Under Clouds Offers Elevated Yunnanese Dishes and Delicious Desserts

We find it hard to define Under Clouds, which has been open for less than a year (see our first impression here). Unlike the regular Yunnan restaurants such as Little Yunnan, Dali Courtyard, In and Out, or Middle 8^th, this modern Yunnan restaurant is sparse in decor and color and lacks a certain ethnic flare. Our first impression of this airy and bright place is that it seemed somewhat Nordic in style – minimalist wooden café chairs in grey, white marble tables, and bright yellow sofas. But we slowly realized that three different colors – ocean green, cherry blossom pink, and spruce blue – represent the water, mountains, and flowers of the Yunnan landscape.  

Exploring their newly launched winter menu items, we kicked off the meal with some cold dishes. The beef rolls with mint (RMB 68) maintained their rep as a fresh and tasty Yunnan classic, dipped in soy sauce. Mashed yam with passion fruit juice (RMB 48) was odd: The yam’s texture was a bit like mashed potato, while the passion fruit juice gave the flavor some zest but made it a bit too sweet. We liked the fried Yunnan ham with wrinkled pepper (RMB 82), though – the jade green peppers proving to be more than just eye-candy. The peppers' dry and powerful spice was complemented by the savory and mild ham, enticing us to keep digging for more.

The plum stewed pork (RMB 118) is worth a try, too: It's a Yunnanese take on red-braised pork belly. It had a beautiful red-brown glaze with sweet and savory flavors, and a certain acidic taste from the plum to clean the palate. If we have to poke a hole, we would wish for less fat marbles.

As for their staples, we recommend the boiled rice noodles (RMB 42), with shredded carrots, termite mushroom, pickled vegetables, tomatoes, and chilies; the chicken broth was spicy and hot, with abundant umami flavor. You could also go for the Boletus rice (RMB 26), including a bowl of rice, with a bowl of boletus mushroom sauce to top it off.

You may find that the dishes for the meal are on the pricey side for a relatively small portion compared to your go-to Yunnan restaurants. Fear not, though, for we’ve found it is quite reasonable for the coffee, tea, and desserts. Espresso and Americano are RMB 25, while cappuccino, latte, flat white, and mocha are RMB 30-38. The cappuccino we tried (RMB 35) was very rich in flavor with a round body, lovely balanced toasty flavor, brewed with Yunnanese and Ethiopian coffee beans.

The desserts were surprisingly good. The mochi, or nuomici (糯米糍) set (RMB 78 for three) included three flavors of fillings: red bean, strawberry, and pumpkin. Our favorite was the pumpkin filling wrapped in thin glutinous rice skin, benefitting from the perfect little dash of cinnamon. The almond chocolate was good, too – the crunchy and nutty almond was coated with sugar and covered with abundant cacao powder, making each bite like a small flavor explosion as you crunch through the layers. The cheesecake is far from being the cheapest in town at RMB 68, but this sizable cheesecake with fresh fig is probably the most satisfying thing (with coffee) you could ask for on a winter afternoon.  

There are some interesting items, such as Dali porcini mushroom ice cream (RMB 48), yokan (RMB 68, cake made of red bean flour, sugar, and agar) that we saved for next time. The spacious place with floor-to-ceiling windows is good for enjoying their afternoon tea sets, in a price range from RMB 180 to 490. Located at the quiet north side of Parkview Green, Under Clouds might not be the traditional (read: cheap) Yunnan restaurant you're looking for, but we’ll come back for the honest and delicious coffee and addictive desserts.

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Email: tracywang@thebeijinger.com
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Photos: Tracy Wang