just food&transportation? i think you need 1000 yuan per month. there's a street, called"niu street"牛街,all about 清真food. there's also have a Mosque in that street. transportation you can buy a card called"市政交通一卡通" it's very cheap.You only need to spend 0.4 yuan for taking a bus, 2 yuan for Subway each time. about shopping you're not the local,so you should go to Wal-Mart or Carrefour. It 's most wise to do so ps:the card"市政交通一卡通" can be used for paying in a lot of mall,like Wal-Mart.

for a qualified life level , i think you need 2000-3000 Yuan per month. you can find restaurant with the label of" 清真" everywhere. there is a shopping mall called "西单商场皂君庙店。" things are very cheep there. all articles are about 50% off.

i am living in china as a freigner at another city! for beijing i think it is some expensive! for normal enjoy and normal life i think 1500 rmb are enough! and more depends on you!

1500~2000RMB if you are in college.....no idea if you actually live there.most universities have a special dinning hall that offers 清真food. there're not many cheap malls in beijing.....you'd better ask some local people for help.