New live music venue Temple opened last Friday at 206 Gulou Dongdajie. I didn’t make it along to the opening party, but heard the place was packed out with a strong, French-heavy crowd (one of the owners is former Salud man Clement Berger). Unfortunately, the live music only lasted about 30 minutes, as the police showed up to shunt the band off the stage, but the party continued anyway. We’ll have a proper writeup on Temple for you soon, but this Friday, look out for the latest Whale! party going down at the venue. Whale! now has its own signature, drink, the “Blowfish” – try it on Friday.

Established in Tokyo in 1866, Inagiku expands its international network of restaurants with this first Beijing branch. Subtle orange lighting softens the mood, while a Swarovski chandelier hanging above the bar area illuminates the 1,500sqm space, which features 11 elegant VIP rooms. Nineteen set menus (RMB 180-1,050 for lunch, RMB 350-1,980 for dinner) and the a la carte menu (RMB 48-3,880) are dominated by top-end ingredients and seasonings imported from all around the world – everything from Wagyu beef and Hokkaido hairy crab to Australian lobster, Italian black truffles and French caviars.

Run by the same culinary team as now-defunct Sanlitun spot this vibrant cafe remedies the lack of Thai food at Central Park. Thai chef Mac Boonrit’s menu is dominated by classic Thai dishes, with a few inspired twists such as the spicy tuna salad – toned down, of course, for those with Western taste buds who reside in the nearby apartments.

My China offers a collection of cuisines from China’s spiciest culinary regions – Sichuan and Hunan – as well as a range of classic Beijing dishes. Chefs hailing from those regions ensure authenticity, scaling the quality up with organic ingredients. Three levels of spiciness are indicated by the number of green chilli symbols beside the name of a dish; red chillis are a guide to the “authenticity” of the dish.

Li Weitao (李卫涛), a Beijinger with eight years of sushi making experience in Tokyo, is aiming to bring his understanding of Japanese cuisine back to his hometown. With this aim in mind he has opened Hon Kaku (本格) – “authenticity” in Japanese – a restaurant that lives up to its name.

A trilingual menu (English, Chinese & Japanese) includes traditional Japanese items such as sushi (RMB 20-120), sashimi (RMB 20-180), soup (RMB 20-30), boiled seafood(RMB 30-50), tempura (RMB 30), grilled seafood (RMB 30), and dishes for drinking (RMB 10-38). The “bomb-burst” category (RMB 58-88) was the most eye-catching.