I’d talk about why this is the first post in so fricking long, but just thinking about what I’ve been dealing with for the last couple of months makes me tired all over again. And in this ultra brief moment where work (or the fatigue of after work) isn’t intruding, why would I waste it by talking about my work? Let’s just say that I need to recharge and I’m going to try to use posting here more as an attempt to bring some joy and inspiration back into my life.
Well, except that I guess the whole reason I was at this restaurant to begin with was work. Silver linings, I guess?
My colleague and I were introduced to this place after the conclusion of a semi-attended networking night I hosted at Hotel Eclat Beijing. It seems like the whole concept of “networking nights” is still pretty new up north, as a whole bunch of people were coming up to me asking how come there was only alcohol. Oh well, live and learn. In the end, everyone had fun and everyone was hungry. We followed one particularly friendly couple to a restaurant (with a convenient 1am closing time) their friend had opened a couple months ago: Iki.
Iki is a Korean mid-to-upscale barbeque joint with light Taiwanese touches (like the name, which is supposed to be Taiwanese for “togetherness”). It already had a location in Shuangjing and opened up its Gongti shop almost right after. The night we went, it was quite populated despite the late hour.
The decor is a tasteful mix of glass and wood, with a dining balcony overlooking a bar and the rest of the restaurant below. I especially loved their lamps, which were a fun type of industrial cool.
Each table had its own copper-colored grill, an exhaust fan, and a waiter to help cook the meat in front of you for you. It felt a little weird to me to not do it yourself, but I guess it’s just a way for everyone at the table to keep gorging. Which is alright, since the food is really good. We let our host choose, and he got us a serious helping of the Seoul-style marinated boneless chuck rib and some fun L.A.-style short ribs (on the sweeter side).
He also recommended the seafood options, including some amazing tender squid and these mofos:
We washed everything down with a pint of Vedett white, a combination I’d never really thought to try before, but makes surprising sense. If you’re not up for Belgian beers, there were also Chilean wines and a huge list of Sojus to try.
My colleague, who ended up staying in Beijing for three months, said she came back here a half dozen times. It became her go-to restaurant for dining with friends and impressing guests. This place is just that good, and it remains a bright spot of my otherwise pretty dire late-autumn.
Iki // China View Bldg 6, 2 Gongti Donglu 工体东路2号中国红街大厦
elaine is eating 