La Maison de Marguerite
The two faces of Marguerite

7 Sanlitun Bei Li (behind 3.3 Building)
Tel: 010 6417 8288

La Maison de Margeurite, named after French author Marguerite Duras of L'Amant fame, aims to give the capital's gastronomes a taste of colonial Indochinese life. The experience is an exercise in contrasts. Ochre hues, wooden paneling and paned windows to reflect a Parisian sense of style. Add a few leafy palm trees, willow furniture and Southeast Asian knickknacks - indiscreetly priced for purchase - and you re-create the atmosphere of old Saigon.

Don't be misled to think the restaurant serves fusion French-Vietnamese food. The menu is mostly French, with Vietnamese items interspersed here and there. The cream of mushroom soup with black truffle suited the autumn weather, and was hastily slurped before the absence of black truffle was noticed. The chicken with classic Bordelaise sauce settled well in my stomach. My dining partner was left unfulfilled with her lukewarm tilapia cakes in parsley sauce, though she did appreciate the Vietnamese shrimp rolls. We had to credit the servers for bringing us many baskets of warm French bread while we waited for our meals.

Beijing has no shortage of French restaurants, so La Maison will need to mature very quickly if it wants to survive here. However, its reasonable prices (RMB200 for dinner for two, not including drinks) and location in the heart of the Sanlitun Bar Street make it a promising star.
-Tzyy Wang