Coffee shops and book bars
The Bookworm
Good coffee and food. Free wireless Internet. Good selection of English books to read in the shop or to borrow if you get a membership. A very nice alternative to relaxing at a bar. This place has become a major focal point for the resident expat community.
SoloCafe
Good coffee and food with a Lotus theme running right through to the shape of the milk in a mocha.
The Minghantang Cafe
In an old traditional house that is more than 400 years old. Good coffee and food. Free wireless Internet.
Bars
The Pub Bar
Supports a large crowd of 'expat locals' and 'repeat visitors' in it's small but friendly interior with more than ten years of photographs and business-cards pasted on the roof and walls. It's a good point to catch up on local gossip and enjoy a drink with 'expat locals'. WiFi Internet, snacks and clean toilets keep the patrons happy.
Pulp Fiction Bar
This Australian bar is a great place to meet Westerners and English speaking Chinese people, shoot some American Pool and play a game of darts. It is fairly quiet until 10PM, then it comes to life.
Shiquan Street åå ¨è¡is the main bar area. It is also the entertainment district for guys looking for a little conversation with gals. A number of the bars on this street are thinly-veiled fronts for the world's oldest profession; numbers of very friendly young ladies sitting around the bar or standing in doorways to tempt in passers-by are easily recognized. Those wishing to avail themselves of such diversions are encouraged to exercise extreme caution, not overdo the drinking, ask the cost of everything including the room you are taken to before accepting it, and never pay anything in advance. Some of the better known ones safer? are "The Moon Bar" aka 'The Danish Embassy", known for its regular crowd of locals, The Blue Lady Bar and The Red Lion Bar - all within the block between FengHuangJie and Suzhou Hotel. All offer drinks without other services and they won't bother you if you are not partaking further!
Zapata's
Margaritas and view over the lake. Western DJ plays happy tunes from last 4 decades and free tequila pouring on the bar every night.