December Watchdog: New Micros, Music Celebrations and More

December Watchdog: New Micros, Music Celebrations and More
By Susie Gordon , eChinacities.com

Now that Halloween and Thanksgiving are over, it's time to start looking forward to the next big holiday period: Christmas and New Years! There are still a few weeks left before people start heading home for the holidays, and Shanghai is blooming with interesting things to do as November finishes and December begins.

1) New Openings….

If you've been to Rico Rico and Mistral and liked them, you should give Toro Loco a try. Operated by the same management, it's located on Yan'an Lu near Zhenning Lu, and is an unusual (but successful) mix of a sports bar and a Spanish tavern. You'll find cheap tapas and drinks (including generous pitchers of beer) and a weekly ladies' night, along with a friendly Hispanic atmosphere.

Another departure from the typical Shanghai venue is the new Arcade Bar on Fuxing Xi Lu near Yongfu Lu. Taking up the former Tara 57 space, it's a brave new concept that unites creative, high-quality cocktails with classic arcade games. Expect game-themed décor, tasty drinks and plenty of surprisingly non-gimmicky fun.

Shanghai's love affair with microbreweries continues at the new Dr. Beer on Fumin Lu. From the guys behind Dr. Wine, it's a huge venue that looks set to dominate the north French Concession/south Jing'an drinking scene. It's still in soft opening, but promises to be a hoptastic haven, with individual beer taps on the benches, and a rotating selection of home brews.

2) Closures…

Barely a full year after it opened, Fulton Place on Yongjia Lu has closed its doors. This is bad news for fans of the eccentric, British-style eatery. We take cold comfort in the fact that a new branch of Pizza Marzano is set to open in its place.

Moving up in the world, Indian restaurant Vedas is giving up its Jianguo Lu location after seven years. It will relocate to Changshu Lu to take up a space in the same building as Xibo, Una's Pizza and Piro.

3) Doing well….

The past few weeks have seen several anniversaries on the restaurant scene. Popular sushi joint Haiku by Hatsune turned five years old with a lavish party, while Eduardo Vargas celebrated three years of Osteria.

David Laris has given Yucca an overhaul with a makeover and a new barman in the form of Ryan Noreiks, and it was recently announced that Paul Pairet's Mr & Mrs Bund will appear in next year's Miele restaurant guide.

4) What's on…

French DJ Bob Sinclar will play at Bar Rouge on December 8th, in what promises to be a legendary party. Sinclar has collaborated with the likes of David Guetta, Sean Paul and Shaggy, and is a big name on the international DJ scene.

Late last year, the HALiterature collective burst onto the creative scene with their debut short story collection, Party Like it's 1984. They're back on December 3rd with the launch of their second book, Middle Kingdom Underground, at the River South Arts Center. The event forms part of the River South Arts Festival, along with a performance of the Illumin8ors rock opera Solar Lunar on the Friday, and a creative brunch on the Sunday.

December also sees the third annual instalment of the Booshkabaash concert series from local promoters Three Chord Truth. The extravaganza runs from December 7-10th, and  includes French Horn Rebellion, Das EFX, and Beijing's Super VC, plus Rainbow Danger Club, Banana Monkey, and The Fever Machine. More info here.

Music promoters Splitworks are getting in on the act with a long weekend of musical performances celebrating their fifth anniversary. There's the Iron Mic Shanghai Semi-finals on December 7th, plus a gig by Trippple Nippples, a Wooozy Session at Yuyintang on the 8th, Chad Valley with X is Y at Live Bar on the 9th, and an anniversary party at LOgO on the 10th featuring Chad Valley with Hamacide and Jay.Soul.

5) In the news…

If you missed the Saudi Expo pavilion first time round (and let's face it, with nine-hour queues you'd be forgiven for skipping it), don't worry – it re-opened to individual visitors on November 18th. Head to the site between 8:30-17:00 (every day except Monday) to see what all the fuss is about.

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Keywords: Shanghai watchdog December Shanghai Saudi Expo pavilion reopens Shanghai French DJ Bob Sinclar Shanghai Dr. Beer opening

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