZERS | 

DUCK LIVER

w/ organic sliced bread squares

NEEDLE MUSHROOMS 

w/ Shredded diced conpoy

CHINA THOUSAND SALAD

w/ Chopped Tuna, bacon bits, fresh greens 

FIVE SPICES BRAISED BEEF

w/ in-house spices

SPICY-SOUR EGGPLANT

w/ marinated dressing 

| MAIN COURSES: FAMILY STYLE |

STEAMED RIVER WEEVER

w/ garlic cloves & peeled shallots

STIR-FRIED KING PRAWN

house specialty w/ dried chilli, candied nuts, fresh ginger   

DONGBO PORK CHOP

w/ diced baby onions, rice wine, lettuce 

FRIED HOT STONE POT CHICKEN 

w/ black soy bean sauce

BAKED DUCK

w/ preserved bean curd strips 

EGG OMELET

w/ jasmine reduction, chopped scallions, dried shrimp 

SUZHOU BAMBOO SHOOTS

w/ salted vegetables, marinaded broccoli, sesame oil 

YING YANG RICE

w/ fresh garlic, green peas, chicken strips 

| FRESH FRUIT PLATTER |

“Indulge for a Cause”

Event Details:

• Date: Thursday, December 22, 2011
• Time: 7:30-10:30
• Location: China Lounge
• Address: Workers’ Stadium South Gate, 工人体育场南门内
• Tel:  6501-1166
• Cost: RMB 150 includes dinner menu + drink
• RSVP: E-mail BJ Foodies Team – bjfoodies@gmail.com

December Charity Theme: ‘Dream’

The charity to receive this months proceeds will go to ‘Dream Corps” – The NGO is dedicated to promote reading among children in rural China by opening literature centers & developing reading programs. Through close collaboration with local educators & parents, we aim to inspire enthusiasm for learning in rural children.

For more information: www.dreamcorps.org

About BJ Foodies Group:

Organizing monthly group meals at about RMB 100/head with food/drinks included, this group of dedicated foodies is all about “satiating their inner-foodie appetites for good quality food, conversation & fine wining/sake-ing/cocktailing/beering while indulging for a cause.”

BJ FOODIES PURPOSE:
1. Just to eat a nice meal & catch up with real people & friends outside the clubbing-disease we all suffer from called Vics/Mix.
2. Opportunity to contribute our little bits to society while doing something we love – EATING. The Charity aspect is a supplementary & added bonus BUT NOT the main purpose of the group

A Very Merry Kagen Christmas Charity Party for BICCO

Charity Christmas Dinner at Kagen (photography courtesy of Nora Tejada)

On Saturday, December 10, Kagen Japanese Restaurant hosted a Christmas Charity Dinner to benefit the Disabled Chinese Orphans of BICCO (Beijing International Committee of Chinese Orphans) and with about 130 generous patrons in attendance, we somehow managed to reach our goal of raising over RMB 200,000!  That is an insanely high number because that means each person donated on average RMB 1,500!

Originally, the deal was set that for each ticket sold, RMB 500 would be donated directly to BICCO (which was already really generous of Kagen Restaurant), but in the end, owner Alan Wong generously donated ALL ticket sales to BICCO, meaning that the entire ticket sales (RMB 600 each) went to the children of BICCO.

In addition to ticket sales, we also managed to sell a butt-load of raffle tickets (raising RMB 9,400) and many silent auction prizes went for higher than it’s actual value (raising RMB 31,757).

Combining ticket prices, raffle tickets and silent auction prizes together with many personal donations to our cause, we were able to exceed our goal of more than RMB 200,000 and now Amy Zima and her team of dedicated volunteers are looking to expand their rehabilitation program to at least two other orphanages in China!

A BIG thank you to all our generous sponsors:

• The Wine Republic (who helped supply the 100+wines to bring out the Christmas spirit of giving)

• Heineken Beer for sponsoring 200 bottles of Sol Beer (also helped bring out spirit of giving)

• Ryan Cardwell & Ivy Academy for their Generous sponsorship and partnership in hosting this event

• Acoustic musician David Mitchell for donating both his talent and time to our event

• Photographer Nora Tejada for helping us to capture this unforgettable event

• Beijing Kids for their Media Sponsorship

• Event Volunteers: Ingrid Van Nijverseel, Stephanie Giambruno, Katja Schick, Stephanie Butler, Dannan Hodge, Luce, Christina Lieffring, Romulo Martinez, Kelly Charles, Oumou Barry

• Alan Wong and his Kagen Restaurant (for donating the entire restaurant space and sponsoring the 10-dish meal for everyone that night!)

• Silent Auction Sponsors: 

• A Food Affaire
• Alona Pilates
• Antonia Sampson
• April’s Adornments
• Bodhi Spa
• Chef Too
• Counting Sheep
• Elisabeth Koch Millinery
• Frontiers Chinese School
• GungHo! Pizza
• Hummingbird Therapeutic Spa Retreat
• The Hutong
• Ivy Academy
• Le Spa
• Little Gold Book
• LMC Boutique Clothing
• Oumou Jewelry
• Papabubble Candy
• Punjabi Indian Restaurant
• Ritz Carlton
• Scarlett (Hotel G)
• SinoScuba
• Starfish Wine & Seafood Restaurant
• Two Guys and a Pie
• Wondermilk
• Yoga Yard

Snapshots of the BICCO Charity Dinner Silent Auction Tables:

(Photos courtesy of Nora Tejada)

Snapshots of Christmas Charity Fun at Kagen:

(Photos courtesy of Nora Tejada)

Thank you to everyone who generously donated and contributed to our Christmas Charity Event for BICCO. We are in awe of everyone’s generosity and effort towards such a wonderful and dedicated organization!  Excited for some big improvements in 2012!

Kagen Restaurant Details:

• Located below the Original Hatsune on Guanghua Lu
• B1/F, Bldg C, Heqiao Dasha, 8 Guanghua Donglu, Chaoyang District
• 朝阳区光华东路8号和乔大厦C座地下1层
• Tel: 6583-6830

Animal House: Holiday Benefit for Orphaned Animals

theBeijinger’s Charity Super Quiz 2011

Think you’ve got what it takes to beat out Beijing’s top whiz master? Think you’re the king of utterly useless, random trivia knowledge?  (JUST KIDDING, I revoke my comment about trivia knowledge being useless as I’m sure you can find great use with random facts.)

In any case, I know how seriously hard-core Beijingers get when it comes to pub quizzes – there’s a reason why every freakin’ pub in Beijing hosts their own pub quiz night. So now you can put your knowledge to the test and come out for the ultimate pub quiz of the year – theBeijinger’s Annual Charity Super Quiz, the holy grail of pub quizzes with “tougher questions than ever” and all proceeds going to Ping An Medical Foster Home.

Hosted at Chocolate Club this Sunday, December 11, doors open at 6PM and questions start at 7:30PM. Round up your dream whiz team (tables are limited to teams of 10) and tickets cost RMB 100 including a free drink. 

“Whether you enjoy quizzes, charity or Russian dancers, there’s something in this evening for everyone.” – theBeijinger Team

This year’s event will include the following QuizMasters:

• Karl from Paddy O’Shea’s

• Jim and Anthony from The Kro’s Nest

• Tom from the Black Sun

• Josh from Lush

• Pat from the Green Cap

• Liz at The Stumble Inn

• Graham of the Irish Volunteer

• Julian from Tim’s Texas Bar-B-Q

• Alex from The Brick

• Jonny from The Bookworm

…Like I said before, this is the Holy Grail of Beijing Pub Quizzes!

Event Details:

• Date: Sunday, December 11
• Time: 6PM
• Location: Chocolate Club
• Address: 19 Ritan Beilu, Chaoyang District 朝阳区日坛北路19号
• Tel: 8561 3988
• Website: Click here.

LumDimSum 1-on-1: The Charitable Amy Zima

This coming Saturday is BICCO’s Christmas Charity Dinner at Kagen Japanese Restaurant and the woman responsible for connecting all the dots and bringing everyone together in a big effort to raise RMB 200,000 in one night is the lovely and talented Amy Zima.

She’s passionate, she’s dedicated and she’s asking fellow Beijingers to come together for a lovely 10-course meal and raise a champagne glass and toast to the wonderful work of BICCO and help raise funds for their rehabilitation program in their Shunyi Service Center.

Full Name:   Amy Lane Zima

Age:   37 I think…stopped counting awhile ago.

Nationality: American

Occupation: Trailing-Spouse, Mom, Volunteer Development Director, Beijing International Committee for Chinese Orphans (BICCO), Kids Yoga Instructor, Social Marketing Consultant, and quite frankly, I’m still not sure what I want to be when I grow up.

Company Name:  See above

Years in Beijing: off and on for the last 3 years.

LumDimSum Goes 1-on-1 with the Amazing Amy

LDS:  Tell me about this event’s beneficiary, BICCO, the type of work they do and how people can get involved.

The Beijing International Committee for Chinese Orphans (BICCO) is a group of volunteers working towards bettering the lives of the Chinese orphans and children with disabilities in China. It was registered in Hong Kong as a non-profit organization in 2003. Our members are mostly expats living in Beijing, but everyone is welcome.

BICCO provides an opportunity for individual volunteers or groups of volunteers to work with orphanages and other facilities. We network with various professionals and volunteer communities to try to find ways for the expat community as well as local Chinese to get involved in improving the lives of orphans and children with disabilities.

LDS: How did this Christmas Charity Dinner come about and who are the organizers of this event?

Over the course of the last year several volunteers at BICCO have been working to build a rehabilitation program for disabled children living at the Shunyi Service Center. Many of the children remain in their beds everyday unless BICCO volunteers visit this facility. They suffer
from Down’s syndrome, Cerebral Palsy and various other handicaps that limit their ability to walk, move, speak or care for themselves.

We knew just being there, holding and playing with the children was important, but we wanted to try to bring in professionals who could help open a door and create a future for these kids. If we could find a way to help a few of them gain independence and confidence, we knew we could make a big difference in their lives.

That’s why this year we partnered with OVCI – an Italian non-profit that works to train local Chinese therapist and serve the disabled community in China. We pay their professional therapists 50rmb an hour for physical, occupation, speech or psycho-educational therapy. Once we built this relationship, we thought, if we could just raise enough money, we could secure the children with weekly – if not daily therapy throughout the year. That’s when the idea of a charity dinner came up.

From there the pieces started to come together. Ryan Cardwell, the director at Ivy Academy – where my children go to school – said Ivy wanted to help. Another parent at the school, Alan Wong, offered up his restaurant, Kagen, as the venue. It just started to fall into place without much effort – so we knew it was suppose to be.

LDS: How much are you expecting to raise in this event and where will the funds be donated towards?

The rehabilitation program at the Shunyi Service Center serves approximately 20 disabled children. If we can raise 76,800 rmb we can provide two full days of therapy for the children. That’s our initial goal. But, it is a simple equation. At 50 rmb an hour, the more money we raise, the more therapy we can pay for. BICCO also has relationships with other orphanages and facilities – further away from Beijing – where the need is even greater. If we raised enough money, we could even help those kids. Our dream: 200,000 rmb.

LDS: What sets your Christmas Charity dinner apart from all the annual holiday balls happening in Beijing in the next few weeks?

The food! I really think both Hatsune and Kagen are two of the best restaurants in Beijing. We are offering an amazing sampling of their best dishes. It isn’t going to be the standard hotel fare.

Plus, I really think our event is about celebrating Christmas with friends and colleagues. Really appreciating what you have and the opportunity to help those who really need it. I hope our event really captures the spirit of Christmas.

LDS: What are some of your top items that will be up for grabs on the auction block?

Alan has been incredibly generous and in addition to offering up Kagen and an amazing menu of Hatsune and Kagen’s signature dishes and cocktails he is also offering an exclusive 10 person private Chef’s dinner along with 12 bottles of wine from The Wine Republic. The value is over RMB 13,000. I’ve already told my husband he has to bid on this one!

For parents sticking around this summer, Ivy Academy is offering up a space in their summer camp worth over RMB 10,000 as well as unlimited after-school programs for 3 kids in 2012.

We also have an amazing spa package from Hummingbird Spa Retreat, yoga packages from Yoga Yard, a two-night stay at The Westin, catered dinner for 10 at your home from A Food Affaire, tons of jewelry from local artists, etc.

LDS: Any secret strategies to bringing out the most generous side of people?

Thanks to our wine sponsors, (including the very generous Wine Republic), I’m hoping it will be easy to get people to bid on our auction items!

LDS: What are you personally most excited about for this event?

For it to be over! I’m joking. But it has been a labor of love.

I am really looking forward to enjoying an amazing meal, great wine and a lot of fun with some of Beijing’s best.

David Mitchell, a really amazing jazz guitarist is generously donating his time for the cocktail hour and a group of musicians from Ivy Academy are going to really make the atmosphere fun after dinner. I personally can’t wait!

LDS: Is this a one-off event or are you planning to make this an annual event and continued in the years to come?

We aren’t sure. If the support is there and people want to see it happen again, it will. I believe everything happens for a reason and I think this event will unlock the future for a lot of kids. I
hope we can make it something that continues. If Kagen and Ivy Academy are game. So are we!

How can you say no to that?  Come and support Amy and her dedicated committee of volunteers by signing up for a seat at BICCO’s Christmas Charity Dinner this Saturday, December 10 at Kagen Japanese Restaurant.  

Tickets are now on sale for RMB 600, of which RMB 500 of the ticket will be donated directly BICCO.  If you’re not already sold on the great cause or the chance to snag some great silent auction prizes, at least go for the fantabulous food and booze!

See below for pre-sale ticket pick-up details. 

Event Details:

• Date: Saturday, December 10, 2011
• Time: 6:30PM Cocktail Reception, 7:30PM Dinner
• Location: Kagen Japanese Hot Pot & BBQ Restaurant
• Address:  Located below the Original Hatsune on Guanghua Lu
  • B1/F, Bldg C, Heqiao Dasha, 8 Guanghua Donglu, Chaoyang District
  • 朝阳区光华东路8号和乔大厦C座地下1层
• Tickets: RMB 600 (pre-sale), RMB 800 (at the door)
• Tickets are available for sale at Kagen Restaurant, Hatsune Sanlitun restaurant and Ivy School in East Lake Villas (Suite C-101 No. 35, Dongzhimenwai) Call: 8451 1381
• For more information: Call 135 2034 1984

Find X-Mas Treats at The Hutong’s Winter Fayre

“Fayre is an old English word describing a fun gathering featuring a range of locally produced goods made and sourced from, and connected to the local community.”

The Hutong’s Winter Fayre brings this concept of a traditional fayre to Beijingers next Sunday, December 11, which will also be the last Christmas Bazaar of the year ie, your last chance to stock up on Christmas gifts for friends and family!

Featuring a “warm-winter” theme, they will be serving hot cups of vin brulé (mulled wine) and have live caroling. The fayre will be selling a wide range of products from homemade jams and infused teas and cheeses to handmade handicrafts, photography to jewelry, unique cards and papers, handmade body scrubs, baked goods to chocolates to cashmere scarves.

Some popular vendors who will be selling their goods include:

• BJ Postcards
• Great Leap Brewery
• Hand Affection
• Hummingbird Therapeutic Spa Retreat
• Koko Chocolate
• Le Formager de Pekin
• Lollipop Bakery Cupcakes
• Puddington Pies
• Sassy Scrubs
• Shangrila Farms
• Starfish Jewelry
• Tai Tai
• Tea Journeys
• Time Out’s “Beijing Past and Present Design Competition” T-shirts and Tote Bags by AnyShopStyle.cn
• Viaggio Scarves

Check out BJ Postcards at The Hutong’s Winter Fayre

Event Details:

• Date: Sunday, December 11
• Time: 11AM-3PM
• Location: The Hutong
• Address:#1 Jiu Dao Wan Zhong Xiang Hutong 东城区九道弯中巷1号
• Contact: info@thehutong.com
• Website: Click here

Operation Smile: Celebrate 20 Years with 2,000 Smiles

Join Operation Smile in celebrating their 20th successful year in China where they’ve already brought 20,000 new smiles to faces across the country.  The event hopes to raise enough to complete another 2,000 new smiles for children in need.

Hosted at JW Marriott’s Loong Bar, the event requests a RMB 150 donation at the door that includes two drinks, light refreshments and a raffle ticket for your chance to win prizes valued at up to RMB 15,000!

Event Details:

• Date: Thursday, December 1, 2011
• Time: 7PM
• Location: Loong Bar (JW Marriott hotel)
• Address: 2nd Floor of JW Marriott, 83 Jian Guo Lu, China Central Place, 建国路83号华贸中心二层
• Website: Click here.

The Beijing Guild: A Knitting & Crafts Community

Knitting is a great winter activity.  It’s a wonderful way to pass time indoors, sheltered from the bitter outside cold.  I like to imagine that as I get older, perhaps even myself as a grandma knitting scarves and mittens on a comfy rocking chair next to a blazing fireplace.  I say imagine because I’ve never had anyone in my family knit anything and I’d like to break that trend and be the first.  Last winter, I was determined to learn how to knit and The Beijing Guild group welcomed me with open arms and showed me the art of knitting.

Whether you are a killer knitter or someone who has ever wanted to develop your skills as a quality knitter, the Beijing Guild does some seriously impressive knitting and many of the little socks, caps and blankets they create are donated to wonderful organizations including the Bethel Foundation and Blue Sky charities.

The group gets together over weekly sessions (normally on Tuesday afternoons), and within a casual environment, it’s a wonderful way to meet new people, exchange ideas and share projects and expertise.

Check out their website to sign up for The Beijing Guild and find out about their upcoming workshops.  New workshop kits start at RMB 200.

To get started with your own knitting tools, Beyond Knitting is a great solution.

They offer exquisite 100% natural fiber yarns, imported yarns, knitting tools and pattern books. And great news for all Beijingers, they offer free delivery anywhere in China. Contact details:contact@beyondknitting.com

Save-the-Date: BICCO’s Christmas Charity Dinner

As soon as Thanksgiving is over, the trees, lights and holiday decorations come flooding out as everyone begins gearing up for Christmas and New Years! Hopefully by now, most of you have awoken from your turkey comas and you are in the holiday mind set to begin Christmas shopping and party planning.

There are many upcoming gala dinners, holiday balls and Christmas dinners coming up in the next few weeks, but be sure to mark your calendars and save the date for this event in particular – “Unlock the Future”, which is a Christmas Charity Dinner and Silent Auction that will take place on Saturday, December 10.

We have a goal of raising RMB 200,000 in ONE NIGHT with all funds raised on this evening to be donated to Beijing International Committee for Chinese Orphans (BICCO)‘s Shunyi Orphanage Rehabilitation Program to help support over Chinese orphans and children with disabilities.

“Without this program and the work of BICCO, many of these children would not leave their beds or even have a chance at a potential future outside of the walls of this state-run facility.” – Amy Zima, organizer of Unlock the Future Christmas Charity Dinner

Hosted at Kagen Japanese BBQ Restaurant, there will only be 200 seats available and all charitable guests will be treated to 10 dish menus created by Alan Wong and his top chefs at Kagen, a champagne toast and select wines paired with a lovely meal.

Acoustic musician David Mitchell will be performing several different instruments and there will also be other live music entertainment including some Christmas Caroling (just part of the jolly holiday spirit!).

The event will also be featuring great silent auction prizes including Apple products, a private dinner for 10 at Hatsune by owner Alan Wong paired with wines by Wine Republic (valued at RMB 13,000), a 2-night weekend stay at The Westin, a Hummingbird spa package (valued at RMB 7,000), a GungHo! pizza party, handmade necklaces from April’s Adournments, a custom Hutong Tour by Bespoke Beijing, a Punjabi Indian Feast and with many other restaurant vouchers around town.

Sign up early at either who get pre-sale price RMB 600 or you can also pay RMB 800 at the door (if there are any seats left!).  To book your seats in advance, you can either purchase tickets at Kagen Restaurant, Hatsune Sanlitun branch, or Ivy Academy at East Lake Villas.

Event Details:

• Date: Saturday, December 10, 2011
• Time: 6:30PM Cocktail Reception, 7:30PM Dinner
• Location: Kagen Japanese Hot Pot & BBQ Restaurant
• Address:  Located below the Original Hatsune on Guanghua Lu
  • B1/F, Bldg C, Heqiao Dasha, 8 Guanghua Donglu, Chaoyang District
  • 朝阳区光华东路8号和乔大厦C座地下1层
• Tickets: Only 200 seats available! RMB 600 (pre-sale), RMB 800 (at the door)
• Tickets are available for sale at Kagen Restaurant, Hatsune Sanlitun restaurant and Ivy School in East Lake Villas (Suite C-101 No. 35, Dongzhimenwai) Call: 8451 1381
• For more information: Call 135 2034 1984

BJ FOoDiEs: “Flower” Charity Dinner at Starfish

Tonight is Hatsune’s OysterFest with all-you-can-eat-oysters and Hatsune sushi and tomorrow is American Thanksgiving which guarantees I’ll be in a turkey coma all Thursday night through Friday, so my stomach should be definitely warmed up for the upcoming monthly BJ FOoDiEs charity dinner this Sunday, November 27 at Starfish Wine & Seafood Bar.

My favorite BJ FOoDiEs events are the ones that introduce us to newly opened restaurants I have yet to try, or in this case, even hear about!  I had no idea W Dine & Wine had been taken over and revamped into a new space called Starfish Wine & Seafood Bar.  So, apparently the space still specializes in wine…and seafood…but it’s under new ownership (Chris Hebert and Alisha Bailey) and they are focused more specifically on fresh oysters & seafood imported from all around the world and will soon be offering more than 20 wines by the glass! Seafoodies and Wine Geeks, this is your calling.

Starfish will be offering BJ Foodies guests a 3-course dinner menu + drink (wine/beer/soft drink) for only RMB 100.  See menu below…

With a capacity of only 70 (BJ FOoDiEs event are known to book out entire restaurants of a much higher capacity), they request for all who plan to attend to take a minute and RSVP to them directly: bjfoodies@gmail.com

Starfish’s Seafood Feast

Starfish Wine & Seafood Bar Dinner Menu + Drink = RMB 100

1. ASSORTED APPETIZER SAMPLER

FRIED FRESH LIVE OYSTERS 

w/ freshly squeezed lemons

SCALLOP CEVICHE

w/ chili pepper soup & diced basil

2. MAIN COURSE

SHRIMP SCAMPI PASTA

w/ linguini al-dente & poached shrimp

DUCK CONFIT

slow poached duck w/garlic cloves & peeled shallots

3. DESSERT

Creme Brulee

Chocolate Mousse 

“Indulge for a Cause”

November Charity Theme: ‘Flowers’

The charity to receive this months proceeds will go to ‘LITTLE FLOWERS PROJECT’ – The NGO works to build a culture of life by reaching out to those who are rejected, abandoned, deemed as useless, and who have no voice. Initially providing specialized care to abandoned infants & nuturing the growth and education of older disabled orphans, ‘Little Flowers’ has since expanded the work to all over China specializing in different programs and initiatives.

For more information: http://www.littleflowerprojects.org/

Foodies, Arm Yourself in 2012 with the Little Gold Book

Little Gold Book is like the “Little Black Book for Charitable Foodies in Beijing”.

It’s a coupon book with crazy good discounts on Beijing’s top restaurants with 30% of proceeds going towards local community charities.

Just think about it – All those places you’ve been wanting to try out or that you wish you could go more often (if they were more affordable), you can finally begin to eat your way through Beijing’s top dining destinations armed with a little gold book filled with coupons that are up to 50% off!

Here’s a few top deals you can score with The Little Gold Book:

• 50% off Hatsune
• 2 for 1 mains at Assaggi
• 2-for-1 wine at Enoterra
• 50% off Stumble Inn
• 2-for-1 Food Items at The Bookworm
• 50% off ROOMbeijing
• 2-for-1 cooking classes at Vegan Hut
• 50% off Filling Station
• RMB 50 discount on a dozen Lollipop Cupcakes

Click for full list of deals here (there are 85 deals by 70 restaurants).

For only RMB 240 per Little Gold Book, you can cover the cost of the entire book after just one meal at one of the 70 participating restaurants.  It’s valid for the entire 2012 year so there’s plenty of time to work your way through each deal.

With the holidays quickly approaching, the Little Gold Book is a great stocking stuffer for all fellow Beijing foodies!

Little Gold Book was first released at the Chi Fan for Charity 2011 After-Party at Hatsune and will be available for sale again at Kagen’s Christmas Charity Dinner on December 10th with 30% of proceeds going towards BICCO.

Little Gold Book is currently sold at The Bookworm, April Gourmet’s and Colibri.

Easy Xmas Shopping at The Gift Charity Bazaar

I always feel so much pressure to bring back home unique, one-of-a-kind Christmas gifts that are personal, practical and something my friends and family can’t purchase in the US.  And I’m pretty sure my fellow Beijingers can relate to me when I say it’s an added pressure I try to avoid until the last possible moment each year before I go home for the holidays.

Granted the Silk Market does offer a million and one things, but the hassle of digging through all the useless crap and the hassle of haggling over prices is a huge turn-off for me, which is why I am so excited about The Gift Charity Bazaar this Sunday, November 20 at The Canadian International School.

Organized by Stage One Productions, this will be their third annual charity gift bazaar (last year brought over 1,100 visitors) and this year shoppers will be able to choose from a range of items displayed by over 50 vendors from around Beijing with vendors all donating at least 10% of all proceeds to helping to support several local charities including The Starfish Project, Care for Children, Bread of Life Bakery, Compassion for Migrant Children, Shepherd’s Field Children’s Village and Bethel.

Some goodies you can look forward to being on sale:

• Ceramics by 798’s Soul Collection
• Affordable Art
• Jewelry by The Starfish Project
• Beijing-inspired Christmas cards 
• Paper Tiger gift wrapping 

In addition to all these local vendors selling entirely unique products, the event will also be featuring live music by Avodah and Eluvia, plenty of food courtesy of Home Plate BBQ, Punjabi Indian Restaurant and sweets by Bread of Life Bakery.

Artists Stephen Gleadow and Zhang Jianbo from the artist’s movement and book TheUrbanity Project, will also be on hand to sign copies and discuss their artwork.

Event Details:

• Date: Sunday, November 20
• Time: 11AM-4PM
• Ticket: RMB 10 Entrance
• Location: Canadian International School
• Address: 38 Liangmaqiao Lu, Liangmaqiao, Chaoyang district  朝阳区亮马桥路38号
• Website: www.cisb.com.cn/