Fine dining with new look, taste and feel

The open kitchen at Combal by Tiago in COFCO Plaza in Jianguomen, Beijing.[Photo provided to China Daily]

The welcome snacks are presented on a plate mounted with pebbles, simulating a Chinese pond. The dish as a whole is like a miniature tranquil Chinese garden with garnishes with all the appearance of rockery and leaves.

"A city like Beijing has such a profound culture heritage, and we ought to have integrated more of our cultural elements into fine dining," Li says.

At Combal by Tiago, an innovative approach has been taken with each dish, some bold and some with a nuanced twist, but overall there has been a solid attempt to break away from old-style conventional fine dining.

The restaurant's name, Combal, a whimsical concoction evoking the idea of combining things, perfectly reflects the establishment's ethos, Li says.

As a stomach warmer there is a dish whose offbeat name tells you that you are about to be served something very unusual: egg in eggs. It is presented in a transparent tea bowl with a lid.

The style has echoes of the Japanese hot appetizer chawan-mushi (egg custard), but the contents are different: the base consists of scrambled Japanese eggs, then goes up to light potato sabayon, and then to whipped egg yolks, salmon roe and caviar on the surface. It is so soft that it is eaten with a spoon, and it is best to scoop out from the end to the surface. In one spoonful you will taste the different layers, mixing and melting on the tongue.