A sea of white shirts and ties announces that this is a bar for businesspeople and a spot for accountants' power lunches.
Popular for office parties and a good fall-back for drinks and dinner, the Living Bar is easily located next to Hooters behind the Nanjing East Road MRT station.
First impressions are of wide and high ceilings, dotted with fans and raked with spotlights. The walls are white and cream, while light-colored wood, marble and exposed brickwork help provide and ambience that leans towards a five-star hotel bar. The piano, brass malt-making equipment and ornaments give an overall lobby effect.
Regulars come here because they have a bottle of whisky or wine left over from a previous visit, dropping by between 7:30pm and 9:30pm for the live music. There are the usual suspects in the bottled beer department and a nice selection of wines and cigars waiting in the humidor. For whisky, there is Suntory. Try a measure of Hibiki with the "patented" ice cubes, which are about twice the size of typical ice cubes, have no bubbles and are made of soft water.
The food is good for the price. Penne spaghetti with clams and crab claw nuggets comes in at NT$280. The lamb is great and the goose pate is exquisite. The menu is international with an emphasis on European cuisine and there are vegetarian options. In the open-plan kitchen, chefs busy themselves like executives. There is a lunch menu, and teas and coffees are offered in the afternoon.
There are 35 Living Bar franchises in Japan, but just one so far in Taipei. One of the unusual features of the chain is that instead of replicating a successful formula, all Living Bars are different and will serve food and drinks suited to the location.
Richard, Living Bar's Taipei manager sums up the bar's purpose: "It's all about living, being alive, living a good life, releasing the tension and being happy." Living Bar is located at 18-1, Chincheng St. (慶城街18號之1), tel: 25464908. Living Bar is open from 11:30am to 10pm. All major credit cards are accepted.
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