Ride on in

Visiting The Rickshaw during the dearth of Spring Festival season was something of a revelation - life did still exist in the capital. This 24-hour joint, or Fine Diner and Bar as it calls itself, stayed true to its cause, providing a cozy place to be merry while many other Beijing venues closed their doors.

Fierce winds whipped the city but we found salvation inside the Rickshaw's two-storey, orange domain. It was a packed house of expats swilling Stella Artois beers and super-sized cocktails and chowing down on king-sized burritos.

The Rickshaw is located off Gongti Beilu, on Sanlitun South Street, in the heart of the city's embassy district. It is a sporting bar with a pool table and hosts regular events such as January's Superbowl Party. On any given evening, the play of the day or the latest on the Barack-Hillary race blares from plasma TV screens behind the upstairs bar.