My first experience of a No. 18 Brew Pub was in Wuhan. It was one of several craft beer places there that opened all day, leaving me wondering, as usual, why this seldom seems possible in Nanjing. Located opposite a Starbucks Bar Mixato (another thing sadly lacking in Nanjing) that served the best Cold Brew Lemon Sour I have ever had, there seemed much to recommend it. The interior was attractive, the beer menu extensive and the food comforting on a rather bleak and wet day.
Much to recommend it until I tried the beer, that is. Each one was a gassy, sad exhibition of lacklustre “craft” brewing, ironically little better than the likes of Watney’s Red Barrel before the great resurgence of Real Ale in England.
You might well imagine my mixed emotions on learning that the new MixC mall boasted a large craft beer bar open all day but was, of course, a No. 18. I approached with some trepidation. It certainly looked the part, with 24 taps, an open kitchen, plenty of seating (inside and out) and little features such as the intriguing mechanical window opening wheel (I can’t think of an elegant way to describe it) and “gas station” pumps within the ubiquitous industrial brutalist interior typical of such establishments.
To my surprise the first beer was rather good, and the second, and the third. Alongside regular beers, there are guests and a fridge with a decent range of cans and bottles. I have been back many times since and have no complaints about the beer. That, as regular readers will know, is unusual. As I write this, I am enjoying Left Hand Brewing’s Peanut Butter Milk Stout. The food menu has all the usual trimmings of Western/American bar food and snacks. The double-based pizza is a good option if you are hungry. It is stuffed, but the two bases are cooked separately and are surprisingly crisp. The very runny egg on top would I am sure have caused Edwina Currie considerable alarm, but not this writer.
Service is eager. Seemingly within a nanosecond of making a selection (tedious QR code app, I’m afraid), one of the waiters will appear with your order receipt, and the food or drink follows soon after. They are very accommodating, offering me a blanket just now, sitting as I am near the window (inside). I politely declined as I do not yet feel in my dotage and tried to look a little less chilly than I actually felt on account of my foolish seat selection. The staff looked upon me benevolently, but with the same doubt as when they bring me ice for my water. They are eager to please and I always feel welcome. The one considerable irritation is the very loud muzak. Alas this seems a feature everywhere in The MixC. Noise-cancelling earphones reduce it to a mild inconvenience, which is reduced further with each beer imbibed.
No. 18 enjoys a good footfall with its excellent location in The MixC and looks like it will be a great success. That said, it is quiet today, but then so is the whole mall. COVID seems back on many Nanjingers’ minds.
It is a short walk to Diaoyutai Alley about which I wrote last month. On that note, I have a few updates. Walden now opens from 15:00, but Natie Coffee and Beer is open from 10:00 and continues to serve some excellent imported beers. On my last visit, just days before winter hit us, I sat outside enjoying one of the only sours in Nanjing truly worthy of the name. What a beer it was! It was good; very, very good indeed. Moments such as that make hunting good beer worthwhile.
Meanwhile, further into Laomendong, Table Space is under renovation of the type that looks like it has been struck by a large meteor. However, it is due to re-open eventually under the same owner with the new name, “Lapin”. It remains to be seen if craft beers will be served alongside the rabbit. However, directly behind it is the new “Dogwatch” craft beer bar that opens all day and serves pork and “dogs” (not the canine variety, I think).
Whilst I am doing updates, Boxing Cat near the Epark Mall, which was Nanjing’s first Shanghai-style craft beer bar and restaurant to open all day is on the move. By the time you read these words, they may well be back up and running in D9.
That muzak seems loud again, so it’s time for a Chococonut (I checked that twice) Imperial Dessert Stout. Cheers!
