Best for Last

Since the opening of Capital M mid-September, I’ve been dying to go back and I just found the perfect opportunity – Sophia’s last night in Beijing, I saved the best for last: dinner at Capital M (which was such a girl-date) followed by a tour of the Legation Quarter inclusive of a drink at Fez, Saul’s birthday bash at Punk (dance madness), topping the night off with my love, BLING.

Sophia's Last Night in Beijing

When I was planning this dinner at Capital M, everyone and their mother said they were down to come along with all the good word-of-mouth praising the food and drinks, but with the changing weather and everyone feeling ill and bailing out, the dinner party went from a party of 8 to me and Sophia’s ‘girl date’ (and Candy joining us for dessert).

At last month’s opening, everyone had good things to say about Capital M.  It was warm enough still to hang out on the beautiful terrace with a spectacular view, and there was a LOT of free food and drinks.  The freebies aside, what really sold me before was actually the venue design.  I love Capital M’s colorful, hand-painted artwork along the walls and the cozy boxed fireplaces throughout the venue.  What a perfect place for a date…even though in this case, it was just a girl-date. haha.

And this time around, I really got to the true Capital M dining experience, which was such a treat. The service was fantastic, the wines were lovely, and the food was beyond remarkable.

Sophia and I shared a starter – the Audacious Aubergines, a refreshing, cold appetizer with 3 different types of aubergines. For mains, Sophia ordered their Fesengjan – Iranian duck leg with spiced duck breast, walnuts & pomegranates, which was such a flavorful combination and we loved the cucumber & dill salad on the side.  Also a meat lover, I ordered the Leg of Lamb, which came with smashed yams, sauteed spinach and glazed shallots. The lamb was so tender, it melted in my mouth.

The portions were generous and we were stuffed, but with Candy coming to join us, we decided to indulge in gluttony and go for their Grand Dessert Platter  that included a tasting of their entire dessert menu – 3 various sorbets/ice cream, raspberry souffle, creme brulee, orange and cardamom canaloni and our favorites: the baked bananas and M’s famous Pavlova (meringue with passionfruit ice cream and topped with fruit).  Best dessert platter ever – it was so good it practically put us in a coma. Their pavlova alone is reason enough to go back.

After dinner, we were given a grand tour of the venue – it’s a shame the weather is getting cold so fast, but I was happy to see that they have transformed the lounge area with the cool rooftop is now being used as a dining section as well.

Once again, two thumbs up!

Thanks again to our perfect host, restaurant manager Fabian Ernst for making the evening such a delightful experience and for introducing me to Michelle, the owner and creator of all three M restaurants: M on the Bund, M on the Fringe, and now in Beijing – Capital M.  *Interesting fact: Michelle has no investors, business partners, nada.  Australian bred, Michelle is a one woman show in all three of her restaurants.  What an accomplished, talented woman – very, very  impressive.

25 and None the Wiser

25 is a pretty intimidating number. As a kid, I always associated the number 25 with being an adult – someone with a career, who is financially independent, at a prime age to get married and start a family.  Ok, I’m 2 for 3.  As a kid, I also wanted to be a Disney fairy-tale princess and meet Prince Charming at the age of 16.

I realize age is just a number and age is absolutely relative. But just I don’t feel 25; I feel like I’m still 16.  Maybe that’s because the last time I had a birthday party was when I turned 16.  Due to the awkward timing of having a birthday in early September, my birthday always coincided with the start of a new school year, when everyone is still sorting out their new class schedule and their new circle of friends or in most recent years, my birthdays have coincided with vacation time – which was nice to be celebrating in an entirely new, exotic setting, but also away from my friends, my family, my home.

So for the first time in almost a decade, I have reached the quarter century mark and I was ready to go BIG.

My Birthday Week Break-down:

Monday: Pre-Birthday Home-made Dinner & Movie

Tuesday: Birthday lunch & Birthday dinner at my favorite restaurant Kagen Teppanyaki followed by birthday drinks @ d. lounge

Wednesday: Post Birthday Dinner and Pre-Birthday Party @ GOSSIP Pour Femme at [Touch] The Westin Beijing Chaoyang

Friday: Post-Birthday dinner & drinks @ none other than Hatsune @ the Village

Saturday: Birthday Champagne @ Riviera’s Pool Party

Birthday Make-Over courtesy of the beautiful & talented Meili Autumn (CW’s Fashionista Editor)

Birthday Dinner Party & Drinks @ Karaiya Spice House

‘Bling-isine’ Champagne Limo Ride courtesy of BLING (Can be booked regularly through BLING)

After-Party @ BLING

Sunday: Birthday Recovery @ Capital M’s Opening

By the same people behind M on the Bund in Shanghai and M on the Fringe in HK, Capital M launched its official opening this Sunday, September 13.

Best Part:

• The bright & colorful painted artwork that runs along the walls of the venue
• The pointed roof-top lounge area
• The spectacular view from the spacious rooftop terrace of the Tian An Men Area
• The boxed fireplaces throughout the space really warms and illuminates the venue for a very romantic and intimate lighting in the evening
• Fabian, the restaurant manager, was very welcoming, attentive and a perfect host
• The food was fantastic – I particularly was pleased to be served fresh oysters, and some top picks included the beef bearnaise and smoked salmon with poached egg and spinach. WOW, gave a really great first impression
• Capital M will bring more attention to the Qianmen area
• The location is a great destination for afternoon tea or dinner after a day of sightseeing around heart of Beijing’s history and culture
• They are bringing Danish Smørrebrød to Beijing!!  (world-famous piled-high, open-faced sandwiches from Denmark!)

Comments:

• WARNING for girls with high heels: Taxis can not reach the venue and you must walk quite far to catch one home.
• With a massive space that fills over 400 seats both indoor and the outside terrace, it will be interesting to see who their regular clientele are and their incoming business post-launch period
• It will also be interesting to see how Capital M will compare and compete with the Legation Quarter’s supreme dining outlets.

This past week I have been living in a cloud of BIRTHDAY BLISS – birthday lunches, birthday dinners, birthday e-mails, birthday text messages, birthday FB wall posts…I’ve been down-right spoiled with love, it makes me wish every day was my birthday!  I truly feel blessed to have had such a happy and loving birthday week – Thank you to everyone for making me feel so special, this birthday exceeded all my expectations. It was better than I ever could have imagined or asked for.

Here are some of my favorite birthday shots: