Dongli Brewery Opens Steamrhino on Xindong Lu

Opening a mere five days ago, on October 7, Steamrhino Brewing Co. crashes onto Xindong Lu, in the same courtyard as the Tayuan DRC duty-free shop, just several hundred meters away from a favorite drinking spot of ours, Arrow Factory Brewing.

The owners are the same team behind Dongli Brewery in the Shangdi area, near Xi’erqi. In this new enterprise, they've pushed the modern and industrial style of their original bar a little further, with numerous bronze pipes running up the walls, colorful neon Plexiglas boards hanging from the ceiling, and wide wooden tables inviting patrons to sit and chat over a few. Behind the bar, there’s a huge bright orange lightbox cut into a stainless steel wall, and several spotlights projecting in every direction. In fact, the entire place is so dazzlingly lit that you might feel like you're in a bright canteen rather than a spot conducive to drinking. That being said, the other features render the space much swankier than your average brewpub and as with their logo, the design is quite appealing, simple, and well thought out.

Of the 20 taps, only eight are currently in use. All are brewed on site and include Demon & Angel Stout (8 percent ABV), Five Words & Two Souls Wheat (4.7 percent ABV), Guardian IPA (7.7 percent ABV), Belgium Tripel (8.5 percent ABV), Marathon IPA (4 percent ABV), Rhino Ale (4.9 percent ABV), and Steam Ale (5 percent ABV), among others.

With more than 20 taps, Steamrhino's ambition and the possibilities for the bar are certainly on show

The Steam Ale was mild and balanced, with a hint of biscuit; but the wheat and Belgium Tripel had some intense and odd flavors that will need to be adjusted if they are to succeed; the stout wasn't as egregious, but was too much on the sweet side for my liking. Once these kinks are ironed out we hope that the brewers will prove themselves with a signature beer.

A bevy of Steamrhino brews

We loved the grilled lamb chops

Steamrhino offer a bunch of food too, such as salads (RMB 20-58), burgers (RMB 38-88), and main dishes. We loved the soft and juicy grilled lamb chops, which were served with small potatoes, baby onions, baby carrots, cherry tomatoes, all seasoned with Himalayan sea salt and rosemary.

Overall, we can see Chinese local customers flocking to Steamrhino for its sleek decor, good food, and middling micro-brews. We may head back in the future for the lamb and to try more dishes, but won't truly be satisfied until they release a signature beer and improve on the options that they currently offer.

Steamrhino Brewing Co.
Daily 11am-12am. 1 Xindong Lu (left of the Tayuan DRC duty-free shop), Chaoyang (185 1530 0934)
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On another note, tickets are still on sale for our October 15-16 Pizza Fest (yup, that's this coming weekend!) at the Zaha Hadid-designed Wangjing SOHO. Tickets are limited so buy ahead to make sure you don't miss out! Click here to purchase.

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