Beijing Boyce

Welcome to Readers’ Writes week, starring the collective wisdom of 17 fellow bar-goers who answered my survey about their favorite Beijing drinking holes and the city’s general nightlife scene. They include men and women, span five decades in age, hail from four continents, and provide some appreciated insights. (Note: This first appeared in last week’s newsletter. To get the newsletter, send an email with “Eat, Drink and Be Merry” in the subject line to beijingboyce@yahoo.com.)

Without further ado…

SO, American, journalist

Favorites
Face: I like the subdued ambiance, the pool table is often free, the crowd has a good vibe, and there’s a nice combination of open space and corners to chat. Music is the right volume. Good place for an after work drink or date. The downside - it’s expensive. Also, it appears to be getting more popular now, which is a downside.

All-time
The Jam House, back when there was a real South Sanlitun. The rooftop terrace in the grotty alley was great and there were actual instruments that you could just grab and start jamming on. The No-Name bar, before Houhai became the nightmare it is now. Good vibe, a real wood burning stove, and at the time, a great location

The scene
Generally, buy stuff in bottles. Especially if you can see the staff open the bottle in front of you - it minimizes the risks of being served god knows what. Martini’s should be ordered with extreme discretion. Much of the city still thinks Martini and Rossi vermouth (or anything made by the company) should be the main - and only - ingredient of a Martini.

WILL, American, public relations consultant

Favorite
The Stone Boat, especially during Spring and Autumn, when it’s pleasant to sit outside. It’s often not very crowded, it’s nicely centrally located and it’s not too expensive if you’re just looking for a couple of quick beers. Plus, if, like me, you usually want conversation over your beer, it doesn’t drown out chitchat with deafening music. And I like watching the die-hard anglers trying to pull the cadmium-laced fish out of that muddy pond.

All-time
The Electric Cactus Garden. Or at least, that’s how I think of it. This was a restaurant near my apartment when I first arrived in Beijing to study Chinese. It was just far enough off the main street that not many students bothered with it. It was in the shadow of Line Thirteen and we called it the Electric Cactus Garden because it had three enormous, fiberglass cacti bedecked with Christmas lights out front. It had a bunch of al-fresco tables and served enormous glasses of Beijing Beer for three kuai. The first time we went we closed out the place and the entire staff ended up drinking with us. It wasn’t slick and it wasn’t great for dining, but it was cheap and friendly and appealed to the love of friendly dives.

The scene
There is no doubt that Beijing’s drinking scene has become much more sophisticated over the past few years, but much of this is lost on me. I like cheap, divey places with outdoor tables, and most of my fondest drinking memories revolve around places like the Electric Cactus Garden, the old Wudaokou Worker’s Club (where free entertainment was provided in the form of the nightly fistfight), the vanished-into-redevelopment South Bar Street, and the place at the end of Lotus Lane on Houhai where you can sit right next to the water and watch the tea lights floating on the lake. (But, for the love of god, don’t order any food.) Most of my best drinking nights have been at places like these. Glitzy joints that serve 70-kuai Martinis made with exotic flavors just don’t resonate with me, although I’ve had some fun nights watching the expensive, imported hookers working Asian businessmen at a couple of upscale hotel bars I can think of.

Speaking of martinis, though, increasing sophistication hasn’t ironed out all the rough edges. About a year ago, I ordered a Martini - I can’t remember where - and was given a shot of pure Martini vermouth on the rocks. Yow. Still, the diversity is good, and the most expensive night of drinking in Beijing is still cheaper than the cheapest night of drinking in Singapore, so I guess I can be thankful for that.

JIM BOYCE, Canadian, NGO, in Beijing 2 years, 5 months

Favorites
Q Bar for its cocktails, bartenders, unassuming ambience; Cheers for just being Cheers, a good happy hour, live music; Shooters, for its steady staff, people-watching ops, good DJ. I enjoy Browns on occasion for its spacious layout and good clean fun. Phil’s Pub is my top 10-kuai drink joint, though a recent visit to Black Sun reminded me it’s good, too. Sequoia Cafe (nice wine tastings), Cafe Europa (more wine), Pavillion (big chairs), China Doll (ambience), Maggies (music), The Den (pizza), Cox (wings) and many others have their charms.

All-time
First Cafe, hands down. It was a cozy spot with good ambience, music, cocktails and people - show up alone, leave with a half-dozen friends. I first met Agent Red Wolf, O-Zone, The Flash, bartenders George and Echo, and many others there, gave out its name card by the dozen, brought every colleague and client I knew. I literally felt sick when I walked by one day and saw workers dismantling it with hacksaws and crowbars. Still in shock… somebody, get me a martini!

The scene
I’ve seen many Beijing bars fail because the owners were too arrogant or too stubborn to listen to the customer. It’s especially true at high-end places, which are often touted as cutting edge but are really bringing or copying a model from somewhere else. The most creative and interesting bars, and the most energetic and entrepreneurial bar people, arise in, focus on and cater to the Beijing scene, and rarely tend to be on the high end.