Beijing's bar scene is booming like everything else in the capital, however Erik Nilsson discovers the lifespan of bar is short lived

The cup of nightlife options overflows for the Beijing boozer, because every week a new bar opens. When one flashy bar opens its doors, inevitably another one closes. Five years ago That's Beijing magazine launched its first edition and listed 200 bars. Today only 11 of these bars are still operating.

According to David Eimer, co-author of the latest Lonely Planet Beijing City Guide, most of the bars listed in the 2007 edition are completely different from the previous edition. "The previously listed bars simply no longer exist."

The number of bars in Beijing is impossible to measure. Currently, there are 278 bars registered with the Beijing Administration of Industry and Commerce, however, the real number is anybody's guess. There are more than 200 bars in the Sanlitun area alone.

The fierce rivalry for an increasing yet finite number of patrons makes many owners wonder if their glasses like their bars are half empty, rather than full. "There's a lot of churning," said Frank Siegel, who opened the first non-hotel bar in Beijing, Frank's Place, 16 years ago.

Part of this, he says, is that the bar industry is notorious for having a high turnover rate. The other part of the equation, he says, is the changing face of the city.

"They're wiping out entire sections of the city. What they're putting in their place is going high-end," Siegel said.

From the vantage point of Beijing barstool, the city looks more and more like Shanghai every month.

Canadian Jim Boyce, an NGO communications director, writes the Beijing Boyce nightlife newsletter for 550 subscribers. He says the reach for sophistication is raising the bar in the city's nightlife scene. "Unfortunately, this is not an easy market to serve, if only for the simple reason that Beijing is not Shanghai," he said.

Michael Wester, general manager of True Run Media, parent company of That's Beijing magazine, calls the phenomenon a "closing of the gap" between the two cities.

"In 2002, when I'd go to Shanghai, I'd be shocked people would pay 50 kuai for a beer. But today, they're selling for that price here in Beijing," said Wester, who pointed out that this new clientele is not limited to the "moneyed class", but rather to, "ordinary people".

Jacki Li, owner of Magic Rock bar in Haidian District, believes fewer people go to bars, and those who do are demanding discounts.

"Some bars agreed to give discounts, so customers go to the next bar asking for the same discount. If one bar on a street reduces their prices, it ruins it for the other bars on that street," he said.

Despite a dip in clientele, Magic Rock is still going strong after five years a claim few can make in Beijing's cut-throat bar scene.

As more Beijing venues become more upmarket, Siegel says rents will rise, making it difficult for independent operators.

"So you'll probably see a lot more dispersion of bars throughout the city," he said. "It's fragmenting. You're going to have nodes rather than one central area, and these nodes might specialize in one type of venue."

Jacki Li recalls a 2002 local government notice, which said the street on which his bar was located would be reconstructed.

He did not know when the bulldozers would come, however he knew investing more money in the bar would be a waste.

The last bar he worked at, Jinse Nian Dai, was demolished in 2002.

"How do you know if the place is going to be torn down tomorrow? You have to hedge your bets," Wester said.

He said bars even closed down between the time his magazine went to print and was distributed.

Frank Segal points out the window of his newest venture, the Sequoia Caf, toward a recently demolished school on Guanghua Lu.

"That's what's happening in the city," he said.

On the corner of the demolition site is the gutted out shell of what two months ago was New World Bar.

"They've been around forever as long as we have," Siegel said. "They were here for 10 years, and now, they're gone."

(China Daily 01/06/2007 page5)