Huaxi Street Tourist Night Market paifang at night 20120101

Snake Alley (), also known as Huaxi Street Night Market or Huaxi Street Tourist Night Market () is a market in

Wanhua District Wanhua District, known in Taiwanese Hokkien as Báng-kah khu and historically as "Monga" or "Monka", is a district in Taipei, Taiwan. It is Taipei's oldest district. The district is home to historic buildings such as the Bangka Lungshan Temple, ...

Taipei Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the ...

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

. The market is located near the

Bangka Lungshan Temple Bangka Lungshan Temple (also Lungshan Temple of Manka, Mengjia Longshan Temple) is a Chinese folk religious temple in Wanhua District (alternately known as Bangka/Mengjia), Taipei, Taiwan. The temple was built in Taipei in 1738 by settlers from ...

as well as other night markets located on Guangzhou Street, Wuzhou Street and Xichang Street. The Huaxi Night Market is a two-block long

night market Night markets or night bazaars are street markets which operate at night and are generally dedicated to more leisurely strolling, shopping, and eating than more businesslike day markets. They are typically open-air markets popular in East Asia, So ...

, the oldest district of

. It contains stands serving local snacks, and restaurants that serve traditional Taiwanese dishes and many delicacies including snake blood and meat, turtle blood and meat and

deer penis In traditional Chinese medicine, a deer penis (; Vietnamese: ''Lộc pín'') is said to have important therapeutic properties. Purported properties In Angang, Taiwan, women are reported to consume deer penis during pregnancy as it is said to ha ...

wine, which are not normally found anywhere else. Many stands used to sell various snake delicacies and drinks, hence its nickname "Snake Alley". Many Taiwanese have a negative view of Snake Alley, which was once a legal red-light district.

History

The Huaxi Street Night Market has a history of over 50 years. Until the 1990s, it was a red light district, with pornography shops and strippers congregating along the two sides of these streets. Prostitutes could be easily found in the brothels in the area, where they waited for customers in plain view. In 1991 the Taiwanese government outlawed prostitution. Snake Alley got its nickname due to the numerous restaurants serving snake meat in the past. Previously, snake-meat restaurants would get attention from passersby by putting on performances where handlers would kill and skin live snakes. However, the government banned performances in the 2000s, both to adhere with Article 13 of Taiwan's Animal Protection Act, as well as appease the public's growing concerns about animal welfare. On May 21, 2018, the night market's last snake-meat restaurant, the Asia Snake Meat Store (), closed down. Because of its various restaurants and food stalls, the night market has been recognized by the

Michelin Guide The Michelin Guides ( ) are a series of guide books that have been published by the French tyre company Michelin since 1900. The Guide awards up to three Michelin stars for excellence to a select few establishments. The acquisition or loss of ...

. In its 2019 Michelin Guide to Taipei, the guide gave the entire night market the Bib Gourmand. In August 2020, food vendor Wu Huang-yi, who sells

gua bao The ''gua bao'' (), also known as pork belly bun, ambiguously as bao, or erroneously as bao bun, is a type of lotus leaf bun () originating from Fujian cuisine. It is a popular snack in Taiwan and is commonly sold at night markets and restaura ...

at his food stall in the night market, also received a Bib Gourmand. Huaxi Street night market 0266 - Summer 2007

Transportation

The night market is 500 meters (1650 feet) northwest of Exit 1 of the

Longshan Temple Station Longshan Temple (Bangka Commercial Zone) (), formerly transliterated as Lungshan Temple Station until 2003, is a metro station in Taipei, Taiwan served by Taipei Metro. The station is named for the nearby Lungshan Temple. Station overview The ...

of the

Taipei Metro Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT), branded as Metro Taipei, is a rapid transit system serving the areas of Taipei and New Taipei in Taiwan, operated by the government-owned Taipei Rapid Transit Corporation, which also operates the Maokong Gondo ...

References

{{Night markets of Taiwan Night markets in Taipei Red-light districts in Taiwan Restaurant districts and streets in Taiwan

History

Transportation

See also

References