Daily 9am-2am
100m north of Peking University’s west gate, Haidian
8287 1031

This student-friendly joint attempts to fill the void left by Solutions. The club is separated into a restaurant/lounge area for chilling and a dance floor for booty shaking to the tune of foreign DJs spinning R&B, house and hip hop Thu-Sat. A range of snacks fall under the oxymoronic ‘Western-style Japanese food’.

Daily 6.30pm-1.30am
A2 Huang Ting Zi Lu, Haidian
8204 9579

The grandaddy of Beijing’s rock scene, Soundstage (aka Rhine River) underwent managerial changes, and will no longer host live music. From here on, Beijing’s best bands will have to find an alternative to the capital’s best stage. No word as of yet what will replace this landmark of live music, but the bar will continue to operate.

Daily 6pm-2am
Weigongcun Lu, Haidian

Scorpion is aimed at the young crowd and cute young waiters with silver bandanas drawing passers-by into a space cowboy wonderland. Performances under the canopy of silver flags and multicolour disco ball start at 9pm every night. Dancing at eleven.

Daily noon-3am
Beijing Language and Culture University, Zhen Shi, Haidian
8230 3771

Located inside the Beijing Language and Culture University and managed by the Minorities Culture Centre, the Rock Bar features a large central space surrounded by three semi-private rooms decked out in Tibetan, Yunnan and Xinjiang styles. Student-friendly prices get even more friendly on Friday nights.

200, meters from the south gate of the Beijing Uni, Haidian

B1.5 Cuiwei Building, Haidian
8821887

Open: 2pm-2am
24 Kexueyuan Nanlu, Haidian

This looks more like a military forward command post than a bar. The military-style decoration and regular salon for military fans makes it a favourite hangout for those interested in matters military and the art of war.

On entering you’ll see a portrait of a soldier drawn by the owner, next to which is a shelf displaying items such as shoulder emblems, weapons carried by a guard of honour and maps used in a number of famous wars. Also on the walls are pictures of planes, warships, telescopes and radio transmitters.

Usually video tapes on present-day weapons and war documentaries are screened. Even martial magazines are on offer.

Daily 6pm-3am
3 Weigongcun Lu, Haidian
6845 1142

This bar caters to the West Side climbing crew and organises climbing trips around Beijing. Mountaineering gear and camping equipment are the bar’s equivalent of wallpaper, along with posters of beefy scaling studs flexing their pecs as they ascend edifices.

Daily 2pm-5am
8 Chengfu Shi Wei Ying, Haidian
6276 7355

Loup Chante’s small stage is quite possibly Haidian’s best and hosts regular jazz nights and jam sessions. The bar is student-friendly with reasonable drink and coffee prices and a great selection of jazz and funk music as well as some of the city’s best cocktails.

Daily 1pm-3am
1/F, Bldg 16, Min Zu Daxue Beilu, Weigongcun, Haidian
6846 8200

A mainstay in the ever-changing Weigongcun area, Listen Bar has long attracted locals and students for its hideaway atmosphere and Sunday night English corners. Its once-ratty interior has been given a makeover and a new road makes the place more accessible. Stop by after feasting on Dai food next door.