BEING a customer in Xintiandi can make Steven Liu, an immigrant from Beijing, feel that he has joined the mainstream culture of Shanghai.

"It is the most fashionable and eye-catching place in town," said the 30-year-old business man. "It fits well with the unique culture of Shanghai, which nowhere else can copy.

"The concept is terrific, preserving, even upgrading the Shanghai culture, a mixture of Chinese traditions and Western influence," he added.

As a showcase of the town, Xintiandi appears different to other entertainment quarters in town as well as other cities in China. Customers and business managers in Xintiandi agree that Xintiandi is "clean" - without a secret sex or drug trade.

Sanlitun in Beijing used to be the best-known bar-zone in all of China, but the atmosphere and environment there is in sharp contrast to Xintiandi. "Sanlitun is like a street in US Western movies, where cowboys enjoy themselves and relax," Liu said. "Cars park everywhere and you can spot people seeking temporary sex companions. The bars' decoration and structure were simple and crude."

But Xintiandi has a refined atmosphere, largely due to the high cost of dining and entertainment there. This makes for elegance to some, but to others it is a constraint. "You can't forget about the price here," said Fei Qiang, a young local man.

A bottle of beer costs twice as much in Xintiandi what it does in Maoming Lu, another bar area of town.

The municipal police launch campaigns episodically in the city's entertainment areas against illegal sex or drug trading, but Xintiandi has never been involved.

Music is not a characteristic feature of Xintiandi either. "Xintiandi is not about culture. It is all commercial," said Fei, an active advocate for local original music. "Singers perform to make a living, not because they love the music they play in Xintiandi."

One bar in Xintiandi that has been known for playing local original music, the Ark Live House, has said that due to increasing business costs it will consider decreasing the proportion of original music, playing more popular songs instead to attract consumers.

Quality experience

The first thing to be said about the Xintiandi experience is that it is a delight to the eye. The beautiful architectural styles of old Shanghai have been brought back to life and the area has become a permanent tourist attraction.

The designers of the project, by preserving the Shikumen housing with their "Lady Balconies" alongside buildings showing a distinct Western influence - and here No. 1 Xintiandi is a perfect example - have ensured that strolling tourists will have the feeling that they are soaking up the atmosphere of "Old Shanghai".

All this has come at a price. Most Shanghai residents, including expatriates living and working in the city, cannot afford to do more than just stroll through Xintiandi - it's simply too expensive.

However, the expense of shopping or dining in Xintiandi can be justified because the quality of the goods, the fashions, the food and the entertainment available there are first-rate. This applies not only to the major fashion stores - such as "X" - but also to the smaller shops in the streets around the area.

The entertainment venues such as CJW, Che or La Maison, offer world-class acts, music and bands although the prices of the drinks can range from just expensive to the stratospheric. Similarly, the restaurants provide first-class meals but at expense-account prices.

It will remain essential for the management of Xintiandi to closely monitor the standard of applicants for leases in the complex. Any drop in quality will ruin an ambience that the pioneer tenants have built up and guarded to guarantee not only their own prosperity but the reputation of Xintiandi as a whole.