Shanghaiist: Kangding Lu — Where you'll be this winter

Pirx

Sun, 30 Nov 2008 20:34:40 +0800

Wine bar closed on Friday nigh! My God! When do they want to make money? Christmas?

James Creegan

Mon, 22 Sep 2008 10:10:46 +0800

@Pirx- maybe everything has to move inside at 9pm but I can't believe no-one is allowed to stay open. They don't stop serving food at Kommune until 10:30, and Japanese bar Hiro goes on late. I miss RU so much that I'm tempted to go all the way to Gubei to try their new branch.

yu888

Mon, 22 Sep 2008 01:08:55 +0800

RU Cafe, as good as it was did not draw a wide enough audience and certainly had less profit potential than selling drinks. Let's hope this combination of food and drink in one small alley will make it a destination for more than just local traffic.

Pirx

Sun, 21 Sep 2008 21:34:53 +0800

@James Creegan There is no nightlife at Taikang lu. The bars/eateris/shops have to suspend all outside activity by 9 p.m. Famed RU Cafe was also just outside the gates of One Park Avenue and is closing. Turning a buck in hospitality in Shanghai is a challenge not to be underestimated.

shopgirl

Sun, 21 Sep 2008 07:01:37 +0800

new factories is a JOKE please close it.

James Creegan

Sat, 20 Sep 2008 19:06:55 +0800

Kangding Lu is definitely a nightspot, but I don't think the attempt to mix nightlife and shopping at Taikang is working so that's cool with me. Kangding is admittedly a bit remote, but it's right behind Eight Park Avenue, a very easy walk from One Park Avenue and San He Hua Yuan which might give it a good fighting chance of traffic during the week.

Pirx

Sat, 20 Sep 2008 10:58:53 +0800

Kangding lu indeed is the culmination of lessons learned from Xintiandi and Taikang lu. The comparison, however, does not work. There is no shopping at Kangding lu. It does not have the day-life of Taikang lu. Kangding lu to me is a pure night-spot. Xintiandi sucks tremendously, many good efforts to up the quality and to blow a little bit of heart & soul into it faltered. Plastic, Disneyland. Different from Taikang lu, where the landlords living upstairs happily collect rent but at the same time protest the lively activity they invited, there are no naggy anti-business landlords at Kangding lu, upstairs are offices, downstairs the restaurants and bars. Different from Xintiandi and Taikang lu there are no rich amateurs or beginners at work in Kangding lu. Hardened professionals, who came out from the (glorious but failed) Pier One, Da Marco, et al. Sizewise, it is a just a tiny fraction of Taikang lu or Xintiandi. The location is a bit remote, near the commercial failure of the New Factories, 3 blocks from Nanjing Road. If Kangding lu can maintain the current high standard, it is a sure winner.

James Creegan

Sat, 20 Sep 2008 02:09:15 +0800

I think if I'm honest the bar scene in Beijing is better than Shanghai- cheaper, more variety, and not as posey. Still though, this alleyway is a step in the right direction for SH.

kristhedabendan

Fri, 19 Sep 2008 21:52:20 +0800

I moved to beijing about six months ago and while i really miss a lot of shit about shanghai and still heart everything there one thing i dont miss is 25 kuai beer being called "cheap".

tenforty

Fri, 19 Sep 2008 17:12:52 +0800

Good. About time Shanghai had a decent bar street. Someone please car-bomb Tongren Lu. Preferably while it's really busy.