Patrons at Wain Wain enjoy the cafe-bar's views. (CRIENGLISH.com/William Wang) |
People who've been in China a while know what to expect when it comes to KTV bars: flash is cash. From cheap joints to luxurious, the goal is to impress. And in China the Bigger is Better maxim rings as true in KTV as it does in projections of growth. But flashing lights and glitter shouldn't be the only KTV scoop, and thankfully a few places offer something just a little bit different.
In fact, calling a joint like Wain Wain a KTV at all leans toward the fallacious. It's more like a bar that incidentally has a karaoke room. One. The entire place has just a handful of intimate tables, each one situated to take in the highlight of the space: the view.
On days with good visibility, daytime views of Changan Avenue stretching west and the mountains beyond are spectacular. One glance from here of the CBD and beyond defines Beijing as a world class metropolis. And as the sun fades behind the Xishan Mountains the neon glow of Beijing's newest high-rises come into sharp focus. This is a Beijing bearing little relation to the hidden hutongs below.
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