Food reviews

Lap of luxury

The House of Crabapple Restaurant's Huangsi branch encapsulates the essence of the Chinese luxury dining experience. There is no public seating area, and exclusive private rooms are decorated according to classical Chinese sensibilities, replete with traditional paintings and calligraphy.

Dishes are well presented and healthy - that is, low in fat, oil and sugar.

Good starters include chicken marinated in yellow rice wine, freshly peeled walnut kernels and traditional Beijing dim sum.

Lamb from Hainan province's Dongshan is famous for its tenderness and arrives at House of Crabapple's tables braised with chestnuts and heaped in a stone bowl.

A tasty main is Anhui-style "smelly" mandarin fish. The process of marinating and fermenting endows the fish with a potent aroma and chewy texture.

A healthy and flavorful alternative the restaurant does well is fresh mushroom with foie gras sauce.

House of Crabapple also ferments its own sweet rose-colored alcoholic beverage from the fruit after which the eatery takes its name. The alcohol's taste is largely overpowered by the drink's fruitiness, and the beverage's presence at the table imbues the ambiance with a hint of romance.

Average cost is 388 yuan ($57) per person, according to the restaurant - the same price as a 10-course set meal.

With its well-prepared food, attentive service and luxurious environs, House of Crabapple is ideal for the high-end business dinner.

The menu is only in Chinese.

Daily 11 am-2 pm, 5-9 pm. A3 Huangsi Dajie, Xicheng district, Beijing. Tel: 6426-5288

Supreme cuisines

A Tunisian general manager, his Chinese business partner and a Brazilian chef have all brought something to the table at Mana Restaurant. "I've always dreamed of opening a restaurant in Beijing, but I knew it wouldn't be easy," general manager Ben Hassen says. "This was my chance."

The deal was cinched after Hassan met his local business partner and Maria Alves, whose northern coastal hometown, Fortaleza, is celebrated for its great food. The Brazilian has also previously worked with French and Italian chefs. The 10-year China resident's last job was as sous chef at Crown Plaza Park View, Wuzhou.

Mana offers Portuguese, Spanish, French, Italian, Turkish and Greek food. But Hasson hopes to add North African dishes to the eclectic before year's end.

The restaurant offers set lunches for 68 or 88 yuan. These include a choice of two or three courses, plus coffee or tea. There are three options for each course, with two salads and a soup in the starters' category, and a choice of fish, beef and a vegetarian alternative for the main course.

Lunch la carte is only available on Saturdays and Sundays, and a seafood brunch is available for August. The brunch costs 198 yuan per person for two courses and a glass of white wine, or 228 yuan for 3 courses with wine.

Children younger than 12 can make their own mini burger or enjoy a special coxinha - a creamy chicken-stuffed dough - before picking a dessert.

Hassen changes the menu weekly and will diversify prices, too, to create more options.

Alves recommends turf, a mixture of charcoal-grilled seafood, beef steak and nut pilaf in a tomato cup.

Juicy beef cuts are seasoned with basil and black pepper, while the lobster is braised with cheese, and pilaf with basil and almond. The antipasto seafood plate offers oysters, prawns and clams topped with fresh salsa and lemon caper sauce.

Wine prices are reasonable, and port and grappa are also available. The last Friday of every month features food-and-drink specials and live music from 5 pm to 8 pm.

The second-floor is decorated with warm colors and offers great views of the cityscape, while seats at the bar allow customers to watch chefs working through the large kitchen windows.

No 2 Sanlitun Beixiaojie, Chaoyang district, Beijing. Tel: 6460-6721

Mail-order duck

A new service allows customers of Quanjude Peking Roast Duck Restaurant's Qianmen branch to have the capital's signature dish mailed to them. The eatery has opened a temporary post office to facilitate the service in response to tourist season's peak. It's the first time in the country's history that a post office has moved into a restaurant.

In addition to delivering vacuum-sealed fowl, it has printed stamp folders for Quanjude's coming 146th anniversary. And to better accommodate tourists' needs, the restaurant is also stocking postcards, city maps and telephone cards for travelers' convenience.

Quanjude's Qianmen branch was the brand's first outlet when it opened 146 years ago and now receives about 1 million guests a year.

The restaurant had previously cooperated with Beijing Post to deliver Peking roast duck and mooncakes to those who called its hotline, 11185. The post office will provide service until the end of the tourist season.

Daily 11 am-1:30 pm, 4:30-8 pm. 30 Qianmen Dajie, Chongwen district. On the Qianmen Pedestrian Street. Tel: 6511-2418

(China Daily 08/14/2010 page12)