PlaceTAIPEI

Qingxiangzhai No.2

“There are few places in Taipei where, once you sit down, you suddenly realize that time does not have to move so quickly. The old house, the tea, the teaware and the courtyard are all quiet and thoughtfully cared for. That, in itself, is a kind of happiness.”

Hidden in an alley off Hangzhou South Road, Qingxiangzhai No.2 is a tea space created from a Japanese-style house that had stood abandoned for many years. Rather than making the old house look new or staging an ornate Eastern atmosphere, the restoration preserves its intimate scale, the traces of time and a deeply comfortable quiet—a setting in which to experience the Taiwanese oolong tea tradition.

What makes the place most distinctive is the experience as a whole. From entering and taking the first sip of welcome tea to choosing a tea setting that feels right, each step lets you slow down naturally and truly attend to the cup before you—and to time itself. Qingxiangzhai No.2 describes itself as “a space that leads inward,” perhaps the closest description of what this place feels like.