The closing of Rock Candy six months ago, one of the most popular dance clubs in Taipei, was a loss for many clubbers. For Lin Da-chi (林大琦), its owner, it was the starting point of his new life. Talking about Hei Feng Chai, Lin's new enterprise which opened just two months ago, he was all smiles, happy with the change from running a nightclub to running a barbecue/beer house.
"The environment of a restaurant is simpler. Anyone can have a nice meal and a couple of beers here, whether you're a night-owl or not. It's just more laid-back," Lin said. Having ran other restaurants before, Lin's business savvy was quickly at work when he realized that the stigma attached to nightclubs and the vicious competition among them earlier this year wouldn't make Rock Candy last. "Now I can say that I've ran a nightclub before," Lin said.
When he is not greeting and chatting with customers, many of whom are regular customers, he selects and plays background music. His favorites are energetic Chinese rock bands. That goes well with Hei Feng Chai's surroundings, which are exactly like a scene out of a Chinese martial arts novel. To give the restaurant an anachronistic feel, Lin collected props from movie studios and, at the restaurant's opening, had all the staff dress as ancient Chinese gang members. Customers on wooden stools drink Hei Feng Chai's exclusive liqueur from China from ceramic bowls amid ancient weapons and martial arts illustrations.
Apart from the Chinese liqueur, its barbecue and beers have already attracted many loyal customers. The joint's easy-going atmosphere also means that it's packed late into the night.
To provide something different from the common Japanese-style barbecue, where customers do the barbecuing and dressing. Hei Feng Chai uses homemade sauce and has barbecue dishes ready to serve.
Beef dishes (NT$150) are popular for the quality meat and the accompanying kimchi. So are lamb chops (NT$150) which are crispy on the edges and tender in the middle. The Hei Feng Chai invention of lai-niao shrimp balls(NT$100) is a tasty and interesting must-try. Many customers' favorite are oysters (NT$60 a piece). With the fragrant house sauce that combines ginger, tomato and various spices, the dish is easily sold out during dinner hours.
These hearty dishes may go well with various Chinese liqueurs (NT$1,000 up) or the most popular Taiwan draft (NT$120). Lin recommends the Japanese imported chilled sake (NT$250), another item you won't find just anywhere.
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