First Glance: The Way on Lucky Street
The owner of The Way doesn't think a meal should be limited by national boundaries. What if you're out for a meal with friends and one person wants Japanese, one person wants Chinese and one person wants Western cuisine? In this case, you might want to head over to Lucky Street. What The Way serves isn't fusion, at least not in the traditional sense. Instead, individual dishes stay true to their culinary roots, while the menu as a whole fuses Japanese, French and Chinese. So it is that on any one table you might see a bowl of pasta sharing space with some sushi rolls and a French chocolate cake.
Delving into the lengthy menu, an avocado salad with cranberry dressing (RMB 42, pictured above) is satisfyingly generous with the avocado. However, a dish of chilled okra dressed in the Japanese style proves much more interesting, the okra cooked to that perfect point between mucilaginous and crisp. By the way, we also hear that okra is packed with antioxidants, essential for fighting off Beijing's signature smog.
On the Western side of the menu, a dish of braised ox tongue with a tomato-based sauce (RMB 68) is a delight – soft and yielding without being overfacing. Of the Japanese dishes, California rolls are generously filled but are, by the same token, rendered unwieldy. Better is the slightly-sweet miso-glazed grilled cod.
Finish back on the french side of the menu with a perfectly molten chocolate fondant (RMB 36). The dessert errs on the side of too sweet (and the accompanying ice cream is a little synthetic for my tastes), but I imagine few will complain once they get a whiff of that rich chocolate flavor.
With some stand out dishes scattered throughout the menu, the Way is a welcome addition to Beijing's growing number of fusion-esque Japanese restaurants, including Glen Kitchen and Vin Vie.
The Way
Daily 11am-midnight. 1-27 Lucky Street, Chaoyang Gongyuan Lu, Chaoyang District (opposite Solana) (5849 6024)
朝阳区朝阳公园路好运街1-27号（蓝色港湾对面）
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Email: robynnetindall@thebeijinger.com
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Photos: Robynne Tindall
