JFYI, Carnegies has put its drinks list and menus online, and has a discussion forum, events list and bar photos, etc. 
See youāre trying for a free beer, Monkey, but thereās a big problem ā wouldnāt you have to actually go there in order to get your drink? Hardly worth it, is it. Carnegies has to be one of the saddest, most desperate places Iāve ever seen. The photos on their website say it all.
Stop yer moaning man, a beerās a beer! But has anyone tried the grub there yet? ā¦ particulary the āBritish Favouritesā ā the fish & chips and all-day brekkie?
Seems to be a lot of people having fun there. Maybe you are too old Sandman !
I quite like it during the weekend. Good music (matches my taste) and usually a good mooded crowd. Havenāt eaten there though.
I gotta side with sandman on this one, and I canāt resist chiming in. I find that place excrutiating. I wonāt go into full slag mode here as I think I would draw a lot of flak for being such a snob, but Iām getting shivers down my spine just thinking about the last time I was there. Though I remember liking my fish and chips.
I would hardly use the arguement that one could be ātoo oldā for Carnegies. From my experience it seems that being an old sad white foreigner hoping to hook up with local women is one of the entry requirements.
Yeah, and I would argue that not all the ālocal womenā are women but ******* instead. Typical stereotyping which hardly makes an argument.
Yeah, and I would argue that not all the ālocal womenā are women but ******* instead. Typical stereotyping which hardly makes an argument.[/quote]
Which is why he prefaced with the disclaimer āfrom my experienceā and āit seems.ā
But I take issue with AWOLās opinion that being old sad and white is an entry requirement. Its not, but being one will ensure that you fit in with a sizeable majority of the crowd.
Right, Iāll take my tongue out of my cheek now before anyone else thinks I seriously give a toss about the clientele of some crappy bar. 
How old do you have to be to be classed as an old foreigner? When exactly do you become a āsad old white foreignerā? Can you be a happy old brownish foreigner? 
Whatās with all the negativity? Iāve been to Carnegieās maybe half a dozen times. Iāve had a really good time there at least three of those times, but thatās probably because I was with a bunch of good friends. I think almost every time we went there, it was as couples, and we didnāt really pay too much attention to what everybody else was doing. The only time Iāve been unamused with the place is when we started focusing on what the other customers were doing. But then again, if memory serves me correctly, Iād get the same vibes from going to other drink 'n dance joints, wathcing the customers there.
The music at Carnegieās is mainstream stuff, a lot of which was am radio fodder when I was in high school. Not exactly favourite stuff, but still familiar, which is not always bad.
Carnegieās best feature, in my view, is their outdoor patio, especially on a lazy Sunday afternoon. Anhe Road has to be one of the nicest streets to sit outside on, and I donāt remember being offended by the food at all, and I am pretty sensitive to bad food.
As far as the old geezer bit, well, how many good dance places are there for the over 30 crowd? In the mid 90ās, wehen I first came to Taipei I went to Spin, then to Sex a GoGo and Kiss Disco, later Opium Den and Room 18. Thereās no way I can go back to Spin now, and frankly, even though Iām not ancient, at 36 I donāt really want to be hanging out with kids exclusively. And although I still feel comfortable at 2nd Floor or Room 18, many of my friends - married and some with kids - do not. So relax a little, donāt worry so much about what other people are doing. So some fat old geezer is dancing on the bar. Heās probably having a good time. Hope Iām still having a good time when Iām 50.
(And Sandman, 50 isnāt that far off for some of us! )
Oooooh! Below the belt! That hurt! 
I can sum up the reason why Carnegieās sucks in just 8 words:
They played a medley of songs from Grease.
the thought of it still sends waves of nausea throughout me.
Ohā¦and there was my friend who was there, who saw a white girl turned away from the door, because she was āa fat cowā.
nice people, arenāt they.
Sucks.
Sucks.
Sucks.
Iāve never seen so many creepy lookinā foreign middle aged men in one spot trying to score with Asian chicks.
i donāt mind the music there. nothing wrong with cheesy music. i donāt even mind that itās a meat market. lots of places in taiwan are meat markets. what creeps me out about the place is how aggressive the men there are. iāve seen so many men just walk around groping random women until they find one that doesnāt mind. you know the sign in roxy that says āplease donāt touch women in a sexual wayā? they need one of those at carnegies.
I find that over analysing somewhere like Carnegieās is bit like trying to understand what makes a joke funny. The component parts may seem bland or even distasteful but the package can make you laugh if you are in the right mood (& have a sense of humour).
Why do middle-aged western guys go there to pick up chicks? Same reason a dog licks its ballsā¦ because it can. I have only been there 2 or 3 times but have seen middle-aged blokes successfully pick up each time & also young westerners & also sorts of Taiwanese guys succeed too. Hence it presumably fulfills a need for both sexes.
If you go in the right frame of mind with a bunch of friends it can be fun to watch the pick-up attemps , the crap dancing etc. & also watch the āaudienceā (ie those not picking up or dancing) too who look on with a mixture of interest/boredom/disdain.
I wouldnāt go regularly though as it is a bit like McDonaldās in that when you walk through the door , you know exactly what you are going to get.
Sorry, we canāt let this thread die. I still got bitchinā to do and I almost got enough to buy my avatar, BACK!
Iām always amazed at stories I am told about people being treated like shit at these places and they continue to go back. Not just Carnegieās Iāve heard a slew of stories about Room 18 and other such over-priced scams.
They charge you a fortune to get in, you gotta wait in line, the service sucks, and the people are horrendous. I think some people just like to be shat on. Or the attitude is, āHey theryāre shitting on us. This must be a great place. Weāll try again next week.ā There is no other explantion.
Donāt they charge people money to go into Carnegiesās now? And they do at Roxy 99, as well. Thatās friggin hilarious. Can anyone imagine paying money to step into that place, anywhere other than Taiwan?
Uh-oh, Iām letting the snob out of the bag.
Carnegieās charges you NT$500 on weekends, on drink included. Rozy99 charges NT$300 and you can exchange a NT$200 voucher for drinks or food, i.e. if the drink costs 250 you just top up by 50.
If itās less itās your loss of course but if you go with a friend(s) use one voucher only to order two drinks and keep on drinking until all the vouchers are gone. :mrgreen:
Wonāt happen to me (going back when treated badly). However the fact that people are willing to pay to get in will certainly not make them change their current ābusiness modelā.
Malaysia. Not imagining, itās a fact. :?
Small correction edited
Yeah Carnegies
Greasy fat married middle aged engineers and sleazy short trip buyer business types falling dancing pissed on the bar to Grease and Abbaā¦
I mean Iām still in my 20s but I DONT want to end up like that.
Chehhhheeeeazzzzzzzzy
Still Iāve gone there a couple of times with friends and have danced on the bar myself but have given it a miss for a longtime nowā¦
The prices are pretty steep too.
A male friend of mine heard about the free champagne given to the ladies on Wednesdays and decided to try and get in on the action. He packed a duffel with some gal threads, got in the door, headed to the little boys room to change, and walked out, all 6ā4 of him, in a skirt, camisole, stuffed bra, and lipstick. Not only did he get all the free champagne he wanted, but he also got the attention of ladies. They were all over his cross-dressing a$$. Funny stuff, good times. Never been back though.