Commercial compromise

Cai Wang, a monk at the Yonghegong temple doesn't drink coffee, but he's wondering whether his fellow monks may soon wander across the road for a caffeine hit.

For the last two years, the gateway to Wudaoying Hutong directly opposite the Yonghegong (Lama Temple) has been a wasteland of construction dust and rubble, walled in by the corrugated iron sheeting of Beijing's ongoing development. The area was a blight on the image of the surrounding old Beijing scenery, and a nightmare for traffic which had to stop or pass through the detritus. But at the end of last month, the sheeting came down to reveal not a wonderfully renovated courtyard, but a set of faux-ancient fast food chains.

The new courtyards are already beginning to show signs of life; the first to open has been a Costa Coffee, and signs are in place for a KFC two doors down. But while in the past, heritage campaigners, locals or even TV personalities would be knocking on the doors with burning brands and pitchforks, it seems that this time the franchises may have found a compromise with old Beijing.

Beijing has always had a tricky relationship with its old buildings and hutong. The demolition and rebuilding of the Qianmen area prior to the Olympics, from a quiet old Beijing community to a neon-nightmare of ultra-chic boutiques is now touted as the worst possible scenario for the city's development.

At the end of last year, McDonald's chose a small courtyard on Jiugulou Dajie for their next premises, the first of its kind in Beijing, although locals and businesses were decidedly on edge at the thought of a fast food chain making its way into their area.

Caffeinated controversy

A small Starbucks which opened in 2000 inside the Forbidden City was closed down in 2007 after a lengthy protest campaign led by CCTV presenter Rui Chenggang. For the seven years in between, they seemed to have done good business.

"I used to work in the Starbucks in the Forbidden City, the company was invited there. It was only when another company had the same idea but was refused, that the campaign appeared and they were forced to close," said Richard Li, store manager of the new Yonghegong Costa Coffee, making it clear that in speaking to us, he was voicing his personal point of view, not that of his company.

He explains that the issue of a major commercial franchise in an older building really came to a head, and was unlikely to happen again. "I don't think that will even affect us here, we're in a new building and it's a different situation. Even the rent is different, it's more than the Forbidden City, and that's just the way it is in these developed and popular hutong," said Li.

"You can see the little cafés and small shops that have been set up in a modern way in this area. I think the original thinking behind opening a café here was to keep the outlook much the same as the original buildings in this area, but with a few modern touches. In that way I think they hoped everything would blend in," he added.

Mysterious ethos

While no one is actively campaigning against the change to the face of the area, not everyone is certain that having major food franchises outside the temple is the wisest move.

"I was just telling my friend that one of my favorite things about traveling is seeing the old architecture and trying local foods," said tourist Christopher Pagels, 24. "I would guess that I can get a coffee and fast food somewhere else in the city."

Even close to lunchtime there is only a relatively small trickle of customers into the shop, and an equal amount poking around the signage on the surrounding buildings. Compared to the 20-minute queues of the sandwich bars in the central business district of Beijing, this is a library of quiet, one which pervades the area.

"Honestly, another coffee shop in the area isn't going to affect business for anyone that much," said Wang Li, owner of the Yong He café, a small espresso bar in an older hutong next to the temple.

Wang opened his tiny coffee shop along with some friends around a year ago. He explains that he didn't choose the location for the stellar business opportunities, but more because he lives in the area.

"There's actually no steady flow of customers around here, most of what you get are just tourists. People just don't live around here," added Wang.

"Sure there are homes, but they're not the kind of people you would expect to drop in regularly, they're mostly lao Beijing ren (old Beijing residents, normally the elderly) and they don't tend to drink coffee. That's why it's a little bit mysterious that both a Costa and a KFC would open here. But I don't think anyone has a problem with that."

Affable change

The city put a lot of effort into reforming the area inside the second ring road before the 2008 Olympics, and, with continued economic prosperity, more tourists, and the ever looming potential of a world heritage grant, has continued to do so.

Nanluoguxiang was given a 225 million yuan ($35.6 million) makeover at the beginning of 2010, which has led to rising rental prices, disastrous publicity for a new car park project, and a complete re-facing of the South end of the street.

At the same time, the Drum Tower was offered a makeover, and nearly lost a lot of the surrounding area to a modern museum-playground dubbed the "Time Cultural City."

In May 2011, the Beijing Municipal Administration of Cultural Heritage was hoping that the central axis of the city, which runs directly south of the Drum Tower and through the Forbidden City, would be given UNESCO World Heritage Status, perhaps including the area close to Yonghegong.

The South end of Nanluoguxiang is set to open, and rumors of a Starbucks and other major franchises abound, largely thanks to the now disgraced Boston International Design Group (BIDG), a US-based Chinese-run company which had overstepped the boundaries in its redesign for the area and had released images depicting large shopping mall-esque glass buildings and European style terraces.

But for the moment, it looks like Beijing may have found a compromise between its ancient aesthetic and the major franchises. The mob certainly haven't raised their voices just yet, and the locals seem happy enough.

For Cai Wang and the other monks, it's not a big deal. "It's really okay that they've opened a coffee shop beside the temple," he said.

"I don't think I'm going to partake myself, I'm not a coffee drinker, but maybe some of the others within the order will get curious and poke around inside."