nanamoose Musings

大情調，小北京

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大約兩年前我在nanamoose旗下的《鳳梨姐菠蘿妹》部落上寫過關於《失物招領》 Lost and Found 的故事。Lost and Found, 北京一個極富特色的生活概念店，有販賣台灣蘑菇的產品、老北京熱水瓶、改裝過的老北京傢具、Moleskine 筆記本, 更是北京第一家銷售Monocle 的店家。北京的 Lost and Found和倫敦的Labour and Wait 一直是我的兩個最愛，同樣販賣生活雜物，取名更同樣洋溢著對生活態度的一種堅持。歐陽老師說的好：

朋友小貓在北京開的雜貨店叫作Lost and Found，翻譯過來很方便，就叫做「失物招領」，大家都很明白。店裡賣的是國內外搜集的以至小量生產的家用生活雜物，諸如盤杯碗碟以至暖水壺呀桌布餐巾 等等。另一位倫敦朋友Simon Watkins跟Rachel Wythe-Moran合伙開的一家異曲同工的雜貨店叫做Labour and Wait，就不是那麼好翻譯，難道叫做「稍後開工」？

時間過的真快，轉眼間我們來到了2012年，teakha 茶。家於上環開業了。teakha 賣的是 tea and zakka， 也是雜貨。因為茶。家，我認識了好多知心的朋友們，當中還包括了Lost and Found 的創辦人之一Paul, 世界真妙！

上個禮拜我去北京進貨，順便拜訪Lost and Found II。《失物招領》 的第二個據點，同樣位於現已變得忙碌的國子監上 （記得兩年前的國子監，樹影婆紗，人煙稀少，卻有一股老北京的滄桑味兒，甚有情調），是我最近見過最有感覺的空間。Lost and Found II，和她的原始店一樣坐落於老房子裡。特別之處是她的中庭，四面玻璃讓人有一種置身於一個倒空的熱帶玻璃屋內，庭院中央卻是一片藍天白雲，滿室（或者應該說是滿「缸」）綠意怏然。店裡賣的大致和原始店差不多，主打日本Fog Linen 的產品和 Jia 富有中國色彩的廚具。樓上是展示空間，也作為員工休息閒聊的地方。

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於Lost and Found II 旁邊，意外地發現美麗的《如洗》。 《如洗》，人如其名，名片上簡單的幾個字：不尚華飾， 質素如洗 － 訴盡《如洗》代表的故事。簡單的設計，舒適的麻料，就是這麼直接，不用多說了。到不如跟你們說一個笑話吧。那天從《如洗》走出來，前面經過的幾個婦人們七嘴八舌地往《如洗》裡頭探，討論著那究竟是個甚麼店。

「洗衣服的！」她們終究的結論如此。

而國子監上方的一片天，碧空如洗。

《失物招領》北京東城區國子監街57號。 tel: 010-64001174
《如洗》位於失物招領旁，tel： 010－64075881

Best Beijing Finds - Dan Dan Noodles, two ways

As a self-proclaimed dan dan noodle specialist (I am, after all, host to a video that’s the first to come up if you type the words “dan dan noodles” into YouTube), I am quite ashamed to say that I only learnt what really goes into authentic dan dan noodles until my recent trip to Beijing.

At Transit Restaurant in Sanlitun North, where they paired authentic, sophisticated Sichuan food with contemporary Sino-French-style décor (think green French windows and chandeliers with gold-rimmed Chinese tassels), dan dan noodles came beautifully plated in Phoenix designed bowls and had the perfect balance of spice, nuttiness and that numbing sensation. It was delicious. And then it revealed itself to me, that interesting dark green vegetable. It tasted like mustard greens, and somewhat like Tianjin preserved vegetables, but I knew it was neither.

The next day we had our second dosage of contemporary Sichuanese at beautifully restored courtyard restaurant the Source, a private kitchen tucked away in a small hutong off Nanluoguxiang and opened by the people behind art gallery Yan Art Space. There it was again. That curious vegetable! This time I had to ask the waitress.

“Yacai” she said after consulting the chef.

Yacai, I later discovered, was in fact a dark, salty aromatic pickle made from the tender leaves of one variety of mustard greens. The leaves are sun-dried, rubbed with salt, and then mixed with spices and sometimes sugar. They are then sealed in jars and left to mature for several months. The city of Yibin is one famous producer, and hence its famous noodle dish, 宜賓燃麵 , or Yibin “kindling” noodles, a vegetarian dish made from yacai. Dan dan noodles in Chengdu are also traditionally cooked with this vegetable, though lots of substitutes are available these days.

That said, when you're missing dan dan noodles anywhere outside of China, the best bet is still to come to Nana's kitchen.

Transit Restaurant is at N4-36, Sanlintun Village North, 11 Sanlitun Lu
渡金湖在三里屯路11号三里屯Village北区N4-36号
Tel: 6417-9090

The Source is at 14, Banchang Hutong, Nanluoguxiang
都江源在南锣鼓巷板厂胡同14号
tel: 6400-3736

Beijing Finds: Cupcakes or Muffins?

The cupcake craze has reached Beijing, big time! In fact, it’s happening so fast they have a café dedicated to just cupcakes and coffee in the heart of Sanlitun, and they’re turning heads.

Reminiscent of something one might find in London, this bright and airy café is tastefully chic and ideally located in the Village North. There’s free Wi-Fi and, complementing the colorful spread of cupcakes is a selection of simple sandwiches, salads and soups.

HOWEVER, despite how much I love their concept, especially the fact that they whizz around their cupcakes in a bright red Smartcar, I found their cupcakes somewhat... weird. Being the world’s last cupcake fan it was not until I had this conversation with my friend C on GChat and did some research on Google that I realized what was wrong with the cupcakes at Colibri: -

(C was looking for a cake for her husband’s birthday in Beijing)

C: There’s this other place that sells the tiniest cupcakes for 30kuai
so insane
they are good
but thats ridiculous

me: colibri??

C: THATS NOT A CUPCAKE
thats a freakin muffin
i am so annoyed that they tout themselves as selling cupcakes
not annoyed, angry!
that’s such a farce I tell you, a farce!
But I actually ended up getting those for my bday because i had a coupon for a dozen
it was TERRIBLE
lols

me: Hahahahahahaha
Its so funny you’re so annoyed about this

C: cupcakes are precious to me
anyone who makes a cupcake that is sub par
is making a mockery out of the cupcake

Ah…. muffins dressed as cupcakes. Not that I have any problem with that since I prefer muffins to cupcakes any day, but here’s a guide to helping you distinguish the cupcake posers from the muffin posers (extracted from curiousfoodie.wordpress.com) : -

CUPCAKES

• A cupcake is essentially the same as a whole cake. It is simply baked and served in a portion to serve one individual.
• It is usually frosted (like those in the photos above) and decorated. It is common to see it at birthday parties and weddings.
• It is sweet and hence eaten mostly as a dessert or a sweet treat.
• An un-frosted cupcakes does not equate to a muffin.
• Butter is usually used in a cupcake recipe.
• Conclusion: A cupcake is a cake.

MUFFINS

• A muffin is one of the easiest things to bake. It is simply mixing the wet and dry ingredients together and some recipes do not even require the use of an electronic beater or whisk.
• It can be frosted or not frosted. For fruit muffins, I like to use a crumble on top (recipe in the next post).
• It can be sweet or savoury and is mostly eaten during breakfast or tea.
• A frosted muffin does not equate a to cupcake.
• Oil is usually used in a muffin recipe.
• Conclusion: A muffin is a type of bread (quick bread).

In essence, I think a muffin is fluffier and offer more textural surprises than the cupcake, whose appeal relies on external support (like the woman with heavy make-up), but that’s just me.

Colirbi is at The Village North, Level LG 51, 11 Sanlitun Road, Beijing
三里屯路11号三里屯Village北区地下51号
Tel: 6417-0808

Best Beijing Finds - Phoenix Design Shop in Sanlitun

images by nanamoose

What does ceramics and Childrens wear have in common? You'll be surprised. One of my proudest finds in Beijing this year is a contemporary Chinese ceramics-cum-children’s wear shop nestled in the birch tree-lined streets of Sanlitun.

Phoenix Design Shop is, well, run by Phoenix, an interior designer turned potter who makes such exquisite contemporary Chinese earthenware you will want to go home and throw away your Villeroy and Boch collection. They come at a very reasonable price too. A 30cm diameter porcelain dish will cost you around RMB180 and a handmade earthenware mug around RMB55.

At the back of Phoenix’s shop is children’s wear store Tang Roulou, founded by a French natives Amélie and Pierre-Yves. "It's a Chinese inspiration, but the spelling and pronunciation are French. Tanghulu, or 糖葫蘆 in Chinese, is a sweet all kids like. In France, we have a similar thing, which is a big sugarcoated apple. The ending, 'lou', is a cute reference to kids' stuff." In fact, you can find this accent of French cuteness everywhere you look, from the jewel-coloured fabrics, the polka-dotted, floral designs, to the little touches of Chinoise in the details. This is the kind of place where you’d wish you have a kid and could shower her with gifts. It’s that cute.

Why 糖葫蘆 is not translated to “Tang Hulu” I never quite understood, but Phoenix Design Shop and Tang Roulou could be found at:

No.30 Sanlitun Beijie, Chaoyang district
风栖店 朝阳区三里屯北街路口30号
Tel: 6416-9761

Six Star Service at Beijing's Hot Pot Joint

I have never seen anyone wipe a table with such energy and rhythm it almost seemed like a theatrical performance, and one too professional and quick for my camera to capture at that.

Turned out that this table wiping performance was just one in many surprises I was going to experience this night. In fact, this was not the first either. Outside Haidilao’s Mudanyuan branch there is (as there is tonight) at least a hundred people waiting to be seated, daily. Hence Haidilao provides its customers, easily having to wait for anything up to one hour, with services from playing cards, tea, fruit to, believe it or not, manicures – all complimentary! Luckily tonight we were under the benevolence of Lai Jie (meaning “Big Sister Lai”). Lai Jie is how the Haidilao staff likes to call my friend Stephanie Lai, a regular customer at Haidilao. Having confirmed our identity as Lai Jie’s friends we were swiftly escorted, past a couple of girls getting flowers painted on their nails, upstairs to where our table was being wiped sparkling clean by the acrobatic table wiper.

After the talented table wiper came the oh-so-friendly waiters who never failed to carry a smile on their faces - from the bottom of their hearts. It is rare enough to be sitting at a restaurant where 100% of its servers provide you with the kind of service that makes you feel, “This person must be enjoying his job!” The fact that this restaurant is a local establishment in Mainland China makes it an even bigger surprise. Two minutes into the soup bases arriving and a few seconds after they started showing signs of boiling the waiters promptly delivered to us: 1.Plastic covers for cell phones which were left lying on the table; 2. velvet wipes for people with glasses and 3. brand new hair bands for girls with long hair. I am not even sure French Laundry pays so much attention to detail.

One can easily order way too much food at Haidilao. Amongst the three of us we finished two plates of meat, vegetables, tofu, winter melon, fish balls, and two big bowls of the freshest clotted duck blood (do not be put off by the sound of this clotted blood which came soaked in liquid blood and was so fresh it looked almost jelly-like). However, however much you order and however full you feel, make sure you save, or make room, for la mien at the end. La mien here is made by teenage-looking kids decked out in hip hop outfits performing various dance moves with the noodles. And if you ever worried about hygiene like I did, do not worry, these kids are professionals. Rest assured that the noodles touch only space as they are hurled around as if in a Beijing Olympics gymnastic feat.