To Try List: Brunch & Bistro, New Tacos, Burgers and More

Our To Try List covers new restaurants, dining deals, drinks discounts, guest shifts, pop-ups, and more foodie happenings in Beijing.

New eatery Brunch & Bistro opens in Xingfucun, there’s a new taco spot in Sanlitun, The Rug launches a new burger for cheese lovers and more on our To Try List this week. 

The Xingfucun area has a new resident in the form of Brunch & Bistro, located right on the corner of Chunxiu Lu and Xinzhongdong Jie. With a bright red exterior, it’s difficult to miss and the red theme continues inside which, along with brown leather couches and exposed brick walls, gives the space a kind of chic diner vibe. 

Foodwise they’ve got an array of Western dishes like burgers, sandwiches, salads, appetizers, pasta and a few desserts as well as some signature dishes which include things like Glazed Ribs (RMB 98/half rack, RMB 168/full rack) and Roast Chicken (RMB 72). On the burger front, along with your standard Bacon Cheeseburger (RMB 55), they’ve got a couple of more unusual offerings in the Grilled Salmon Burger (RMB 66, pictured above) and Grilled Beef Ribs Burger (RMB 69). To slurp on they’ve got a pretty impressive bottled beer selection as well as few on tap along with a decent cocktail menu, wine, coffee, milkshakes, smoothies and other soft drinks. 

Brunch & Bistro

We are always excited to hear about new taco spots opening up in Beijing so you bet we were right on it when new Mexican restaurant Taco Away opened up in Sanlitun. They keep things simple with three types of tacos on the menu: Beef Tacos al Pastor (RMB 65), Pork Tacos al Pastor (RMB 60) and Tacos Carnitas Surtidas (RMB 68, pictured above) all served in house-made flour and corn tortillas. They’ve also got Quesadillas Chilorio (RMB 68), some snacks and desserts as well as a few beers, tequila and mezcal.  

Taco Away

Last week The Rug launched its winter menu and they’ve got a new burger that cheese fans will love. Called the Creamy Cheese Sizzling-Iron Burger (RMB 108) it sees a bacon cheeseburger cut in half and placed on a teppanyaki-style grill then smothered in a creamy cheese sauce. Other new additions on the winter menu are the Quinoa Tofu Super Veggie Egg Benedict (RMB 98) and Sous-Vide Salmon with Crispy Skin (RMB 138). You can read more about all the new offerings here.

The Rug (Sanlitun)

The Rug (Chaoyang Park)

The Rug (Wangfujing)

Home Plate recently revamped their menu, adding some banging new barbecue dishes. The new menu is all about blending classic American BBQ flavors with fresh bold flavors and some of our favorite new additions are the Char Siu Hong Kong Style Pork Ribs (RMB 198/400g + two sides), the Chengdu Hot Beef Jerky (RMB 68) and Cajun Fried Shrimp (RMB 68). They’ve added a plethora of new wing options, now offering the choice of Buffalo, Char Siu, Hot in Memphis, Hot Honey and Tangy Barbecue (RMB 78/for 6, RMB 128/ for 12. RMB 188/for 18, RMB 258/for 24). You can read more about the new menu here.

Home Plate Sanlitun

Home Plate Sanyuanqiao

This Saturday (Nov 2) from 7pm, Timothee Becqueriaux of Bar Mixato will be doing a one night bar takeover at Bottega’s CBD branch. For those not in the know, Bar Mixato is a cocktail bar brand launched by Starbucks Reserve Roastery that specializes in blending coffee with cocktails. Becqueriaux will be supported by Bottega’s own chief bartender Peter Kwok and they’ll me mixing up some limited edition cocktails for the evening so don’t miss it!

Bottega CBD branch

Today (Nov 1) and tomorrow (Nov 2), The Bake Shop is doing a special Philly Cheesesteak event on their second floor terrace. They’ll be making the sandwiches right in front of you, cooking up the steak on an iron grill, topping it with caramelized onions, sauce and seasoning and then stuffing it inside one of their freshly baked crusty rolls. The sandwiches will come served with a warming glass of mulled wine. They’ll be available from noon until 5pm each day, you can read more about the event (and see a mouth-wateringly good video to get you pumped) here.

The Bake Shop

In celebration of Día de Muertos, aka the Day of the Dead, Pebbles Courtyard have some special deals and dishes available for dinner today (Nov 1) and for lunch and dinner over the weekend. They’ve got a Steak and Cocktail Set Meal (RMB 188) which includes a Char-Grilled Skirt Steak served with grilled nopales and onion, frijoles, queso fresco, diced avocado and pico de gallo and a Love Hurts cocktail that combines Raicilla La Reina with pineapple juice, chipotle sauce and pungent litse fruit. Flank Steak Tamales (RMB 108), Chicken Tamales (RMB 78) and Menudo (RMB 38) will also be available. 

Pebbles Courtyard

Next Friday (Nov 8) uh-huh is doing a Radikon Master Class wine tasting event. The tasting will focus on orange and natural wines which Radikon Winery, from Friuli, Italy, is a leading producer of. You’ll get to try six different Radikon wines and will be led in a master class by Saša Radikon, son of Stanko Radikon, the founder of the winery. Tickets are RMB 358 and also include finger sandwiches and snacks, if you can’t make it for the class you can still enjoy Radikon wines by the glass or as a tasting set from 6pm. You can read more about the events and buy tickets here.

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