69 Cafe

Founded in 2009 in Nanluoguxiang, the tiny café, bar and live music venue encourages quietly the city's local talent with tribute nights to the classic rock gods whose posters and photos adorn the walls.
Backed by record label and design studio Rockland, Sixtynine Impression Music & Coffee (69 Cafe for short) only jumps out if you're looking for it, with a black doorway leading into an alley, marked with white records making the 69 logo.
The space inside is limited, which is fine for most of their events, where local singer-songwriter types play a set of covers of classic artists like Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Lou Reed and Radiohead. But when they invite someone like Snapline or Carsick Cars' frontman Zhang Shouwang to the stage, you'd better plan to turn up early or you won't make it through the door.


But what makes 69 Cafe great is its laid back atmosphere and homey, cozy design. Crammed with classic rock memorabilia and comfy couches, it's easy to while away the afternoon hours, or catch an experimental band on the weekend. Most shows start around 9pm and will set you back RMB20, so it's an easy night of quality music in the heart of bustling Nanluoguxiang.
They're stocked with the usual Tiger and Tsingtao beers for RMB20/bottle, with a few imported brews around RMB40. They also have a selection of standard cocktails and mixed drinks (RMB30-45), and some intriguing zodiac-themed drinks (RMB45-60) which we didn't try for fear of blue curaçao.