2010 Feb 08 Table for One? Best Spots for Solo Dining
Valentine's Day is just around the corner, but not all of us are lucky enough to have a lover, wife, "special friend" to share meals with. Need a table for one? Don’t wither under the smirks. Hold your (sniveling) head high and tuck in at one of these singles-friendly establishments.
Ginkgo
The mussels and tapas here are both tasty and good value, but it’s the eclectic live music that’ll keep companionless diners distracted and entertained all evening. Steaks are 40 percent off on Wednesdays too. Treat yourself – no one else will.
Daily 10.30am-3pm, 6-10.30pm. 199 Andingmennei Dajie, Dongcheng District
(6402 7532)
东城区安定门内大街199号
Ding Ding Xiang
Hot pot needn’t be a no-no for solo diners. At this branch of the upmarket Beijing chain, each customer gets their own mini cauldron of bubbling broth, so you can dunk to your heart’s content without looking like a loveless glutton.
Daily 11am-10pm. 2/F, Yuanjia International Apartments, Dongzhimenwai, Dongzhong Jie, Dongcheng District (6417 9289)
东城区东直门外东中街东环广场对面元嘉国际公寓2层
Mirch Masala
Mirch’s thali sets (RMB 45) are a delicious rebuke to tiresome family-style dining. With mini tasting bowls of chicken, lamb, prawn and vegetable curries, tandoori roti, naan, and pilau rice for one, who needs company?
Mon 5-10.30pm; Tue-Sun 11am-2.30pm, 5-10.30pm. Unit 130, Bldg 2, Ritan Highlife, 39 Shenlu Jie, Chaoyang District (8563 6304)
朝阳区神路街39号日坛公园北门对面日坛上街2号楼130号
Noodle Bar
Just because you’re a desperate singleton doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy Sanlitun’s romantic 1949-The Hidden City complex. Grab a stool at Noodle Bar’s 12-seat counter and let the experts show you how to “pull” – noodles, that is.
Daily 11am-10pm. 1949–The Hidden City, Courtyard 4, Gongti Beilu, Chaoyang District (6501 1949)
朝阳区工体北路4号院 (盈科中心南面)
Trojan Fairy Dark Restaurant
It might be billed as a sensory experience for couples, but the pitch-black dining room here means fellow patrons will be totally in the dark about your lonely secret. You can even imagine the partner of your dreams sitting opposite you. Note that word: dreams.
Daily 11am-2pm, 5-9pm. 8/F, Hunsha Dalou, 109 Xidan Beidajie, Xicheng District
(6616 0336)
西城区西单北大街109婚庆大楼8楼
You might also be interested in :
Take 5: Gut-Busting Burgers
New Year’s resolutions be damned. You’re bound to slip up eventually, so tumble off the diet wagon in style by treating yourself to one of these all-American towers of power.
Take 5: Beijing's Best Suckling Pigs
Spanferkel in Germany, lechon in Spain and ruzhu over here … nothing says Winterval like a hearty hog roast. Here are five spots to feast on roast suckling pig.
Take 5: Literary Boozing
Many a writer finds his muse at the bottom of an empty bottle. Sometimes the third bottle. With so many scribes in town for the Bookworm's Literary Festival, we consider where some of history’s famously tipsy scribblers might get inspired in Beijing?
Ernest Hemingway
Mojito
Very macho, that Hemingway. Shooting, fishing, bullfighting, womanizing … but drinking a minty highball? Centro is a long way from Papa’s more adventurous moments, but it’s unlikely the bearded one would object to their quality mojitos.
Centro. Daily 24hrs. 1/F, Shangri-La’s Kerry Centre Hotel, 1 Guanghua Lu, Chaoyang District (6561 8833)
朝阳区光华路1号嘉里中心饭店1层Intimate Escape: Midorikawa Japanese Restaurant
With only four tables and a sushi counter of untreated wood, Midorikawa uses its petite size to advantage, offering an intimate escape from the world beyond its latticed windows. As diners exchange confidences over a bossa nova soundtrack, sushi chefs with sharp outfits and sharper knives slice pricey, pedigreed seafood airlifted from Tokyo's Tsukiji market.
Rigorously Authentic: Patara Thai Restaurant
Settled in wood and wicker booths overlooking a warren of hutongs, diners straddle the border between Beijing and Bangkok at this refined Thai restaurant. With decorations, key ingredients (like galanga and lemongrass) and a chef imported from Thailand, Patara is rigorously authentic.
