About Drinking in Taiwan (Updated for 2024)

Taipei has cemented itself as a world party destination for DJ's, dancers, and even renowned bartenders. While the party scene in Taipei has been booming for well over tw decades, it has returned to life in a new form post COVID. As a result visitors and new arrivals will be somewhat lost about which places offer what type of crowd. This introduction is hopefully a welcome overview of what kinds of night life there are.

Expat life is booming in Taipei, and there's a lot to enjoy about it if you're looking to let loose. Do note however that even with tons of new arrivals the regular attendees within the party community remains relatively small. All that means is you should expect to see the same faces if you stick around, and hopefully some of them become new friends.


Understanding Taiwanese Drinking Culture:

Drinking is permissible in public places (unless otherwise stated) in Taiwan because alcohol was not given a negative reputation during Taiwan's past. Compared to America, where blue laws, licenses, and ideology left over from the 1800's dominate alcohol consumption, Taiwan is incredibly liberal. 

Sales are 24 hours, there is no mandatory closure time for bars or clubs, and prices are still reasonable although things got more expensive in 2023. 

It is common to see people - especially foreign visitors or residents - drinking outside in the park. If you find yourself asking "can I drink here?" the best answer is to consider alcohol like any other drink - if you can bring in a can of Cola, you can also bring a beer, or whatever else.


Where to buy drinks in Taipei?

Retailers like Costco, Carrefour, PX Mart or RT Mart offer lowest prices and selection tends to be fairly wide and it's a good one stop shop. Whiskey is especially cheap compared to many other locations around the world, and a lot of stores offer comically large bottles, glass sets, etc. There are a lot of mom and pop shops around the city too, but its hard to beat the bigger chains on prices. 

Convenience stores sell beer, but also whiskey, and wine (which are more expensive than elsewhere) but nearly everyone out for the night will eventually find themselves grabbing a drink here. There's alot of airplane size and 200ml bottles of stuff as well.

7-11 and Family Mart have also done a great job upping their game in recent years, and in addition to running sales like 3 beers for 85% off, they also have started to carry a lot more imported stuff, especially in the summer.

Bars:

Bars run a fairly broad spectrum in Taiwan, but prices range between 150 – 350 for beer with a cocktails from 200 to 500. Foreign bars tend to be much, much more casual, although there are fewer and fewer of the old haunts left.  

If you go to an upmarket cocktail bar you should not expect a lot of mingling and little talking between tables, and most people will be more than happy to tell you they don't want to be bothered. It wasn't always this way, but you can't blame people for being over random strangers ruining their night. There tends to be a lot of focus on presentation and atmosphere, although flavor quality will vary.

For beers the big international brands and Taiwan Beer are common. A local craft brew scene emerged during the past few years as well, and there are a handful of brands that make the rounds with IPAs, Double IPAs, Porters, etc. on offer. It's worth noting most of them contract brew through the same main location.

Smaller neighborhood bars now see the bulk of the action, and clubbing is not entirely out of fashion, but not necessarily in either. Mileage will vary there, but if you're reading up on party life and the information isn't from after COVID don't trust it.


Lounges:

There are many bars in the social hubs like gongguan, shida, dongqu, neihu, tianmu, etc which are laid back and fit the bar vibe.

Lounges in this sense mean an over refined decor in a bar with a touch over loud music and fancy looking sofas. Blowing cash and looking classy go hand in hand in hand, especially around Taipei 101.

Drinks at lounges will usually favor foreign imported beers as well as a broader range of whiskeys, mixed drinks, and cocktails. Mixology standards vary, but quality has improved a lot from the inception of lounge life.

Hookah lounges also exist and usually cater to foreign customers fairly well.


Drinking in Restaurants:

Drinking in restaurants is by far the most commonly accepted way to drink in Taiwan. Most people won't head to western style bars for a night out but instead hit a restaurant. Food and booze go hand in hand in the local culture, so don't be afraid to have a few with your meal.

All you can eat restaurants will often have a keg of beer and some offer bottles of wine and cocktails as well. There's usually a 2 hour time limit. Couple the endless drinks with all you can eat ice cream, meat, veggies, etc. and you're either in for a great night or the worst stomach ache of your life. 

If you want to really go local: 
Beer is sold by the bottle at seafood and fry up joints. Each restaurant has its own preferred brand, and Taiwan beer, QingDao, plus Heineken are the usual choices. Restaurants will usually have a beer girl who offers you whatever brand they're working with when you sit down and they'll even bring them to your table. If you don't like what they're selling you usually just serve yourself from the fridge and keep the bottles to be counted at the end. 

The beer goes into small glass cups, and people will do a cheers and drink them clean off.  Feel free to sip as well, but don't be surprised if you get drinking with some local folks that they'll encourage you to drain your cup. 

How to find these spots? Look for rechao 熱炒 places, local seafood spot, or places offering dishes for 100 - 150 NTD. You'll also see brightly colored plastic racks for empty bottles positioned near the tables. Bonus is the food tends to be good, fresh, and perfect for enjoying while drinking.

Clubs:
First some background on clubs and the scene.

Things got a little strange after September 2014 when a policeman was killed outside a nightclub. It took a while, but there was a resurgence in party life, that again took a hit in late 2017 when there was a huge public outcry about drug use. 

If you're headed to a major club venue expect the police to make an appearance. Have your ID with you when you go, and just mill around waiting for the party to restart, which it inevitably will.

All You Can Drink Clubs:

These have fallen out of fashion unless you're a very new drinker, but for visitors this is one of the most novel draws to the Taiwanese night life. There is minimal liability for anyone providing alcohol as long as you're 18, and you can literally drink yourself into the hospital if you like. 

Generally the system works by making you wait in long lines to trade a receipt for your first drink, and then trade subsequent drink cups for new drinks. Spilling, vomiting, or losing your cup get you a surcharge that is usually a bit outrageously high.

Pro tip: Stick. To. The. Beers.

If you're just learning that hard liquor can be swapped with a potable ethanol or other substitute to lower the price of mixed drinks you really need to look into it. TLDR is you don't want to drink that stuff, it'll make you super sick or possibly kill you. The practice isn't limited to just Taiwan, but without a doubt some clubs have done it in Taipei in the past. 

If you're nervous about it: Stick. To. The. Beers.

There are also all you can drink bars, and the same idea applies.

Final note (again): Everyone in the club will be very young, so make sure that's the crowd you want before you go. 


Clubs:

Clubs are generally found in Taipei around ZhongXiao DunHua or near Taipei 101. Admission runs up to 1000 NT for entrance with drink tickets sometimes. Or not. The dress code is more strictly enforced at these clubs, and more strongly enforced on men. Skip the shorts, ratty shirts, and flip flops, and women should show up wearing something other than pajamas.  

Bottle service is certainly possible at these places, and tables can be had, but are hard to come by even if you call in advance for peak party times. Expect to be given a minimum spend amount that comes with some drinks. 

The security at clubs can be pretty assertive if need be, and don't think that being a foreigner will save you from being reminded about proper manners.

Crowd will generally be people over 25, and men seem to overwhelmingly be favoring the club scene more than women post COVID. 

Where's the Expats At?:

Yuanshan Park has a ton of bars and a few small clubs that overwhelmingly cater to the foreign crowd. You can find a few other spots, but with the park redeveloped in 2023 to offer even more choices it has, for better or worse, become a bit of a one stop shop for a lot of night life. That trend is likely to continue through 2024 and beyond due to new noise laws for the rest of the city.

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