Shouldn't that be IN the little toilet instead of next to it?
Restaurateur Wang Tzi-wei has figured out what PoopReporters have known for years: toilets are funny. But he's come to a conclusion we never imagined: they don't have to stay in the bathroom to be part of a successful and unique dining experience.
In 2004, Tzi-wei took a gamble and opened the Modern Toilet diner in Taipei, Taiwan. This toilet-themed restaurant, the first of twelve to be opened so far, broke new ground in the area of theme eateries. In a city where one can find restaurants with interiors resembling jailhouses and hospitals, Tzi-wei didn't find the concept of a toilet theme too farfetched. Tzi-wei credits the idea for the chain to a Japanese cartoon featuring restaurant-based restrooms and toilets.
At the Modern Toilet diner, every seat is a toilet. The tables are tubs or large sinks covered with plexiglass. And instead of conventional cloth or paper napkins, a customer will find toilet rolls hung nearby. WC signs designating different gender selections have replaced what one might generally expect to see as conventional wall art. The food is served in miniature plastic toilet bowl and often resembles poo; and if you watch this video link, you'll see a gentleman sipping a drink from a straw stuck in what looks like a men's travel urinal.
Since toilets and bathtubs are the only dishes you'll find here, it looks like potty mouth is unavoidable.
The successful chain relies mostly on a youthful demographic -- specifically students from three major learning centers located nearby. And it shows no signs of losing their favor. In fact, Tzi-wei has not ruled out expanding, as it seems the eateries are also drawing a marginal percentage of the more mature crowd as well.
