The main bar street of the southern French Concession, Hengshan Road runs east to west through a sequence of bars, restaurants, and nightclubs that have been central to Shanghai's nightlife since the 1990s. The road is lined with plane trees and has a more outdoor-facing character than the Yongkang Road or Xintiandi bar scenes further north.
The bars here range from sports bars to cocktail lounges; the clientele mixes expatriates, Chinese professionals, and foreign students. The international character is less marked than in the 1990s when expatriate Shanghai was concentrated here, but Hengshan Road remains one of the more walkable bar strips in the city. The road's connection to Xujiahui to the west and the metro make it accessible from most of central Shanghai.