Location: Hsinchu - Yuanshangyuan Tea House
Travel Notes Summary: Hsinchu - Yuanshangyuan Tea House (already under new ownership again). When I was young, I loved wandering around at night with friends. Besides beer houses and pubs, another favorite spot was tea houses, especially those with private rooms, wooden floors or tatami mats where you had to take off your shoes—they really won me over. After entering, grabbing a cushion to sit on, and just huddling together chatting and eating, the fun was endless. In Tainan, I also visited places like Hanlin, Jiji, Jinge, Wuti, Fengcha, and Old Street Tea House. Tainan has quite a few tea houses or similar spots, like the chain Gengduyuan, but the most famous is still Hanlin Tea House. Since my sophomore year, I've been to several of its branches. But as the food didn't improve and prices kept rising, its rating in my mind kept dropping. Still, I really miss that cozy feeling of a group huddled in a private room. After coming to Hsinchu, I've been constantly searching for tea houses to relive those memories. Hanlin has two branches in Hsinchu too—one in Far Eastern Department Store and one in Lianyuan—both with nice decor, but the space …