To Try List: Bollywood Tales Opens, Detroit Style Pizza & More

New restaurants, dining deals, drinks discounts, guest shifts, pop-ups, and more happenings on our to try list this week.

Bollywood Tales Now in Soft Opening

After much anticipation, Bollywood Tales officially opened its doors last Friday (Mar 29). It’s a second branch of the super popular Indian restaurant Dastaan, with a menu comprised of a range of authentic Indian dishes including Indian street food, Chef Raibul’s signature dishes, curries and more. Located in Shuangjing, the decor, as you might guess from the name, has a Bollywood theme with walls adorned with artwork of famous Bollywood stars, movie posters and other colorful motifs. In the future, they’re also planning on doing Bollywood movie nights on Sundays.

The restaurant is already receiving rave reviews on Dianping and due to its popularity you’re encouraged to book ahead to ensure you can nab a spot. However, if you don’t get the chance to visit Bollywood Tales in the next few weeks, then you can also catch them serving up Indian style tacos at our Taco Fest, Apr 20-21!

Bollywood Tales宝莱坞故事印度餐厅
1F, 10, Bldg 2, 32 Baiziwan Lu, Chaoyang District
朝阳区百子湾路32号院2号楼1层10号
Hours: 5-9.30pm (soft opening)
Phone: 150 3015 2369, 185 1447 9711

Home Plate Opens Up Pitmaster Pizza

We mentioned that Home Plate would be opening up its own pizza place when they joined our Cheesy Pizza Fest last year, and we are now happy to report that Pitmaster Pizza is now up and running! A delivery only pizza joint, it’s inspired by Detroit's iconic pizza parlors and Texas's smokehouses, combining thick crust pizzas with a cheesy crispy crust topped with smoked barbecue meats. They’ve got seven pizzas in total on the menu, plus seven different kinds of chicken wings, snacks and desserts. 

Pitmaster Pizza
Delivery hours: Noon-9pm
Phone: 131 6162 2182

Umami Club Opens Its Doors on Lucky Street

Lucky Street, just northwest of Solana, has a new resident in the form of Umami Club. Although you might think from the name that it’s a Japanese restaurant, it actually has more of a focus on French cuisine. They specialize in high-quality Wagyu beef (ok, well, they've got one Japanese thing) and super fresh seafood, the former of which can be chosen by cut and then cooking method -- either charcoal grilled or French Rossini – then finished with your choice of sauce. 

On the seafood front the star of the show has to be the tuna, which they receive whole and prepare at the restaurant. They even do free weekly “Tuna Opening Shows” (limited to 20 seats), where you can see them cut and prepare the tuna right in front of you! Along with food they also have a great wine selection and are planning on doing special wine and steak experiences in the future. 

Umami Club 鲜味俱乐部
Unit B9, 1F, 3 Haoyun Jie, Chaoyang Gongyuan Lu, Chaoyang District
朝阳区朝阳公园路好运街1层03号B9单元
Hours: 2-10pm
Phone: 130 2105 6609

TRiO Wine Bar X Malo’s Hosting a Rosé Brunch Over the Qingming Holiday

TRiO Wine Bar is partnering up with Malo’s to bring a special rosé brunch to Beijing over the Qingming holiday. Happening on Apr 5, the brunch will see Malo's founder Chef Simone Thompson serving up some creative brunch platters with dishes like Kimchi Shakshuka, Bacon and Pear Danishes and Eggs and Hollandaise. TRiO will be offering 20 percent off on all their rosé, the perfect accompaniment to the delicious food. Booking for the brunch is essential and can be done by scanning the QR code in the poster above.

TRiO Wine Bar 三重奏
2139, Ground Floor, Shangdu SOHO North Tower, Dongdaqiao Lu, Chaoyang District
朝阳区东大桥路尚都SOHO北塔一层2139号
Brunch hours: noon-4pm, Apr 5
Phone: 135 2205 2400

The Ritz Carlton Launches New “Taste of Asia” Themed Buffet

If you want to give your taste buds a trip across Asia without leaving Beijing, then The Ritz Carlton’s Aroma Restaurant has the perfect buffet for you! Encompassing dishes from Vietnam, Singapore, Thailand, Korea, Japan and India the buffet promises to be one flavor filled experience you don’t want to miss. Running now until Jun 1, it’s available for dinner Friday to Sunday and also for brunch on Saturdays. 

Aroma, The Ritz Carlton 北京丽思卡尔顿酒店香溢全日餐厅
83A Jianguo Lu, Chaoyang District
朝阳区华贸中心建国路甲83号丽思卡尔顿酒店
Buffet hours: Fri and Sun 5.30-9.30pm, Sat 11.30am-2.30pm and 5.30-9.30pm
Phone: 010 5908 8161 

New Appetizers, Daily Deals and More Offerings at Side Street

Side Street have recently added a handful of new appetizers to the menu at their Jiaodaokou branch. First up is the Beef Nachos (RMB 85), layered with special beef sauce, cheddar cheese, ground beef, salsa, guacamole and blue cheese dressing; then there is the Chicken Wings (RMB 58) with either BBQ or buffalo sauce; then lastly Onion Rings (RMB 38) which are served with garlic mayo.

You can get the wings for half price on Wednesdays with the purchase of any drink in a new daily deal they’ve introduced and the Beef Nachos, along with Curry Nachos (RMB 75) and Buffalo Nachos (RMB 80), can be enjoyed for half price on Tuesdays. For all the daily deals at Side Street Jiaodaokou, you can check out this post, and for their Jianguomen branch, this post. Speaking of their Jianguomen branch, over the Qingming holiday they’ll be putting on their free flow brunch of mimosas, sparkling wines and classic mixers for RMB 198 from noon until 4pm, Apr 4-6.

Side Street Jiaodaokou
113-02 Jiaodaokou Dongdajie, Dongcheng District
东城区交道口东大街113-02
Hours: Sun-Thu 11am-11pm, Fri-Sat 11am-midnight
Phone: 159 1069 4920

Side Street Jianguomen
Bldg N28 2/101-102 17 Jianguomenwai Dajie, Chaoyang District
朝阳区建国门外大街17号楼2/101-102 
Hours: Sun-Thu 11am-11pm, Fri-Sat 11am-midnight
Phone: 135 2195 8643

The Third Indigo X Coffee Youth Festival Comes to Indigo Mall

Coffee addicts will want to head to Indigo Mall this Qingming holiday with the Indigo X Coffee Youth Festival returning to the mall for the third time. Taking place in Indigo’s Winter Garden from 10.30am-9pm today (Apr 3) until Apr 6, it brings together both local Beijing coffee vendors as well as coffee vendors from across China. Tickets are RMB 28 and you can be purchased via this article.

Winter Garden, Indigo Mall, 颐堤港一层冬季花园及户外广场
18 Jiuxianqiao Lu, Chaoyang District
朝阳区酒仙桥路18号
Coffee Festival hours: Apr 3-6, 10.30am-9pm
Phone: 010 8798 3888

The Factory’s First Cask Ale Release Launches Tomorrow

Hutong haunt The Factory will be showcasing their brand new cask ale system for the first time tomorrow (Apr 4). The cask ale system, also known as a beer engine, is the only one of its kind in China’s mainland and The Factory will be doing its first cask ale release from Apr 4-6. They’ve only got four kegs available so you need to book in advance by scanning the QR code in the poster above. You can find out more about the cask ale system and the release event in this post. 

The Factory
135 Gulou Dongdajie, Dongcheng District
东城区鼓楼工厂鼓楼东大街135号
Hours: 11-3am
Phone: 185 1461 8664

Spring Menu Season Hits Beijing

Spring is upon us and with it there are plenty of fresh spring offerings springing up at restaurants across Beijing. From spring themed brunches to new burgers, afternoon tea and more, there are numerous new dishes to sink your teeth into. You can check out this post for more details on just what’s on offer!

READ: To Try List: New Indonesian, Ethiopian & Eritrean, Tacos & More

Images: courtesy of the venues