The Georg Joins Beijing's Thin Fine Dining Ranks

I was pleased to dine at The Georg recently, as while Beijing has some excellent fine dining restaurants, they are far too few. The Georg has given us at least one more choice.

Danish lifestyle brand Georg Jensen, best known for their silverware, have opened the concept space on the banks of the Jade River (the restored hutong area just west of the south entrance of Nanluogu Xiang), including a lounge, restaurant, and gallery displaying their products.

Visiting on Valentine's Day, I was only able to try the set menu offered that evening, but if it is representative of their usual menu, then I look forward to my next visit. This is continental dining – do not expect large portions or a feeling of fullness upon completion of the meal. "Exquisite" is would be a better way to describe the how we felt at the conclusion.

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The usual menu is structured simply – every dish is priced at RMB 130 or they will put together set menu for the table for RMB 450. Wine pairing is an additional RMB 450 per person.

Despite an address that will drive taxi drivers insane, the location is easy to find – get out of the car about 200 meters west of the main south entrance to Nanluogu Xiang, at the south end of the canal. Many people will know this route because they went to Great Leap Original #6 that way.

There were a few caveats to the otherwise fine dining experience. Although this is clearly contemporary fine dining, element of The Georg are a bit too casual, including the shirt sleeves of the non-Chinese management staff. In a place like that, I want to see a manager in at least a jacket – the Chinese manager was properly dressed in that way. Proper attire from the staff will also encourage patrons to do so – there were certainly too many jeans and T-shirts in the dining room for my taste, for this kind of venue.

The servers were most courteous and helpful, but appeared nervous. This may reflect the newness of the restaurant, but nervous servers make for nervous patrons.

The Georg has an extensive wine list, but so few of them are available by the glass. I understand that of course the venue would prefer that we commit to an entire bottle, but they should be doing enough turnover to be able to offer one or two more by the glass for some variety.

The background music is too loud and obtrusive. It's still an elegant venue – the music played in the dining room belongs in the lounge, at half the volume.

These small notes aside, I look forward to visiting The Georg again. A restaurant's primary feature is its food, and The Georg does this very well.

The restaurant is open for dinner from Monday to Saturday, 6-10.30pm, while the accompanying lounge space is open from 10.30am to midnight seven days a week.

The Georg
Mon-Sat, 11.30am-3pm, 6-10.30pm. 45 Dongbuyaqiao Hutong (200m west of Nanluogu Xiang subway station, north of Dianmen Dajie in the Jade River residential complex) (8408 5300)
东不压桥胡同45号(地安门东大街附近)

– Robynne Tindall contributed to this article.

More stories by this author here.

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Photo: Bespoke Travel Company