This time I had the chance to visit this newly opened bistro-bar in Xinyi Anhe, still in its soft-opening phase — "New Leaf (枝枒．氣氛轉換所/気分転換所)". The space was previously home to "EQUAL by TKLAB", and a new team has made a fresh start at the same address. Their aim is to offer a comfortable space where, the moment you step inside, your mood begins to shift and you can truly relax and unwind.
📜 Information
- Address: No. 8, Jiaxing St., Xinyi District, Taipei 110
- Hours: 18:00 - 01:00 (closed Tuesdays)
- Phone: 0287869006
- Official page: https://www.instagram.com/bar_new_leaf/
- Reservations: Book on inline
📍 Location & Interior
New Leaf (枝枒‧気分転換所) sits on Jiaxing Street in Xinyi District, slightly closer to Taipei 101 MRT Station — about a 5-minute walk. It's easy to reach and right in the heart of Taipei's most competitive bar district.
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| The photo sticker booth at the entrance |
There's a Korean-style photo sticker booth right outside the door. During the soft-opening period, taking photos (around $200–$250 as I recall) got you a free signature cocktail ($350).
The interior lighting is soft and comfortable, with plenty of curved indirect lighting, and the space is quite roomy — not cramped like some bars and bistros.
Besides the bar counter, the front section has plenty of four-person tables, while the back has a sofa area that can accommodate larger groups.
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| Understated, tasteful interior design |
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| The main bar counter |
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| The little card waiting on the table |
Then you're offered four fragrances — Worry-Free, Blank Mind, Memory, and Immersion — and you pick the scent you like best and spray it onto the card, so that the aroma keeps you company through the night. A simple concept, but a fun one.
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| Four fragrances: Worry-Free, Blank Mind, Memory, Immersion |
📜 Menu
Online menu: New Leaf Menu
The menu is divided into event drinks, birthday sets, signature cocktails, and food.
🍸 Cocktails
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| The non-alcoholic welcome drink |
The welcome drink is a non-alcoholic version of one of their signature cocktails, "Spring Dew" — Four Seasons oolong, green apple and white cardamom, sweet-tart with a faint tea aroma.
Note: flavour and texture are very subjective — the following are just my own impressions, so do go and try them for yourself.
Like Smoke
"Like Smoke" arrives with a real sense of ceremony (and it's very photogenic): a rose-scented paper is lit, and the faint smoke carries a floral note that instantly puts you in a relaxed state. The base is rum sous-vide infused with Taiwanese Ruby black tea, giving a warm, smooth aroma, with blackcurrant tartness and a honeyed peach sweetness (there's no peach in it, but it certainly smells like it). Overall it aims for a light, sweet-and-sour crowd-pleasing style, with tea notes gradually emerging on the finish. A solid if unremarkable performance — though it's a shame the alcohol pushes through a bit on the finish.
Turn Over a New Leaf
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| Saying goodbye to my younger, less mature self |
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| Great effect — photogenic and good fun |
This drink has a story in it right from the name — it feels like a farewell, and also like sorting out your feelings before moving on to the next chapter.
The whole drink is smoked with cherry wood, a clear, even somewhat forceful opening. The liquid itself combines Roku gin infused with Taiwan incense cedar, clarified tomato juice, and house-made roselle sherry. The flavour has a light woody profile, with fairly pronounced alcohol and a slightly artificial-perfume note on the palate that isn't the most appealing.
At first the smoke felt like it was stealing the show and sat a little apart from the drink itself; after letting it rest a while for the smoke to disperse, the overall flavour improved a little.
The Drink from Old Times
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| Served in a bag like old-school winter melon tea — you pour it out yourself |
This one uses Jim Beam as its base, paired with plum, black vinegar and winter melon tea, topped with a candied roselle flower as a garnish — visually it really feels like drinking an "upgraded childhood beverage".
The first thing you smell is winter melon tea mixed with the gentle tartness of roselle; on the palate there's a clear smoked-plum flavour with a touch of winter melon sweetness — refreshing without being cloying. It goes down easily and the alcohol never jumps out awkwardly. This was our favourite drink of the night.
Farmers' Market
On the menu, Farmers' Market lists "bean sprouts, wasabi and asparagus" over a gin base. It struck us as novel — the first time we'd seen bean sprouts used in a cocktail — so we had to try it. On the nose it really is bean sprouts; on the palate there's asparagus, with a faint wasabi note on the finish. Overall it tastes rather like a mixed vegetable juice with a hint of wasabi — a fun one to try for novelty's sake.
Sidecar
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| We finished with a classic, though sadly it wasn't quite the flavour we expected. |
🍽️ Food
On the whole, we thought the food was pretty tasty — great for pairing with drinks.
Fried Snack Platter
Hamburg Steak
Tamagoyaki
Signature Fried Chicken
Yatai Fried Noodles
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| On the house: a clarified Bloody Mary shot made with black vinegar |
Overall, New Leaf offers a comfortable space with a relaxed atmosphere — perfect for switching off after work. And since it sits in the dense bar cluster around Xinyi Anhe, it also makes an excellent starting point for a night of bar hopping. The food performs well; none of the dishes we ordered that night were a letdown, and the staff were friendly, explaining the menu in detail and with plenty of patience.
As for the cocktails, the presentations are memorable and very photo-friendly. Flavour is more subjective — the drinks we tried had novelty and playfulness, but whether they suit your palate is another matter. All in all, it's a fairly mainstream, beginner-friendly bistro-bar.
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Bar List | Bar surfing around the world | A record of bars worldwide
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