Area:
Life Cafe is on Julu Lu, just east of Shanxi Nan Lu. Down the street from Maya. Up the street from Airwalk and Tentekomai. It’s on a stretch of the street with nothing much going for it apart from the Japanese denim store Take 5.
The café is well signed from the road, with a hand-painted mural on the gate of a little laneway. Head into the lane and you’ll see more signs that point you up some stairs into a large villa that must one day have belonged to a minted Shanghainese family. Now it looks like home to a dozen or so less-minted families. Inside the villa, Life Cafe is the doorway on the right, on the ground floor. You’ll see Ganesha bunting hanging in the window and maybe smell some incense wafting under the door.
What is it:
More of a café than a bar, but no less anyone’s local, this is a ramshackle, family-run place that sells beer, mixed drinks, flavored rums, good coffee and a hand-written menu of food. It’s crammed with junk – toys, games, books, ancient magazines, sketchbooks and plants that clutter up every surface. Cats plod about walking over tables and curling up on shelves. There’s a middle aged man who might be the proprietor or might just be a regular, who sits having long, loud conversations with the other family members who seem to live here. It feels like a squat in 1960s Berlin, or maybe a youth club run by people who live in a squat in 1960s Berlin.
Why it’s good:
Because it feels like a 1960s Berlin squat. A very friendly squat where you can mooch with arty Chinese kids and cats. Neither the food nor the selection of booze are particularly remarkable – the food is best avoided – but you’re not coming here for mixologists or wine-paired degustation, you’re here because it’s far from the madding crowd.
Life Café is scruffy, perhaps even a bit grotty, but so am I, so to me the place feels like home. It’s messy, chaotic, with a constant stream of Chinese kids coming in and out, nattering, taking pictures, drawing on the walls and drinking. Upstairs there’s a room with cushions and a TV where you can watch DVDs – they have a library of films.
If you’re worn down by the endless parade of tawdry clubs trying to claw together a semblance of exclusivity by branding everything VIP – VIP rooms, VIP drinks, VIP chefs, VIP Hong Kong pop stars making VIP paid appearances – then here you will finally find respite from that glut of VIP bullshit that stinks up this town.
Other plusses: It’s near to many things but it’s a hidden spot – handy enough to pop by, but far enough away from Sunflour and Baker & Spice so you can sit here all afternoon without bumping into your boss, or some other turdnick who wants to talk to you about their social networking start-up.
Atmosphere:
Arty but not pretentious. It’s got this family vibe, and children would certainly be welcome and have lots to do here. It feels like the owners probably don’t take themselves too seriously, and that spills over into the atmosphere. You could spend a few hours drinking a beer here, reading and drawing on the walls, or come with a group of friends and stay long into the night. No one would raise an eyebrow.
Prices:
Beer is 30-35rmb. Mixed drinks are 40-45rmb, 45rmb for something more adventurous. Food is cheap: soup for 25rmb, four types of pasta for 32rmb, pizzas for 36rmb (six inch) or 54rmb (nine inch), wings for 20rmb, eggs for 25rmb. They also have a lamb chop for 45rmb and steak that’s a bit more, but really, if you want a steak you probably need to go somewhere else.
Ordering Recommendations:
Try the rum latte. They also have a nice line in infusions: tequila and mint, rum and mint, orange rose rum – they’re quite into rum. The tea selection was also intriguing, with Persephone tea and "dream tea" on offer. No dream wine, unfortunately. If you’re going for food, go for something simple. Or eat before you come.
