Habitats

Restaurants and Bars
Fan
• Kuba Kuba – Great hole in the wall Cuban food in the fan. Well worth the wait you will have for dinner. The paella dishes are enough for two if you order an appetizer.
• Arianna’s Pizza – NY Style Pizza in the Fan at the Corner of Sheppard and Park. Only $2.50 for a slice of cheese ready in 5 minutes.
• Sticky Rice – Sticky Rice is a great Asian hodgepodge restaurant, with amazing stir-fry and original sushi recipes (though some people don’t trust their sushi). Tater tots are served late into the night, when the restaurant turns hipster bar. Karaoke on Tuesdays is where its at in Richmond and they do Trivia on Mondays and a movie with Sunday brunch.
• De Luxe – Great American food and a nice calm lounge in the evening/night. Go upstairs for a slightly more comfy atmosphere.
• Sidewalk Café – A later last call than most of the bars, its your typical late night bar.
• Carytown Diner – Full of hippies, a great bar for live music on Mondays.
• Strawberry Street Café – A cute place to match the adorable name. An great brunch on the weekends and with any meal at any time you can add a trip to the bathtub salad bar (in a clawfoot bathtub in the center of the room) for $5.
• Joe’s Inn – You might forget you are in the middle of a city while grabbing a bite at this inexpensive diner. The wood paneling, children’s art on the wall, and all wooden furniture makes you feel more like you are in a small town beyond the suburbs.
• Bacchaus – A fancy restaurant that would make a romantic date complete with its twinkling Christmas lights and small seating availability.
• Avalon – A typical bar, but great for grabbing a drink with friends because there are tons of booths to sit at, if you are less inclined to stand at the crowded bar all night waiting for your next drink.
• Bamboo – Very small bar and seating area with some Richmond classic beers.
• 3 Monkey’s – The young professional scene is centered around 3 Monkey’s and Starlight on the weekends, but this is also a great place for a weekend brunch.
• Starlight – $2 rail drinks on Tuesdays makes this crowded of recent grads and business folk, but any night of the week it will have a good number of people drinking.
• Martini Kitchen and Bubble Bar – For completely different demographics and different scene MKBB has live Jazz several nights of the week.

Carytown
• Carytown Burgers and Fries – Another hole in the wall, but this place sells Richmond’s tastiest and most original burgers, loaded with everything from chicken tenders and eggs to Brie cheese. Also make sure you try their cherry limeade.
• Thai Diner Too – Authentic Thai food for a reasonable price. Order each dish with chicken, seafood, or tofu and pick how spicy you’d like it: Mild, Medium, Hot, or THAI Hot.
• Ginger Thai – Another restaurant of “Thai town” in Carytown (within 2 blocks there are 3 Thai places).
• Can-Can – A fancy brunch place with its bar open for coffee or mimosas on weekend mornings. You’ll feel like you are dining in the 1940’s.
• New York Deli – Mediocre food but a decent place to drink with local DJs spinning or local bands jamming on certain nights of the week.
• Mrs. Marshall’s Carytown Café – Simple homemade sandwiches, salads, and sweets. Perfect boxed lunch with a bottle of Cheerwine (native to NC), please!!
• Nacho Mamma’s – Best nachos in town with all different toppings and a killer margarita.

Downtown
• Panda Veg – On a place I like to call vegetarian tattoo avenue, this small place on the corner stands out when you drive up Grace Ave. Its your basic Chinese food, but with imitation meats that are friendly for vegetarians, vegans, and omnivores alike.
• Ipanema – Down a block from Panda Veg, this vegan and vegetarian restaurant is mostly underground. Its dimly lit atmosphere would make for a great date or after dinner drink for the adventurous couples.
• TJ’s at the Jefferson – This will the Splurge of your life in terms of brunch. For fifty dollars a person you will enjoy the most lavish meal of your life. A brunch buffett consisting of about 15 tables of seafood, roasted meats, hot breakfast, breads, desserts, and served with champagne or mimosas, brunch in the Jefferson’s grand foyer is an unforgettable experience.
• Nile Ethiopian Restaurant – The better of two Ethiopian places in Richmond, this makes for an adventurous dining experience. Food is eaten by scooping it up onto the spongy Ethiopian tortilla-like bread.
• Cous cous – Great Mediterranean Moroccan style food. The best of the lot being the Saganaki, sheep cheese over apples served with pita. Sangria by the pitcher.
• Penny Lane Pub – This typical British style pub with its music-plastered walls and its low ceilings transports you out of the former confederacy and into the isles of North Eastern Europe. Trivia on Wednesdays starts at 7, be there before 6:30 to get a seat.

Church Hill
• Patrick Henry Pub – Another typical Irish pub also hosts trivia, but on Mondays. In the safe area of Church Hill, it’s a great escape from the typical downtown/fan district trips, taking you to a new area to explore.

Shockoe Bottom
• Millie’s – A hole in the wall diner downtown, past shockoe bottom on Main Street.
• Café Gutenberg – A cute place for a glass of wine or bite to eat.
• Comfort – On Broad Street in the heart of Broad (right before the numbered streets if you are headed downtown) this modern southern restaurant fills you up with great comfort food.
• Bottom’s Up Pizza – The best pizza in Richmond, topped with some of the most original toppings a pizza can have. One slice is enough because it is a very puffy Chicago style pizza and has a pretty wide cute.
• Richbrau Brewing Company – Downtown these home-brewed beers will make you smile. With rotating specials that change every few weeks you won’t get bored. Though the upstairs game room can keep you entertained with pool and arcade games and people watching (inside and out the windows looking out on Shockoe slip), the Growler is worth purchasing if you live in Richmond. Fill up 5.5 pints for just over $8.
• Kobe – The Japanese Steakhouse of Richmond, fancy and worth it for the entertainment. Buy a drink and upgrade to a ceramic glass shaped like a Buddha or Japanese style animal cartoon character that you can take home with you.
• Black Finn – There is always dancing on the weekends, but more than anything this Irish restaurant and pub is the place to be on St. Patrick’s Day.
• Tobacco Company Restaurant – The trip up the originial elevetor will transport you back to the 1800’s for your fine dining experience in what made a pretty impressive clubhouse for Richmond’s elite of the time period.
• City Dawgs – Dine in or take it to go and continue walking down shockoe slip in just five minutes. These hot dogs are loaded with your favorite toppings. All dogs can also be ordered soy.
• Ronnie’s BBQ and Wings – This is a great place to get lunch in the summer. Although the Ronnie’s restaurant is out in Midlothian, in the summer they have trailer set up in a parking lot at 26th and Main. The ribs are fantastic and so is the BBQ.

West End
• Texas de Brazil at Stony Point Mall – A very expensive restaurant for a special occasion, it is definitely a unique dinign experience. With all you can eat meat that servers bring around still on the roasting skewer
• Cheeburger Cheeburger – Like a 50’s burger joint, the smell from outside will pull you in through the front doors of this restaurant at Three Chopt and Patterson. Their milkshakes are to die for and you can also order your burger on a salad if you feel guilty about getting the large malt.
• Mosaics – At River and Huegenot, this Greek Bistro has pita pizzas, pita wraps, and great pasta dishes. Nothing compares however, to their freshly baked cookies and array of pies and cakes. Share with friends to get a taste of all the sweet stuff.
• China Star – At this Chinese restaurant on Cox road right off of Broad street, you will enjoy very authentic Chinese food from various regions of China and experience excellent service.
• Pho Restaurant – On Horsepen there are several Vietnamese Noodle restaurants, but the best is located directly behind Mexico’s. They are closed on Tuesdays. The spring rolls with peanut sauce and the pho or vermicelli make an excellent combination.
• Mexico Restaurant – Also on Horsepen this a great Mexican restaurant—and cheap too! The food gets tastier with their jump strawberry or lime daquiri in hand.
• Magnolia’s – A wine store and restaurant, it makes for a cute date or girls night out. They have free wine tastings in the store section on Friday starting at 5:30.
• Bar Louie – A large bar that hosts live bands regularly and is located across from Short Pump, it’s a little inconvieniet to downtown but worth the trip for a good musical ensemble.

Libbie-Grove Area
• Westhampton Bakery – Baked goods at Libbie and Patterson.
• Panani Drive – Fantastic wraps for a decent price and a group of two or three can enjoying eating on a comfy sofa or couch.
• Café Catura – A wine bar that has an outdoor patio and comfy indoor seating, their food may be overpriced, but it’s a great place to grab a glass of wine.
• Philips Continental Lounge – A diner, but its best known for Karaoke on Thursday nights. Vodka limeades are killer and Richmond’s favorite beer, Pabit Blue Ribbon, is $1.25 a can.
• Peking Palace – A renowned Chinese place right at Libbie and Grove.

Miscellaneous
• Legend Brewery – In Manchester, this bar is a great place to go as a visitor of Richmond simply for the view of downtown Richmond you get from their outdoor patio from across the James.
• Edible Garden – This all natural restaurant sells all locally grown food and is located out River Road.

Coffee and Cafés
• Crossroads Coffee and Café – The perfect place for breakfast any time, there’s lots of comfy couches or patio seating to stick around you’re your beverage and surf the web from.
• Betsy’s at Bin 22 – A people watching locale right on Cary Street.
• Robinson Street Café – A VCU hotspot not only for coffee but for their vegan specialty sandwiches. The upstairs balcony is perfect for people watching or finding a nook for studying where you won’t get too distracted.
• Village Café – On Grace Ave across from Panda Veg this is another VCU hotspot. Great for a bar or a bite to eat.
• Ellewood’s Coffee-- At the corner of Thompson and Main, right across the strip mall from Ellewood’s there are lots of comfy chairs and free WiFi here.
• Lift – In the downtown area of Broad (right before the numbered streets) this places makes some mean deserts and is a nice place to grab a drink at night. It gets pretty crowded during First Fridays, but they stay speedy and on their feet.
• Baja Bean Company – This place has EVERYTHING you need. Its is a calm coffee place in the day, a great dinner place in the evening (2 for 1 tacos on Tuesday!) and, a bar with everything you could think of at night. With one room for billiards, another with a bar, one for karaoke or drinking games, and an outdoor bar – who needs bar hopping when you can room hop?
• Bev’s Ice Cream – Right across from the Byrd on Cary Street, this homemade Ice cream shop is Richmond’s finest. Specials change monthly or bimonthly, but all their flavors are worth a sample at the least. They also have frozen yogurt, sorbet, and sherbet.

Clubs
• Lucky Buddha – A smoky atmosphere, with glowing red lights, this club is frequented by internationals but plays a good music selection for dancing.
• Sine’s
• Tobacco Company – Underground, around the corner from the main entrance of the Tob. Co. Restaurant, it is sometimes too quiet for a club, but a very swanky place with big leopard print booths that are perfect for large groups.

Museums
• Richmond Science Museum – A $10 entrance fee for adults, this is a beautiful building with rotating exhibits and an IMAX theatre.
• Virginia Museum of Fine Arts – Currently undergoing renovations (2009), the VMFA has an impressive collection of permanent and guest exhibits. There is also a great café inside.
• Virginia Historical Center – A great place for kids and adults alike, admission is free! Learn a little more about Virginia, the confederacy, colonial America, and more recent history. Currently (2009) there is an excellent exhibit on African American culture in the Vietnam war.
• Richmond Children’s Museum – A popular museum for babysitters and parents.
• Plant Zero Art Gallery/ artspace – Located in Old Town Manchester (Head downtown, Turn at right at 14th street which turns into Hull, and Turn left on 2nd street). This old converted warehouse is made up mostly of private working studios but the hallways and one open gallery are open to peruse. The open gallery’s exhibits typically rotate every month. Also, the Richmond Slam poetry troupe has open mic slamming every Friday night.
• First Friday’s Artwalk – Located in downtown on Broad (Between Foushee and Monroe) these galleries open new exhibits for every first Friday of the month. While most galleries are right on Broad some are within a block on side streets and Gallery 9 is always worth checking (for its downtown stage area and upstairs gallery) out and is 2 blocks away (walk past the giant milk-bottle shaped building). To find the galleries look for the small but colorful First Friday’s flags hanging outside the doors. First Friday’s is not limited to the inside through, walk the few blocks to enjoy street performers and glance around local vendors’ food and clothing stands.

Day trips and Adventure
• Tubing down the James – Several outfitters are available to rent tubes from and they can tell you locations to start and end. Pony pasture (see below) is also another option for short-distance tubing.
• Belle Isle – A perfect trip for a few hours of relaxing in the city but away from the hubbub of cars and tall buildings. This island in the middle of the James is mostly forest with the exceptions being ruins from industrial buildings, a civil war prisoner of war camp, and an iron foundry. Trails snake through and around the island and on the far side large flat rocks are the perfect place to sunbathe, go read, or hang out on the weekends with a group of friends. You can wade in certain spots, but careful where you swim. Also, careful not to slip on algae or when the rocks with dried mud get slippery with your wet feet. Enter from the end of 7th street (near Brown’s Island) and walk across the footbridge underneath the 9th street bridge. On days where is will be crowded parking there will be sparse, so cross the river on Belvidere?? and take your first exit. Park in the neighborhood and take the stairwell near the park sign down past the railroad tracks to the far side of the
• Mountain Biking at Belle Isle – A mountain biking area is located on the far side of Belle Isle. You can bike over large smooth boulders and practice your moves for more rough terrain by biking down, over, and around the dips and drops in the rocks.
• Pony Pasture and James River Flatwater with Rope Swing – Another great place to hangout on the river. You can tube here or wade out into the water if the water level isn’t too high and sunbathe on the rocks. Canoeing and Kayaking are also big here through the small rapids. Pony pasture is all the way down Riverside Drive (about 1.5-2mi after exiting off of Huguenot Road). But if you park in the small lot on your left where there is a sign saying James River Flatwater you will have a different experience. A short wooded path through the forest leads you to the River’s Edge where you can fish and swim. If you turn right when you dead end with the water, a little bit farther down there is a rope swingyou can climb up from in the water or jump off a treeholding onto (there is a ladder nailed into the tree to climb up to the jumping platform). Riverside drive is the first exit off of the West Side of the Huguenot Bridge. Turn right at the end of the exit ramp. Boat ramp to the left.
• Maymont – A famous park in Richmond this large plot has fields, rolling hills, a barn, its own zoo animals, and Italian and Japanese style gardens. You can tour the Maymont Mansion and Stone Barn. Its absolutely beautiful all year around, but especially in the autumn.
• John Smith Trail – Running from Pony Pasture all the way to Belle Isle, this is Richmond’s premiere hiking trail. About 7 miles long.
• Hollywood Cemetery – Located in Oregon Hill (South of Cary Street, mirror to the Fan District), this cemetery is burials ground to many famous historical figures including President James Monroe, President John Tyler, Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson, and President of the Confederate States Jefferson Davis. It is still an active cemetery but visitors are welcome. Its easy to get lost, so follow the blue lines to the exit, if you do.

Shopping
Groceries
• 17th Street Farmer’s Market – Local farmer’s truck in their produce for sale at this downtown market everyday, but the big day for the market is Thursday. Grab some fresh fruits or vegetables for a price beyond reasonable. The pavilion is located at 17th and Main.
• Ellewood’s – This all natural food market is relatively inexpensive and has a good selection of vegetarian and vegan foods.
• Mediterranean Market – Located on Meadow at Broad Street, across from the 7-11 this is a great find for fans of international cuisine. The Syrian owners offer ready made food ranging from Greek, to Arabic, to Turkic. They have amazing gyros, falafel, kebbeh, stuffed grape leaves, and Turkish coffee. They also sell Halal Meats and your other Mediterranean Grocery needs.
• Shields Market – An adorable market on Shields at Grove, this place has great cookies a wide array of wines, and if you live within walking distance is a great place for a quick grcery stop.

Clothing and Accessories
• Vintage Clothing on Cary – At the corner of Cary and Sheppard on your right is a great cheap vintage shop. Their clothing selection is limited and usually relatively wintery, but if you are looking for a vintage coat, start here. They also have a great collection of vintage jewelry, hats, and glasses.
• Bygones Vintage Clothing – A little more on the expensive side, this shop is located right next to the Byrd theatre. They have a great selection of dresses and a wedding section in the back of the store. Look for sale items because then you are probably going to get a good deal.
• Halycon – On Robinson, this is my favorite vintage place in Richmond. The owner and her employees are always so sweet and helpful. They have a fast turnover, so keep coming in for new finds. They also have lay-away.
• Ant Hill – This jewelry shop has some antiques upstairs (all 50% off), but the downstairs is the real treasure trove. Some pieces are newly made, but most are antiques and you can find any type of pendant or chain you are looking for. Owned by a real nice woman and her daughter.
• Need Supply Co. – An indulgence for regular clothing shopping, but its definitely fun to window shop for the next upcoming fashion trend here.

Movie Theatres, Theatres, and Venues
• Byrd Theatre -- $2 tickets to old releases and special features. If you only have a short time in Richmond you should go see whatever is playing, just to see the inside of this theatre. Its beautiful gold gilding and turn of the 20th century style is entrancing.
• Bowtie Movieland Theatre on Boulevard – This brand new theatre right off the highway on boulevard is beautiful. Its an old train station converted into a movie theatre. It has a bar in the waiting area, and is your typical movie theatre beyond that and the beautiful architecture outside.
• Westhampton Theatre – A small theatre located in the Libbie Grove area.
• Richmond Coliseum – A large concert venue you can tell is meant for monster truck rallies. None the less, they bring a decent amount of good artists in every year.
• National – Another popular concert, play, and musical venue whose schedule is worth checking out.
• Landmark – A historical theatre that also put on some good shows.
• Canal Club – A more intimate concert venue that brings in some popular groups and some indie and local groups.

Special Events
• First Friday’s Artwalk – Every first Friday of the month art galleries opne up and Richmonders flood the sidewalks of downtown Broad Street. (See Musuems section above)
• Beer and Wine Tasting at Corks and Kegs every Friday – Corks and Kegs located at Three Chopt and Glenside has free wine (4 wines) and beer (3 beers) tastings every Friday evening starting at about 5:30 or 6pm. Sometimes they even have live light jazz playing too! Enjoy the free tasting and take home your favorite for the group!
• Groovin’ in the Garden – In the summertime the Richmond Botanical Gardens opens its doors for concerts. The gardens are very impressive as is their array of musical ensembles.
• Brown’s Island Friday Night Cheers – Free concerts beneath the skyline of downtown Richmond in the early Summer (May and June). Some local groups and some up and coming names play on the small temportay stage underneath the highway. There’s beer and wine, ice cream, and hot dog stand food available for purchase.
• Richmond Bourbon, Beer, and BBQ Festival – A travelling festival (also in DC) in the early summer.
• Broad Street Food Festival – A summer festival when most of the major restaurants in Richmond open up a stand on Broad Street (near the
• Wine and Cheese classes at James River Cellars in Carytown – Though the wine tastings are free, the cheese classes can cost up to thirty dollars, they might make a fun night for the aspiring connoisseur.

Trips outside the City
• James River Cellar Winery – Just north of Richmond, visit this winery for free tastings and a Virginia wine experience.
• Shenandoah Valley – A perfect place for a weekend away hiking, camping, backpacking or for the less outdoorsy bed & breakfasting.
• Bear Creek Lake State Park – Another great place for backpacking and camping, you can hike past five waterfalls to the top of the mountain for a perfect view to say goodnight and good morning to.
• Lake Anna – A large lake accessible off 95 between Richmond and Fredricksburg, this park has everything from a small beach, to fishing, to power boat and canoe rentals.
• King’s Dominion – Only 30 minutes north of Richmond driving, Kings Dominion is the primary choice for theme parks. Busch Gardens is the other option, a little over an hour South East of Richmond.
• Colonial Williamsburg – Only an hour away, strolling through the cobblestone and dirt roads of Colonial Williamsburg exploring the ferrier’s home or the local tavern (The Greene Leaf is the most popular)makes for a great day trip or weekend.
• First Landing State Park at Virginia Beach – Head out 64E to Virginia Beach for a great Beach Camping locale. This state park has hundreds of campsites for tents or campers and each site has small trails leading through the dunes straight to the beach.

Although this guide is written for a Beida exchange student, it has valuable information for all travelers in Beijing.

BEIJING
Markets
- Pan jia yuan (dirt market) -- Only on Saturday and Sundays. This is a haven of antiques and art. Though much of them are mass produced (especially the scrolls) you can still find some genuine oil paintings. This is the perfect place for shopping for gifts and odd Asian souvenirs.
- Xiu shui shi chang (Silk Market) -- You will go on a field trip here, most likely. The basement has purses and shoes. Moving upward onto the 1st and 2nd floors there's clothing (everything from polo to Northface to Abercrombie to your average Chinese fashion). Keep going up and you get to jewelry and shops where you can pick your fabric and be measured for a tailormade suit (mandarin or western collar) or dress pants, shirts, dresses, etc. Keep going up and you'll find more jewelry (scratch the pearls with your teeth to check if they are real), electronics, and novelty items/souvenir type things. The clerks all speak English (Spanish, French, maybe even German) but use Chinese with them and they'll get a better price. Take their first offer and try to get it for at least 1/6 of the price. The closest metro is Yonganli (Red Line).
- Wu dao kou fuzhuang shi chang -- (directions: cong beijing daxue laide, dao wu daokou ditie hai wang qian zou, yi dao yixie qiao jiu wang you 3-4 ci). Some cab drivers may not know this market, just ask before you get it. This place is a real treasure. Its a real Chinese shopping market. You will probably be one of the few white people there (as opposed to the - - Silk Market, where its all tourists). Cheap clothes (mostly girls clothing but guys too). On the 2nd floor they sell suitcases, gifts, novelty items, and there are nail salons.
- Xidan Shopping Center - Bargain for Chinese clothes and accessories. At the Xidan metro stop.

Sights
- Olympic Park -- See the National Stadium, the Water Cube, and surrounding venues, and administrative buildings. Although it isn't lit up at night the same way it was during the games, its probably still worth the trip.
- Lama Temple -- This has a metro stop named after it, you can see it from the metro stop.
- Baita Si (White Pagoda Temple) -- A Buddist temple closer to campus and less traveled, its worth a trip one of your first few days in Beijing.
- Daoist Monestary -- I forget the name, but there are only a one or two in Beijing so if you ask, you will find. Great for those with an interest in religion. You may even be able to find someone who has studied or gives lectures abroad to explain more about Daoism to you, if you are interested, depending on which monestary you go to.
- Bei hai Park -- Accessible from the Lama Temple subway stop, its the biggest park in Beijing with a Lake. Good for running (on days when pollution is low) or exploring. Huge.
- Forbidden City/Tiananmen Square/Mao's Mausoleum -- All convienient for a day trip (along with the Beijing Museum). Mao's mausoleum has odd hours, so check before you trip over there.
- Beijing Museum -- At Tiananmen Square. Has some historical exhibits (Chinese and foreign) and a wax museum.
- Beijing Hotel -- The original fancy hotel of Beijing, it most beautiful at Christmas, but worth seeing anytime. Its right at the Wangfujing subway stop, so its convienient to step in and look around if you are in the area.
- 798 art district - A definate hike within the city limits, but DEFINATELY worth the day you should dedicate to it. It is a modern sight of Beijing with an interesting and refreshing flair. Chinese and some foriegn artists have galleries here, consisting of all different varieties of art.
- Summer Palace -- This is about 10 minutes from campus, but the program does not take you here. Worth an afternoon you can hike around the lake and take a look inside some historic buildings.

Pretty/Historic/Interesting Bar/Restaurant Districts
- Hou hai -- One of the best places to go out and chill, drink, or have dinner. Go at sunset and sit on the couches most restaurants put out right on the large lake and watch the sun go down. Great foreign foods. Explore the adjacent hutongs by foot or pedicab to find some more Chinese Chinese restaurants. If you take a pedicab, do not get ripped off it should be no more than 10 kuai per person for 15 minutes or so. Many tourists do this, so don't get ripped off. The hutongs also have some quieter bars.
- Nanluoguxiang -- A quaint and quieter twist on hou hai without the lake, this place is less crowded with much less foreigners. There are some great rooftop bars here. About halfway between the two ends of the alley, there will be on on a side alley with Christmas lights around the top floor. They have a great rose wine from Xinjiang.
- Weigongcun -- This is not a well known area at all (I lived in a neighborhood around the corner), but is a great way to get a feel for a typical Chinese neighborhood. Minzu Daxue and Beijing Ligong Daxue and both near this small alley way of restaurants, Internet cafes, shops, open air food markets. There is also a small beer garden with lanterns hanging where you can drink at small tables and play cards and while you drink 3 kuai Qingdao beers. There's also great karaoke right (Melody, Mai le di) down the street from the entrance to the alleyway (near the KFC).

Other bar districts
- Wu dao kou - close to campus, crawling with university kids (propaganda may be closed down now, but has all you can drink wednesday nights for 40 kuai for girls, 70 for guys, HOWEVER beware of this offer, they do not service genuine alcohol, this can be a problem in Chinese BARS -- not restaurants-- especially where its all-you-can-drink)
- San li tun jiu ba jie (tuar with a BJ accent) -- closest subway stop is Dongsishitiao, the place to be in terms of night life, always a party (beware of shooters, kai, and butterfly's shots, they are cheap but a rip off)
- Gui jie -- you can buy spicy shrimp that you eat with your hands here, think KA at pig roast, cajun crawfish boil style, bars, mostly chinese hang out here
- Chaoyang gong yuan xi men (Chaoyang Park West Gate) Area -- A small strip of clubs, bars, and restaurants. The main attraction is Suzie Wong's (see below) and a few other bars (pepper -- a korean bar). There is an Italian place that delivers here as wellWalk farther to your left and find Bling and All Star and a few other very new clubs.

Restaurants/Food
On Beida's Campus or nearby
- Chafang -- A real teahouse right down the street from Beida with adorable, shy waitresses in traditional qipao dresses. They have great (but very spicy noodles and decent but expensive dumpings). However, their tea is to die for, and I swaer posseses healing qualities. You can buy a small tin of tea, which they will write your name on and keep for your next visit if you like the pot you try. This saves a lot of money if you come more than 3 times. Directions: Go out the SW gate and cross the road, walk to your left down the main drag, turn right on the diagonal alley way. you will see a bookstore, 7-11, on your left there is a spiral staircase, go up it and enter the greatest tea house I've been to Beijing.
- Medicine house -- You'll most likely be taken here for your first meal. It's right across from the dorm (to the right of the tennis courts). Don't eat ere everyday but try to the eel, and jin yin mantou (a dessert).
- Nine Headed Dragon (or maybe its lion?) -- On campus. Take the diagonal road to your right when you exit the dorm (before you get to the wumei convenience store). Make a right at the first main road you see. Look for a two story building, you will go up to the second floor to enter this restaurant. There is also a great and cheap baozi (meat stuffed puffy dumplings) shop in this direction.
- Shaoyuan 4 cafeteria -- You will most likely be instructed to eat breakfast here one day. That's about all its good for. Never go for lunch or dinner.
- Beida Cafeteria -- Near the South Gate (the gate closest to wudaokou), this is a big blue building. Its kind of confusing to buy lunch here if you don't have a meal card (which you can buy, but i forget where). You have to pay first and then order at any of the stands. The food is decent, clean and its dirt cheap
Turn left out the SW gate and you'll find some noodles places on the main road.
- Zhazha mian restaurant -- Right across from the ornate Xi men (West gate) (the walking entrance) is a restaurant with bamboo around the entrance. Go here for a local specialty - zhaza mian. Its cold noodles with cucumbers. Ask for cu4 (vinegar) and da4suan4 (garlic). Eat it the Beijing style by putting the vinegar on the noodles, taking a small bite of garlic and then taking a bite of the dish.
- Cro's Nest- American food! Cro himself (A Sweed/American) may even be there (though now he owns several restaurants across Beijing), great atmosphere, pub-like with brick interior walls, hardwood floors, and a fireplace if i remember correctly. If you are in for a HELL of a night try the porcupine (a large glass mug - half beer, half vodka). Great breakfast food and great pizza.

In Wudaokou
- Pyro's -- Pyro's pizza has beer pong, I believe if you get oh so desperate for American culture. Beyond that, their pizza's are pretty damn good.
- Lush -- A hub for foreigners open 24 hours a day. Above the bookstore in Wudaokou. They have trivia night, open mic night, and celebrate just about every foreign holiday you can imagine. This is a great resource for finding out events in Beijing including concerts, large parties.
- Indian place in Wudaokou -- The best Indian abroad according to my South Indian American friend. Stay on the side of the road lush is on but walk in the direction of Beida, it is the last restaurant on your left in the same strip with several CD shops and is across from a large office building. A small family owned establishment.
- Bridge Cafe -- Around the corner from lush. Go up the stairs next to the small jewelry shop. Decent Internet and pretty good foreign food and brunch. A great place to study.
- Japanese noodle place -- To the right of pizza hut on the main level (across from lush).
- Beer Garden -- Torn down for the Olympics, you will be lucky if they bring it back for the summer. It is at the main intersection in wudaokou and impossible to miss if it is there.
- Yunnanese food restaurant-- Walk on the left side of the road towards Beida from wudaokou, keep peeking in the restaurants, about .25-.75 miles down (a total estimation) you will see a modest restaurant with blue batik table cloths. They have great yunnanese food. Be sure to try the buolou mi fan (pineapple rice).
- Korean places -- Walk back a block or two beyond the metro and make a right, you'll find lots of great Korean bbq places and korean bars. The brand new mall on your right right after passing under the subway has a great Korean bbq place on one of the top most floors. Get enough people and you can have a private room and your own grill.

In Sanlitun
- The Saddle -- The only good legit Mexican food in BJ. They have great margaritas and mojitos and a happy hour and a special burrito night on Tuesday (I believe). Its in a pretty little courtyard, that you wouldn't wander into automatically (which controls the drunk crowds, though it does get pretty hopping with people who know of it). Its basically in the center of the block that has bar blue, kokomos, and the Italian place around the corner. Enter from the side opposite bar blue (you will be across the street from the main drag of tacky bars) and go through a large white stucco door. That will put you in the courtyard and its right on your right.
- Drunk/Late night foods -- Kebab (Gyro) Place (beneath bar blu, don't forget to use their special sauces);street food on the corner near shooters (relatively clean for chunar);Fish and chips (across from shooters)
- The Rickshaw -- Great burgers and pool tables. Its in san li tun north. You can see it from the main intersection at san li tun jiu ba jie (bar street). Its a two story building right on the left hand side of the road.
- Banana Leaf -- Thai, mixed reviews
- 1001 Arabian Nights -- Tacky decorations but great middle eastern food.

Across Beijing
- Quan ju de Roast Duck - A fancier roast duck restaurant, but very very good, they give you a certificate saying what number duck you ate, You get each of the dishes associated with the duck including bone soup and skin. They carve at the table. Delicious. After you go here you should find another place to eat roast duck if you like it (you can buy it cheap too)
- Malike (this is spelled wrong..) Indian -- Bollywood dancers if you come early in the evening (above Coco banana).
- Dim sum at the lama temple subway station -- There is a picture menu here, which is great for point and choose. This place is delicious and relatively cheap. Order a few dishes for a group and try everything! When you exit at the lama temple subway stop it is a three of four story traditional Chinese wooden building with red lanterns hanging from the ceiling. You can't miss it. It is also right next to another large club, that is not really worth going to.
- Japanese Hibachi -- There are a lot of places but the one I went to was right across from the Beijing worker's stadium. There it is about 120 kuai all you can eat (hibachi, sushi, fried ice cream) AND all you can drink (beer, wine, saki, baijiu). The restaurant name has "yu" (fish) in the name and is on the second floor of a strip of restaurants. A lot of sushi places also do all you can eat all you can drink.
- Xiaofeiyang Huoguo Hotpot -- This is food from Sichuan/Chongqing, which means SPICY! but delicious. 209 Xiaojie, Dongzhimen Neidajie. I got hooked on hotpot living with a host family. You order the meats and veggies you want, throw them in the pot with spicy or non-spicy broth (or half and half in most cases) and wait for them to cook, then chow down. You can also dip in oil or sesame sauce before you take your bite as well, which is especially tasty.
- Xinjiang Muslim Restaurant -- Across from People's stadium, you can order a whole lamb here if you round up enough friends. Xinjiang food is totally different from the rest of Chinese food but worth trying.
- Wangfujing Xiaochi jie (Snack street) -- This is a great adventurous dinner, everything from testicles to cockroaches served chuanr style (on sticks). There are 2 streets, but if you ask around the wangfujing metro area, people can point you in the right direction. One has portable food carts that come out on the sidewalk at night. The other is down an alleyway with lanterns hanging and some Chinese architecture, but does not have near as much selection. The first also has a lot of really great food that you might actually enjoy. The food is expensive, but fun.
- Donkey penis restaurant (阳物餐馆; 探访锅里壮餐馆)-- Great for your virility! I have no idea where it is unfortunately... Try asking around or searching online. Its pretty well known. A formal restaurant where businessmen and government officials regular.

Bars
- Shut up and drink (not the location in Houhai, but if you go there you can find the address to the other, which is totally isolated) -- Good for dancing, a definate dive bar.
- Bed (Chuang1) (Near hou hai) -- Filled with ancient Chinese bed's (kang), it costs money to get a bed, but includes drinks i believe.
- The Tree (San li tun) -- Good for food and best for drinks, they have an impressive selection of beers, including some fruity beers that quite satisfying.
- Bar Blu / Kokomo's - Congruent to one another in sanlitun, both have great rooftop bars, and are pretty much the same. Some might argue Bar Blu has better dancing music (typical American club music) , but kokomo's has sand inside and a live band on the roof on Monday's or Tuesdays.
- Alfa -- A classy place, down the alley from the Xinjiang restaurant at the worker's stadium. An older, more mature crowd. They play music there, but have never seen much dancing. A good party venue because you can actually hear eachother (not the case in the large clubs).

Clubs
- Mix, Vick's -- Near the worker's stadium
- Coco Banana -- 北京市朝阳区工体西路8号
- Banana - 北京市朝阳区建外大街22号赛特饭店1层. A crazy crazy club, the dance floor pulses to the beat of the music. - - About 10 free shooters are given out to ladies circling the bar around midnight. Fire jugglers on the weekends.
- Babyface - near co co banana
- Angel - near co co banana
- Suzie Wong's (Chaoyang Park West Gate, Chaoyang gongyuanr xi menr) -- A great rooftop bar, but expensive and crowded inside. A good way to start off the night, and great location to as well.
- All-Star Sports Bar and Bling (down the street from Suzie Wong's) -- These were brand new clubs in July of 2008. This new area has a few other bars and restaurants and nice view of a small reservoir.
- China Doll -- There is a new and an old one, both in Sanlitun.

Places to study/chill
- Cha fang -- See above (Restaurants)
- Bookworm -- Far away from campus but a real fun place to chill or study, fast internet connection, great food. Its in - sanlitun NORTH (near the rickshaw, banana leaf)
- Bridge Cafe -- Sea above.
- Sculpting in Time -- There is one in wudaokou, next to the bridge cafe and they are pretty much the same. For a less foreign crowd, try the one at Wei gongcun (see above). The actual restaurant is right next Beijing LiGong Daxue Nanmenr.

OUTSIDE BEIJING
The Great Wall
- Da ba ling - most touristy place on the great wall, there is a Starbucks here, don't go
- Mutianyu - this is where you will go on your field trip most likely, you can take a luge down the mountain, but hike up (don't take the electric cart), 2nd most touristy place
- Jin shan ling - if you don't go here on a field trip (on the way back from Chengde, you should go) from the top all you can see is mountains and there were no other tourists when I went), BEAUTIFUL
- Qingshuangdao - where the great wall meets the ocean, really beautiful, about a 3-4 hour drive, this is where the party at the great wall has been before
- Commune at the Great Wall (Kempinski Hotel) - A fancy restaurant with its own private section of the great wall, the commune has a bunch of different homes designed by famous modern architects, kind of random but if you want a different experience, also this is near where they did the Olympic bicycling races

Weekend Trips you can take (Ask me if you are going to any of these places and I will give more details about what to do there)
- Inner Mongolia -- All I know if don't take "Happy Tours", but there are many agencies who will organize a trip for you
- Qingdao
- Xi'an
- Shanghai (overnight train)'
- Haerbin (if you REALLY wanted to, but its not that interesting of a place in the summer except a little bit of Russian and European architecture)
- Qingshuangdao (see the Great Wall, you can probably hike around this area or camp)
- Camping out on the great wall -- Three spot on the great wall within hiking distance are Gubeikou Jinshanling and Simatai (in that order heading east). From Gubeikou to Simatai is about a 20 km hike. You can stop half way and camp on the wall or in a guard tower. However, I heard there is a military area somewhere around here, that could be difficult to camp by. The best route,though it is much shorter is to go from Jinshanling to Simatai. Get a taxi to take you there, and pick you up at your final destination the next day. Pay him which you get back to Beijing, obviously.

APPENDICES

References for you to find more cool new places and EVENTS
- http://www.liveworkexplore.com/beijing
- Cityweekend.com
- City weekend magazine (pick up in foreign hubs)
- Lush

Summer events you should for -- rave in a park (I didn't go, but a friend of mine did, rave but without the same abundance of drugs, mind you); party at the great wall (buy tickets at lush)

Where not to go
- Babyface Club -- only go once just to see for about 5 minutes
- Pingguo yuan -- its enticing, the farthest stop on the red line and its called apple park, but its really nothing but suburbs
- Pearl market -- its pretty much the same as the silk market
- Tattoo parlors in Sanlitun -- Two of the three cannot be clean inquired at three places and two of their prices were significantly lower. In this location, these are a bad decision waiting to happen.
- Sex and the city (In hou hai) -- Most of the bigger clubs in Hou hai are pretty sketchy and empty, as well. The quieter places with big comfy couches are the best in this district.
- The Beida hospital -- Its dirty and dank. Unless its something minor and you just need antibiotics, go to the S.O.S. or another foreign clinic (even though they aren't close to school). Go to state.gov to locate.
- The Beida Gym -- There's a Bally Fitness not to far away that has everything you could need. The Beida gym costs to go and only has a few free weights. It also is dirty.
The main stretch of tacky bars at sanlitun -- Sitting outside these bars late at night can be fun, but inside they play bad music or have some pretty terrible live music performances. Avoid walking down this side of the street even because people working there will grab at you and harass you to come in.
- 42 Jie -- A large bar on the main road at the SW gate, it can be amusing (exotic dancer, magic shows, singing performances) but they serve fake alcohol as part of the all you can drink deal

Things to know
- Closest subway stop (ditie zhan) to campus is wudaokou, about a 30-45 minute walk from campus, 13 kuai cab ride
- Haircuts are extremely cheap. 15 kuai in the hutong for a wash, head massage, cut, style, and blow dry.
- A spa in Wudaokou (in the neighborhood with the tall pink buildings behind lush) , has a student discount for massages, which makes it really cheap for a spa
- When paying for admission tickets always ask if there is a student discount. Hang on to your Beida student ID for this purpose. Sometimes its as much as half off.
- Foreign shopping -- there is one near to campus at Zhonggauancun and a Walmart on Zichun Lu

Things to try
- Yunnanese food, Sichuanese food, Hotpot, Xinjiang food, Odd snacks at wangfujing, korean barbeque
- A hard sleeper train if you take a weekend trip that involves taking a train
- Taking the bus at rush hour