Article By Ben Greuter
- 2F, Xi`an conservatory of music, No.108, Chang An Zhong Lu, Yanta District 雁塔区长安中路108号 西安音乐学院演播厅2层(船动力2楼)
- (029) 6232 1950
- 10:00am -1:30am
- Average Price per Person / 人均消费:100RMB
- PROS:Brewery; outside city center; strong theme restaurant
- CONS:City-center prices
Named after a famous era of many of America’s biggest pop culture movements, 1950 is a well decorated, spacious American diner/bar with all the Americana one could want. From Presley portraits to classic Coca-Cola machines found nowadays only in post-apocalyptic video games, all the 50s icons we Americans could be proud of (or embarrassed by) can be found here.
As you walk in through the side-wound entry way, you can’t help but notice the cute little jukebox, but beware, you could miss the big independent brewery tucked behind the next large counter that comes right after your pass the jukebox! That’s right, another self-brew is now available here in Xi’an, and for those of you not interested in making the slightly longer trip up to the city wall itself, you could instead get off at Tiyuchang for your cold craft beer. It comes in 4 different shades, from white to black, so all parts of the spectrum can have at it equally. If that’s not to your liking, worry not, for just as you pass the big bronze brewery vats, you’ll step into the main room of the restaurant that begins appropriately with the colorfully neon, fully stocked bar.
You’ll also find the Americana decorating the two large dining areas easy on the eyes. Harley Davidson décor, factoid portraits of James Dean, Clint Eastwood, and even Marilyn Monroe! If you wanted some information on Skychief, Elvis Presley, or even if you just have a fetish for ridiculously unnatural deer heads hanging over the stage where your plastic life-sized Elvis jamming on his guitar sits, you’ll be satisfied.
Now, I must admit, the menu is impressive, and the selection is refreshingly large for a restaurant and bar in Xi’an, so if you want choices and promise with your craft beer, it’s the place to be. While you scour all the mouth-watering choices on the menu, be sure to browse the tidbits of Americana and the small info-grams scattered throughout the pages, a great source of entertainment and an interest quencher! In any case, we found that the pizza takes a bit longer than most other dishes, so order wisely to receive fast dishes all together and the slow dishes all together. And when your wait is finished, try not to be too hungry for the pizza…I recommend the Avocado Chicken salad myself, as the chicken is lean and marinated in something sensational that I still can’t put my finger on.
For comments, questions, or concerns, email Ben at the_scop_x@yahoo.com. He’ll reply if your email address doesn’t look like spam.