50 Shades of Greyhound: Thai Fusion in Sanlitun Village

The new Greyhound Cafe in the Village comes to us originally from Thailand, by way of Hong Kong. Its roots may be authentically Thai, but it has fun with changing things up with Italian fusion.

Take, for example the fusilli pad thai (RMB 98), which is quite literally Thai "with a twist", as it substitutes the traditional rice noodles for corkscrew pasta. It worked for me as an interesting change from the usual, but it does mess with your mind a bit.

Salmon carpaccio (RMB 88) are another fused item. Greyhound takes the Italian method of preparing carpaccio and pairs it with a spicy fish sauce. That sauce is one of my favorite things about Thai food, and I'm very happy to see it liberally applied here.

Tipping over toward the western side, a buffalo burger (RMB 118) combines the flavors of a caprese salad (using sweet basil) with a burger all on a dark squid ink bun. It's a fresh take on the classic burger, though it doesn't come cheap. Fried chicken wings (RMB 58) with a hint of fish sauce are another east-meets-west party in your mouth.

My favorite dish was the spaghetti chachacha (RMB 108), which tosses seafood, Italian basil leaves and green peppercorns. It's a firecracker of different tastes, from the briny tones of the spaghetti to the numbing aftertaste of the peppercorn.

The coconut crepe cake (RMB 78) was excellent, with strands of chewy coconut with whipped cream and condensed milk. If you want to go traditional, you can get mango sticky rice (RMB 78). For a brief moment, you can imagine you're in warmer, tropical climes.

As for drinks, A butterfly pea & stevia tea (RMB 28) is interesting with its naturally blue color, while a lemon ice tea stays pure with tea-based ice cubes. I was a touch disappointed with the thai milk tea, which didn't quite live up to its potential.

I'm quite excited about Greyhound Cafe. With its playful, unique food, it's a great addition to Sanlitun.

Greyhound Cafe Daily 11am-11pm. 3/F, Bldg 1, Sanlitun Village South, 11 Sanlitun Lu, Chaoyang District 朝阳区三里屯路11号院三里屯Village南区1号楼3层

Photos: Josh Ong