‘No Beer No Friends’ reads the somewhat threatening slogan welcoming customers to NBeer Pub’s second location. Lest you forget – without the inebriating effects of fermented vegetable matter, you will remain boorish, unattractive and so consumed by self-doubt that you could barely sustain pillow talk with a prostitute, let alone the genuine companionship of fellow humans. Better get drinking then.
Emerging as one of the better domestic brewers in Beijing’s foreign-led craft beer revolution, NBeer has made 13 drafts available to help ease your loneliness. Pale ales dominate the lineup, which features a brooding Season IPA (RMB40) and our personal favorite: the crisp and refreshingly floral Summer IPA (RMB40). The Chocolate Stout (RMB40) lacks both subtlety and richness – it’s almost coffee-like in consistency – but we can vouch for the general quality of the brewer’s output through regular appearances at Beijing’s beer festivals (on our part as well as theirs).
But what differentiates NBeer Pub from the growing horde of competitors is its aesthetic. Instead of mood lighting and shades of deep wood, this feels more like a beach bar with its high stools and novelty bottle display. And while most craft beer taprooms allow the din of informed chatter to fill the air, NBeer Pub lures you in with Sinatra-esque swing before unleashing Elephant Man: “A’right real badman nuh wear people pants… Kick out yuh shoes because yuh foot dem nuh cramp,” he suggests.
The dancehall veteran makes a valid point. But he cannot distract us from the bar’s defining characteristic – it’s in Sanlitun SOHO. Inescapably so. The shopping complex is visible through the storefront-style windows and drinkers are only separated from neighboring stores by a wall of hanging ropes. This is not necessarily a bad thing, though it seems more suited for a post-shop refuel than a full evening session.
Price
All beers fall in the the RMB35-50 range
Who’s Going
Thirsty shoppers, people with no friends
Good For
Pale ales of the India variety
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Photo by Holly Li
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