Making your way through O2 can be tricky. Upon entering, green lasers slice through the dark space in a winding mirrored hallway. The interior of this enormous, smoky two-floor club is psychedelic and loud, featuring a huge LED screen behind the elevated DJ table and furiously-blinking lights on the walls. There are two bars on the first floor, though most of the club’s patrons were comfortably seated at the tables alongside the dance floor. The second level is all tables and couches, a common solution to fill up all that space in Shanghai’s super clubs.

Compared to the bewildering decor, the music here is a tasteful mix of techno and electro; trendy tunes to dance to for the club’s young, energetic crowd. The full name of this place is actually ‘O2 Clubbing Ent Bar’(‘Ent’ is short for ‘entertainment’), so don’t be surprised when scantily clad dancers appear on the bars and elevated stage to, er, ‘entertain’ you.

Revamped and renamed, the updated version of Kangaroo Bar is a bit more ambitious than the hand-me-down watering hole you might expect. Faithful to its name, the walls are freshly painted with bounding marsupials on a brightly colored landscape, but the layout remains the same as the old Kangaroo.

Bathed in dim blue light, the bar area is the spot to mix and mingle or watch overseas sports channels on the big screen. For those into their pub sports, two dartboards hang on the wall near the bar, and a pool table lies on the elevated section in the rear. While not worth travelling for, this casual pub is cozy enough to kill some time in the Maoming melee. And the in-house kitchen might make your stay here longer than you anticipated.

Tuesdays are usually packed, the nights when two teams in the Shanghai Dart League face off here. Thursdays are for pool enthusiasts, with Jack Daniels happy hours tacked on for good measure. The Hash House Harriers members enjoy happy hours every Sunday - just remember to say “On On” when you step into the door, as that’s the way they cheer on the trail.

Hungry for a late-night bite, searching for a cheerful place for a first date, or searching for an affordable lunch? Then check out Onion, a bright Cantonese eatery with a fresh look we’ve never seen in a Chinese restaurant, that is aimed squarely at Shanghai’s younger crowd. There are white tabletops and bright pink walls, cushy round booths for large groups and an overall design scheme that seems custom built for branding. There are tasty dishes like fried fish with wasabi mayo and sweet and sour dipping sauces, blanched kale served on a bed of ice served with wasabi/soy, honey glazed roast pork and beef fried tableside. There are also several western dishes available, including pasta and a fluffy mango souffle. This restaurant stands out because of its playfulness; Onion doesn’t seem too concerned with fine dining, but it does seem like a place people will come to have some fun. A refreshing concept indeed.