Just came back from a business dinner for China Bay at Hooters Shanghai. I knew the place existed, but had never been there. It is a fun place for a burger and a beer, but of course the waitresses are a bit different from the ladies that serve you in Hooters bars in the US or Amsterdam. But the fun is certainly not less, the girls dance and sing around (they even perform Christmas songs!) and are extremely friendly. A bit like a decent Maoming Lu bar with more light and much better food. Lots of Chinese and Japanese men, not many Westerners.
Hooters is located on Zunyi Lu, close to Xianxia Lu, in Hongqiao. That’s probably why I had never been there: the only reason I go out to Hongqiao is either to fly (Hongqiao airport), to visit the Dutch consulate (walking distance to Hooters) or to go to Carrefour (but I have not been there in many months because I refuse to wait in line for an hour to get a taxi). I don’t think I have ever been in the area at night. It’s not bad actually, some nice shops along Xianxia Lu, a pretty big good shopping mall (the Shanghai City Center) and not too far from my home in Xujiahui.
I met up with Sean, a Chinese American who finished a 3-year stint in the US Army and is now a full-time eBay seller in China. He took his girlfriend with him who works in advertising in Shanghai. Interesting conversations with him about the possibilities to earn money on eBay, especially when you have direct contact to suppliers in China. If I had time… (that seems to be the story of my life, I cannot imagine that other people can be bored living in China).
Hilarious that a Hooters exists in Communist Shanghai, but perhaps heralding a return to the racy days of the 30’s when it was almost as jazzy as Grosz’s Berlin.