To Try List: New Menus, Tapas in JinShang, Bagels and More

New restaurants, dining deals, drinks discounts, guest shifts, pop-ups, and more happenings on our to try list this week.

Forget New Year new me, how about New Year new food! In our first To Try List of 2024 we’ve got a stellar line up of new places, new menus and other fantastic food offerings around the capital. 

La Copa Brings Spanish Tapas to JingShang Yuan

Chris Niu and the Beyond Yakitori team have done it again, opening up a new Spanish restaurant in JinShang Yuan called La Copa. Having opened towards the end of last year, La Copa specializes in authentic Spanish tapas and excellent wine. Such a focus is given away by the name, with La Copa translating to “wine glass” in Spanish. 

No Spanish menu is complete without a siganture paella

La Copa’s interior is intimate, with cozy leather booths that invite conversations with friends while basking in the warm hues of the backlit exposed walls. On the tapas menu, they have classics like Croquetas (RMB 58), Pimientos Asados (RMB 48), Hand-made Chorizo (RMB 78) and Gambas al Ajillo (RMB 88). They also have a grill section with bigger dishes like Seabass (RMB 198) and Barrafina Octopus (RMB 198) and, an essential for all Spanish restaurants, their own Signature Seafood Paella (RMB 298/small, RMB 598/large). 

La Copa

Room 108, JinShang Yuan, 20, Xinyuan Lixi, Xindong Lu, Chaoyang District
新东路新源里西20号金尚源大厦一层108
Hours: Sun-Thu 6-10:30pm, Fri-Sat 6-11:30pm
Phone: [phone]

Bang Bagel Opens Up Shop in Jiuxianqiao

Shunyi based bagel shop Bang Bagel has moved down south and opened up a new shop in Jiuxianqiao, just down the road from WIGWAM and SOLO. A small spot with very limited seating inside – they’ve only got three stools – it’s more of a place to get bagels to takeaway or order waimai from. The menu has a range of very reasonably priced bagelwiches (RMB 27-42), filled bagels, plain bagels and a variety of coffees. 

The Bagel and the City is everything you want in a bagelwich

When we visited we went for the Bagel and the City (RMB 42), Bang's take on the classic bagel and lox. Choose from one of their fresh bagels – Everything, Whole Wheat Walnut or Pretzel – and see it smeared with a thick layer of dill-infused cream cheese, topped with delicate smoked salmon, capers, cucumber, onion and black olives. It was one banging bagel made even better by the low price especially since smoked salmon normally comes with a hefty price tag. Other bagels that caught our eye were the Florence (RMB 42), featuring pesto chicken and shrimp arugula; and the One Night in Beijing (RMB 42), a Chinese inspired bagel with stewed pork elbow as the main filling.  

Bang Bagel

2 Shangye Jie, Jiangtai Lu, Chaoyang District
将台路商业街2号底商
Hours: 8am-8.30pm
Phone: [phone]

New Menu Items at SÌPASTA

The Stewed Clams in Chilli White Wine is perfect for winter

Italian Restaurant SÌPASTA recently launched a new menu adding some new appetizers like Fritto Misto with Squid Ink Aioli (RMB 58) and a Mixed Cheese Plate that features brie, emmental, gouda, blue cheese, parmesan, crackers, nuts and dried apricot slice. Another new addition is the delicious warming winter dish Stewed Clams in Chilli White Wine with Toasted Bread (RMB 68) which sees fresh clams stewed with sweet peppers, chilies, olive oil white wine, garlic and parsley. 

Along with the new dishes, you can of course also still get their excellent range of pasta dishes like Spaghetti alle Parmigiano Reggiano (Truffle RMB 158, Chopped Baked Proscuitto RMB 138), Fusilli alle Basil Pesto (RMB 79) and Pappardelle alle Bolognese Ragu (RMB 79). 

SÌPASTA

B113, 19 Dongfang Donglu, Chaoyang District
东方东路19号B113
Hours: 11am-9pm
Phone: [phone]

SUPERFLY’s Hotpot is Back

Hotpot is back on the menu at SUPERFLY to warm you up during Beijing’s coldest months. They have four flavors to choose from: Tomato & Beef Cheese (RMB 488/set), Mixed Mushrooms (RMB 388/set), Spicy Chicken with Pork Intestines (RMB 388/set) and Pork Knuckle with Pickled Cabbage (RMB 388/set), they all come with a choice of four sides and three sauces. They’re also doing a special Hot-Pot Weekend Brunch (RMB 428/set for three, RMB 68 per additional person) which includes an unlimited selection of side dishes. You can purchase the hot pot sets by following this link.

SUPERFLY @ The Opposite House

1/F, The Opposite House, 11 Sanlitun Road, Chaoyang District
朝阳区三里屯路11号三里屯太古里北区瑜舍酒店一层
Hours: noon-10.30pm
Phone: [phone]

Toast’s Mediterranean Grandmother's Roast Chicken Available for Pre-order

During the Christmas period, Toast at the Orchid Hotel started doing a special Toast Mediterranean Grandmother's Roast Chicken (RMB 228) that has proved so popular it’s been added to their permanent menu, although you do need to pre-order. A family-style sharing dish it sees portions of tender roast chicken immersed in a basil sauce with cubes of feta cheese and mixed black and green olives all finished with a sprinkling of fresh basil leaves. You can order the dish in advance by contacting Toast via their WeChat (ID: 15210361582) or you can also order it for pick up or delivery via their WeChat mini program (search: ToastattheOrchid). 

Toast at The Orchid

65 Baochao Hutong, Dongcheng District
东城区宝钞胡同65号
Hours: 10am-9.30pm
Phone: [phone]

Great Leap Launches Lunar Spring Menu

We're excited to ty the Pulled Pork Tacos and Pulled Pork Sandwich

Great Leap has just launched their Luna Spring Menu to kick-start the year. Included on the new menu are two delicious sounding pulled pork dishes: Pulled Pork Tacos (RMB 60) and a Pulled Pork Sandwich (RMB 65); a Breakfast Sandwich (RMB 55) that’s stuffed with bacon, sausage and egg; and a Shrimp Quinoa Salad (RMB 65) for those looking for a more healthy option. They’ve also got two new additions to their great value lunch menu: Spaghetti Aglio Olio (RMB 28) and Scallion Oilyam Noodle (RMB 28) which for an extra RMB 10 you can also add a soft drink, Urban Forest IPL or Grapefruit Flood Hazy IPA to. The new spring menu is available at Great Leap #12, #45 and Lido.

Great Leap Brewing #12

1/F, Zi Ming Mansion, 12 Xinzhong Jie, Dongcheng District
东城区新中街12号
Hours: 11-2am
Phone: [phone]

Chinese New Year Beer Gift Packages Up for Grabs

For those beer lovers among you, Slowboat, Wild Kite and Peiping Machine are all doing special Chinese New Year themed beer gift packages. Whether you want to get one for yourself or a loved one, they’re all lovely little packages with great selections of beers inside. You can check out our post here to find out more. 

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Images: courtesy of the venues, Katie Coy  

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