Sidebar hides behind a metal door on Wenchang Street in Taipei's Da'an District, a cafe by day and a gin den by night. The bar keeps more than 300 gins on hand, which makes it one of the city's deepest rooms for the spirit.
The entrance is part of the fun. Guests pass through a hidden door, and a second secret doorway needs a password, a setup that local guides like City Nomads and Corner flag as one of Taipei's best speakeasy entries.
Who would love it: gin drinkers and anyone who enjoys a bar with a sense of theatre. Who would skip it: drinkers after a quick beer or a loud room, because this is a cosy, spirit led den.
The space is small and warm, with shelves of bottles and a collection the bar calls Lost Page, more than 400 gins deep. There is even a small gin museum, the Museu Del Gin, built from lamps and everyday items made with gin bottles.
The cocktails are the draw, built around that gin library. The menu leans on creative builds inspired by films, shows and Taiwanese ingredients, as Tripadvisor reviewers note again and again.
Order a gin build off the signature list first, where the depth of the bottle range shows clearest. Cocktails sit in the mid range for Da'an, fair for a room with this much gin behind the bar.
The bar opens in the evening, from six until one on weeknights and until two on Friday and Saturday. An early seat is the calm window before the small room fills.
Reservations help on weekends, while a weeknight walk in usually finds space. A seat at the bar is the spot to let the staff steer a choice through the gin range.
Regulars on Tripadvisor and Wanderlog praise the friendly, knowledgeable staff and the creative cocktails, and note that the room is small and intimate. The hidden door keeps it quiet from the street.
It suits a gin fan, a date that wants a talking point, or a small group after a different kind of night. It is less suited to a large party hunting for noise and space.
The Wenchang Street location sits in Da'an, close to the city's densest run of cocktail bars. That makes it easy to pair with another counter nearby.
The gin focus is the identity. Few rooms in Taipei carry this many bottles or build a museum around the spirit, and that depth is the reason to come.
Prices stay reasonable for the area, which fits the casual den feel behind the secret door. A couple of gin cocktails here costs less than the polished hotel bars across town.
The gin museum and the Lost Page collection give the room a reason to return beyond a single visit. There is always another bottle to try, which keeps the small space on the city's gin lists.
The bar leans on its staff as much as its bottles. A regular often ends up with a gin they had never tried, picked by the bartender to fit the mood of the night.
The hidden entrance sets the tone before the first drink. Finding the door and the password is part of why visitors describe the room as one of Taipei's better speakeasy experiences.
For a gin focused crawl, Sidebar is the natural anchor. Few rooms in the city carry this kind of range, and the staff make the depth easy to navigate.
For more in the city, see the guide to the best bars in Taipei, the best cocktail bars in Taipei, and where it sits among the best cocktail bars in Asia. Nearby picks include AHA Saloon in Taipei and Ounce in Taipei.
Sources: Sidebar official site · Tripadvisor reviews · City Nomads · Wanderlog. Editorially curated by Marcus Webb.
