Eating Alfresco: Salt Spring, Lido

In the case of Lido restaurant Salt Spring, metaphors about phoenixes and ashes would be rather more apt than any about bubbling springs. Having gone through what can only be described as an acrimonious split with their former restaurateurs a couple of years ago, the new management have reinvented the space, making good use of the huge main dining room and open kitchen with plenty of bright, fun decorative accents.

By far and away the best thing to come out of the revamp is the spacious outdoor terrace, with a view overlooking leafy Si’de Park, it is decorated with more of those bright, fun colors, giving more of a homey feel than that of a polished restaurant. Make the most of it this month before the weather turns.  

But what to eat on said terrace? The food at Salt Spring is pleasant and fresh, if a little muddled. On the menu, creamy French mussels (RMB 78) sit alongside spicy Mexican seafood soup (RMB 68) and lobster spaghetti (RMB 228), aiming for a sort of modern bistro vibe. This borderless cuisine is best harnessed in a salad of beef tenderloin and mango (RMB 88), dressed in a souped-up version of the sort of sauce usually used for soy sauce-braised beef, a perfect balance of sweet, savory, and spicy. Continuing the beefy theme, steaks are also cooked and presented with skill, although you’ll have to pay a fairly hefty price for them – a 10 ounce Australian rib-eye will set you back RMB 348. Those who are hungry for a bargain will have more luck with the weekday set lunch menu, when RMB 118 will get you two courses from a short selection of some of the a la carte dishes.

Salt Spring
Daily 11.30am-11pm. 9-3 Jiangtai Xi Lu (west side of Rosedale Hotel), Lido, Chaoyang District (6437 8457, 6437 4893)
将台西路9-3日本人学校对面二楼

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Photos: Ken