By Damon McMahon (cityweekend.com)
Updated: 2008-03-04 15:15

With an entrance flanked by plastic, life-sized palm trees, and quite suitably, a Bentley dealership, Banana GT has the air of a Malibu mansion dropped in the middle of Beijing's sprawl.

In his latest re-tooling of the Banana franchise, Jeffrey Hu has blended a Hollywood theme with that of a luxury space shuttle. A winding staircase fit with hanging surfboards and chandeliers leads to the main floor of this three-story, 2,000-capacity club. The neon-lit, half-moon bar offers a variety of special drinks including Banana GT's fresh fruit Mojitos (40 yuan) and Heinekens (30 yuan).

For the less frugal, 1,980 yuan bottles of Dom Perignon are available along with VIP rooms starting at 2,000 yuan. A 30-foot LED screen and massive sound system fill the dance floor with synchronized light shows, rap videos and the latest hip-hop and electro, along with monthly appearances by international DJ superstars, such as Paul Van Dyk and Tiesto.

Address: 22 Jianguomenwai Dajie, Scitech Hotel　　Telephone: 6528-3636