Today's Alarming Statistic
353,800

Number of Huangbiao Che or cars not meeting Euro I emission standards that, as of Jan 1, are forbidden from being driven within the Fifth Ring Road.

China Daily

Trivia

Congrats to Inge Jansen  who answered correctly the question: Which landmark Beijing bridge did workers begin major repair and maintanence work on this week? The correct answer was C Golden River Bridge (Jinshui Qiao) Inge won 3 vouchers to eat at 1001 Nights Restaurant valued at RMB 100 each.

This Week's Trivia Challenge

They may have missed out on their chance to get the rabbit and the rat back, but how many of the 12 bronze animal heads that once adorned a fountain in Yuanming Yuan, have since returned to China after being purchased by either the Poly Group or Stanley Ho?

1. 3
2. 4
3. 5
4. 6
5. 10

Send the correct answer to 7days@thebeijinger.com for a chance to win a voucher to eat at Mughal's valued ar RMB 200.

the Beijinger's Bar of the Week

Only in Beijing would you find a Russian bar dedicated to Napoleon. Clad in imperial robes, the invader of Moscow gazes from the wall as you glide down the escalator to Chocolate, a nightclub/restaurant near Yabao Lu. The bar could have been designed by the great man – a fabulous mélange of styles from the lands that he conquered, achieved with an exuberant Beijing twist (see the gold-tiled squat toilets). A lounge band plays “Strangers in the Night” while Russian Tinkerbells gyrate on a dais. Cocktails have a special allure in such an environment, and at RMB 38-48, they’re downright compelling. For eye appeal, you can’t beat the “Armageddon,” a concoction of absinthe and grenadine prepared at your table in a floorshow that climaxes with a flaming column of alcohol streaming into your glass. Then there’s the bit with the napkin: What that involves, you’ll have to discover for yourself. Stella Jackman

Chocolate Night Club & Restaurant
Daily 7pm-7am, 19 Ritan Beilu, Chaoyang District (8561 3988)

朝阳区日坛北路19号

Search for more Beijing bars by name and neighborhood or share your opinions with the rest of Beijing by adding a user review of any of the bars in our online directory of venues.

the Beijinger's Restaurant of the Week

In 2006, Sanlitun denizens starving for Mexican food wept in gratitude at the opening of “The Saddle,” which served up burritos in the spot now occupied by Luga’s. The folks behind that original venture subsequently opened The Rickshaw and The Saddle Cantina; their latest endeavor marks a return to their burrito roots, albeit with a slightly revised format. The Side Saddle features a Subway-style bar where patrons construct their own mighty wraps (RMB 40), choosing from a selection of fillings (including beef, chicken and shrimp), sauces (nacho cheese, jalapeno, BBQ), greens (cilantro, guacamole, bell peppers, etc.) and extras (rice, beans, cheese and sour cream). Hours were confined to evenings at press time, but the management may open at lunch as business (and the weather) warms up.

The Side Saddle
Daily 5pm-3am. 1/F, South wing (next to Ciro’s Pomodoro), Nali Patio, 81 Sanlitun Beilu, Chaoyang District (5208 6010)
朝阳区三里屯北路81号那里花园内南侧1层

Search for more Beijing restaurants or share your opinions with the rest of Beijing by adding a user review of any of the restaurants in our online directory of venues.

Best Reader Review

JingBo reviews L'Isola

Their pastas come out perfect every time. Great standby for a sophisticated, good value lunch during the week.

JingBo has won a voucher to eat at Mughal's valued ar RMB 200.

Share your verdict on a bar or restaurant or any venue in our Online Directory by adding a user review to the site and you too could win great prizes.

Best of the the Beijinger blog

the Beijinger Classifieds of the Week

WWF-China needs your help

The Beijing International Orchestra (BIO) invites Musicians
Art Broker
Free Advice
Personal Assistant to GM
Find who and what you're looking for in our free classifieds at www.thebeijinger.com

Quotes from the Beijinger forum

Things You Should Know

Sentences were finally handed down to 7 of the bar owners and managers who were arrested during a high profile drugs bust on the seedy Tongli strip in Sanlitun last April. The group received sentences that ranged from 12 to 36 months behind bars.

Stay away from any more ads on our classifieds looking for laowai to play the foreign "doctor" in an advertisement. According to Reuters, China is cracking down on fake TV medical experts.

Despite Mainland China becoming the "most favored job destination in Asia," multinational companies in China are hiring less and cutting jobs and the Financial Times is reporting that there is an "expat exodus" from Shanghai.

In preparation for next week's Lianghui, the Egg got a bit of a scrub down last week.

A KFC outlet, a McDonalds and the Hilton Hotel were all told to turn down the heat.

And a 13-year-old boy from Tianjin took a Beijing bus for a joy-ride through the streets of Chaoyang downing power lines and smashing up 12 cars.

Links of the Week

Anyone who's been to the Bookworm's trivia night or who has been involved with the International Festival Chorus (IFC) is likely to know Paul Eldon. Paul's just put in his 60 second video application for The Best Job in the World. You can view the video here and read more about his quest to win the competition and how he convinced former Australian PM Bob Hawke to appear in the video at his Right Person Wrong Place website.

Who turned the lights out? Beijing prepares to join the WWF's global Earth Hour iniative later this month.

Photo blog China in 12 Frames needs a Beijing contributor.

China Green

In the spirit of Anti-CNN comes Anti-CCTV

Improve your Beijinghua by following along with the pinyin to this Beijing Natives video.

For dozens of other links to all things Beijing, see our thebeijinger.com links page

Last Week's Events of Note



Feb 21
People Under the Stairs
RMB 80, RMB 50 (advance).
9pm. Yugong Yishan (6404 2711)

It's shows like this that make Beijing’s off the music map location worth it. Where else can you get the chance to see one of the hiphop’s finest underground acts in a venue so small and out of context it doesn’t even feel real?

The event was slated to start at 9, but the duo didn’t show till 11:30. The crowd and anticipation built until it felt like they were teasing us, but a dj playing the best of ‘90s hiphop- Das EFX, Souls of Mischief, Tribe, Ghetto Boyz- turned Yugong Yishan into a fantastic old school dance party before PUTS even appeared on stage.

When they finally ambled out, it was no dramatic stage entrance. After five minutes of the duo investigating the setup on stage Thes One announced, “You’re gonna have to hang on for a couple minutes, we gotta change a few things up here because we don’t play out of computers. We just got a drum machine and a box of vinyl back here.”

The crowd roared their support, and when the beats finally started, the space was filled with those familiar, smooth flowing solid beats, giving the crowd a taste of LA hiphop at its best.

“This show is about us,” said Thes One, pointing to the crowd, Double K, and himself. “We got something different for you. We’re not just gonna be walking back and forth all slow with towels on our heads.” Then Double K walks up, all slow, with a towel on his head, and the pair launch into a set that undulated between the soulful, no-rush rhymes that branded them into our hearts to begin with and new, faster flow tracks from their new album, Fun DMC, held together with the same phenomenal beats you would expect from the two.

Finally the pair answered the incessant shouts for Acid Raindrops with a performance that sent the packed crowd into a melodic euphoria, with heads accustomed to Beijing weekends filled with top 40 dance remixes swaying to a sound that served as musical soul food.

They killed the lights for San Francisco Nights, lighters held high as the crowd absorbed PUTS’ energy like plants in the sun. The pair proved that powerful, playful vibe that made them the best shit to blast while chillin’ on your stoop drinking tall cans is just as comfortable floating across a packed live venue in the capital of China. The show’s only weakness is that it didn’t last longer.

Shots from Beijing Boyce

For more, visit Beijing Boyce's blog at www.beijingboyce.com or get the latest Beijing Boyce newsletter hot off the press by e-mailing beijingboyce@yahoo.com with "Eat, Drink and Be Merry" in the subject line.

Listen to 7 Days on the Radio


Listen to CRI’s China Drive program from 5-7pm every Friday to hear the pick of the events taking place over the next 7 days. If you want to catch the 7 Days entertainment report as it first goes to air, tune in to CRI at 91.5 FM between 5-7pm on Friday night or click on this link to hear an online broadcast. (May require Windows Media Player).

The Indispensable Immersion Guides

Beijing Eats



The ultimate English language guide to Beijing's Chinese restaurants is finally here! It’s called Beijing Eats – A Food-Lover's Companion to China's Culinary Capital, and it guides you to 140 of Beijing’s best Chinese restaurants, covering 31 regional and historic cuisines. Written by Eileen Wen Mooney, a long-time Beijing resident and food writer, each Chinese regional cooking style has its own chapter, with cultural information and expert descriptions of classic regional dishes, plus Eileen’s picks of the best restaurants around town.
The Insider's Guide to Beijing 2009


Updated, sassy, and informative: The 2009 edition of the Insider's Guide to Beijing is better than ever and is out now. Now in its fifth edition, the 640-page Insider’s Guide has become a Beijing institution. It’s written by people who live here, love it, and call it home. The Guide’s coverage of nightlife, music, arts and culture is outstanding, and you also get everything you need to know about the bread-and-butter stuff like housing, health, transport, work and education. (For those of you who like lists, here are the 14 chapter themes for the Guide: Housing & Hotels, Food, Kids, Art & Culture, Sightseeing, Nightlife, Shopping, Sports and Fitness, Health and Beauty, Transportation, Excursions, Business & Work, Adult Education and Useful Information.)

Beijing by Foot



This collection of 40 walks around Beijing will take you through hutongs and high-rises, into the history and stories that still reside amidst the cement and construction. Beijing by Foot has mapped the city like never before. We've walked every hutong and every street, in search of the forgotten gems and hidden details. And now the result is here, presented on stylish, easy-to-carry cards, each of which features a walk on one side and a map on the other, marked with sites of interest and a route, as well as the city’s best restaurants, bars and shops. Readers can also get taste of what to expect over at the Beijing by Foot blog, which features, among other things, photos and reflections on the author's adventures exploring the web of bomb-shelter tunnels 30 meters under Nanluogu Xiang. For more information click here.

See this site for details of which stores stock Beijing Eats, The Insider's Guide to Beijing 2009, Beijing by Foot, The Immersion Guides Mandarin Phrasebook and The Excursion Guide. Call our Distribution Manager Zoe Wang at 5820 7101 or e-mail for more details.

Urbanatomy


Urbanatomy Shanghai 2008
Shanghai is opened up as never before in this lavishly illustrated 600-page book. Combining the advantages of a practical guidebook with that of a trusted reference work, Urbanatomy Shanghai 2008 presents a comprehensive portrait of Shanghai by experts from the city and abroad, and from over 25 of Shanghai’s most respected locally based photographers and illustrators.

For more information call Urbanatomy Marketing at 021 5238 5403 or e-mail marketing@urbanatomy.com.

Friday,  February 27 to Thursday, March 5