'Beijing-Istan' taking shape

The fur market in Yabaolu is receiving fewer customers. [Photo by Wang Jing/China Daily]

"I'd love it because we'll be able to show more Chinese our food," Bakiev says.

He likens Yabaolu to compote, a Central Asian drink his restaurant makes.

"Compote is made of mixing different fruits boiled in water. This area is made of many different (Soviet countries') restaurants. It's like a melting pot."

Inside his diner, Kyrgyzstani Juliyafs Maia is dining with two compatriots, both of whom have Chinese husbands.

"We come here once or twice a week," the 41-year-old says between vodka shots.

"The Central Asian food here is very good. Yabaolu is a special place because there are so many people from the former Soviet Union. And the Chinese here can speak Russian. That's very important ... I can't speak Chinese."

Alishov has witnessed the neighborhood's transformations during his time there and expects change to continue.

"This place was just hutong (traditional Chinese courtyards) when I first arrived in 2002," he says.

"There were little shops selling fur. All the buildings were small. Now, there are big buildings. After 2008, restaurants started opening because of demand. Visitors wanted Soviet countries' food. Demand has since grown."

Alishov and Nemat both worked in logistics, shipping goods from Yabaolu's market and other locations in China to Russia and Ukraine, before opening diners.

"The (fur) market is bigger and better. But the buyers are becoming fewer," Nemat says.

Related: Restrictions hurting Yabaolu