If you happen to be in Beijing for Christmas and New Year, there is a place where you can have a lot of fun without dishing out a lot of money. The place is--

THE AMAZON

No. 48 Maizidian Liangmahe, Chaoyang District, Beijing, Tel: 64625044

If you walk north from the pricy Lufthansa Shopping Center on the Third Ring Road in the direction of the Hilton Hotel, you will pass a small but brightly painted sign that says, simply: AMAZON.

Rivers, of course, are of great importance to China -- the Yellow River, the Yangtze, and more -- but what, you may wonder, is the Amazon doing here in Beijing? Walk inside and you will discover a small but unique pub, decorated in a cozy English style, complete with a dart board in a back room, a piano, even a computer in case you care to hook up to the Internet while you sip your beer.

The Amazon is nearly lost amongst the huge hotels nearby, but it is worth the trouble to find -- an inexpensive restaurant and bar with warmth and ambiance that caters to an interesting assortment of locals and foreigners. The pub is run by the Yu's, a multi-talented family who have a wide assortment of jobs and interests, and regard the running of this restaurant as something of a hobby, providing a place where China and the West can intermingle.

The menu reflects the eclectic international mix, from the "Deluxe Burger" (RMB 25.00) to Chile Con Carne (RMB 30.00). There is Teriyaki Steak (RMB 58.00), Sri-Lanka Lamb Curry (RMB 42.00), even a Swedish dish --Pytt I Punna -- a sauté of potato, meat cubes, beet root and fried egg for RMB 38.00, a recipe which was suggested by a customer passing through. The night I was there, I had the Chicken Cordon Bleu with tomato sauce (RMB 58.00) and it was delicious. The specialty of the house is Brazilian barbecue, marinated and flame grilled, served with salad and garlic bread for RMB 42.

(Jose Viola at the piano)

The owner, Yu Gan, has a special interest in music -- in his student days he conducted the chorus at Beijing's prestigious Qing Hua (or Tsing Hua) University. After leaving the university, Yu Gan became first a chemistry teacher and then a successful entrepreneur, the president of a fabric company on the outskirts of Beijing. But his love of music remains, and on Friday and Saturday nights the Amazon features a virtuoso jazz pianist, Jose Viola, who plays with no cover charge from 9 to 11 PM. The pub also has a daily Happy Hour from 5 to 7 PM where you pay for one drink and get the second free.

As for the name itself, The Amazon, this is the result of the the owner's surname "Yu," which sounds the same as "fish" in Chinese, and the first name "Gan" -- "no water." Thus Mr."Fish Out Of Water" thought it might be lucky to name his restaurant after the largest river on earth.

We've made The Amazon our Hot Pick for this holiday season because of its friendly atmosphere, good food, drink, and low prices -- a welcome relief from the grand but anonymous hotels nearby. So if you're holed up at the Great Wall Sheraton or the Kempinski, and you're looking to escape the high-rise glitter for a jazzy evening -- give this little pub a try!