VILLAGE PEOPLE

KEVIN, ENWEI & ALEX

PRE-DINNER DRINKS AT SWANKY MESH.

SALMON MARTINI, MADE WITH SHOJU.
THE FLORAL, HERBACEOUS NOTES IN SHOJU IS A NICE COUNTERPOINT TO THE SALMON'S SMOKINESS.

YUCK, I SOUND LIKE A WANKER WANNABE FOOD CRITIC.

STOIC SENTRIES AT ARTSY NIGHTLIFE ENCLAVE, 1949

"How about some champagne?" Alex suggested.

Duh - like he needed to ask twice! Gay boys and champagne go together like a horse and carriage. OK, that totally made no sense, but who cares?   

We were in Mesh, The Opposite House's achingly stylish bar. A bartender poured some Champagne Duval-Leroy ("My favourite," Alex solemnly swore) for myself, Alex, Enwei and and Kevin, an old friend of Chris's. Meanhwile, we munched on mealy crackers and nuts coated in a savoury, syrupy sauce. The champagne's crisp structure, gorgeously creamy on the palate, beautifully balanced the richness of the bar nibbles.

"You have to try the salmon martini," Enwei insisted.

I almost spewed bubbly out of my nostrils. What?!

WHAT OTHER OUT-OF-THIS-WORLD DRINK AM I MEANT TO TRY, NOW?



I have to confess: I'm a salmon snob. Comes with having worked with salmon specialist and celebrity chef Jaakko Sorsa for three years. Jaakko prepares salmon in more ways than you can say "James" in Russian. Jaakko is FINDS' Executive Chef, the president of the local chapter of Disciples Escoffier and Hong Kong's unofficial Nordic food ambassador. 

"When we were nominating coktail recipes for a menu update, one of my bartenders made a martini purely out of herbs," Enwei shared, "and the other boys promised it would taste good - but it looked disgusting. I was certain nobody would order it, even if it indeed tasted good. But this salmon martini... we do move quite a bit. I'm happy that it made it on to the menu."

Dinner was at Duck de Chine in nightlife slash entertainment enclave 1949. It's like 798 - but better. For starters, 1949 is, like, 8 minutes away by foot from The Opposite House. That's gold. Secondly, 1949 has art plus fabulous dining / drinking holes. What else is there to look for?

Dessert (gelato, natch) and digestifs were at Veloce, which has two other branches in New York.

"Do us a round of vodka suprise," Alex asked Krishna Hathaway, one of Veloce's owners.

Krishna obliged with a vodka-based cocktail with muddled ginger, pineapple, soda, and who-knows-what-else. It was delicious; I finished it within two seconds.

After-hours were spent at the 'AIDS Walk' fundraiser at the rooftop of Migas in Nali Patio. Beautiful open terrace, beautiful view of the skyline, beautiful crowd. Gay Beijing's A-List, no doubt.

"Where did you find him?" Christian, a Mormon medical researcher from Utah, purred. "He's so sexy," he said, breathing wetly into my ear.

"I found him online," Alex winked.
"Indeed," I concurred. "Alex found me online." 

// SWEET. //