Cheapskate Mondays

I looked into Let's Burger the other day for the first time in ages, and discovered that they're doing a promotion to try to liven up their slow Mondays: ALL drinks (incl. glasses of house wine and - allegedly - 330ml bottles of Kronenbourg 1664) are only 10 kuai.  That's a tempting offer - if I'm ever over Sanlitun way on a Monday afternoon or evening.

It's certainly a cosy, comfy spot to shelter from these winter winds.  And the burgers are unquestionably very good (probably the best in town right now)..... but the home fries are disgusting (cooked up hours in advance and left to go cold and soggy?), the prices are ridiculous (hello, Shanghai!), and it's altogether a bit too cosy and comfy to feel like a drinking spot - well, there's no bar to sit at!

If I felt in need of a burger hit (I do, once every three or four months...), I'd usually go to Blue Frog on its 'Burger Mondays' - but the last couple of times I tried that, the burger meat wasn't so good as in the past, and I quickly got discouraged.  The beer selection is limited and way too expensive.  And the two-for-one offer on burgers only is a twofold irritation: when I do manage to dig up any friends to join me, they always seem to come in even numbers, so we're always left with one burger over (why, oh why can't it just be half price?); and I resent the fact that my favourite chilli fries are not available at the affordable rate.  Blue Frog has survived into its third year, but I'm not sure that it's really making great money - still looks pretty deserted most other nights of the week.  It charges Beijing prices on Monday, and Shanghai prices the rest of the week; and it only packs in a crowd on Mondays - go figure.

The burger at 1st Floor is a fair bit smaller than the Frog's, but comparable quality and much cheaper.  Especially on Monday evenings, when all the food is half price; although, in those circumstances, it's hard to resist the allure of a hunk of beef tenderloin for just 50 kuai.

Even that deal at 1F is in danger of being blown out of the water by Flamme.  OK, the crazy deal they were briefly running at the end of last year - 100 kuai for all you can drink on Mondays, including cocktails! - has been discontinued (the Lord giveth...), but they've replaced that with an all-day half-price Happy Hour.  Given that their drinks selection - and their stellar cocktail menu - is more reasonably priced than just about anywhere else in town anyway, this is an absolute steal.  And I gather they've teamed this initiative with extending their Tuesday two-for-one steak deal to Mondays as well.

I think I might be finding myself in Sanlitun on Mondays a lot more often while this offer is on.  Ah, If only I could find an odd number of friends (rather than a number of odd friends)!