From time to time we come across an F&B establishment that is an unmitigated disaster. These are the places where dreams go to die. Places playing music that almost makes your ears bleed. Places where the staff simply seem to have no idea what is going on. Places with bizarre interior design choices (not always bad, but sometimes unforgivable).
While all of these attributes on their own are unpleasant, together they create a shit storm of bad that makes a bar or restaurant even less bearable than a backroad KTV room in Lanzhou at 5am. Last month, we found one such place.
Behind the bar at Jin’s Lounge. Image by Matt Bossons/That’s
When we arrived outside Jin’s Lounge, which is located on Huajiu Lu in Zhujiang New Town, we were greeted with a large sign that read ‘Free flow Carlsberg for RMB88’ and ‘Free flow Asahi for RMB68.’ While the deal (which is an awesome deal, by the way) was advertised as running from 9pm to 2am, when we stepped inside and spoke with the bar’s staff, we were confused to learn that the deal had ended almost a month prior. Not cool.
Jin’s whiskey sour, which was a highlight of our visit to the bar. Image by Matt Bossons/That’s
Undeterred, we grabbed a table and dove into the drink menu, eventually settling on two classic beverages: a Long Island iced tea (RMB68) and whiskey sour (RMB72). We’ll give credit where credit is due: both of these drinks were tasty, reasonably priced and contained enough alcohol that we didn’t feel ripped off. The whiskey sour was fragrant and sweet, and we’d order it again. The Long Island was, well, boozy, and it unquestionably hit the spot. But that, unfortunately, is where the positives end.
The music in the bar was overwhelmingly loud electronic music that was better suited for a rave than a small bar in Zhujiang New Town with a wine rack. We can safely say from experience that there are few things more annoying than having your eardrums rattle like a chandelier in an earthquake while trying to enjoy a fine alcoholic beverage.
The out-of-place wine rack. Image by Matt Bossons/That’s
While the music and misleading free flow beer advertisement were undoubtedly the worst parts of our visit, the lackluster interior design was also off-putting. Between the kinda-classy wine rack, the electronic dart boards and the quasi-African artwork, the decor in Jin’s Lounge is confusing, and, simply put, we didn’t like it.
While not the worst thing to find in a bar, we have to admit we aren’t big fans of digital dart boards. Image by Matt Bossons/That’s
Would we go there again? No. Would we recommend that you go there? No. Will you go there? That we don’t know, but if you do: drop us a line and let us know what you think.
Price: not RMB68 for free flow Asahi
Who’s going: not us again
Good for: hurting your soul, false advertising, darts?
Nearest metro: Zhujiang New Town (Exit B1), 10 minutes’ walk
Open daily, 11am-1am; see listing for Jin’s Lounge.
[Cover image by Matt Bossons/That’s]
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