15 SONGS SAKE DINING BAR (04) 2319-6027 15, HuaMei West Street, section 1 Hours: 6:30 pm-2:30 am

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The opening of this swanky little establishment puts Taichung on track to join Los Angeles, New York and other cities where sake bars are a fairly recent craze. 15 Songs is Taichung's first dedicated sake bar and is the brainchild of Lauren Juan, who opened the city's first lounge bar (simply named "Lounge Bar") at this same location, long before lounge bars were considered cool. Once again, Lauren is hoping that her new bar will be a trendsetter for Taichung. 15 Songs still resembles a lounge bar with velvet-covered sofas and chairs and some of the best lounge, acid jazz, chill-out and house music in the city. However, the decor is now warmer and more Asian, with exotic-looking lamps, hanging bamboo dividers, Japanese-style seating on the second floor, and lots of wood, including an attractive rough-wood bar. On orange-lit shelves behind the bar are some of 15 Songs' 30 to 40 high-end, hard-to-find sakes, which are served ice-chilled (the way they should be, says Lauren). These range from the NT$500 300ml bottle of Rashiku Ginjo-sake to 720ml bottles costing about NT$4,500. From 6:30 to 9:30 p.m., five-course Japanese fusion cuisine set meals are available, featuring seasonal seafood and other items and costing about NT$600. Besides sake, a full range of cocktails (NT$180-300) and other drinks are available, as are fine cigars. There's a minimum bill of NT$200 per person. --By Douglas Habecker, translated by Vivian Ko Morano