2018 Year in Review: Beijing's Top 10 New Bars

2018's cocktail scene got off to a very strong start with the opening of this Courtyard 4 lounge in January. We were impressed by their flavorful, to-the-point cocktails. We were also enamored with the tasteful music and occasional DJ, cheeky ambiance, and the pink neon sign above a thick velvet curtain ushering you in.

Veteran DJ Pancake Lee – who has headed up a number of top Beijing nightlife crews over the years like Acupuncture and Haze – stepped out of the DJ booth in early 2018 to oversee a club of his own. Aurora quickly became a hit with fans of no-fuss techno, and an equally low-key vibe. The space is a testament to the minimalist ethos that Lee has long espoused with his music, and its inclusive message plus day-long parties have helped draw in dance lovers from across the city.

This award-winning Australian craft brewer moved into the spacious and sparse, concrete and tiled dining area on the ground floor of The Crib back in February of this year. Little Creatures not only impressed us with its beers but also with its creative pub grub like Cajun-spiced chips, seabass croquettes, deep-fried shrimps, and more.

A few short months after the closure of long-running Sanlitun space Pop-Up Beijing, New Zealander Glenn Schuitman partnered with veteran Beijing bartender Ah Jian for this new Sanlitun venture. In some ways, Herbal is an improvement over Pop-Up, making use of its predecessor's aged Victorian furniture for an equally refined vibe, while Ah Jian mixes far superior drinks for patrons wanting to escape the bustle of Beijing as well as the aesthetic trappings of the 21st century.

Veteran bar owner Xiao Ming's spots aren't known for the most innovative drinks. But what the Beijing cocktail tycoon lacks in that regard, he more than makes up for when it comes to atmosphere. Case in point: Inception, whose gallery-worthy ceiling painting, plush velvet curtains, jade-colored booths, and more that left us buzzing more than the drinks we sipped on.

Yes, Ichikura is an old favorite that has pioneered Japanese-style mixology in Beijing since 2005, but its reopening in the Shang complex at Xinyuanxili after a few closures felt as relevant and cutting edge as any debut in 2018. Chalk that up to the elaborate cocktails that have both style (smoke) and substance (strong whiskey).

How do you take over the Nali Patio rooftop made iconic by Migas? If you're the Terrazza Martini team, you fill those mammoth shoes with a waterfall, a Vegas-worthy neon sign behind the bar, and romantically nookish seating, offset by cheap no-frills drinks and a mainstream playlist flowing out the speakers. All that may attract a more casual crowd than the loyal Migas legion but memories of those weekend parties soon fade when you marvel at the venue's same breathtaking view.

After a disappointing performance at their Courtyard 4 pop-up in 2017, Shanghai craft beer champ Boxing Cat returned to Beijing this year intent on becoming a major contender. And while the number of opening parties they've thrown can grow a little tiresome and confusing (four, at our last count) there's no denying that they've delivered via their range of satisfying brews and eats, the latter coming courtesy of renowned Shanghai chef Simon Sunwoo.

Veteran Beijing beer slinger Xiao Shuai didn't despair after his bar, El Nido, was shuttered last year. Once the dust of that Great Brickening closure settled, he and partner Zach Elmasri took over another alleyway institution: The Other Place. This gorgeous courtyard offers the El Nido crowd a breezier alternative to its predecessor's cramped digs. It's far from a sure bet, just like any hutong venture these days, but hats off to the El Nido team for their tenacity.

When this hutong bar opened in August, it quickly set a new precedent in a neighborhood teeming with dive bars. Unlike most alleyway lounges, Arch serves pricey cocktails with boundary-pushing ingredient combinations. All that, along with its posh ambiance, help it rival any cocktail hotspot in more pristine haunts like Sanlitun and the CBD. It's also quite the mission to find, making that first sip all the more enjoyable.