Taichung's Ailìse Bar Launches New Menu "A Dream of World Flavors and Memory" in Four World-Touring Chapters

Oku Hotel Taichung is located on the former site of Sakurada Department Store in Taichung's old city district, with the entire building renovated under the concept of "The Department of Travellers' Tales," transforming the old department store's spatial memory into a vessel for travelers' stories. Inside, Ailìse Bar centers on gin, with the space designed by Studio HBA Singapore. At its center stands an indoor spirits tower displaying gin selections from around the world, serving as the shared core of the bar's visual identity and its drink-selection logic. This bar has also been shortlisted in the "Asia – Hotel" category of the 2026 Restaurant & Bar Design Awards, indicating that its spatial design has drawn attention during the judging process; this record represents a shortlisting and should not be taken directly as a win.

How does the new menu organize four chapters through city memories?

The new seasonal menu crafted by Ailìse Bar's bartending team is titled "A Dream of World Flavors and Memory." Its overall structure is divided into four chapters: "Rain and Mist," "Heat and Light," "Between Cities," and "Homeward," each corresponding to different climates, cities, and emotional states, rather than simply being categorized by drink type. This arrangement gives the menu itself a narrative quality, with each cocktail feeling like a condensed fragment of a journey.

In the "Rain and Mist" chapter, the Dublin-inspired cocktail combines bourbon, cold-brew coffee, and lemon verbena honey, using the richness of coffee and the sweetness of honey to echo the impression of Ireland's damp, gloomy climate, with bourbon providing structural support for the body of the drink. This is how the menu's recipes respond to impressions of cities; actual perception will still vary from drinker to drinker.

How does the "Between Cities" chapter present the contrast between Paris and Amsterdam?

The "Between Cities" chapter includes two strikingly different creations. The Paris-inspired cocktail, "After the Perfume Fades," is mixed with gin, mezcal, violet liqueur, elderflower liqueur, tobacco bitters, and a house-made edible French perfume, capturing the complex layers of scent that linger after perfume evaporates through the contrast between floral notes and tobacco bitters, placing floral aromas, tobacco, and different base spirits side by side in a single glass. The Amsterdam-inspired cocktail, by contrast, is based on Earl Grey Dutch gin, with watermelon, peach, and roselle added, presenting a brighter, more refreshing fruit character that stands in sharp contrast to the intensity of the Paris creation—illustrating that the city-themed drinks within the same chapter don't follow a single stylistic formula but instead develop according to each city's distinct character.

How does the "Homeward" chapter connect to Taiwan's local terroir?

The "Homeward" chapter brings the perspective back to Taiwan. Among its drinks, "Hehuan Dawn" is made with mint rum, clarified lemon, rose hydrosol, and soda, offering a light, floral taste that echoes the cool sensation of a mountain morning. "Wandering Wuling" uses Taiwan incense cedar gin, kaffir lime leaves, kumquat, elderflower, and honey; the cedar gin itself carries woody notes evocative of Taiwan's mountain forests, paired with the sweet-and-sour layers of kumquat and elderflower to express the botanical atmosphere of the Wuling mountain area. This chapter's arrangement brings the entire menu full circle, from imagined faraway places back to the local terroir experience of Taiwan, forming a complete journey structure.

When ordering from this menu, it helps to first choose a chapter that matches the direction you want to explore, then look at the actual base spirits and ingredients. Although the bar is centered on gin, the published recipes also include bourbon and rum, so the entire menu should not be treated as purely gin-based cocktails; if there are spirits or ingredients you don't wish to consume, it's advisable to check with the bar staff before ordering.