Mix Island: The Perfect Summer Hang Out Spot

Mix Island (Mix岛•西西里村), unrelated to notorious and now long gone Gongti nightclub Mix, opened up last year inside Dongfeng Intl. Sports Park, just a stone’s throw from Chaoyang Park. Since opening, it’s been steadily amassing an eclectic range of eateries, bars and other foodie establishments all housed around its large outdoor camping style seating area. 

Most of the venues allow diners to order food to enjoy in the shared outdoor space, making it a perfect summer spot! Plus there is a brand new pop-up water park also situated inside the sports park just north of Mix Island, so you can have some daytime summer fun too. The venue is also pet friendly, with many places offering a range of pet treats for your furry friends. 

Mosto

Formerly housed in the now closed Nali Patio, Mosto found itself a new home at Mix Island, redubbing itself “Mosto by the Park”. It has a chic interior with plenty of natural light, plants, central bar and seating out front. They have a great menu comprised of twists on South American and Mediterranean dishes with everything from steak to pizza to pasta and more. Some must try dishes are the ½ Grilled Chicken, Herb Marinated (RMB 128), the Latin Beef Burger (RMB 98) and Bolognese Pasta (RMB 98). Besides food, they’ve got a great selection of cocktails, wines, coffee and soft drinks. 

Mosto
Hours: Sun-Thu 11.30am-10pm, Fri-Sat 11.30am-10.30pm
Phone: 138 1132 5451

Shadow of the Cloud

You might recognize Shadow of the Cloud from our recent Hot & Spicy Fest. A Yunnan style bistro, they have numerous classic Yunnan dishes like Lemongrass Grilled Chicken (RMB 58), Fried Potatoes (RMB 22) or Baked Seabass (RMB 98). The space itself has a clean, minimalistic feel with custom tiles on the wall adding a touch of quirkiness to the venue. They’ve got a lovely terrace area out front plus a long window that opens up with seating on either side allowing diners to sit inside while enjoying the view and aircon at the same time! 

Shadow of the Cloud 云下•云南小酒馆
Hours: Sun-Thu 11.00am-9.30pm, Fri-Sat 11.00am-10pm
Phone: 186 1152 2116

Liuyin • Ronghe Liaoli •Yakitori

Bringing Izakaya vibes into the mix – see what we did there? – is this Japanese yakitori restaurant. The space is deceptively large from how it appears on the outside, with a shared dining area including bar seating and then several private rooms hidden away. On the menu they’ve got yakitori offerings that pretty much cover the whole chicken from Chicken Breast (RMB 18) to Chicken Oysters (RMB 22) to Chicken Leg Skewers with Scallions (RMB 18) or for those who are fans of it, Chicken Heart (RMB 12). They also have other skewer options like Streaky Pork (RMB 28), Salt Roasted Red Shrimp (RMB 30) or Quail Eggs (RMB 10) as well as sashimi and side dishes. As you’d expect from any yakitori restaurant they have an extensive sake collection as well as Asahi on draft (RMB 28), highballs and other drinks. 

Liuyin • Ronghe Liaoli •Yakitori 流音•融合料理•Yakitori
Hours: Mon- Fri 5.30pm-11.30pm, Sat-Sun 11.30am-11.30pm
Phone: 185 1316 5588, 130 5181 5529

Blue Ark Pub & DAO Coffee

DAO Coffee partnered up with craft beer bar Blue Ark for this little venture which was one of the first venues to open up in Mix Island. With its super casual, camping vibe it’s a great option to enjoy a drink, be it one of DAO’s excellent coffees or a craft brew from Blue Ark with their ten plus regularly rotating beers on tap. Foodwise they’ve got a menu with a variety of western and Asian snacks, mains and sharing platters. 

Blue Ark Pub
Hours: 5.30pm-1.30am 
Phone: 183 1147 0148 

DAO Coffee
Hours: 10am-6pm 
Phone: 185 1589 2837

THE BOND by Hide&Seek

Opened in August last year by Lido wine and cocktail bar Hide&Seek, THE BOND brings the same great quality wines, cocktails and food to Mix Island. Situated up a flight of stairs on the second floor above Liuyin•Ronghe Liaoli•Yakitori and Mosto, the space utilizes the architecture of the roof with careful backlighting and wood paneling to create a warming environment, it also has a lovely terrace area that’s ideal for summer. 

Their menu has a focus on Southeast Asian fusion cuisine with dishes like Thai Style Fried Pork Neck (RMB 78), Taiwanese Beef Noodles (RMB 78) and Grilled Seasbass (RMB 118). They also have an excellent wine collection and carefully crafted cocktail menu with signature concoctions like the Bond Bellini (RMB 68), peach, sage, grenadine lemon and prosecco; and the Floral (RMB 68), Aperol, camellia, sophora flower and prosecco.

THE BOND by Hide&Seek
Hours: Mon-Fri 5pm-2am, Sat-Sun 1pm-2am
Phone: 155 1019 9554

Baddie

Baddie keep things simple with their menu, just offering sandwiches, tacos (you might remember them from this year’s Taco Fest) and a few snacks. On the sandwich front they’ve got classics like the Philly Cheesesteak (RMB 65) as well as fusion sandwiches like Korean Kimchi Beef Cheese Sandwich (RMB 65) and Hunan Chili Chicken Sandwich (RMB 58). 

For tacos you can choose between Slow Cooked Beef (RMB 52/for two), Chicken (RMB 48/for two) or One Beef One Chicken (RMB 50). They’ve also got some carefully crafted drink concoctions including sawas, cocktails, homemade sodas and more. Some to watch out for are their take on a long island the Baddie Iced Tea (RMB 48), the Iced Watermelon Sawa (RMB 42) and the Green Extract Sparkling Water (RMB 25). 

Baddie
Hours: Mon-Thu 11.30am-10pm, Fri-Sun 11am-11pm
Phone: 132 6038 0997

Stereo

Stereo is a Japanese barbecue spot featuring a large open kitchen with counter seating surrounding it. They specialize in barbecued Angus and Wagyu beef which can be ordered either as separate cuts or part of a Combo Set (RMB 168-480) that includes extras like miso soup, salad and rice. Aside from barbecued beef they have a variety of side dishes like Fried Squid (RMB 58), Edamame (RMB 28) and Kimchi (RMB 20). To go with your barbecue they’ve got a top notch sake selection plus wine and beer on tap. 

Stereo by崖岐制肉所
Hours: Tue-Sun 6pm-10pm (Mon closed)
Phone: 138 1078 5362

Beiping Gelato

Operating a store and super cute, pastel colored camper van, Beiping Gelato do, you guessed it, gelato! However, this isn’t your ordinary gelato place as they offer some rather unusual flavors, including a few Beijing inspired ones like Beijing Hotpot, Douzhir and Erguotou. They do also have less out there flavors like Lemon, Strawberry and Coconut if you want to play it safe. You can get Two Scoops for RMB 39 or Three Scoops for RMB 49. Aside from gelato they also have a variety of coffees, flavored sparkling waters, fruit teas and milkshakes.   

Beiping Gelato 北平冰匠
Hours: Tue-Sun noon-8pm (closed Mon)
Phone: 176 0072 5213, 134 2613 2651

Tooos Bakery

This bakery specializes in what it calls “toast” but is actually more like a mini, square loaf of bread. They have a range of both sweet and savory options with flavors like Apple and Cinnamon (RMB 12), Blueberry Jam (RMB 15) or Cheese and Smoked Chicken (RMB 12). However, please note that available flavors can vary from day to day and they also sometimes do limited collaborations with other brands too, so keep an eye out for those!

Tooos Bakery
Hours: 10am-10pm
Phone: 166 0110 0852

Mix Island Mix岛•西西里村
Inside Dongfeng Intl. Sports Park (South Gate), A9 Nongzhan Nanlu
朝阳区农展南路甲9号东枫国际体育园内

BONUS: Joyful Splash Island 

No, we’re not referring to the shallow pool out front (rumor has it that pool is just for decoration and paddling is not allowed) we’re talking about a new pop-up inflatable water park that has just opened inside Dongfeng Intl. Sports Park, just north of Mix Island. Named Joyful Splash Island, it has inflatable water slides, paddling pools, a foam pit, a giant inflatable duck and a variety of other water related activities. If you want to catch a bit of shade they also have a number of tents set up around the water play area too. So, why not head here during the daytime to splash around and cool off, then hit up one of Mix Island’s many eateries for a bite to eat afterward! Joyful Splash Island is open from now until Aug 28 and tickets are RMB 49.9 if purchased through Dianping, just search “FUN肆解YA岛水乐园”.

Joyful Splash Island FUN肆解YA岛水乐园
Inside Dongfeng Intl. Sports Park (South Gate), A9 Nongzhan Nanlu
朝阳区农展南路甲9号东枫国际体育园内
Hours: 10am-5pm

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Images: Uni You, Dianping