Indian-Inspired Delights Among Highlights of Ambitious New Side Street Menu

Side Street has been drawing foot traffic worthy of a busy main street since its launch in early 2018. The Jiaodaokou pub and eatery has certainly had a lot to live up to, considering the popularity of the Ron Mexico dive bar concept that preceded it. And yet this new iteration is already exceeding expectations, thanks to a menu of wholesome comfort food and ambitious-for-a-bar dishes. 

Chalk the latter up to Indian co-owners Uday Phalgun and Purnima Sharma. The warmly amiable pair bring plenty of Southeast Asian flair to items like an RMB 25 appetizer unlike anything we've ever tried that consisted of puffy rice that pops on your palate, all of which is accentuated by its tangy flavor. Called the "puffy nuts" we'll just say it puts the cliched old bar olives and peanuts to shame. 

Though they haven't named it, or a few other Indian-inspired items that they're experimenting with in the kitchen just yet, that rice popper appetizer certainly won us over. Same goes for a savory vegetarian chutney spread (RMB 35) that left our taste buds singing. The only hitch: it comes on half a burger bun, and while that cushy bread is satisfying enough, it comes across as a bit odd and slap-dash. We bet this chutney would be elevated all the more by being slathered on a more wholesome slice of very high-quality bread.

Speaking of buns, Side Street's burgers are downright to die for. Our expectations were very much exceeded until we were told that co-owner Brian Murray had a major hand in Home Plate's rise when that restaurant was the talk of the town in the early 2010s. These beef behemoths like the Singing da Bacon Blues bacon and bleu cheese burger (RMB 65), an RMB 65 breakfast burger and a RMB 55 Tex Mex-style burger will all indeed remind you of Home Plate's heyday (before it became slicker, more corporate, and diluted as of late).

What's more: Side Street has elevated some of those burgers with inventive twists that bring all the owners' talents together. Their Curry On a Cow Burger (RMB 55), for example, consists of a beef patty mixed and diced with Indian spices and then served on a yogurt-based raita, giving it a nuanced balance between soothing and fiery. Saying that, we were a bit let down by their honey soy glaze "Call Me Honey" chicken burger, its poultry a bit too tough and compact compared to the more tender and nuanced texture of the superior beef. However, Murray more than makes up for that with another white meat offering: boneless Buffalo chicken wings that we assumed would be generic, but were gobsmackingly good thanks to their tangy sauce and all but melt in your mouth tenderness (he certainly got the chicken's texture correct on that go around).

Ron Mexico diehards certainly enjoyed guzzling strongly mixed, low priced cocktails at this space until the wee hours last year. Now that it’s upped its menu, Side Street will have a wider appeal and, thanks to both the wholesomeness of the burgers and exotic flair of its Indian-tinged dishes, its broader new fan base is sure to be just as dedicated to this new concept.

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Photos courtesy of Side Street