Gulou goes high end

I don’t think there’s any place in the world that sees more change than Beijing. One minute, you’ve found the restaurant of your dreams, only to find that on your next visit it has been replaced with a pile of bricks. I guess you can’t really say you’re a local until one of your favourite places has been chai’d. But change can do you good, and there are always new places springing up to replace those that have disappeared. Ironically Nanluoguxiang, the latest “it” place, is nestled in one of Beijing’s oldest areas. No wonder local residents look a bit bemused.

Back in 1999, Pass-by Bar led the way down the bumpy alley when it set up shop. Run by a backpacker turned entrepreneur, its good renditions of Western food and intimate courtyard attracted a steady stream of friends. The owners then opened up the street’s first upmarket venue, the Pass-by Restaurant. While it’s just a step away from the bar, it’s a leap up in terms of pricing and atmosphere. They even built a private bathroom for their guests–does it get classier than that?

For Chinese food, you can have modern Sichuan fusion with at Drum and Gong, or enjoy classic Sichuan at the Source. The newly-opened Gu Xiang 20 is also worth visiting for traditional Guangdong cuisine. If you have a taste for foreign food, Mirch Masala has good Indian curries, Saveurs de Coree is a sophisticated bistro serving up healthy versions of Korean classics and when only chips will do, there’s the British favorite Fish Nation 2 just next door.

Just outside of Nanluoguxiang, one can savor contemporary Italian fare at Luce, or head over to restaurateur Cho Chong Gee’s latest eatery Paper, which, unlike his other restaurant, Café Sambal, is much more contemporary. The paper white décor matches its name, and the light, MSG-free fusion cuisine makes it stand out from the crowd. As regular Karen Surmon says, “Paper is distinctly different. It’s more upmarket and is a great alternative in one of my favorite parts of Beijing.”

While some might decry the gentrification of the area, few local residents are complaining. “I like the new look,” says Fu Ning, whose family has been in the area for four generations. “We’ve now rented out our family courtyard to a restaurant and we like that visitors enjoy coming to the area.” But does he ever eat in the restaurant? “No, never,” he says, wrinkling his nose. “I like local food best.”