2013 Feb 28 Wok The F**K? No Beijing Restaurants In Asia's Top 50
For followers of Beijing's burgeoning and explosive food scene, China's capital is once again markedly absent from Restaurant magazine's latest list, this time for Asia's 50 Best Restaurants.
We reported on their "World's Best" list back in 2011 when Beijing was nowhere to be found – fair enough. This year for the inaugural Asia list, they've asked 900 "trusted and well-travelled gourmets" to help with the decision making for the task of identifying Asia's premier dining venues. And we still failed to make the cut. Adding insult to injury, one restaurant in Hangzhou did. Well, as a devotee to Beijing dining, it seems dubious enough to me. You may wonder if they've ever even made it up to Beijing or is it the pollution keeping them at bay? Have you not tried my corner chuanr stand?
The Middle Kingdom is creeping in, though. In 2011, Hong Kong scored one position but not a single Mainland city was recognized for its dining. Now two years later, Shanghai and even Hangzhou have thrown down, with five and one respectively, recognized restaurants. And if you add in our neighbors to the south, Greater China stole the show – or at least 80% of it. Food has always been a big consolation to temper the irritation of a Hong Kong visa run, but seriously, nine?
But let's keep the focus here. Naturalized Beijingers know that the food is a big reason to stay in Beijing. Corner shop bowls of zhajiangmian convinced me to move here, and places like Najia Xiaoguan and later, Home Plate and Susu, convinced me to settle. Another year may have passed without the regional spotlight, but Beijing still is a city for eaters. Fine dining or casual, Beijing encompasses it all. Each of you have your favorites, so let's hear it. I'm a strong believer in the lived-in knowledge of locals. Do you really trust someone who doesn't understand the nuances of a crispy center to your morning's jianbing for the final word on our city's dining scene? We surely don't.
Voting for the Beijinger's tenth annual Reader Restaurant Awards is still open and you have a few days left to let your most beloved restaurants know they're appreciated. Visit here before Monday March 4th to cast your ballot.
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The 2013 Reader Restaurant Awards Results
As the Beijinger's Tenth Annual Reader Restaurant Awards Ceremony wrap up, it's our great pleasure to announce what you voted as the pick of this year. We've compiled the comprehensive list of Best and Outstanding winners below. Take a look now for the quick overview, but stay tuned to the blog over the coming weeks for in-depth coverage and analysis of the awards plus the exclusive to the web Experts' Panel selections. Before all of that, on with the 2013 Reader Restaurant Awards results ...
The 2013 Reader Restaurant Awards Are Live: Results To Follow
the Beijinger's Tenth Annual Reader Restaurant awards ceremony is underway right now.
To find out the winners live, follow @the_beijinger on Sina Weibo. Or you can check back here at 6pm to learn the winners of every single award.
Keep your fingers crossed that your votes came up trumps. Good luck to everyone involved. If anyone is bored at home, we're pretty sure that there is a drinking game in there somewhere.
Final Countdown: Last Call for Votes
The polls are closing at the end of the day. If you haven't yet put in your vote, make sure to visit here and submit your ballot now for the Beijinger's Tenth Annual Reader Restaurant Awards.
What's Good in the Hutong? Vote on Your Dining Favorites
Brooklyn : New York :: ____ : Beijing
a) Sanlitun
b) Qianmen
c) GulouThat might give you unpleasant memories of standardized tests, but the answer should jump quickly to mind. Gulou, of course. It's a comparison that makes sense in many ways – the neighborhood vibe, hip bars amidst small local shops, gentrification – and I've heard it bandied about in town often. But the New York Times is "discovering" it, finally, and had their wits about them to scoop up a profile on Gulou for their Travel section's "Heads Up" column.
Great Leap Brewing, Lush Big Winners at Reader Bar & Club Awards; Slow Boat Brewery Taproom Best Newcomer
Great Leap Brewing and Wudaokou favorite Lush were the big winners at The Beijinger 10th Annual Reader Bar & Club Awards, held at the futuristic Galaxy SOHO complex in Chaoyangmen.
Lush emerged as an early multiple winner in our pre-announced categories, picking up awards in four categories: Best Open Mic, Best Quiz Night, Best for Students, and Best Wudaokou. Josh Lally made it five when he won Best Manager for both Lush and Pyro Pizza, along with two Outstanding prizes, for Lally in Personality of the Year and for Lush as Best Survivor.
Pangzi
Re: Wok The F**K? No Beijing Restaurants In Asia's Top 50
not really a surpise...
softwarecompany
Re: Wok The F**K? No Beijing Restaurants In Asia's Top 50
not surprised either. Beijing has lots of TYPES of food. most of the types of food from different parts of the country, including Hong Kong and Taiwan, taste quite good, and is relatively cheap. but most of the food types from abroad is expensive and terrible. but for one restaurant to stand out--no way. food service is probably the worst in Beijing, and any place trying to be fancy overcharges for the same poor service and food you could get for 1/3 the price at another restaurant--not worth it!
lucreziab
Re: Wok The F**K? No Beijing Restaurants In Asia's Top 50
Terrible service and gutter oil. Two reasons why Beijing restaurants aren't on the list.
admin
Re: Wok The F**K? No Beijing Restaurants In Asia's Top 50
Really? TRB, Maison Boulud, Mosto, Da Dong ... gutter oil? Terrible service?
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britomart
Re: Wok The F**K? No Beijing Restaurants In Asia's Top 50
Yes, those are all awesome. But they're awesome in the environment in which they find themselves. I realize when I visit back home or another country that my tastes have really been downgraded living here. Not that Maison Boulud isn't awesome. Just in comparison to awesome restaurants abroad, it would be "good", not "Top 50".
Pangzi
Re: Wok The F**K? No Beijing Restaurants In Asia's Top 50
Sure there are some good places in Beijing, Admin mentioned some, but imagine these restaurants in Singapore, NY, London, Paris, they would do okay maybe but not real competition. Home Plate is a good example, sure maybe the best American burger place in town, but nothing unique, not outstanding, like wow I went to Beijing to have a burger at Home Plate. This city has a long way to go when it comes to dining. I think all the buzz about eating out in Beijing is that most expats dont know what else to do and are too lazy to cook and it is cheap. As soon as a restaurant is doing okay the corner cutting starts as owners have to cash in before the landlord beefs up the rent. Sure there are some beacons of good service out there but exeptional mind-reading servers I never found in this city.
admin
Re: Wok The F**K? No Beijing Restaurants In Asia's Top 50
come on people, did you look at the list? There's top 50 restaurants in Columbo, Mumbai and Hangzhou and not Beijing? Please. They just didn't have a correspondent that made it this far.
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webdude
Re: Wok The F**K? No Beijing Restaurants In Asia's Top 50
Why the **? What's wrong with the word fork? I know, I know - this is China, so chopsticks are de rigueur, but c'mon. I've seen people forking in restaurants, forking on sidewalks, even forking in the road! With 1.5 billion people, there's a lot of forking in China!
merri0
Re: Wok The F**K? No Beijing Restaurants In Asia's Top 50
I think you're outnumbered, Admin
Agreed with the other comments above.
I don't think any of my top dining experiences have occurred in Beijing on strength of a restaurant alone (cuisine + service), which is likely how this list was compiled.