On Facebook today one of the denizens of the great city of Greater Taichung was complaining about the crackdown on bars: the local English newspapers haven't reported on it, but something like scores of bars and pubs have been closed down in a crackdown since the great pub fire a few months ago. You may recall that a performer giving a show involving fire set the ceiling of a crowded pub on fire, resulting in the death of 9 and injury to 12. The pub was soon found to have the wrong kind of license for its operations, and the city instituted a crackdown. Since many restaurants and pubs had been operating with the wrong licenses while officialdom winked at them, they were all hurriedly closed. Over 300 apparently....
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6 comments:
So Taichung government winks at the "wine houses" that are homes to call-girls and gambling but shuts down _actual_ bars and pubs. OK. I follow that. Sort of.
The Golden Jaguar is a "family" restaurant, Ok!
So NOW they are enforcing the law. Too bad there had to be a tragedy first. I used to live in a building with an illegal bar. It was horrible. We called the police several times, but nothing was done. Eventually, we moved out after a bar fight resulted in the facade being smashed at 5:00 in the morning, waking us all up. With an infant in the house, it wasn't the ideal environment. There are rules against these establishments in residential neighborhoods for a very good reason. It is about time to see some modicum of enforcement.
Although some venues have closed down live music in Taichung is not dead. The following venues continue to host regular performances by a range of Taiwanese indie bands.
Emerge Live House
Sound Live House
Forro Cafe
I post information about upcoming gigs in English on the @2taichung Twitter account. Also check gigguide.tw for details of gigs.
Bet Gangster owned joints are doing a roaring trade. True Taichung style.
The illegal bars in apartment/office buildings are doing great business. The 'illegal,' bars being shut down are primarily street level restaurant/bars. Some are at the base of apartment buildings. Many paid and were given restaurant/bar licenses that are no longer legal.
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