Winfred Yu’s Dream Room Taipei Unique Offerings And High Stakes Vision

In the heart of Taiwan’s poker landscape, Winfred Yu is making waves with his Dream Room poker venues. Currently operating two rooms, one in Taoyuan near the airport with nine tables, and the newest in central Taipei – one of the most prestigious poker rooms to open in the city – with eleven tables, Yu aims to transform the poker scene by offering something different.

“In Asia, we need to bring players into another level.  I built this high limit playing poker room in Taipei to give the mass market and all the up-and-coming players a chance to hit that dream faster. This is why I call all of my rooms Dream Room.”

Dream Room Taipei

Having officially opened on October 9, 2024, Dream Room Taipei is not just a local poker club – it is an international brand. Yu’s partnerships with global poker giants like Triton, Poker Dream, and Lucky Poker elevates his venues beyond Taiwan’s borders. As the first international poker room in Taiwan, Dream Room Taipei offers a prestigious setting for players, complete with a restaurant, business meeting areas, and a three-tiered membership program.

The first floor is dedicated to membership registration and VIP services. Not only can Taiwanese players enjoy local poker action, Dream Room also offers full VIP services for those looking to travel to international poker events. Dream Room Taipei can arrange everything from tournament buy-ins to flights and hotel bookings. Leveraging his extensive network, Yu assures players seamless travel services and the best deals.

Head on up to the second floor, features 11 tables, including a dedicated TV table for livestreams. Capitalizing on the growing trend of livestreamed poker, the room’s livestream table will feature  high-stakes action, similar to popular streams like Hustler Casino Live. Yu plans to broadcast exciting moments especially on weekends during special high-stakes games like the NTD 100K buy-in events. Currently, one of the standout shows is Yu’s Poker Millionaire, which debuted its latest episode during the grand opening – the NTD 1 Million buy in Time-Limit SNG.

Dream Room Taipei – Grand Opening

Adapting to Taiwan’s Poker Regulations

Unlike Macau, where full-fledged cash games thrive within casinos, Taiwan adheres to a legal format that focuses on Time-Limit Sit & Go (SNG) and Multi-Table Tournaments (MTTs). In the SNG format, players participate in single-table tournaments with a strict time limit.

For instance, in a 3-hour tournament, all buy-ins are cut off after 2.5 hours, preventing further entries or rebuys. While all remaining players receive a calculated return, the top three players are further guaranteed a percentage of the pot. Additionally, no rake is taken from the tables.

Yu has fully embraced this format, recognizing its importance in providing a legal and safe alternative to underground cash games, which often faces issues like cheating or cashing out or other legal trouble across Asia.

“I think players are accepting this style more and more instead of going to underground for cash games. In Asia, the underground cash games are running into a lot of problems, I believe this is a good solution and it will be the trend. Also, in Taiwan there is no gaming tax issue unlike Macau and other places because poker is classified as a sport / skill competition. People enjoy the game freely and it is much safer. I got to appreciate this because of CTP (Chinese Texas Hold’em Poker Association), they fought for this for a long time – all the clubs in Taiwan have gone to court to fight for it and have proven that poker tournaments are not gambling.”

While Yu’s primary focus in Taoyuan is on lower stakes, Dream Room Taipei is set to host higher buy-in games of NTD 11,000 (~US$ 340), NTD 33,000, (~US$ 1,030), NTD 54,000 (~US$ 1,700), NTD 100,000 (~US$ 3,120), and NTD 1,000,000 (~US$ 31,200) upon request – the highest buy-in tournament ever offered in Taiwan. The aim is to cater to both local players and international travelers looking for premium poker action as an alternative to Macau.

Further demonstrating Yu’s commitment to players and belief in this new format, Dream Room will host training courses with top Asian and international poker pros, offering players a chance to learn new strategies and improve their game, particularly within the Time-Limit SNG.

Partnering With Triton For High Stakes Dreamers

Another significant part of Yu’s vision is to bring Taiwanese players closer to high-stakes international poker through his partnership with Triton. With the brand well known for its elite tournaments with buy-ins starting at $15,000–$20,000, Triton is beyond the reach of many players. However, Dream Room offers a stepping stone with affordable Step Satellite tournaments starting at just $300. These tournaments give aspiring players a shot at qualifying for Triton events, and win a $30,000 Triton package.

“As a way to give back to players that support my club, I plan to run the $300 Triton Steps Satellites every week, and then do the $3,000 to the $30,000 Triton package once a month. Or if I have enough tickets then I can start more than one satellite to the package.”

Yu believes this structure allows the mass market and up-and-coming players to chase their poker dreams faster, giving them a realistic path to the international stage.

With poker growing fast in Taiwan, Yu has already received invitations to expand Dream Room in other cities like Taichung and Kaohsiung. According to Yu, this shows how important branding and player trust have become in the poker world.

Dream Room is located at N. 15-4, Fuxing North Road, Songshan District, Taipei City 105. It is open everyday Monday-Thursday 16:00-4:00, and Friday to Sunday 14:00-4:00.

Stay tuned for our upcoming article, where we take an in-depth look at Winfred Yu’s Dream Room Danang.