Snake Restaurant: Venom, Blood & Snake Skin Salad
The snake restaurant at the Huaxi night market in Taipei is one of the most bizarre restaurants I've ever visited. It was difficult to find since it was located in a side alley, also known as the snake alleyway.
- Why: Most bizarre restaurant in Taiwan
- Price: 250 NT for the complete snake combo experience
- Where: 108台北市萬華區華西街45號 (map)
- Tips: Ask for the special drinking process as the staff does speak a bit of English
To drink these snake shots, first drink half of the snake blood (wine) than mix in each shot with the blood and continue to drink half each time, the shots included: snake venom, snake penis wine, snake bile, ginseng, a chinese medicine and end your last shot with taking the snake oil capsules. Supposedly, snake products provide many health benefits in Chinese culture.
Ordering snake is considering very normal in Taiwan, like ordering a lobster in western countries. Now you may wonder, how can you drink snakevenom and not die? Well this snake venom is non-lethal since the proteins that make up the venom are broken down in the alcohol.
snake combo: venom, blood, penis wine, ginseng and snake soup
Snake venom tasted a little bit like the Greek alcohol called OUZO, some people can experience a temporary low level of paralysis but it made me slightly dizzy like I was briefly on heavy drugs.
I felt a little drowsy walking into the snake restaurant but those shots and the adrenline rushing through my body set me straight.
My name is