Food Reviews: Innovative way to dine and take in the view

Step into the reception area of the Room restaurant and you'll see a desk made out of Lego pieces, surrounded by walls lined by black bookshelves stocked with hot pink books.This rather unusual sight hints at what Room is all about - a restaurant and bar concept that's the first of its kind in Beijing.

It's atmosphere makes it a perfect place to catch up with friends over innovative food, drinks and music, and you can expect Room to take off and be the Beijing nightspot, with copycat wannabes not too far behind.

Room is the brainchild of Brian McKenna, the man behind the opening of Blu Lobster in Beijing's Shangri-La Hotel (as well as Rain in Amsterdam).

As part of its charm, Room plans to have a DJ play music every night, starting with dinner music and turning it up as the night goes on.

Room has an international range of food, with some dishes adopting the healthier slow-cook process.

For example, the egg in the 42 Ingredient Salad, lamb shoulder and salmon belly are all cooked over eight hours at a temperature of 63 degrees in order to keep in the nutrients and lock in tenderness.

Besides some special items such as lobster, most items on the menu come in small, medium, or large sizes, or 50 yuan, 80 yuan, 100 yuan respectively. This allows guests to order according to how much they feel like, or are used, to eating. The average spend per person is about 150 yuan for lunch or 300 yuan for dinner, without including drinks.

Inside the restaurant, there is plenty of eye candy. After going up to the stairs and passing the bar, the main restaurant area has one wall hand-painted by Hugo Dalton, a British artist best known for his wall paintings.

In the men's VIP dining room, three walls have been spray-painted by graffiti artist DAL. As well, there is a private women's VIP room.