Bed Tapas & Bar

The perfect Beijing bar – an old courtyard house kitted out with antique furniture, including kang-style beds. Excellent food, plus weekend DJs (see Bed Tapas & Bar).

Centro

Beijing’s classiest bar is off the lobby of one of the city’s swankiest hotels. Louche and loungey, it boasts live jazz, sexy waitresses, and the last word in cocktails.

• Kerry Center Hotel, 1 Guanghua Lu

• 6561 8833 ext. 629

• Subway: Guomao

Drum & Bell

A terrific location between the Drum and Bell Towers, and an appealing mix of aged furniture, Cultural Revolution memorabilia, cheap Tsingtao beer, and friendly staff (see Drum & Bell).

No Name Bar

The oldest Hou Hai bar is also the best, with a ramshackle charm that defeats the copyists. Heated by wood-burning stoves, or cooled by lake breezes, it’s perfect year-round (see No Name Bar).

Pass By Bar

Located on trendy Nan Luogu Xiang, the Pass By Bar is a well-established travelers’ haunt. Two attractive rooms wrap around a pretty courtyard; food is a cut above, and there’s a lending library and guidebooks for sale (see Pass By Bar).

Red Moon

Where Beijing’s smart set mingles with Executive Class visitors. This is the sleek house bar of one of the city’s most high-powered hotels. Dress to impress for cocktails, sushi bar, and cigar lounge. Quality, of course, comes at a price.

• Grand Hyatt, 1 Dong Chang’an Jie

• 8518 1234

• Subway: Wangfujing

Souk

Tucked behind Annie’s restaurant near the west gate of Chaoyang Park, Souk is where the Middle East (in the form of hookahs and Lebanese cuisine) meets the Far East. There are the obligatory kang-style beds for lounging and a courtyard for al fresco drinking, as well as weekend DJs.

• West gate of Chaoyang Park

• 6506 7309

Stone Boat

While it may not be as historically significant as its namesake up at the Summer Palace, this Stone Boat does a good latte, it’s a WiFi hotspot and, come evening, it serves as a unique, candlelit venue for a quiet drink.

• Ri Tan Park

• 6501 9986

• Subway: Yongan Li

The Tree

A huge favorite among the city’s expats, this is a convivial, stone-floored pub that marries a fantastic array of beers (40 Belgian brews alone) with excellent wood-fired pizzas.

• 43 Sanlitun Bei Jie

• 6415 1954

• Subway: Dong Si Shi Tiao

World of Suzie Wong

The name is from a novel about a prostitute, but this Suzie Wong is wholly respectable. It set the mark for the “opium den-style” popular in Beijing bar-land and it’s stayed ahead of the pack. The best place to meet Beijing’s most beautiful people

• West gate of Chaoyang Park

• 6500 3877

2 Kolegas Bar

Live music bar at a drive-in movie theater. Two miles east of the Lufthansa Center.

• 21 Liang Ma Qiao Lu

• 8196 4820

13 Club

Hardcore venue in the university district of Haidian.

• 161 Lanqiying

• 8262 8077

Club Obiwan

Laid-back clubbing with a great view of Xihai Lake.

• 328 yards (300 m) south of Jishuitan subway

• 6617 3231

CD Jazz Café

Beijing’s only dedicated jazz venue.

• 16 Dongsanhuan Bei Lu

• 6506 8288

D22

Eclectic mix of live music and a dedicated crowd.

• 242 Chengfu Lu (Haidian)

• 6265 3177

Mao Live House

This vast, warehouse-like space with a great stage is backed by a Japanese record label.

• 111 Gulou Dong Dajie

• 6402 5080

New Get Lucky

Nuren Jie bar majoring in Chinese rock, roots, and folk.

• Xingba Lu

• 8448 333

The Tree

The music is incidental to the business of drinking, but the occasional act impresses (see The Tree).

What? Bar

Terrific little, indie-oriented music bar close by the west gate of the Forbidden City.

• 72 Bei Chang Jie

• 139 1020 9249

Yugong Yishan

The city’s most satisfying music venue, with an eclectic but always laudable booking policy.

• 1 Gongren Tiyuchang Bei Lu

• 6415 0687