This lovely café deserves to herald a bold new era for Dashilan, a historic neighbourhood southwest of Tiananmen Square. Part café, part socially conscious creative hub, it’s a style pioneer for an area with the potential to become one of Beijing’s most beguiling neighbourhoods. Oh, and they have freakin’ awesome homemade cookies.
Carved out of a former electronics company building on a tumbledown hutong alley, the cafe has been created with a sharp eye for playful details. Reclaimed tiles underfoot, custom-made tables (see if you can find the hidden ashtray compartments!), chairs from old rice casks – it’s a delight for anyone who loves clever, sustainable design.
Caffeine here comes in many guises, some coffees laced with ginger, others with rum. There are cocktails on a local theme (we didn’t try the Forbidden Mule but what a fab name), and homemade sodas including a pu-er tea concoction and another with Sichuan peppercorns.
A few sandwiches made with homemade bread include this little beauty (pictured) with roast duck, cheese and kumquat jam for that retro duck a l’orange tang. The chef at Spoonful of Sugar skipped across town from Spanish restaurant Migas, and he also makes a mean quiche (try the spicy mushroom), and bakes a fine focaccia.
But the absolute foodie treat here is the homemade cookies, baked with local ingredients like hawthorn and sesame. You get a taster with your coffee, and they sell bags to take away so you can fill your pockets on the way out.
Spoonful of Sugar also bakes bigger cakes and bonbons, and makes these cute homemade jams from local ingredients like kumquat and star anise. Note to selves: gift idea.
Elsewhere, the walls are lined with art pieces for sale, the prices based on a sort of Bitcoin-style algorithm of scarcity. The more pieces of one artist that sell, the higher the price climbs. We’re pleased they don’t do this with the cookies.
Spoonful of Sugar Cafe is on Dashilan West Street, close to the intersection with Shanaxi Hutong. If you like uncovering hidden gems like these, you’ll love getting under the skin of Beijing with one of Bespoke’s Signature Experiences.
About the author: Tom O’Malley is Propaganda Secretary at Bespoke Beijing. A lifestyle journalist, guidebook author, glutton and bon vivant, Tom is a tireless crusader for fine food, hospitality and tourist experiences in China’s capital.