Central Park's ISalad Will Help Diminish Your Weekend Regrets
It's the beginning of the week again, which if you're anything like us, usually means that you're ready to give our guts following a less-than-healthy weekend. Luckily, there's no shortage of salad bars popping up in Beijing and ISalad in Central Park is so far one of the year's best new additions, alongside Califorks and Colormore.
What makes a great salad? We would say fresh ingredients, varied greens, a healthy staple, a good selection of delicious in-house made sauces, and additional energy-rich toppings like cheese or nuts. Although relatively small, featuring only 12 seats, ISalad ticks all of those boxes with its dozen pre-made salads (RMB 38-52). They also have a range of sandwiches, wraps, soups, as well as some juices and yogurt, each specifying a calorie count for the health nuts among us.
Business was brisk during our recent weekday lunch-time visit with plenty of delivery guys from different platforms dashing in and out (we'd also recommend ordering online given the diminutive dining area). The avocado Cobb salad (pictured below), pumpkin soup, and half a beef sandwich set cost RMB 80, the former portion arriving promptly and standing out for its crunchy pecans, roasted carrot, succulent chicken, and a generous serving of avocado, broccoli, peas, corn, lettuce, and a (less generous) chunk of feta cheese. The balsamic vinaigrette dressing was also tangy and refreshing. The signature beef sandwich was stuffed with braised beef, tomato, pickle, and lettuce. The beef was a bit dry, but the flavor didn't suffer for it.
Since our first visit, we've ordered the salmon blueberry avocado salad (RMB 52, pictured at top) numerous times. Perhaps the best item on the menu, this option comes packed with smoked salmon, blueberries, half an avocado, lettuce, spinach, capers, pecans, feta cheese, chia seeds, and a chia vinaigrette. All the ingredients were fresh and abundant, which makes this simple dish shine. The additional slices of rye bread were solid, and grainy, and paired well with the salad, helping to demolish our hunger.
ISalad’s Chinese name, 爱沙拉, simply means "love salad," and although it may not boast any fancy superfoods, such as kale, beetroot, or turmeric powder in its arsenal, its simplicity and decent set options make it a good choice for a weekend-busting meal. Despite its humble beginnings, we hope that ISalad can weather Beijing's growing salad scene as it's one of the best options we've tried so far.
ISalad
Daily 10.30am-8.30pm. 102, Bldg 9, Central Park, Chaoyang District (6597 9198)
爱沙拉：朝阳区新城国际9号楼102号
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Email: tracywang@thebeijinger.com
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Photos: Dianping, Tracy Wang
