LAN Club and Restaurant

Ben and I booked a table in the restaurant at LAN, after hearing about its renowned Philippe Starck design and having read some interesting and mixed reviews.

We went on a Thursday evening at about 7.45pm, and on arrival the first thing that struck us was the decor - it's completely unlike anywhere else I have seen in Beijing: over sized thrones, a ceiling littered with huge, horizontally-hung portraits, an array of velvet-covered furniture and a selection of gigantic, ornate mirrors. You can get an idea from the pictures on the website, but decor and the lighting create a decadent and plush atmosphere in this enormous venue. Sweeping curtains create several smaller rooms within the club, which is fortunate seeing as when we arrived there were about 10 people there in total. Even with these divisions, the dimensions only served to highlight the lack of clientele, and this is probably LAN's most trouble. It is near Yonganli subway station, which is nowhere near any other evening venues (erm, i.e.: nowhere near Sanlitun), so that's a pretty big hurdle to start with....

First, we had a cocktail in the bar. I have developed a penchant for apple martinis, and this one did not disappoint (but at Y70+ I would have hoped for nothing less...). When we moved through to the dining area, we were pleased (and relieved!) to see that the restaurant was about two thirds full. The decor in here was much the same, the only thing that wasn't over sized, was the table, which meant that there was not much room to wield the cumbersome menu. Not only was it unwieldy, it was also very confusing. I had to worry about whether I was going to knock over my wine glass, while trying to decipher how much it would be appropriate to order.

Ben and I chose an appetiser each, and decided to share a prawn dish (Y100), a lamb dish (Y100), some vegetables and rice. This seemed a sensible choice, so I was quite surprised when we were advised to order two of each of the lamb and prawn dishes - especially given the price.*

In the end our starters and desserts (chocolate fondants) were delicious, but the mains were average and, disturbingly, served one after the other in quick succession, on plates so enormous that you had to finish the first before the second could be placed on the table. This was irritating, but not quite as irritating as the lack of free water served (I firmly believe this should be available in all restaurants and bars) and the small bottles of water priced at Y60+ a go. *grr* The total bill was Y1,400 for two, on top of our cocktails. However, the toilets were pretty cool - each one is an individual, mirrored room, complete wing back chair and free-standing dressing table housing a sink, whose taps cleverly turn on when you step in front of it.

The bar livened up after dinner with a jazz band playing in one section and a band playing covers in the main bar area, and this was by far the most enjoyable part of my evening. Overall, I can see the appeal for entertaining guests or for a fancy night out (drinks only), but I imagine it does not get many repeat visitors - especially to the restaurant. Apparently, it cost RMB300 million to set up and open LAN in 2006, and I wonder how long it will last given the prime real estate it occupies and lack of customers to fund ongoing expenses....!

*In China, this is very expensive!