Yu Yuan Tan Park: Cherry Blossoms in Full Bloom

Photos Don’t Lie: Yu Yuan Tan Park is Bursting with Cherry Blossoms

In CityWeekend magazine’s recent cover story “Journey to the West (of Beijing)”, they highlight a part of Beijing often ignored and unknown to most of us based on the east side of the Forbidden City. The article sites many of the attractions, museums, parks, shopping and dining that make a trip west worth the effort (it’s really not as far as you might think).  I can’t say I’d have much interest in seeing the Military Museum or the sad animals in the Beijing Zoo, but the bit about Yu Yuan Tan Park 玉渊潭公园 boasting “Beijing’s Best Cherry Blossoms” stopped me in my tracks.

“Whether cruising the big lake in the shadow of the CCTV Tower or skipping along winding paths, Yu Yuan Tan, the Jade Lake Park, is a perennial favorite for springtime cherry blossom peeping.”   - CityWeekend’s Article “Journey to the West”

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2013 Easter Egg Hunts & Sunday Brunches in Beijing

Early Easter Chicks Get the Worm!

Easter fun comes in many shapes and forms from died egg shells to festive cupcakes (photo above by Fat Bunny Bakery), there are plenty of Easter Egg Hunts and Sunday brunches available across Beijing.

Practically every hotel is hosting their own Easter brunch, but I choose to opt away from hotel-style buffet brunches and instead, I’ve put together my top picks for Easter activities/events in China’s capital.

LDS Top Easter Picks:

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Taqueria & Tequileria Cantina Agave Opens in Sanlitun

Shanghai Import Cantina Agave Replaces VaVaVoom in Sanlitun Village

Yet another Shanghai import has made its way to into Beijing’s Sanlitun hood, Cantina Agave is a legend in the Shanghai dining scene known as “Shanghai’s favorite Taqueria & Tequileria” with its tasty margaritas, tequila flights and house specialty cocktails matched by an equally impressive range of California-style Mexican food.

“We use only top quality ingredients including imported chilies, cheese and garden fresh produce. Age old recipes make your experience with us as authentic as Mexico. With over 100 different types of tequila, regular food specials, daily wine boards, and monthly events, we want to satisfy your cravings for authentic Mexican food and certifiably amazing tequila.” – Cantina Agave

Owners Kelley Lee and Raffe Ibrahamian just opened their doors last week and a few of us came in on Saturday night to admire the view over a couple of margaritas and shared dessert.  I gotta say, the restaurant design is stunning.

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St. Patrick’s Day 2013 Festivities in True Irish Form

Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day in True Irish Form: With Drinks

Before we get carried away with all the drink-heavy parties in the name of the patron saint of Ireland St. Patrick, let me first divert your attention to an important community event to help save a young girl with cancer.

Roundabout is hosting its biggest ever Charity Book Fair at BCIS (Beijing City International School) this Saturday, March 16 from 10AM-3PM. (In case you can’t make it on this day, rest assured, the book sale will continue Monday-Friday from 9:30AM-3:30PM until Tuesday, April 9th.)

Transported in two giant truckloads, there will be thousands of books to choose from at amazing prices with paperback books starting at RMB 10, hardbacks at RMB 20 and children’s books as little as RMB 1. The range of second hand books come in different languages and genres including but not limited to: fiction, art, travel, coffee table books, special interest, etc.

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Dali Courtyard: Discreet, Delightful & Delicious Yunnan

Dali Courtyard’s Discreet Entrance

A classic Yunnan favorite, Dali Courtyard is a restaurant so popular in the warm summer months that you can’t count on walking in without a reservation, a lesson I’ve learned well.

It’s a trusted restaurant among the local foreign community with a reputation to serve consistently tasty and authentic Yunnan cuisine in a charming little courtyard nestled in the hutongs.

But I was surprised to find it rather quiet in my most recent visit a few weeks back.  I was convinced that hoards of hungry diners would all arrive any moment, but they never came.  In one entire evening, there were a total of about 10 other people in the entire restaurant.  Needless to say, it was too cold to sit outside in the courtyard (which is covered up with a temporary roof in winter months), but there were hardly any other diners even in the cozy indoor spaces.

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The New Niajo: Renovated, Updated & Better Than Ever

Niajo’s Star Dish is the Paella, made with high-quality imported ingredients

In an effort to keep up with Beijing’s aggressive dining scene, eating out almost every night of the week, trying to tick off restaurant after restaurant on my never-ending Restaurant Hit List,  I sometimes lose sight of my favorite restaurants, forgetting to give them deserved LDS attention.

It’s been years since my last dining experience in Niajo Spanish restaurant and that’s just wrong because I was a huge fan of this little authentic Spanish restaurant since it first opened and have always thought very highly of it, especially their phenomenal paellas. I stand by what I’ve always said about Niajo – their paellas are even better than the ones I used to love in Spain.

I was also pleased to find on my return visit last week how much Niajo has improved. With years passed and after plenty of restaurants have come and gone, I wasn’t sure what state I’d find Niajo in and was pleasantly surprised to find it totally renovated, looking better than ever with a steady flow of customers that filled pretty much every table available. Check out my LDS snapshots for a visual tour of the newly improved Niajo interior design.

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LDS Top Picks: A Wicked Week of Halloween Festivities

“Goblins and Ghosts and Creatures of Fright, 

Don’t Miss the Call of Halloween Night.”

Halloween used to be all about pumpkin carving and trick-or-treating around the neighborhood for sweets, but now it’s about freaky, spooky, sexy parties running throughout the city.

With Halloween falling smack, dab in the middle of the week, there will be events taking place all week starting this Friday through the end of next week.

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Smoke & Mirrors: “The Big Smoke” Barbecue Spot

Stepping into The Big Smoke

Let me begin by managing your expectations.

The Big Smoke is not Home Plate Bar-B-Que. From tasting my way through their menu, the interior design and vibes, this is something very different even if both restaurants specialize in *BBQ.

*I have just been corrected – The Big Smoke is not an American BBQ restaurant, but “a menu drawing on Latin influence and featuring a wood-fired barbeque, known as an Asado (the traditional Argentinean pit of fire).”

That being said, I came to dinner at The Big Smoke not knowing what to expect.  I hadn’t done any prior research and I hadn’t even planned on coming here for dinner. I happened to be in the area and our dining choices boiled down to three: Frost nails (I hear they serve some killer burgers), Uncle Otis or The Big Smoke.  I haven’t been to any of these three and I’ve been meaning to check all three off my restaurant hit list since I’ve heard good things about all.  I knew Big Smoke was the newest of the three and since we heard it’s the “sit-down” brother of the “take-away” Uncle Otis with a larger menu selection, we went with it.

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