Six Appeal: 6 Lounge

There are few places in the world I feel totally comfortable drinking on my own. But when I showed up at 6 Lounge, that deep-seated anxiety melted away. I felt I was among friends, the kind that don’t force conversation on you but are more than happy for you to join in theirs. It could be the bar’s tiny size or the low-key DIY vibe, with hand-painted cartoons everywhere you look. Perhaps it’s that delightful husky that guards the entrance nightly – just affable enough to make you feel welcome, but big enough to make you feel safe. Or maybe it’s just that 6 Lounge is run by people who genuinely want you to feel at home.

Halfway through my margarita (RMB 40), owner Zi Shui passed me a bowl of crisps and a scrapbook to sign, smiling. He writes screenplays by day, and spends his evenings serving drinks for old and new friends. The drinks themselves are reasonably priced; cocktails range from RMB 35-50 and a bottle of Guinness goes for RMB 35.

This place reminds me of my favorite spot for underaged drinking in a dead-end train station pub back home. It was so small you could barely stumble from your chair to the exit. But that was OK, because you felt so settled in that spot you never wanted to leave.

6 Lounge
Daily 1pm-1am. 75 Chaodou Hutong, Nanluogu
Xiang, Dongcheng District (135 2217 9196)
东城区南锣鼓巷炒豆胡同75号

Also try: Cellar Door, 12SQM

Click here to read the June issue of the Beijinger in full.

Photo: Mitchell Pe Masilun