Came away pretty impressed

Dropped into Hercules for the first time last night and came away pretty impressed.

First of all I was surprised by the chic interior, a mix of sleek contemporary furniture and a stripped-back refitted warehouse style decor - quite an unusual look for Beijing. I also like the way the place mixes lounge type seating with more formal tables and chairs.

The menu is fairly limited in that they basically stick to sandwiches, salads and soups, although there were two pasta options listed.

I ordered a chicken schnitzel sandwich, which arrived pretty quickly and was very tasty. The small side of corn chips and dips that came with it was a really nice touch. My only small quibble was that the menu said it came on a "baguette" - what I got was more just a long bread roll. But the bread was still very tasty so it's a small complaint.

The staff were very friendly and the guy in charge (not sure if he's the owner or just a manager) spoke excellent English - handy for patrons with limited putonghua.

I didn't have my computer with me, but judging by the number of people tapping away on laptops last night, I guess they have a pretty good WiFi connection.

Hercules is probably more suited to lunchtime meals than dinner, but if you're after a good, reasonably priced sandwich in very pleasant surrounds, they really hit the mark.