Paulaner Bräuhaus Beijing

Like all the other Asian brewpubs under the mega umbrella, it is more of a gimmicky German beerhall. Only their most basic beers at high prices. Considering all the places close by, I would skip it.

Kind of a strange place to visit in China but they try their best, even if it’s a little cheesy. Short Chinese women in dirndls serve you liter after liter of beer either inside or in an outside beer garden. Place is mostly full of western businessmen and prices are a bit high (~$20/dish during my last visit), but it was nice for me to get a taste of European fare after a month in Asia. I had fun here drinking a few liters of Hefeweizen.

Convenient location but slightly noisy due to perpetual construction. Very nice biergarten - early afternoon sun and enough tables to avoid the smokers. Inside bar can get smoky but there is a non-smoking dining section. In addition to the typical three house beers they will have an Oktoberfest on around October 1st. Menu looked traditional Bavarian, with tasty wursts, bretzel and bread. The pan-fried dishes seemed to lack the flavor character found in Germany. Some staff were very friendly and attentive, some seemed preoccupied. Management was very customer-focused. Outdoor biergarten gets very crowded in nice weather. All the beers were very clean and reasonably priced. A great place to relax, chat with friends, watch the football matches and enjoy non-rice beers.

This brewpub is located in the Beijing Chaoyang District at the Kempinski hotel and can be entered through the Lufthansa Centre. The brewpub is located 5 minutes from the Hotel Kunlun by foot and there was much construction around the Lufthansa Centre in preparation for the 2008 Olympics. Traditional German food served in heaping portions in a bright spacious surroundings. Service was very attentive but the beer selection was limited to four Paulaner beers: House lager (a Kellerbier), Munich Dark, Weissbier, and Paulaner non-alcoholic beer. The traditional Bierhalle styled atmosphere and food offered a much welcomed Western diversion. I enjoyed this place and plan to visit it again on my next trip to Beijing.