After I had the honor of accompanying editor Mina Yan to dine at Beyond Yakitori last year, I got acquainted with the manager, Chris Niu, who invited me to yet another new restaurant that he was managing – Fukumimi. Located at local events hotspot JinShang•Yuan near Xinyuanli, Fukumimi was bustling the night that I booked a table with Chris’ help. The casual Japanese restaurant, otherwise known as an izakaya, looks like it was plucked right out of Tokyo and transported to Beijing; the entire interior is done in gorgeous wood, and the open bar and grill is clean and transparent so you can watch the flames cook your food. The menu overlaps a lot with that of Beyond Yakitori and consists mainly of skewers (most of them are around RMB 16 each) and other finger foods (think edamame and blooming onions (RMB 320), though there are heartier options like a rice bowl and ramen as well. Skewers are the perfect food to enjoy while sipping a smooth drink, like sake or baijiu, which Fukumimi has a great abundance of. Once you get tipsy enough, perhaps you’ll have the courage to try one of their many variety of curious chicken parts like the heart, gizzard and tail. We had the honor of Chris hand-torching our mackerel (RMB 38), which was absolutely incredible – fresh and tender with the skin skillfully torched to a light crisp. Editor Julie Wolf’s pick of the menu was the charcoal grilled beef sirloin (RMB 85), while I was delighted to reunite with their signature Scotch egg (RMB 38), which I promise only gets better each time you have it. Cheese lovers won’t get enough of the miso cheese appetizer, which is the perfect combination of creamy and sweet. Don’t forget to leave room for their popular grilled pineapple dish (RMB 16), which serves as a great alternative dessert. Unlike Beyond Yakitori, Fukumimi is definitely less date night and more girls’ night. It’s the perfect spot to hit and fuel up before attending, say, a comedy night at the event space downstairs (which is a regular thing there). We highly recommend you reserve a table in advance, especially if you have a bigger group! Tell Chris we sent you and you’ll be in good hands.
Find it:
Xindong Road Xinyuan Lixi No.20 JinShang•Yuan F1 108 新东路新源里西20号金尚源大厦一层108