Metro Ride

Beijing is awash these days with Italian restaurants and pizza diners. Some of these are good, some of them are great, and some are just, well … you know. Few, however, have been around as long as Marvin Lau’s Metro.

Still going strong on Gongti Xilu after 14 years, Lau’s classy restaurant prides itself on a choice of pasta-and-sauce combinations unlike any other in Beijing. Here’s what Marvin had to say when agenda caught up with him recently.

Did you always know you wanted to work in the restaurant business?
Actually, the restaurant business was the last of my considerations. My grandparents on my mother’s side used to run a Chinese restaurant in Japan, and I saw how tedious it was, [not to mention] hard work. I told myself “this is the last thing I’ll do.” So I went out and got a college education, thinking of working at a multinational company. Oh well …

So, why did you decide to open an Italian restaurant?
Fifteen years ago, Beijing wasn’t how it looks now. It was a pretty boring city, with only a handful of places to go. [At that time,] there was already Pizza Hut, and Frank’s Place offered the best hamburger in town, but if you wanted to have a simple bowl of pasta, you had to go to a restaurant in the hotels.
With all the expats, diplomats and foreign students in town, I knew there had to be a demand for an independent Western restaurant. In the beginning, we didn’t really want to open a fully-fledged Italian restaurant. In fact, we wanted to have an international restaurant with an emphasis on pasta. That’s why we named ourselves Metro, instead of choosing an Italian name. However, as time passed, we evolved into a dedicated Italian restaurant.

How long have your doors been open, and how is business right now?
We opened our doors in April 1995, and have just celebrated our 14th anniversary! Due to our continued support and patronage from our loyal customers, business has been quite consistent through the years, although we did go through some tough times during the 1997 Asian economic crisis and SARS. But nothing really compares to what we’re going through right now, with the global financial crisis!

How competitive is the restaurant industry in Beijing?
It is becoming more competitive as each day goes by. Restaurants are becoming more professional, in line with [international] standards. Customers are becoming more sophisticated: They expect more than just having their stomachs filled up. Besides that, there are lots of dining choices. If you really don’t know what you’re doing, don’t waste money by opening up a restaurant.

What is Metro best known for?
At Metro, you create your own pasta dish by choosing from more than 16 freshly made short, long and filled pastas, with more than 40 exquisite choices of sauces to choose from. For sure, we are the only restaurant in China that offers so many varieties and choices of pasta and sauce!

What is Metro’s most popular dish?
Our most popular items are the spinach ravioli and the Metro sauce – parma ham and asparagus in a parmesan cheese sauce.

How has Beijing changed since opening your restaurant?
Beijing has changed so much that if you had been away for the past three years, you wouldn’t even know where you are now. Even the street in front of our restaurant has changed! There are only a few places that were around when we opened which are still here. The city is getting bigger, spreading far and wide, and is becoming more like a “real” cosmopolitan city.

What is your favorite thing on the menu?
Pasta, of course – I love spaghetti. My favorite is a combination of spaghetti with arrabiata sauce.

Besides Metro, where would you recommend diners go to sample traditional Italian fare?
Unfortunately, I don’t eat out Italian here in Beijing, as I see it every day. But whenever I travel, I like to try out different Italian restaurants abroad.

So where do you head for a good meal?
My favorite food is Japanese. I usually go over to Morio at Hotel G. Their food is always fresh and good quality. I also love hotpot at Haidilao, which is reasonably priced for its quality. The food there is fresh and service is very friendly. If I want to entertain or have friends and guests, I impress them at The Courtyard!

Morio J-Cuisine
Daily 10am-2.30pm, 5.30-10.30pm. 1/F, 7 Gongti Xilu, Chaoyang District. (6551 6999)
朝阳区工体西路7

Haidilao Hot Pot
1) Daily 10am-3am. 2A Baijiazhuang Lu (next to No. 80 Middle School), Chaoyang District. (6595 2982); 2) Daily 11am-midnight. 29 Nanmofang Lu, Chaoyang District. (8779 8677/8911)
海底捞火锅, 1) 朝阳区白家庄路甲2号 (八十中学西侧); 2) 朝阳区南磨房路29号 (近西大望路)

The CourtYard
Daily 6-9.30pm. 95 Donghuamen Dajie (north of Donghuamen parking lot at the Forbidden City), Dongcheng District. (6526 8883)
四合院, 东城区东华门大街95号 (故宫东华门停车场北面)

Metro
Mon-Fri 11.30am-2pm, 5.30-10pm; Sat-Sun 11.30am-10pm. 9 Gongti Xilu, Chaoyang District. (6552 7828)
美特柔, 朝阳区工体西路9号

Interview by Bridget McCabe

Taken from the June 4th - June 17th edition of agenda, out around town now. To find out where to grab a copy, send an email to distribution@agendabeijing.com