Beijing Restaurant Review: La Social
By Noelle Mateer
Images by Holly Li
In the words of La Social’s Alvaro Rincόn, an arepa is “kind of like a roujiamo.”
The man has a point. Arepas have a lot in common with Shaanxi’s famous ‘Chinese hamburgers.’ First, they make for a hearty snack (or, when multiplied, an entire meal). And second, they go well with drinks (don’t tell us you’ve never roujiamo-and-Yanjing’ed).
Nali Patio’s newest resident, La Social, does indeed serve arepas with drinks. And for now, that’s it – a simple concept, made sophisticated. Or, shall we say… sexy? La Social is a beautiful temptress, replete with dimmed lights, vintage lamps and sultry Latin tunes. This is a place where “social” is pronounced “so-see-aaal,” and where, if you sip mojitos late into the evening, you’re likely to wind up stumbling to Migas, just upstairs. And damn, do we want to sip these mojitos late into the evening.
Lest this seductive description clashes with your notions of Chinese hamburgers, we will now define arepas more formally: Arepas are maize-flour buns from South America, stuffed with fillings ranging from pork to avocado. At La Social, thick, chewy buns overflow with crispy pork, eggs, black beans and Gouda cheese. Choose your preferred combination thereof (RMB42-48). Although if you’re into cheese (and please be into cheese), make sure to order an arepa with Gouda, which melts sloppily and goopily into the crevices of the fillings below.
But first and foremost, La Social is a drinking establishment. The drink menu is just as long as the arepa menu (although, reader be warned, we visited during soft opening, so this could change). Those familiar with South American booze might expect to see pisco, but there’s currently only one pisco drink on the menu (the Machu-Pichu Sour, RMB60).
We’re OK with that. Because while La Social nails the classics, its drink menu primarily serves to innovate. The Totuma Mojito (RMB88) is not just a mojito – the drink is served in a hollowed-out coconut, and a passionfruit floats on top, next to a spoon. The El Viejo Fashion (RMB68), meanwhile, is an old fashioned with a base of Havana 7 rum instead of whisky.
It’d be easy to forget we’re in China once the booze sinks in – if not for La Social’s tongue-in-cheek Beijing-meets-Latin America decor. Lining bar shelves are moutai bottles that are, to our relief, not filled with baijiu (they serve as carafes of water). It’s a thoughtful touch.
An arepa is somewhere between a snack and a meal, which means not quite either – so take that into consideration. (Although we bet the team behind this place hopes that, if it is a meal you’re after, you’ll pop into their other spot, Mosto, just around the corner.)
Either way, we’d take one over a roujiamo any day.
For more bar and restaurant news, click "Read more" below.