Few and 串儿 Between: Beijing's Best Remaining Barbecue Restaurants With Outdoor Seating
One of our favorite pastimes, and one for which our love will never wane, is munching on chuan'r (串儿, literally "skewer" but a catch-all for barbecue) and sipping on a cold bottle of Yanjing, preferably while sitting outdoors. Unfortunately, the powers that be have had outdoor barbecues in their crosshairs for a few years now, causing an existential threat for one of Beijing, and China's, finest culinary hobbies.
While the number of barbecue restaurants with outdoor seating has drastically decreased, luckily there is a handful of survivors who are hanging on and doing this tradition proud.
炭花烤场 (Tàn huā kǎo chǎng)
The most centrally located option on our list, Tan Hua Kao Chang is situated on Gulou Dongdajie, right next to Little Saigon. It may not look like much when you first enter but head upstairs and the restaurant opens to a large terrace where you can eat chuan'r while enjoying views of the gorgeous Gulou neighborhood. As well as their large range of barbecue options, they also do lamb spine (羊蝎子 yáng xiē zi) hot pot. A word of warning, Tan Hua Kao Chang can get extremely busy between 7-9pm (and don't do bookings), so do yourself a favor and get there early to bag the best outdoor seat.
Daily 11am-1.30am. 141 Jiu Gulou Dajie, Xicheng District (8408 3182)
炭花烤场：西城区旧鼓楼大街141号
苏小牛精酿主题串吧 (Sū xiǎo niú jīng niàng zhǔtí chuàn ba)
Located in Shuangjing, Suxiaoniu has a spacious terrace with enough room for ten tables. Compared to other barbecue places, the restaurant earns extra points for its in-house brewed lagers, red ales, and stouts to be enjoyed alongside their grilled meat and veg. They also have regular live music acts on the second floor (though we can't promise that they'll live up to the grub!).
Daily 5pm-2am. 37 Baiziwan Jie, Chaoyang District (6772 0677)
苏小牛精酿主题串吧：朝阳区百子湾街37号
Joy BBQ - 玩串 (Wán chuàn)
Joy BBQ is the perfect place if you're looking to quell your munchies after a night of Sanlitun boozing, and has a great arrangement with the neighboring restaurant 老满太太 (Lǎo mǎn tài tài), whereby you can order takeout snacks from them to eat along with your Joy BBQ meal. If you want to take advantage of this fun, unconventional setup, we recommend booking ahead for outside seating because space is limited and it tends to get quite busy.
Daily 6pm-1am. 68 Xinzhongjie, Gongti Xilu, Dongcheng District (186 1163 5651)
玩串：东城区工体西路新中街68号
木屋烧烤 (Mù wū shāo kǎo)
As a long-time barbeque chain restaurant with 36 branches around the city, Muwu is a safe bet when it comes to barbecue dining in Beijing. As far as we know, only the branch near Happy Valley has an outdoor dining area, and even though it's a little bit outside of the city center, the good service, decent food, and laid-back vibe make the trek out there worthwhile. Muwu's seafood is particularly good and no order would be complete without a plate of barbecued oysters (烤生蚝 kǎo sheng háo) along with a big mug of draft beer.
Daily 11am-1am. B2-5, Bldg 1, Kuchenxiaozhen, Jinchan Xilu, Chaoyang District (6749 7577)
木屋烧烤(欢乐谷店): 朝阳区金蝉西路酷车小镇甲1号B2-5号
新疆美食村 (Xīnjiāng měi shí cūn)
Finally, a list of slap-up Beijing barbecue joints would be incomplete without at least one Xinjiang recommendation. Besides their selection of various lamb skewers, the University of International Business and Economics (UIBE)-adjacent Meishicun also features non-barbecue Xinjiang classics like hearty "big plate chicken" (大盘鸡 dà pán jī), making it a great spot for group dinners. Typically chock-a-block despite its many seats, Meishicun strikes the right balance between comfortable and lively.
Daily 4.30pm-1am. B2-201, Ziguang Building, 11 Huixindongjie, Chaoyang District
新疆美食村：朝阳区惠新东街11号紫光发展大厦B2-201号 (6482 3228)
Did we miss any? Leave us a comment if you know something we don't!
READ: Beijing's Best Restaurants for Visitors and Tourists, 2019 Edition
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Email: kuang@thebeijinger.com
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Photos: Asia Society, Pixabay
