Today was the day. We all knew it was coming, but we were secretly hoping it wouldn’t. Bricks were seen arriving at Fangjia Hutong this morning. And it wasn’t long before police with riot shields blocked off the street so the men with yellow vests and helmets could get to work and brick up some of our favorite hutong joints.
When That's Beijing was on site Tuesday afternoon, the façades of MoxiMoxi, El Nido and Cellar Door were being ripped apart. Igal Paikin and Moshe Levi (the guys behind MoxiMoxi) watched on as the exterior of their restaurant was demolished. They provided That's Beijing with this video:
Watch below (VPN on):
Watch below (VPN off):
Despite the destruction, the two had a surprisingly good attitude. "Take a look at the sign falling. MoxiMoxi always land on its feet!" Levi said.
And in case you're wondering what the fate of MoxiMoxi is, Levi said the following:
"The situation is like this: we will be able to operate the business in the future. Cellar Door and MoxiMoxi will have one big place with a shared small door. Of course the brand will be always kicking and we are looking forward to opening a new location in this area."
El Nido
Cellar Door
Despite rumors, Ramo is still up and running. They made the calculated decision to brick up the façade of their own restaurant so they would not have to shut down. Management released a statement earlier today:
"Ramo is not closing even though we are losing our main entrance. From now on, Ramo can be entered through the old Mimi e Coco entrance on the east side of the building. Some media have reported that we might not be surviving which isn't true as we are business as usual."
Outside Ramo
It remains a mystery what exactly will happen to Fangjia Hutong and its many businesses. We'll keep reporting on these latest brickings as we learn more.
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