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Enid Tsui

In 2016, a 25-year-old Hong Kong woman yearning for independence boarded a plane for Taipei to start a business.
She had no entrepreneurial experience, few contacts in Taipei, barely any knowledge of the place and only her savings from a brief stint as an independent financial advisor.
Aida Lai Ka-yan’s impetuous, solitary venture became a downright wacky one once she decided what kind of business to open: a kind of Hooters bar where clients are served fried chicken and beer by beautiful women in bikinis.
“I reckoned food and drinks is the easiest industry to get into. I needed a gimmick. So I thought I would bring Bora Bora to Taipei,” she says.
The breakfast bars of Taiwan – Western fast food heaven for US$2
As hare-brained ideas go, Jap Jap Bikini is doing remarkably well – probably because the bikini part never happened.
“I just couldn’t find the girls. Very few people are willing to work in a bikini, especially in the winter,” says the fresh-faced beauty as she dashes around taking orders, fully clothed. “It would have been a terrible idea anyway. I hired a few models on opening night and they were in vests and hot pants. I had never seen so many middle-aged lechers in one room before. And they didn’t spend any money!”
Japanese visitors, of which Taipei has many, seem to like coming here despite the unfortunate name. It turns out the “Jap Jap” part has nothing to do with the Japanese and is simply taken from the Cantonese jap jap seng, the sounds you make when eating something delicious.

There is still a picture on the wall of three women on a beach, and the restaurant’s logo – printed on the paper napkins – is a drawing of a bikini-clad derriere. But Jap Jap Bikini has become a family-friendly Taiwanese craft beer specialist.
“I had to think of something else other than bikinis to make this place stand out. I now have about 100 different kinds of beer on the menu,” Lai says. “I broke even within months of opening and I’d like to open more branches or a new café under a different name.”
Taiwan is consistently ranked among the top three destinations Hong Kong locals most want to move to in an annual survey by crowdfunded the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
The number of Hong Kong and Macau citizens applying for residency in Taiwan more than doubled between 2013 and 2017, from 575 to 1251, according to the latest data from Taiwan’s interior ministry, with thousands more applying for long-term visas each year. Separate data is not published for the two Chinese special administrative regions but Hongkongers account for the bulk of those figures.
I often arrive at 10.30am to chop up vegetables and stay until 2am to finish the washing up. But at least I can say I’ve done it. I am really pleased about what I’ve done
Aida Lai
Anecdotally, Hong Kong immigrants are largely young entrepreneurs like Lai or retirees looking for an affordable home with a high quality of life. “The cost of doing business here is much lower than Hong Kong and I don’t have to make a huge profit to support myself either,” Lai says.
Unlike a lot of people who cite Taiwan’s democracy and free society as a reason for moving, Lai picked the self-ruled island for apolitical reasons, she says.
“I’d just broken up with my boyfriend. I had given up on the idea of practising as a clinical psychologist, which I studied for in the UK. I didn’t like the idea of working a nine-to-five job. So I thought, why not try Taiwan? It’s cheap, it’s friendly, and it’s culturally and linguistically familiar. So I just got on a plane with a tourist visa and that was that. I didn’t even tell my parents,” she says. She now has a three-year multiple-entry investment visa.

It was easy getting the licences for opening a restaurant and a bar, she says. She has a five-year lease – much longer than the average in Hong Kong – and pays a reasonable NT$120,000 (US$3,900) a month for a 20 square metre (215 square feet) ground floor space just across the road from Taipei Main Station. Her own flat only costs NT$20,000 a month.
However, it didn’t take long for her rosy view of certain aspects of Taiwan to be shattered.
“The Taiwanese are supposed to be very friendly. But they are extremely demanding and will really yell at you if they are unhappy with the service. The contractors quoted much higher prices than they would to a local. And spending power here is low because average salaries are low,” Lai says.
“But the most difficult part is staffing. One woman simply walked out in the middle of a very busy night, and I’ve just told off a waiter who still doesn’t know how to pour beer after several months in the job.”

She also has no social life. “I don’t have to pay myself overtime so I often arrive at 10.30am to chop up vegetables and stay until 2am to finish the washing up,” she says. “But at least I can say I’ve done it. I am really pleased about what I’ve done.” Indeed, this writer can recommend the extensive beer selection, which includes excellent selections from Taihu Brewing and Taiwan Head Brewers. They go well with the barbecued ribs.
Taiwanese tea entrepreneurs brew up new twist on tradition
Lai says the bar’s name has become an embarrassment. But she still hopes that her customers think of Jap Jap Bikini as a temporary holiday from the urban bustle. “Don’t expect me to strut around in a bikini. But I have bikini in my heart,” she says.
Jap Jap Bikini, No. 72-26, Section 1, Zhongxiao West Road, Zhongzheng District, Taipei City, Taiwan




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Taiwan

Jap Jap Bikini, Taiwan’s craft beer bar that could have been a Hooters

Aida Lai from Hong Kong pours herself a beer outside her cafe bar, Jap Jap Bikini, in Taipei. Photo: Antony Dickson

A range of craft beer, in the Jap Jap Bikini Cafe Bar, in Taipei on January 17, 2019. Aida Lai from Hong Kong, a recent university graduate from a British University, has made an unorthodox decision to open a bar in Taipei. 17JAN19 [FEATURE] SCMP / ANTONY DICKSON

Portrait of Aida Lai from Hong Kong, in the Jap Jap Bikini Cafe Bar, in Taipei on January 17, 2019. Lai is a recent university graduate from a British University, and has made an unorthodox decision to open a bar in Taipei. 17JAN19 [FEATURE] SCMP / ANTONY DICKSON

Three Taipei restaurants using locally sourced ingredients to create stunning dishes

The colourful summer salad at Mume in Taipei features more than 20 ingredients from around Taiwan. Photo: Chris Dwyer

Produce for sale at Taipei´s Hope Square Farmer´s Market in Taipei, Taiwan, on October 09, 2017. 09OCT17 [30OCTOBER2017 FEATURE 2017] CREDIT / Chris Dwyer

Confit duck at Chou Chou restaurant, Zhongxiao East Road, Taipei, Taiwan, on October 08, 2017. 08OCT17 [30OCTOBER2017 FEATURE 2017] CREDIT / Chris Dwyer

Interior with bar behind at restaurant Raw, Le Qun 3rd Road, Taipei, Taiwan, on October 09, 2017. 08OCT17 [30OCTOBER2017 FEATURE 2017] CREDIT / Chris Dwyer

Beef With Mushrooms at restaurant Mume, Siwei Road, Taipei, Taiwan, on October 09, 2017. 09OCT17 [30OCTOBER2017 FEATURE 2017] CREDIT / Chris Dwyer

Watermelon tomato salad at restaurant Raw, Le Qun 3rd Road, Taipei, Taiwan, on October 09, 2017. 08OCT17 [30OCTOBER2017 FEATURE 2017] CREDIT / Chris Dwyer

Chef Lam Ming-kin prepare a dish at restaurant Chou Chou, Zhongxiao East Road, Taipei, Taiwan, on October 08, 2017. 08OCT17 [30OCTOBER2017 FEATURE] CREDIT / Chris Dwyer

Bannoffee pie with espresso foam at restaurant Raw, Le Qun 3rd Road, Taipei, Taiwan, on October 09, 2017. 09OCT17 [30OCTOBER2017 FEATURE 2017] CREDIT / Chris Dwyer

Starter of local stracciatella cheese with figs at restaurant Chou Chou, Zhongxiao East Road, Taipei, Taiwan, on October 08, 2017. 08OCT17 [30OCTOBER2017 FEATURE 2017] CREDIT / Chris Dwyer

Exterior of restaurant Mume, Siwei Road, Taipei, Taiwan, on October 09, 2017. 09OCT17 [30OCTOBER2017 FEATURE 2017] CREDIT / Chris Dwyer

Beef Tartare at restaurant Mume, Siwei Road, Taipei, Taiwan, on October 09, 2017. 09OCT17 [30OCTOBER2017 FEATURE 2017] CREDIT / Chris Dwyer

Lifestyle

Food & Drink

Travel & Leisure


Hongkonger Aida Lai went to Taiwan to set up a Hooters-style bar, but couldn’t find the girls. So now she owns a popular craft beer venue
Taiwan offers a number of advantages for entrepreneurial Hongkongers, Lai says, but the locals aren’t always as friendly as they’re believed to be



Aida Lai went to Taipei with no entrepreneurial experience to set up a Hooters-style bar, but couldn’t find the girls. Now she owns a popular craft beer venue, and has Taiwan’s easier business environment to thank.


Food and Drinks

Jap Jap Bikini, Taiwan’s craft beer bar that could have been a Hooters

Hongkonger Aida Lai went to Taiwan to set up a Hooters-style bar, but couldn’t find the girls. So now she owns a popular craft beer venue Taiwan offers a number of advantages for entrepreneurial Hongkongers, Lai says, but the locals aren’t always as friendly as they’re believed to be

Hongkonger Aida Lai went to Taiwan to set up a Hooters-style bar, but couldn’t find the girls. So now she owns a popular craft beer venue

Taiwan offers a number of advantages for entrepreneurial Hongkongers, Lai says, but the locals aren’t always as friendly as they’re believed to be