From 1949, Quemoy (also called Jinmen or Kinmen) became the battlefront between the warring Nationalists (Kuomintang) and Communists, as well as one of the front lines between Cold War nations. On Quemoy under military rule, social and ideological control suppressed the community power of traditional lineages. But, because many soldiers lived on the island, the economic power of soldiers' consumption practices brought into being many small industries. One of the most famous industries was the local restaurant business. They combined the local cuisine with that of other provinces of mainland China, some of them native places of army soldiers, and then developed some characteristic dishes or beverage, like Cantonese porridge, beef cuisine, many kind of noodles, kaoliang liquor (sorghum liquor) etc. After 1992, this mixed cuisine became a resource for new tourist developments in local society. This paper will survey historical documents and oral materials, and analyze the relationship between battlefield life, soldiers' consumption, and dietary culture on Quemoy. First, I will discuss transformation of the local diet and other localization processes during the military period. Secondly, I will deal with a history of the liquor brewery on Quemoy. Liquor in turn was connected with the symbolic meaning of battlefield bravado and manhood, and kaoliang liquor became a favourite beverage of the army. For the military authorities, the question was how to manage drinking in order to avoid the disorder brought on by excessive drinking. Finally, I point out that the dietary culture of the battlefield became a new type of non-physical heritage in the post-war period, and consider some ways to develop new types of local and tourist industries.