Taipei Nightlife Comes of Age in the Da-An District

Carnegies
100 AnHe Rd., Sec. 2

     The fact that an Irish pub/deli — albeit a very large one — can get long lines of Taiwanese hipsters to line up says a lot about how well Carnegies has succeeded in catering to the local demand for rocking party palaces. It goes beyond the rock-and-roll decor and the Island's most extensive selection of shooters (over 300). It's the attitude: the place works hard to get patrons to let their hair down. For starters, there's "crazy hour" from 6 to 7 pm every night. Then there's the generous liquor policy that decrees that a shot is closer to two ounces than one. There's free champagne for the ladies every Wednesday night. And who ever heard of a pub that lets patrons dance on the bars. The fact that it's just down the street from the opulent Far Eastern Plaza Hotel, with is high-end clientele, doesn't hurt either. Carnegies has justly earned the right to call itself a Taipei institution. Open 11:30 am - 2 am daily.

Twins
B1, 223 Dun Hua South Road, Section 1

     Twins manages to combine old-line Taipei exclusivity (you pay a steep cover, then buy liquor by the bottle and have it kept under your name) and new-age trendiness (live bands playing latest selection of pop tunes until 11 pm when DJs take over). Perhaps for those reasons, Twins pulls in a mostly Taiwanese crowd, a lively one. At around $8 a bottle, beers are expensive but at least they don't amount to an investment in the place. There's also a pretty good selection of western dishes at only slightly unreasonable prices. Open 6pm - 5am daily.

By day Carnegies is a mild-mannered deli serving standard western fare. By night it turns into a liquor-fueled rock house with frenzied partiers dancing on the bars.

As with most Taipei hotspots, Carnegies regularly attracts groups of westerners, both students and business executives.