The sweet smell of food & flowers

Chocolate mousse with drinks called Let's Avocado and Summer Breeze.

For the main course we chose the Teriyaki salmon with coconut rice and sauteed snow beans (98 yuan).

Rice is the Wuchang variety, widely considered the best rice in China. Wuchang is a city in Heilongjiang province renowned for its rice-producing prowess. The rice is soft, even if chewy. Cooked with coconut milk and small pieces of mushroom, it gives off a sweet aftertaste of mild coconut. The flavor is perfectly balanced, with no risk of overpowering the salmon, which is outstanding. It has a delightfully crisp outer crust and juicy, flaky flesh. In preparing it, the chef probably used the sous vide method, which means first half-cooking the salmon in water at a low temperature, about 50 C, and then searing the fillet in a pan.

The serving was generous, a large salmon fillet sprinkled with teriyaki topping on a bed of coconut rice. This could be a perfect dish for dining solo with a drink.

Tomacado uses Julius Meinl coffee, an Austrian brand said to represent the time-honored Viennese coffee house culture. This brand is hard to come by in cafes in Beijing, one of those that do have it being the lobby lounge bar of the Kempinski Hotel in Liangmaqiao. At Tomacado, an Americano using Julius Meinl will set you back 28 yuan and a cappuccino 35 yuan.

Tomacado offers different lunch set menus on weekdays, each comprising a daily soup, salad and main course, the total cost being less than 100 yuan a person. Whatever you are expecting here, it is likely that in a most relaxing environment you will get more than you bargained for. I for one will be back for more of the same: food, drink and of course the flowers.

dongfangyu@chinadaily.com.cn