The Beijing Drinking Dens That Redefine the Hotel Bar

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There’s something special about the hotel bar. It’s a place to unwind after travel, where one can while away the hours before venturing out into a new city or town, or perhaps where one can meet fellow wandering souls. It’s a bonus, though, if said hotel bar has a good drinks menu. Beijing is no stranger to such hotel bars, a few of which have some pretty impressive offerings. What follows is a look at four of them.

Baojian – The Orchid

This four-year-old hotel bar not only has an outstanding drinks menu, it also finds itself hidden in a not-so-ordinary hotel. “The Orchid isn’t your typical hotel,” says the hotel's head of marketing, Jang. “There’s no grand lobby, no fancy lounge area. It’s a hutong hotel divided into many boxes, and Baojian is one of those boxes.” To get to Baojian, you have to enter via dim sum restaurant Furongji, or via the terrace of Mediterranean restaurant Toast, making it a bit of a speakeasy. It’s hard to find, but that’s what makes it fun.

Jang says their drinks are elevated with help from the flavors of Chinese tea. This allows for new takes on the classics and new creations entirely. As for what to try on a first visit, Jang recommends the Habitacion En Roma or the Berry Whisky Sour (both RMB 90). Both are highly representative of Baojian's style, with the former made with two different gins, one flavored with litchi, the other Japanese brown rice dipped in gin, with house made thyme syrup. The latter is a twist on a Whisky Sour, with berry syrup swpapped in for simple syrup.

Baojian prides itself in additions like tea to lend nuance to their drinks

Although the menu doesn’t change often, they have seasonal offerings, plus monthly rooftop parties with DJs, snacks from The Bake Shop (also in The Orchid), and other foods.

Baojian (at The Orchid Hotel)
63 Baochao Hutong, Dongcheng District
东城区宝钞胡同63号
Hours: Daily, 6pm-2am
Contact: 184 0129 0854

Xian Bar – EAST Beijing

Xian Bar takes its name from a local Jiuxianqiao legend: Long ago, a Buddha was walking across the river when his wine flask fell into the water, spilling into the river and giving it the smell of wine, hence the name "酒仙桥 jiǔxiānqiáo" (more or less "immortal wine bridge"), from which the bar uses the name 仙 Xiān.

The bar offers seasonal cocktails as well as 11 signature cocktails, each using a variety of ingredients for unexpected flavor combinations. Two of our personal recommendations are the Bodhi (RMB 98), featuring gin and white wine combined with vermouth, lemon and apple juice, and apple syrup; and the Strawberry Sangria (RMB 108), which does the wine and spirit combo again but with Hennessy and red wine, plus strawberry and lemon juice for a bit of tart and sweet.

Xian brings sangria up a notch with their Strawberry Sangria (RMB 108)

Xian also has their own signature beer, the Xian Lager (RMB 55/pint, RMB 110/liter), which is highlighted along with craft beers from some of Beijing’s best breweries as part of their Craft Container program.

Xian Bar (at EAST Beijing)
1/F, EAST Beijing, 22 Jiuxianqiao Lu, Chaoyang District
朝阳区酒仙桥路22号北京东隅1层
Hours: Tues-Sat, 5pm-1am
Contact: 010 8414 9898, 010 8414 9810

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Union – The Opposite House

Situated just right of the entrance of The Opposite House near Taikooli, Union is at once a hotel cocktail bar as well as a piece of art in its own right. Inspired by 20th century modernist design, you’ll find a sleek bar with lots of gold and marble throughout, matched by plush seating and a spacious interior.

Gin, clarified milk, tomato, basil, and mozzarella characterize the Napoli Bianco (RMB 108)

As for Union’s menu, it’s inspired by the Silk Road itself, with drinks taking a cue from countries all along the ancient trade route. Highlights include the Siam-Fashioned Sequel (RMB 108), in which bourbon is accompanied by a cacophony of fruits, pandan, Thai tea and more for a Southeast Asian update on the Old Fashioned. Another worth mentioning is the Napoli Bianco (also RMB 108). This drink spruces up gin with basil, tomato, mozzarella, clarified milk, and lemon. Va bene indeed.

Union (at The Opposite House)
1/F, The Opposite House, Bldg 1, Yard 11, Sanlitun Lu, Chaoyang District
朝阳区三里屯路11号院1号楼北京瑜舍1层
Hours: Daily, 11am-12.30am
Contact: 010 6410 5180

Bar Long Fong – Park Plaza Hotel

First situated in Beijing Fun Mall near Qianmen before moving to the Park Plaza Hotel near Wangfujing in 2022, Bar Long Fong isn’t part of the hotel itself, but operated independently of it, making this a bit of an oddity on our list. “In this case,” says head bartender and manager Fan, “the bar has its own character and theme that sets it apart from other hotel bars.” Keeping to the motto “a good cocktail must be tasty,” Fan and the Long Fong team are very R&D focused: they enjoy creating new techniques and using new ingredients and methods to create a drink.

The Crottin cocktail (RMB 128) uses Crottin cheese from Le Fromager Pekin as a key ingredient

That being said, they choose not to showcase these methods, but rather let the guest simply enjoy the cocktail, and let taste, not technique, decide whether it’s good or not. Their current themed cocktail menu, titled “I’m From China,” not only utilizes constantly changing techniques, but fresh ingredients and inspiration from all across China as well. The menu (drink prices are RMB 120+) has been such a success that Fan has decided to keep it, changing some cocktails around every two months to keep up with seasonal changes.

Bar Long Fong 廊房酒吧
97 Jinbao Jie (Behind Park Plaza Hotel), Chaoyang District
朝阳区金宝街97号一层1号（北京丽亭酒店后面）
Hours: Daily, 7pm-2am
Contact: 010 8517 5879

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Images: Uni You

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