Written by Morgan Short
Shanghai’s crusade to turn back time to a pre-2020 kind of existence continues in a big way with the opening of not one but two “iconic Bund nightlife destinations” of myth and legend: Bar KEV in the space of a little something that was once called “Bar Rouge” and SUNSEEK in the former space of a little something else that was once called “M1NT”.
Bund life is BACK BABY. Kinda! Sorta!
Ish?
You could see this coming. Makes sense. There are still tons of billionaires in Shanghai in 2023, right? (Maybe even more?) And business travel and tourism are definitely up — from zero. That was perhaps the main factor that pretty much killed F&B on The Bund circa 2020 to 2023, we’ve been told.
The real questions are: In what format is Bund nightlife going to take in this exciting new era of abundance and prosperity? A rehash of the past? Bold ideas for the future?
Let’s find out!
Bar KEV
Address: 7/F, Bund 18, 18 Zhongshan Dong Yi Lu 中山东一路18号7层
Tel: 53833657
Hours: Daily, 8pm-4am
Opening in 2004 and peaking in the mid-‘10s was Bar Rouge. Perhaps no other bar represented the face of “Shanghai nightlife” than this Bund venue, famous for serving champagne-soaked, Euro chic-meets-trash vibes — even before people said “vibes”. They offered up one of the best rooftop spaces on the 7th floor of Bund 18 at Nanjing Lu.
They hosted world-famous French Touch DJs, and F1 afterparties galore, and moved more bottles of Moët & Chandon than any venue in the world — or at least that was the urban legend going around in like 2011.
Bar KEV assumes this legacy and does things same-same but different-different.
The same-same: the layout is unchanged. It’s still a big oblong island bar in the middle of the venue, couch booth seating ringing the outside, private rooms, a DJ booth tucked out of the way so you don’t have to care about it, and a big, admittedly gorgeous patio with that glorious Oriental Pearl TV Tower propped right on your chin, right where you want it.
The look is different-different. Design-wise, it’s kinda Barbie meets vaporware-by-corporate committee. Searing pink and red everywhere. (Okay, this is the same.) They’ve got the requisite neon cursive squiggly bot mots on the wall, and a metallic cyberpunk heart-and-arteries ceiling installation business which… okay. It’s kinda like someone is hosting a retro-futurism pop-up-themed event circa 2018, located in the old Bar Rouge.
Music jams were EDM remixes of ‘00s hip hop. Ke$ha, Black Eyed Peas, classic jams, yes, you’re welcome.
The name KEV stands for “kilo-electron volts” as in “high energy” or something but we can’t shake the feeling that it’s just a rich guy named Kevin who named the place after himself in an insane Great Gatsby gesture to throw whiskey parties until he finds his one true love.
At least that’s what we’re choosing to believe.
But whiskey is the order of the night. If it’s not the most extensive selection of whiskey in town on this menu, then it’s close. Page after page after page of Single Malts from the Scottish Highlands and beyond available by bottle and in special packages — several pages of packages. Package deals develop and evolve into Cognac, Vodka, Gin, Tequila, and, of course, Champagne Packages.
For example:
2 bottles of Royal Salute Blended Grain 21Y0 – ¥6,888
5 bottles of Glenlivet 12YO – ¥13,880
Perrier Jouet Grand Brut – 3 bottles for ¥6,488; 5 for ¥10,588
We can’t do math. Seriously, rich people must be on their calculators all the damn time when they go out. These drinks are from the one page of signature cocktails, priced between ¥118-¥128 — hard math even we can understand.
Yeah, these are fine. Serviceable. If underwhelming. The martini was good. But I guess it’s more about the experience of it all, out here on the Bund with that dazzling Shanghai skyline backdrop, rubbing shoulders with all these captains of industry and champions of innovation.
Bar Rouge was actually a pretty populist and approachable place. For a decade-plus, It topped the guidebooks as THE CLUB to experience Shanghai if you didn’t care to get super involved with it or just didn’t have the time. From the crowd we saw at KEV that’s still largely unchanged. We were living the good life with groups of slightly baffled-looking Scando tourists in t-shirts; single, lone wolf business bros obviously in town for a few days only; and groups of laughing white-collar friends on the patio celebrating the return of this genre of Shanghai nightlife.
This venue is going for super rich people as well as medium rich.
KEV does a pretty amazing job of introducing themselves in their brand introduction on their WeChat platform so we defer to them:
“At KEV, we offer more than just a glass of wine and a culinary experience; we provide an exceptional social encounter. It is a symbol of status, a synonym for taste, and a haven for exquisite elegance… Whether you are enjoying a glass of champagne with friends or gaining inspiration through conversations with industry leaders, KEV offers you a profound interaction with the social sphere — and embodiment of status and refined taste.”
Woof!
SUNSEEK
Address: 24/F, 318 Fuzhou Lu 福州路318号华设大厦24层
Tel: 18117350547
Hours: Daily, 8pm-3am
M1NT was famous for having sharks in aquariums in da club, being the seat of the undisputed number 1 DJ in Shanghai, pioneering the institution known as the “Models Night”, and being one of Shanghai’s first “Member’s Clubs” — which may or may not have been some kind of Ponzi scheme.
We don’t know we were too scared to get too close!
But yes, the sharks. The sharks were just little guys. Like under a meter if I remember correctly.
Let it be known that it is not lost on us that it is a uniquely post-global Capitalism kind of mindset to complain about and be disappointed in the size of sharks in a nightclub.
Let it also be known that if anyone reading this opens up a nightclub that has for-real Great White sharks in it, that’s an automatic 6-star review.
Sunseek assumes the lounge space of M1NT, like half the size of the original restaurant-club-cellar “super lounge”, as they were calling them in those days, and is very much a more low-key affair. An oblong island bar greets guests coming in off the elevator. It’s an understated bar and lounge seating, flatscreens with swirling graphics instead of shark tanks, funky, organic house on the stereo from a DJ tucked into a corner instead of up on a stage, and a nice view up on the 24th floor of a building on Fuzhou Lu.
The famous M1NT rooftop is not available. Incidentally, that’s opening for Halloween weekend as something called “Bambuddha”. But let’s not get into that here.
Design-wise, Sunseek is like the ChatGPT of a few other lounges. The Nest. Maybe Le Baron or even the old Bar Rouge. There’s an undulating ceiling installation thing above the bottle rack at the bar; laughing groups of friends occupy lounge table outposts like little fiefdoms; it’s red AF.
Also of note! They have a bathroom attendant! Which I haven’t seen since like 2012. My dude is turning the tap on for me and I Indiana Jones‘ed him like, YOU BELONG IN A MUSEUM.
Drinks menu. Simple. Neat. Thankfully brief. Mercifully to-the-point. Sprits in all genres are available for ¥98 to ¥128, bottled beer at ¥80 a bottle, and signature cocktails are ¥120 a glass.
We’re liking these well enough. Some creativity going on and some different flavors. I like fruity cocktails. Everything had like 30 varieties of juice. Points for the Jäger one.
Extra points for this right here! My man!
All-in. It’s a fine experience. It’s just fine. It’s comfortable, the service was good, the music unobtrusive. And yeah, who can ever get sick of that view? If you’re looking for a Bund lounge with a nice view and cocktails priced at ¥120 don’t instantly give you a nosebleed you could check it out.
Or wait for something new to open in the old M on the Bund space and then do all three of these in one night on a bar crawl with friends.
Night of the Living Dead Shanghai Bund Bars or something.
Could be fun!
Written by Morgan Short, Contributing Writer @ Nomfluence
Morgan Short is a writer (kinda) in Shanghai, with areas of specialization that include, and are almost entirely limited to, bars and spa treatments.
