quality test is number of people, according to Ghosh.

"If you see a place and it's packed, you know that place is good. A lot of the time it's true the opposite way too."

Many of Beijing's food gems are well known and appear in guidebooks for the city, but many more exist largely unknown.

"When it comes to Chinese cuisine, there are tiny restaurants serving the most fantastic food," said Ghosh.

Like pubs in Britain and cafes in France, in Beijing teahouses were the traditional place for friends to meet. They were originally a social center for all classes, from noblemen to peddlers, to chat and catch up on events. Today teahouses are more of a special evening out and much of the chatter is replaced by a show-often including Peking opera, acrobatics, crosstalk and magic tricks.

"I sometimes go to a teahouse, but it's more of a one-off. I love drinking tea, but I just have it at home," said Ghosh.

One of Beijing's most popular teahouses is Lao She Teahouse. At its nightly shows, patrons are seated according to the price they pay with the better seats closer to the stage. An evening here includes snacks and a sampling of quality teas. The show provides a glimpse into a variety of Chinese arts, without having to sit through a whole performance of any single one.

Many other teahouses provide tea without the show, but usually there is some sort of tea ceremony performed by a silk-clad waiter or waitress. They provide a glimpse into the importance of tea in China as a means to relax, an everyday drink, a ceremonial custom and a medicine.

Cafes were once almost non-existent in Beijing. Today they are gradually taking the place of teahouses as an everyday meeting place.

Starbucks is all over the city. Other favorites include Sculpting in Time, which has several locations, and The Bridge Café in Wudaokao, in the city's northwest.

The changes in Beijing's nightlife have been driven by a growing population of expats, combined with a desire for new forms of entertainment by young Chinese. This has have helped to fuel the explosion in bars, as well as the taste for foreign food and coffee.

They've helped to create a "vibrant" atmosphere, according to Ghosh. "Today in Beijing there is a lot happening," he said. "Wherever you go, especially on the weekends, every place seems to be packed."

According to Hines, many of the city's expats come to Beijing, "to escape or because they are searching for something."