Tickled Pink at the Barbie Cafe in Taipei


Long-time readers of Never Ending Footsteps will already know I have an obsession with themed restaurants. I love them! You’ll also know that every time I visit Taipei, I make it my mission to visit as many as possible. Taiwan is the land of themed restaurants! There are dozens of them to explore

Game at the Hospital-Themed Restaurant in Taipei

So what is it about themed restaurants that draws me to them?

They’re fun and quirky: Let’s face it, there are only so many temples and museums you can visit before you start to feel a little fatigued. Themed restaurants are weird. They’re fun and different and offer an experience you’re unlikely to find anywhere else in the world.

They’re rarely tourist attractions: For some reason, in Taiwan at least, I rarely spot tourists at the themed restaurants. It’s always giggling local schoolgirls and families and awkward looking dates. I’m usually the only Westerner there.

They leave you with hilarious photos: Because a photo of you standing next to a wedding dress made entirely from condoms will always be funny.

Most of the time you’ll have no idea what’s going on: At the hospital-themed restaurant, our meal ended with a game where, if you rolled a dice and got an odd number,  you’d have to have a syringe full of soy sauce and vinegar squirted on your tongue! I, of course, rolled an old number.

Statues at the Condom-Themed Restaurant in Bangkok

When I found myself back in Taipei, I was determined to cross another few themed restaurants off my list, but it was going to be a tough, tough sell to Dave, because Taiwanese food is amazing.

After a little research, I set my heart on the Barbie Cafe. I knew it was going to be near-impossible to convince Dave to come with me. He wouldn’t want to waste a meal on eating bright pink burgers that tasted like cream soda.

“Will you come to a themed restaurant with me?” I asked Dave, mentally preparing a list of arguments as to why we needed to go.

“Sure,” he replied.

That was easy.

“There’s one just down the road from us,” I continued. “Want to head there today?”

He nodded.

Ten minutes later, we were stood in a queue of tiny children inside a bright pink restaurant, and Dave was staring at me as if was insane.

Tickled Pink at the Barbie-Themed Cafe in Taipei

You can’t make me feel inferior without my permission! I chanted in my head as I tried to convey an air of confidence over being in a place that was clearly designed for kids. A small child in the queue gaped up at us in bewilderment. I felt uncomfortable.

We followed the Barbie-themed waitress to our Barbie-themed table and I began to leaf through our Barbie-themed menu.

Tickled Pink at the Barbie-Themed Cafe in Taipei

Then I started to giggle. Because it was so cheesy.

Tickled Pink at the Barbie-Themed Cafe in Taipei
Tickled Pink at the Barbie-Themed Cafe in Taipei

“I can’t believe you’re making me do this,” Dave muttered as he leafed through the glittery pages. It was 3 p.m. and he was starting to get hangry. It wasn’t helping that all of the servers were now ignoring our despite attempts to catch their eyes.

Eventually a waitress approached our table and Dave began to order. He was halted mid-flow.

“Sorry, sir,” she squeaked out. “We stop serving food at 3 o’clock. We only have desserts.”

Whoops.

Dave’s hangry eyes met mine and I was flooded with guilt.

But not for long, because I promptly ordered the biggest, over-the-top dessert on the menu. This was a tower of sponge cubes the size of my face, topped with ice cream and strawberry sauce, with a few Barbie-themed chocolate pieces stuck in the ice cream. To drink: strawberry lemonade with a pink ice cube in the shape of a heart, of course!

Lauren in the Barbie cafe
Tickled Pink at the Barbie-Themed Cafe in Taipei
Tickled Pink at the Barbie-Themed Cafe in Taipei

Dave went for the much more sensible option of a chocolate and blackcurrant cake and a latte that had approximately 53 times more milk than coffee.

So, how was it?

It was okay. To be honest, I can’t really judge the food because we could only eat cakes, but as desserts go, they were pretty sickly. Maybe it was because I bought the biggest dessert possible, but either way, Dave and I weren’t sat there gushing over how incredible they were.

Tickled Pink at the Barbie-Themed Cafe in Taipei

So, the final verdict of the Barbie cafe? It was probably one of my least favourite themed restaurants I’ve been to. It was strange they stopped serving meals after a certain time, the food was pretty expensive — we paid around $10 each for a dessert and drink, the staff weren’t very friendly, and service was slow.

When you visit a themed restaurant, you should never really expect the food to be amazing because you’re paying for the experience rather than the food quality, and our “meal” met those expectations.

I feel that more effort could have been made to make it more of a Barbie theme, too. It felt kind of lazy, like they’d just painted everything in the restaurant pink, slapped Barbie’s face on a few items, and given up.

I can’t be the only person who felt like this because, while Googling for the address, I just discovered the Barbie Cafe is now closed! I’m happy I got the chance to have the experience while it was open, but I can’t say I’m surprised. After receiving news the hospital restaurant I visited a few years back has also closed, I’m hoping this isn’t a sign of things to come.

Maybe I’m the only person in the world who flew to Taiwan primarily to eat at themed restaurants?

Are there any more themed restaurants in my future? Always. I’ll be jetting back to Taipei towards the end of November for a three week stay and you can bet I’ll be crossing several more off of my list. There’s now a Friends themed restaurant that has recently opened, which is all done up like Central Perk. Um, yes please!

Would you go to a Barbie themed cafe?

Related Articles on Taiwan

💗 Why Taiwan is My Favourite Place in the World
👯‍♀️ Taiwan Has the Friendliest People in the World
💰 The Cost of Travel in Taiwan: A 2023 Budget Breakdown
🧳 How to Pack for a Trip to Taiwan
🏙 26 Incredible Things to Do in Taipei, Taiwan
🇹🇼 The Incredible Temples of Lotus Pond, Taiwan
🏥 Eating at a Hospital Themed Restaurant in Taipei
😽 The Hello Kitty Restaurant in Taipei

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About the author

Lauren Juliff

Lauren Juliff is a published author and travel expert who founded Never Ending Footsteps in 2011. She has spent over 12 years travelling the world, sharing in-depth advice from more than 100 countries across six continents.

Lauren's travel advice has been featured in publications like the BBC, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and Cosmopolitan, and her work is read by 200,000 readers each month. Her travel memoir can be found in bookstores across the planet.

36 Comments

  1. Cam
    September 14, 2015
    Reply

    Have you visited a toilet themed restaurant?

    I visited one in Boracay a couple months ago and it was definitely …odd..

    • November 14, 2015
      Reply

      I have! I’ve been to Modern Toilet in Taipei. It was… different. Haha.

  2. September 14, 2015
    Reply

    This place looks sooooo cheesy! Dave’s reactions made me laugh so much. I can just imagine taking any of my male friends/relatives to a place like this – they’d have the same facial expressions. Hilarious!

    • November 22, 2015
      Reply

      I love that he was okay with going to the cafe just so I could get these photos of him :-)

  3. September 14, 2015
    Reply

    That picture of Dave is the best!! Completely sums up how I think I’d feel in that restaurant. It all looks a bit too pink and sickly for me.

    Also I thought your pudding was to share until you mentioned the second one!

    • November 22, 2015
      Reply

      Haha! Nope, that was my lunch so I ordered big!

  4. Ola
    September 14, 2015
    Reply

    I’d love to go to a Barbie cafe oder other themed restaurant! I think that’s such a cool experience.

  5. September 14, 2015
    Reply

    Hi Lauren,

    Thanks for sharing about this restaurant! I saw it in Taipei a few years ago and opted out of visiting but it was great to read about you going. It sounds similar to the Hello Kitty cafe I visited in Seoul, though the Barbie cafe sounds way more cheesy! The cakes were kitty shaped and I still have the complimentary kitty fan they were handing out. I wasn’t a huge kitty fan beforehand, I was more keen for the novelty, but I came out loving her a bit more (I now have a Hello Kitty cushion haha).

    Thanks again,

    Laura

    • Laura
      September 17, 2015
      Reply

      Sorry Lauren, I didn’t mean the cheesy in a bad way, I just read that back and it didn’t come across the way I meant! It looked really fun and I’m glad you had such a great time!

    • November 22, 2015
      Reply

      Haha! I’ve been to a Hello Kitty restaurant as well and it was similar to the Barbie Cafe. No freebies though!

  6. September 14, 2015
    Reply

    I can’t say that I’ve ever been to a themed restaurant. Maybe I am missing out! I saw part of a travel show about a toilet themed one, I’m pretty sure it was in Taiwan. The host was served ramen in a mini toilet. Weird! but strangely alluring! I remember seeing a Moomin themed cafe in Tokyo that really looked awesome, with life sized person in Moomin suit included!

    • September 15, 2015
      Reply

      Yes! That’s in Taiwan, as well. The desserts you can order from the toilet-themed restaurant include a lump of chocolate ice cream in a toilet bowl haha.

      Would love to go to a Moomin themed cafe!

  7. September 14, 2015
    Reply

    This is mad. Don’t think I’ve ever seen so much pink anywhere! I can only imagine how many E numbers make it into the kitchen of that place…

    London (er, ok, Shoreditch) seems to be going down the themed route. We recently had an owl themed bar. Real owls. Nobody seems to know why..,

    • September 15, 2015
      Reply

      Hahaha, oh wow! I want to go to an owl themed bar!

  8. September 14, 2015
    Reply

    How fun! I’ve been to Cabbages & Condoms while in Bangkok… The best food in town! Highly recommend!

    • September 15, 2015
      Reply

      I loved it there! Food was surprisingly great :-)

  9. September 15, 2015
    Reply

    When did you go here? I tried to go about three months back and there were signs saying it has now shut. :(

    I tried to go to four different themed cafes when I was in Taiwan and three of them had been shut. The Hello Kitty and Toilet cafes are still open, though.

    • September 15, 2015
      Reply

      Whoops – I now see you did say that it is now closed. I hope they reopen! It’s such a cute idea.

      • November 22, 2015
        Reply

        I hope so, too! I’d take Dave for lunch haha.

    • September 15, 2015
      Reply

      Oh, really? Man, that sucks! Maybe it’s just too tough to make money with them, because it’s the sort of thing you wouldn’t go to more than once? We went back in December, and I think it closed shortly afterwards.

  10. September 15, 2015
    Reply

    I love these themed restaurants for all the reasons you mention. I’m all for quirky in general.

    The condom-dressed dolls are insane! Were they at the hospital themed restaurant?

    I used to be a huge Barbie and pink fan (as a child). Still like both, but in a different way nowadays. More as a kitsch lover and a collector. This Barbie cafe though, seems like a bit of a let down. Sometimes the theme is just a shell and not executed to the max. Having said that, I guess I would still have enjoyed it. Even if it were only for the crazy photo opps.

  11. Diana Edelman
    September 15, 2015
    Reply

    LOVE Dave’s hangry face in that picture! I’d probably go to the Barbie restaurant too, just for the sheer kitsch factor!

    • November 13, 2015
      Reply

      Ha! He was not impressed.

  12. September 16, 2015
    Reply

    East Asia is the hub for themed restaurants- and themed museums! The places I saw during my trip to South Korea were hilarious. I was never brave enough to actually visit them though!

    • November 13, 2015
      Reply

      Ah, you should have done! They’re a lot of fun :-)

  13. September 30, 2015
    Reply

    This looks so fun and silly!

  14. October 6, 2015
    Reply

    I literally laughed so hard at that photo of Dave’s face. Everyone in my office thinks I’m crazy now.

    • October 22, 2015
      Reply

      That makes me so happy! :-D

  15. November 11, 2015
    Reply

    I was a Barbie addict growing up! This is definitely one to add to the list. Shame is wasn’t that great in terms of food but I still want to go, just once.

    • November 11, 2015
      Reply

      Ah, I’m afraid it’s closed now, so you won’t be able to visit :-(

  16. ochie
    October 19, 2017
    Reply

    is it true that barbie face is closed?

    • October 20, 2017
      Reply

      Barbie face, haha. Yeah, I think it is now.

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