Ground zero for Gulou's laptop warriors, Zarah is a stylish hutong hangout adored for its charming staff, good coffee and welcomingly bookish ambience. By day the polished concrete space is all brainstorm meetings, bloggers and brunching mums; after dark it's cocktails and ambient electronic beats. Food is the only weak link, but the German-inspired breakfasts (from ¥65) come with good bread and croissants.
Cafe Zarah
Beijing
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Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
1.53 MILES
Enclosed by 3.5km of citadel walls at the very heart of Beijing, the Unesco-listed Forbidden City is China’s largest and best-preserved collection of…
4.16 MILES
An oasis of methodical Confucian design, the 267-hectare Temple of Heaven Park is unique. It originally served as a vast stage for solemn rites performed…
8.08 MILES
A marvel of Chinese garden design and one of Beijing's must-see attractions, the Summer Palace was the royal retreat for emperors fleeing the suffocating…
2.58 MILES
Flanked by triumphalist Soviet-style buildings, Tian'anmen Sq is an immense void of paved stone (440,000 sq metres, to be precise) at the symbolic centre…
1.27 MILES
Beihai Park, inside the old Imperial City, looks much as it would have done in the 18th century when it served as Emperor Qianlong's private gardens. The…
3.11 MILES
This immense fortress, part of the Ming City Wall Ruins Park, guarded the southeast corner of Beijing's city walls. Originally built in 1439 but repaired…
2.25 MILES
Instantly recognisable by its giant framed portrait of Mao, and guarded by two pairs of Ming dynasty stone lions, the double-eaved Gate of Heavenly Peace …
5.36 MILES
Contemporary art meets communist history at this thrilling enclave of international galleries installed within China's model factory complex of the 1950s…
Nearby Beijing attractions
0.15 MILES
This largely renovated residence was the home of Mao Dun, the pen name of Shen Yanbing (1896–1981), a well-known author. He lived at the back courtyard…
2. Qi Baishi's Former Residence
0.46 MILES
Known for the whimsical, often playful style of his watercolours, Qi Baishi (1864–1957) was an influential Chinese painter who lived in Beijing from 1917…
0.48 MILES
Beijing's most touristy hutong, Nanluogu Xiang is a north–south strip of snack stalls, small food courts, souvenir shops and more people than you can…
4. Confucius Temple & Imperial College
0.53 MILES
An incense stick’s toss away from the Lama Temple, China’s second-largest Confucian temple is a haven of scholarly calm and contemplation. Come to wander…
0.56 MILES
Venerable bastions of time-keeping, the Drum Tower and its counterpart the Bell Tower were for centuries the tallest buildings in Beijing, lording it over…
0.58 MILES
The restrained, grey-stone edifice of the Bell Tower (Zhonglou) is arguably even more charming than its resplendent other half, the Drum Tower (Gulou),…
0.6 MILES
There's a reason this park is 2.4km long yet only 30m wide; it traces part of the old Imperial City walls dismantled in the 1950s. The walls enclosed the…
8. Duan Qirui Former Government Building
0.7 MILES
This imposing slab of Republic-era architecture, complete with brick clock tower, is the former headquarters and residence of Duan Qirui, a warlord who…