Similar to Club 9%, Club Wax offers all-you-can-drink specials from Wednesday to Sunday. Club Wax is also part of a larger company of bars that includes TU, Party Room and the temporarily closed B1 -- all of which offer all-you-can-drink nights -- as well as the high end clubs Plush and Mint.
Chen Hsiu-yu (陳糸秀毓), assistant manager at Club Wax -- who, like Club 9%? Hu, claims that the company she works for started the all-you-can-drink trend four years ago -- says that the drinks aren"t the only thing that brings the customers in.
"Music is important," she said. "If the music is bad, the customers won"t come. I won"t say our music is the best but we do play the latest music."
"But also the all-you-can-drink [offer] is also important, as well as the service," she added.
With this many clubs offering all-you-can-drink, managers are constantly finding new ways to bring in the crowds. In addition to the drink specials, Club Wax offers a monthly "Beach Party" that features young women gyrating to hip hop music while splashing around in small pools of ice water. Some have even been known to remove their tops.
Going upscale
Across town at Barcode, the vibe is completely different. With Nina Simone tunes emanating from the sound box the atmosphere is low-key and relaxed. The clientele are ten years older and a few digits wealthier. The space is an upscale lounge bar run by Matt Chang (張均豪).
"Barcode is different from other bars because we [have] different cocktails. You can drink a bottle of single-malt everywhere, but you can"t drink the same cocktails," he said.
Known for their creative potions that emphasize fresh ingredients, the price for some cocktails at Barcode are as much as the entrance for some all-you-can-drink clubs.
Restaurants are even jumping on the all-you-can-drink bandwagon.
Simmer Liu (劉桐榮), owner of Belly Wash, a newly opened restaurant will begin an all-you-can-drink cover charge -- NT$250 for ladies and NT$500 for men -- on weekends within the next month.
"It? the trend for most bars in Taipei. It? because people in Taiwan prefer this kind of deal," he said when asked why he's going to begin the specials. "It? more economical," he added.
WARNING: Excessive consumption of alcohol can damage your health.
RSS