茶馆是供人休息、消遣和交际的重要场所。茶馆最初出现时还不具备固定的形态，只是提供一杯茶水的简单摊位，随着经济和社会的发展，具备了更加丰富的功能和形制，日渐成为构成市民生活的重要公共空间。

到清代，茶馆已然遍布全国各大城市和人口稠密区，北京地区的茶馆更是发展到了高峰，这种高度发展有赖于经济与社会背景的支撑。经过前代不断发展演变，茶馆已经发展出了成熟的形态，具备多种多样的功能，加之茶叶种植和贸易的兴盛，北京作为首善之区交通及商业发达，各地优质茶叶顺利入京。此外，北京人口构成还具有京旗闲人、文人、士大夫、商人等数量多，男子数量多的特点，为茶馆提供了广大且丰富的客源，故而茶馆经营有了最辉煌的一段时间。作为有着大量八旗闲人居住的都城，北京茶馆颇具特色。北京茶馆主要包括轩敞气派的大茶馆、朴素的清茶馆、提供饭食的二荤铺、依山傍水的野茶馆、热闹的书茶馆和棋茶馆、茶园等。由于满汉内外城分治的政策导致清代北京茶馆呈现出外城多内城少的特点，内外城的茶馆类型也不尽相同，内城以大茶馆居多，外城则以清茶馆、野茶馆、书茶馆、茶园等居多。京旗子弟、文人士大夫和底层民人在茶馆中的角色也各不相同。旗人在茶馆中侃大山、听鸟哨、吃早点、听评书，文人在茶馆中进行谜会、诗会、笔会等风雅活动，或去郊外散心，商人在茶馆中达成交易，雇工在茶馆中等待雇主的雇佣谋求生计。

但随着京旗的衰落，内外城的界限的逐渐打破，社会危机的加深，晚清茶馆的发展也呈现出了新的态势，消费水平要求较高的大茶馆衰落，清茶馆和具有特定功能的书茶馆、棋茶馆持续发展，戏曲表演也在茶馆中增多，知识分子进入茶馆，因此过去的娱乐功能减弱，进行爱国宣传和教化功能凸显。同时，茶馆内赌博、嫖娼、谈论政事以讹传讹的现象增多，政府试图严加管理但始终不能禁绝。

Tea house is an important place for people to rest, relax and communicate. When tea house first appeared, it did not have a fixed form. With the development of economy and society, it has more diversified functions and forms, and has gradually become an important public space that constitutes the life of citizens. By the Qing Dynasty, tea houses had already spread all over China's major cities and densely populated areas, and the development of tea houses in Beijing reached its peak, which depended on the support of economic and social background.

Beijing tea houses are quite distinctive. Beijing tea houses mainly include grand tea houses, clear tea houses, two-meat tea houses, wild tea houses, tea-houses of books and chess, and tea gardens, etc. Due to the policy of separation between inner and outer cities in The Manchu and Han dynasties, the types of tea houses in inner and outer cities were not the same. Large tea houses were the majority in inner cities, while clear tea houses, wild tea houses, book tea houses and tea gardens were the majority in outer cities. The roles of the banner people, literati and low-level people in the tea house are also different.