If you need any confirmation that Beijing has awoken from its winter slumber, look no further than our latest online photo galleries. They include everything from our recent Reader Restaurant Awards ceremony to several German DJs who have been blasting their way into the city's club scene.

So The House, fun while it lasted, didn’t transform Beijing nightlife. Part of the problem was that we believed it could. So let’s avoid making similarly outlandish claims for Lantern – what matters is that Beijing has one more decent electronic music venue.

Some longtime Beijingers may wax nostalgic about Song Music Bar & Kitchen, the artful electronic venue that formerly occupied the basement space of The Place. Wait until they meet its shiny new replacement. Since opening day, Spark has been teeming with Beijing’s better-looking twentysomethings.

Run by the same people as Mix, this three-story club consciously attempts to fuse the trademarks of Gongti nightlife (bottle service, table charges and spotless design) with the less commercial playlists of clubs like Lantern.

Throngs of students cram Mango’s entrance and snaking stairwells, which open up to a giant pool hall/bar. The expansive space is a mishmash of various types of fun: alcohol, pool tables and even – ahem – computers.