Below, five F&B closures that rattled our hungry stomachs in 2018.
1. McCawley’s Bar & Grill
Image by Matthew Bossons/That’s
McCawley’s, formerly one of Guangzhou’s three Irish pubs, was the first (and to our knowledge, only) establishment in the city center to close as a result of the ‘second floor crackdown.’ For those unaware of the second floor shenanigans: late in 2017, authorities in Zhujiang New Town launched a crackdown on second floor and mezzanine areas in a number of businesses, allegedly due to fire concerns. McCawley’s was one of the establishments affected by the operation and the popular pub closed shortly after bricking up it’s second floor. Luckily for fans of the bar and restaurant, there’s still three McCawley’s locations in Shenzhen… RIP.
2. The Brew Bar & Bistro
Image via That’s
The Brew Bar & Bistro slowly disappeared from the Guangzhou F&B landscape over the past year. The vanishing act started with the closure of the bar and restaurant chain’s Jianshe Liu Malu location, and was followed by the closure and rebranding of The Brew’s Zhujiang New Town location, which is now a Mexican cantina. The Panyu location was purchased by new ownership and also rebranded. Much like McCawley’s, fans of The Brew Bar & Bistro can still enjoy the establishment’s signature eats in Shenzhen... RIP.
3. Wantok
Image by Tristin Zhang/That’s
Wantok was a cafe that brought the agreeable tastes of premium coffee – and especially beans grown in Papua New Guinea – to Guangzhou. Opened back in 2016, the pristine and eye-catching wood-framed cafe formerly sat on Tianhe Nan Yi Lu, right across the street from Parc Central. With Wantok’s closure back in November, we feel justified in saying that 2018 was a sad year for discerning caffeine addicts in Tianhe... RIP.
4. About Bagel
Image by Tristin Zhang/That’s
Stepping into About Bagel was to enter the experimental laboratory of former proprietor Marcus Liu. The bill of fare was sketched on a blackboard that listed a dozen or so creative ‘bagelwiches,’ and patrons could choose between eight homemade bagel varieties: plain, sesame, poppy seed, squid ink, cinnamon raison, the gimmicky rainbow bagel and so forth. The bagelwiches at About Bagel were packed full of meat and veggies and were arguably very good value for money. Now, as 2018 draws to a close, we mourn the loss of our favorite shop for round, dense and chewy bread... RIP.
5. Kigo Poke
Image by Matthew Bossons/That’s
To the best of our knowledge, Kigo Poke was only Guangzhou’s second restaurant to specialize in Hawaiian poke bowls and the first of its kind in Haizhu District. Formerly located a short stroll from Changgang Metro Station, Kigo dished out fresh, fish-loaded bowls at prices notably lower than the competition. Unfortunately, Haizhu is a long ways away from Hawaii and this delightful little restaurant failed to witness its six-month anniversary... RIP.
For more 2018 Year in Review coverage, click here.
[Cover image via Unsplash]
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