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snapshot/instagram: PICO PICO, SQUARE PIZZA, BURGER AND CO., LALOS & CYCLO

June 21, 2015, 2:18 am
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This past week on instagram,  I revisited some old favorites, tried new Peruvian and pizza by the slice restaurants and made Hello Kitty rice krispies! And as you should when are you in Taipei,  scarf down a bamboo steamer full of dumplings for breakfast for only NT$45. Thought I would try something new on the blog- to post some instagram highlights every so often to share new restaurants and finds and capture my thoughts before a full blog post. Enjoy!


PICO PICO 

Finally tried Pico Pico, a Peruvian restaurant that my friend C had been telling me about for awhile. Among our favorites were the chicken paella, or arroz con pollo, which had a curry flavor and juicy chicken thigh atop, the charred octopus and the beef heart skewers. Lunch and brunch menus also available.

PICO PICO, No. 28, Lane 102, Anhe Rd, Sec. 1, 安和路一段102巷28號, (02) 2755-1161



SQUARE PIZZA AL TAGLIO

Stopped by newly opened Square Pizza al Taglio for a quick bite. Rectangular pizzas by the slice with toppings like house made porchetta and eggplants with sundried tomatoes. Reminded me of my trip to Italy and the delicious pizzas at Bonci Pizzarium in Rome! 

SQUARE PIZZA AL TAGLIO, No. 39, Lane 160, Dunhua S. Rd, Sec. 1, 
敦化南路一段160巷39號, (02) 2751-7998



BURGER AND CO 

Listened to old school jams and ate burgers with mustaches at Burger and Co.

BURGER AND CO.,  No. 49 TongAn St., 通安街49號, (02) 2784-0182



LALOS BAKERY 

Liked the perfectly tangy lemon tart with meringue at Lalos Bakery on Renai Street. I also love their honey citron bread and chouquettes. 

LALOS BAKERY, No. 91, Anhe Road, Sec. 1, 安和路一段91號 



CYCLO 洛城牛肉粉

Visited the new location of Cyclo for the first time near Sogo/DaAn Road. The original location serving up LA style pho near Renai closed last year. Get the pho with brisket, meatballs and tendon. 

CYCLO 洛城牛肉粉, No. 9, Lane 75, DaAn Road, Sec. 1 大安路1段75巷9號 , (02) 2752-8666




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new in town/dessert: i recommend VOODOO DOUGHNUT TAIWAN's maple baconbar

June 21, 2015, 8:07 pm
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VOODOO DOUGHNUT 
No. 28, Lane 553, ZhongXiao S. Rd, Sec. 4
忠孝東路四段553巷28號
(02) 2763-5593

MRT: SYS Memorial Hall or Taipei City Hall 

hours: 9:30AM - 10PM, closed Monday and Tuesday

website: Voodoo Doughnut Taiwan's FB page

$-$$ (Cash only)

Kid friendliness: lots of room for seating and strollers and kids likely to want their own donuts! 

Visit reviewed: 6/18/2015


Look what's popped into Taipei?! This past week saw the openings of Dominique Ansel Bakery in Tokyo and now we have Voodoo Doughnut from Portland, Oregon  in Taipei (and our own cronuts at @dripcafe). Is Taipei ready for "weird" American style sugary donuts (now that their Krispy Kreme #sugarhigh has faded?) 

Thanks to instagram, I found out about Voodoo Doughnut's arrival last Thursday night and I was obsessing all afternoon and night long about being able to eat a maple bacon doughnut the next day. 

So bright and early on Friday, I headed over to the little alley near Songshan Cultural Park and Songyan Eslite. Early meaning 11AM since in Taipei, people don't eat donuts for breakfast and many restaurants open at noon. I wasn't even sure if they would be open, but luckily they were. Their FB page updated and states they open at 9:30AM, but are closed Mondays and Tuesdays.



It's easy to spot, with a bright pink neon sign and its voodoo doll character.



Once inside, behind the counter there was a wall of pink donut boxes over racks of doughnuts ready to go, a familiar sight to those who grew up in the US. The colorful chalkboard menu listed over 35 doughnuts in English and Chinese, organizing them into cake doughnuts and raised doughnuts. Doughnuts twirled around on tiered glass displays on each side of the counter, giving a glimpse of what to order. There's also considerable room for sitting and snacking and enjoying a cup of coffee with your doughnut.






Since I had never been to Portland and wasn't that familiar with Voodoo's doughnuts (being mostly in Taipei for the last 11 years), I had to quiz the server what some of the specialties were, such as Old Dirty Bastard, No Name, Portland Cream, Triple Chocolate Penetration and Tex-Ass. (I wonder how these are translated into Chinese?! Haha) Mainly, I looked at the doughnuts in the display and asked what the ones I didn't know were and glanced back and forth from the menu and display. 

Cake doughnuts and Old Fashioned cake doughnuts are the cheapest (NT35-50), while the Devil's Food cake chocolate doughnuts and crullers are NT$45-70. The raised doughnuts are the yeasted donuts- raised bars, rings and filled doughnuts are NT$30-95 and the fritters and specialty doughnuts are bigger and most expensive from NT$115-175. There are plain, powdered sugar, cinnamon sugar, vanilla with sprinkles, maple, glazed and doughnuts topped with coconut, cereal and bacon. They also made a special Taipei Cream donut that's available only in Taipei.


Even though I am familiar with doughnuts and know what I generally like (old fashioned, fritters, maple bacon doughnuts), I asked a ton of questions because the doughnuts in the display aren't labeled and the names on the chalkboard didn't have descriptions. I guess in the future, they could print a few photo menus to have on the counter with mini descriptions to help first timers get familiar with what they want to order and prevent a bottleneck at the counter. Luckily Voodoo Doughnuts had just been open for a few days and was still in their soft opening so I had the store to myself to figure out what I wanted. I think also they should figure out some sampler pack of their bestsellers so that people can just choose a Voodoo dozen, which they had written on the chalkboard but was not available yet. 



So I made my own sampler box! I thought they would have smaller sized boxes, but the boxes are large enough to fit two layers of doughnuts, in which they'll put the "dry" doughnuts on the bottom, and layer a wax paper layer of more delicate doughnuts on the top layer. I wanted to try different doughnuts with my friends and family so I was ambitious and tried to get a variety, but I think it's best not to get more than you can eat the same day since most of the doughnuts got softer and greasier the next day, especially the cereals on top of the doughnuts which should be crunchy but were soggy since they surprisingly didn't get eaten that day. Especially knowing how humid Taiwan is. I also think I've been in Taiwan too long, the cake donuts were a bit greasy and heavy to me.

I picked some cake and old fashioned on purpose knowing they were cheaper, but my order of 15 doughnuts was still NT$947. I was originally going to get a few boxes for friends, but I didn't since there wasn't a price break and I didn't want to get too many doughnuts if they weren't going to eat them. A dozen of assorted doughnuts at Krispy Kreme Taipei is NT$350 and I mostly like the glazed original doughnuts (NT$300/dozen). 

After paying the bill of almost US$30 for doughnuts (for this review but never again!), I had to wonder if will Taipei pay a premium for American donuts after the retreats of Dunkin Donuts and Mister Donut the past few years. Dunkin Donuts lasted six years after struggling after a promising opening (tried too hard to localize donuts and sometimes served stale donuts, probably because of lack of turnover) and Mister Donuts closed a number of stand alone shops after expanding too quickly. 

I asked if I could get a price break if I bought a dozen or if they were doing any soft opening promotions (like checking in on instagram and Facebook and getting a free doughnut or something along those lines) and they said no. Krispy Kreme had an intense marketing push giving away tons of free doughnuts and garnering social media word of mouth when they opened, so much that they had people waiting up to four hours in line around the block for almost three months after their launch. Despite people saying for years that Krispy Kreme was too sweet for Taiwanese people, they got people to show up out of curiosity who wanted to post photos with their box of doughnuts.  

Can Voodoo Doughnut succeed by doing a slow launch when it doesn't have the same brand recognition yet in Asia and the culture here just isn't that obsessed with doughnuts? Especially when you are competing not only with other doughnut shops, but with a multitude of bakeries, sweets, street eats and cafes on every corner in Taipei. I think it would help to do some promotions for your early customers and start the Voodoo Dozen pricing since we are the ones who are obsessed and more likely to return. 


So the first one I tried was the maple bacon donut (NT$95), since that was the one I had fallen in love with a few years earlier from DK Donuts in LA. It's like a plate of pancakes, maple syrup butter and bacon on the go. I actually love the flavor combination so much I tried to convince the guys at Drip Cafe to do a maple bacon cronut when I was taking all my friends there before it got crazy. The maple bacon was definitely my favorite out of the bunch with the thick sweet maple glaze and a layer of salty bacon. Devoured it before I got home and it's the doughnut I would go back to Voodoo for and spend my precious calories on. 


There's a good guide to doughnuts on Serious Eats, but I'll post some close ups of the doughnuts with their names so hopefully it'll be a bit faster next time to figure out what to order. I shared most of the other doughnuts with others so I didn't get to try all of them, but I liked the old fashioned and the peanut chocolate cake doughnut that I got a bite of. 

Old Fashioned - Maple (NT$50)

Voodoo Doll (NT$90) 
Raised yeast doughnut with chocolate icing and raspberry jelly filling

Dirty Snowball (NT$70) 
Devil Food's chocolate cake donut with strawberry icing, topped with shredded coconut and peanut butter in the middle 

The Loop (NT$52) 
Raised doughnut with vanilla frosting covered in fruit loop cereal (Anyone else find it amusing that this is NT$52 instead of NT$50 or NT$55? You'd think it's easier for change to keep all the prices even since they are cash only.)


Triple Chocolate Penetration Doughnut (NT$55) 
Chocolate cake doughnut covered in chocolate frosting and chocolate puff cereal

Old Dirty Bastard (NT$75) 
Raised yeast doughnut with chocolate frosting, crushed Oreos and peanut butter

Chocolate french cruller (NT$45)

Cinnamon Sugar Cake doughnut (NT$45) 

Droolworthy? Let me know if you try Voodoo Doughnuts in Taiwan in the comments and what you thought! I'm constantly fascinated by what foreign/American eats ends up in Taipei and always hope it succeeds and translates and tastes good. I hope Voodoo can find its niche market and be affordable while not adjusting to local tastes, but offer doughnuts that taste like they did back at home. 
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Hungryintaipei turns TEN! #blogiversary!

June 24, 2015, 8:46 am
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I started my blog #hungryintaipei ten years ago today, when I couldn't find much information about in English about Taipei food and restaurants online (and I was desperate to find decent Mexican food in Taipei). 

This was in 2005, before iPhones, Yelp, Google maps, Instagram and my sense of direction in Taipei. Taipei has changed tremendously in the past ten years, every year surpasses the last. 

CNN, Buzzfeed (x2), Bourdain and Zimmern have shared the secret that we've known for years-- you can feast on street eats and noodle shops like there's no tomorrow for less than US$20 a day, or you can indulge in the fanciest of steakhouses, sushi bars or sweets that rival bites I've had anywhere else. I'm grateful for being able to discover so many awesome places to eat in the number one food destination in the world!  I'm constantly amazed by what new restaurant opens or cuisine I'm able to find here, or by local Taiwanese dishes that have been mastered over generations. 

I don't know if I can keep blogging for 10 more years, but thanks to everyone for following along my adventures and sharing yours with me. I learn something new everyday and have learned so much about food. I love hearing from you guys and having friends who love food as much as I do! 

Dearest Taipei, I feel like we've grown so much together, I can't wait to see what happens during the next decade. 

❤️ Joan aka Hungry Girl in Taipei 
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#exploretaipei: hungryintaipei's guide to YONG KANG STREET

June 28, 2015, 8:18 pm
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YONG KANG ST  永康街
(between XinYi Road, Sec. 2 and Jinhua St.)



The first time I ever heard of Yong Kang Street was during one of my first trips back to Taipei after being away for over 12 years. I was back for just one month and had no clue where anything was. After lunch at Zhu Ji, my aunt told us that we had to go to the mango shaved ice place on Yong Kang Street.  

"What's the name of the place?" we asked her.  

"Just tell the taxi driver that you want to go to the mango ice place on Yong Kang Street and they will know," she responded. 

And it was true. Even ten years later after my first (blurry) post ever for hungryintaipei about it, and even though that spot is no longer Ice Monster after several changes in owners and shop revisions, it's still crowded with people getting their shaved ice on.

But Yong Kang Street is more than its famous bookends of the original Din Tai Fung at the front and mango shaved ice near the touristy end. Yong Kang Street, or aka Yong Kang Jie, is full of Taiwanese restaurants, dumplings, noodles, street eats, boba milk tea and even cute dessert cafes and amazing sushi bars if you know where to wander off to find them. You could even put your name down at Din Tai Fung and explore and snack for half an hour to come back in time for your number to come up for xiao long bao. 

If you want to eat like a tourist, then you'll just go to Din Tai Fung and mango shaved ice. But if you want to eat like a local, then you'll have to dig a little deeper into this street of good eats.  CNN readers just voted Taipei as their number one food destination as having the best food. I totally believe that's true! If you only had one day to eat in Taipei, Yong Kang Street wouldn't be a bad place to spend it.



7 THINGS TO EAT AT YONG KANG ST

(1) XIAO LONG BAO or DUMPLINGS
Whether you try it at Din Tai Fung, or its competing neighbor Kao Chi, get some dumplings in your belly! If you're willing to explore, further down on Yong Kang St are some hole in the wall dumpling places for a lot less.

DIN TAI FUNG 鼎泰豊- the original DTF always has a line out front. Even though this location takes up four floors now in the building, it's one of the more cramped locations because it's too popular for the small building's size. Grab a number, ask for estimated wait times and take a quick stroll down Yong Kang St for your next stop.


KAO CHI is right around the corner from DTF and some say the xiao long baos are equally good and slightly cheaper. I've had good as well as mediocre visits there and I think DTF's xiao long bao skins are more delicate, but you could consider a visit if you are too impatient to wait in line. What Kao Chi's specialty is though are the sheng jian baos, with a thicker skin and steamed and pan fried at the same time so that they have crisped bottoms.



(2) SPRING ONION PANCAKE 

Oddly housed under a sign for Thanh Ky's Pho, the spring onion pancake vendor is worth waiting in line for. You can opt for plain (which I prefer), with egg, cheese, ham or the works (NT$25-50). English menu available to point at. Order one to share and eat while you keep exploring. Crispy, flaky on the outside, doughy on the inside, the cong you bing is hot and quite filling if you eat the whole thing.





Totally prepared with individually wrapped dough to press and flatten with a machine and throw onto the hot griddle. 


(3) BEEF NOODLE SOUP 

Only have time to hang out near Yong Kang Street, but craving some beef noodle soup? Most people will wander over to the famous Yong Kang Beef Noodle Soup. 



Or you could give this knife cut noodle shop a try, Yi Ping Shanxi Dao Xiao Mian, with a bowl of tomato based beef noodle broth, chunks of beef and slivers of knife cut noodles. CNN liked it enough to include it on their best beef noodle soups list after I took them there when my other fave knife cut noodle shop was closed (and we had already hit up Lin Dong Fang and W Hotel's beef noodle soups). There's also another knife cut noodle shop in the alley around the corner, but I always seem to pass by when it's already closed. Of course, if you have more time in Taipei, my personal favorite beef noodle soups are elsewhere, but this is a decent bowl for your walking tour of Yong Kang St.





(4) MANGO SHAVED ICE 

Sit downstairs for the feeling of having your shaved ice in the original shack, or sit upstairs in an air conditioned room, which was added during a recent expansion when Smoothie House思慕昔 took over the reins for this spot from Ice Monster/Yong Kang 15 a few years ago. One bowl is big enough to share and the menu has tourist friendly photos and English to browse, though if you choose to sit upstairs there is a minimum fee per person.



(5) FRESH FRUIT, FRUIT JUICE OR BOBA MILK TEA

You can also get some fresh fruit or fruit juice... somehow the fruits are incomparably sweet in Taipei. Give wax apple or custard apple or watermelon juice a try if you've never had it. There's several shops along Yong Kang Street serving fresh squeezed juices to quench your thirst or pre-sliced fruits packed for easy eating on the go.


custard apples

Currently there are three popular boba drink shops along the short stretch of Yong Kang St. My personal fave is 50 Lan- I like to get fresh milk w/ mini bobas, no sugar, less ice, sometimes with extra pudding. There's also lots of ice teas, green tea, fruit teas, milk teas and fruit juices to choose from. You'll be asked how sweet and how icy you want your drink, and you can ask for an English menu if you don't spot one.



 

(6) TAIWANESE EATS 

If you're up for trying something local, there's also a lot of shops specializing in dishes from other Taiwan cities, like Tainan or Yilan. I love the fried gaozha and lu rou fan from Lu Sang and sometimes will stop in to get just that as a snack on my Yong Kang St food crawl, but you could do a whole family style meal at these restaurants too. See what other dishes are family favorites on my past review here.


gao zha- deep fried chicken broth!!
TU HSIAO YUEH/ DU HSIAO YUEH / 度小月 or SLACK SEASON NOODLES is near the front of Yong Kang St, near DTF and Kao Chi. Famous for their Tainan dan tsai noodles. Good if you have a large group and want to try Taiwanese food in a modern setting. Check out this past review for some pictures. 


FU CHEN TAINAN EATS




(7) DESSERT 

8% ICE has a two story shop and a lot of unique flavors like french peach with rosewater or hojicha with honey to try (though no samples given at this location! Boo!). If you can find it, I also love the macarons and desserts from Patisserie La Doceur or red velvet cupcakes from Les Bebes Cupcakes, which both have other outlets elsewhere in Taipei, but you could do just a dessert crawl if you have the stomach space (I'd do red bean paste xiao long bao at Din Tai Fung, mango shaved ice, ice cream from 8% ice, soufflé from C'est La Vie then macarons and cupcakes! haha!)





Of course, there's many more restaurants in the offshoots of Yong Kang St to try, but just the restaurants on Yong Kang Street will keep you busy for an extended lunch and afternoon of snacking.   Did I miss your favorite eats on Yong Kang Street? Share in the comments!


Note for travelers, you can also grab a local SIM card at one of these telecom shops Far EasTone or Chunghwa Telecom since you can't just get them at 7-11 anymore. I recently helped a journalist get one here (have your passport ready) before our walking tour of Yong Kang St. Yong Kang Street also conveniently has both a 7-11 and Watsons, perfect for picking up some bottles of water, makeup or toiletries. 


Right off of Dongmen MRT (Exit Number 5!)

hungryintaipei's guide to Yong Kang Street

DIN TAI FUNG 鼎泰豐
No. 194, Section 2, Xinyi Road
(02) 2321-8928

KAO CHI 高記
5 Yongkang Street 
(02) 2341-9984

SPRING ONION PANCAKE VENDOR
No. 1, Lane 6, Yongkang Street

YI PIN SHANXI KNIFE CUT NOODLES 一品山西刀削 
10-6 Yongkang Street
(02) 2321-1562

YONG KANG BEEF NOODLES 永康牛肉麵 
No. 17, Lane 31, Section 2, Jinshan S. Road
(02)2351-1051 

SMOOTHIE HOUSE
15 Yongkang Street

DU HSIAO YUEH 度小月 
9-1 Yongkang Street
(02) 3393-1325

LU SANG YILAN RESTAURANT  呂桑食堂
12-5 Yongkang Street
(02) 2351-3323

8% ICE
6, Lane 13, Yongkang Street
(02) 2395-6583

PATISSERIE LA DOUCEUR
No. 223, Jinhua Street
(02) 3322-2833
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drinks/american: i strongly recommend WOOGO SMOOTHIES

July 5, 2015, 8:18 pm
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WOOGO JUICE
No. 42, Lane 233, DunHua S. Road, Sec. 1
敦化南路一段233巷42號
(02) 2778-0182 

MRT: ZhongXiao/Dunhua

website: WooGo's FB page 

hours: 11AM - 10PM

$ (Cash only)

Kid friendliness: yes

Visit reviewed: 6/9/2015


Taipei skipped over the smoothie phase straight into cold-pressed juices, juice cleanses and juice bars craze this past year (with the openings of Juice In, Juicy Diary, Juice 8,Boost Juice, Goodies Cleanse, Vegg Out), but smoothies still hold a special place in my heart. At each of my jobs post college, there was a Jamba Juice nearby to hit up with co-workers during our lunch break or after work. Sometimes when we didn't have enough time to eat, we drank our smoothies on the go. 

When I first moved back to Taipei, there was a smoothie shop at (then) Warner Village, but it eventually closed down. There were plenty of sugary boba tea shops or fresh fruit juice places, but somehow no smoothies. The five founders of WooGo noticed this gap too, and opened WooGo Juice in 2013 to serve California style smoothies,  icy smoothies blended from frozen fruit, yogurt or sorbet and ice of styrofoam cups. All the sorbets and yogurts are made in house, and prices are quite reasonable from NT$75-110 with M, L and XL sized cups available.

Located in an alley behind Ming Yao Department Store, I must have passed by the store dozens of times since one of my favorite bakeries is nearby. I'm glad I finally gave it a try. Now I (and you) have a place to go when I'm craving Jamba Juice. 


Both English and Chinese menus available, with over a dozen smoothies to choose from, in categories of classics, WTF and Tropical. Hot drinks and bagels and cream cheese are also available. There's a couple of small tables to chill inside as well as on outside on the patio.


Scanning the menu, the one that popped out to me was the Raspberry Mojito (NT$$95 for large) with cranberry juice, lemon juice, mulberry sorbet, raspberries and mint leaves. The mint and lemon definitely gave it a brightness and it was a good mix of sour and sweet and the perfect thickness and iciness. Loved it, who wouldn't want to drink mojito smoothies? 

The PBJ Sandwich sounds so strange to me, but lots of people on Instagram said it was their favorite. On my second visit, I tried the Strawberry Lemonade and the Pineapple Paradise, which were both great too, the lemonade being slightly more sour than the pineapple in a side by side tasting. 



The WooGo cup is a lot of fun with charts and facts to read on the go, and it's interesting they choose to make it completely in English with no Chinese. 


Are there enough people in Taipei who want to drink California Smoothies? I hope so. It seems healthier than boba milk teas and blended ice coffees, and cheaper than a Starbucks or shaved ice fix. I wonder if the juice bars have taken off more than smoothies because it seems more healthy and it's not as "icy", since some Taiwanese people avoid ice water and icy drinks. (I've never had more warm water until after I moved back to Taiwan. Now when I go back to LA, I can't drink restaurant water where the ice is filled up to the brim.) But smoothies... happy to have smoothies I can grab and go in Taipei. 



OTHER LOCATIONS

HOYII Taipei Main Station 台北車站店: 
No. 36, ZhongXiao W. Road, Sec. 1, B1 
忠孝西路一段36號B1 
(02) 2311-4733

中山南西店: 
No. 1 Nanjing W. Road
南京西路1號1F 
02-2567-7657
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revisited/night market: i strongly recommend RAOHE NIGHT MARKET

July 26, 2015, 8:45 pm
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Raohe night market is one of the most popular and oldest night markets in Taipei. A short subway or taxi ride from Xinyi or DaAn districts, Raohe has two bright signs marking the front and back main entrances of the night market.

I had what I thought was some mediocre food the last time I visited Raohe with some out of town friends, so it's been a few years since I've had the urge to revisit. Thanks to some new friends from Singapore who chose it as our meeting spot, I fell in love with the popular flaky pepper buns, the grilled oyster mushrooms, mango shaved ice and found a vendor serving one of my favorite night market snacks, the ice cream "burrito" with peanut candy shavings and cilantro. 

The pepper buns at the entrance of the Raohe night market and can be spotted by a winding queue of people waiting and a team of quick fingered people wrapping minced pork and green onions in doughy balls to be cooked in tandoor like ovens. The result is a pepper bun that is too hot to hold, a crunchy crust on the bottom and peppery and sweet meatball inside the bun. It's worth coming to Raohe just for this. 






Here's a glance at some of the other stands I spotted at Raohe. What's your favorite thing to eat at this night market? 







 




Rubber duck cotton candy 


Get your Taiwanese sausage from this vendor.. The first one we got from another vendor was so bad- pretty much just fat inside a sausage casing and the first time I had to throw something away that I bought at the night market. Taiwanese sausage should be firm and slightly chewy, on the sweet side and not all fat!!! 









Yeaaa. Favorite! 












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My kitchen: KRISPY KREME FRENCH TOAST

August 17, 2015, 7:34 pm
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Ever have stale #krispykremes left over? I decided to try making #frenchtoast with them this morning. The sugar perfectly caramelized, the egg and milk softened the insides and you get hot #dessertforbreakfast, like creme brulee #donuts. Ah! Such an evil revelation!! #hungryintaipei_mykitchen #whatdiet #eeeeeats #meltinyourmouth #breakfast #brunch #breakfastrecipes #breakfastofchampions


#krispykremefrenchtoast 
Whisk 1 egg, 1/4 cup milk with a dash of vanilla and cinnamon. Cut two or three donuts in half and dip cut side into egg milk mixture. Pan fry on low to medium heat with a pat of butter. Flip over to fry both sides until golden brown. Serve hot with a glass of milk.

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revisited/japanese/sushi: i still strongly recommend ADDICTION ACQUATIC DEVELOPMENT

August 23, 2015, 8:49 pm
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ADDICTION AQUATIC DEVELOPMENT 上引水產
No. 18, Alley 2, Ln 410, Minzu E Rd
台北市民族東路410巷2弄18號
(02) 2508-1268

MRT: Zhongshan Jr. High School Station or XingTian Temple Station

website: addiction.com.tw

hours:  6AM- 12AM midnight

$$- $$$ (cash only)

Kid friendliness: sushi and raw bar are standing only. outdoor seating for seafood bbq area, room for strollers. lots of raw and cooked eats at indoor market

Visit reviewed: 4/21/2015
Previous visit reviewed: 10/2012


ready to eat uni and hokkaido scallops 

Addiction Acquatic Development is THE most popular post on the blog, and at my last shopping trip there a few months ago, I found that they smartly revamped several sections of it. So I thought I'd write up a quick new post with some of the changes. 

LIVE SEAFOOD TANKS 

live seafood tanks
When AAD first opened, you entered through the main entrance into the supermarket, but after awhile, they shifted that to be the exit and had you enter through the left into the seafood tanks area. It's very clean and not smelly for the size and space, so just hustle past it if you are looking for the main market/dining area. But don't miss the sections along the wall where they've added a few fridges with uni, scallops, oysters and a section with cooked crabs, lobsters and fresh oysters on ice, sold by weight.
 



MEAT & GROCERIES MARKET


I was pleasantly surprised to see a new section selling steaks, beef, shabu meats, cured meats and condiments, as well as a revamp of their freezer section which previously seemed like storage for fish. Now it is all easy to recognize what's inside and I could totally pick up some ingredients for cooking dinner along with sushi. 

These iberico salami were so good, but it was disappointing to see a price hike a few weeks later from NT$194 to almost NT$300!


Packs of veggies/tofu/mushrooms to-go to do shabu/hotpot at home, super sweet corn, shabu cut meats, totally high end supermarket packaging and easy to browse.



Ton of fresh veggies, fruits and cheese! There's even packaged condiments, noodles, pastas, and even packaged macarons, foie gras and drinks. Their cheese selection has definitely increased since my earlier visits, with cheeses like brie, parmesan, blue cheese,  and the prices are fairly reasonable for Taipei.




RAW BAR


Still standing only along the bar, I've had friends who come over to this side to snack while waiting for the sushi bar. Here you'll find cooked cold crab, lobsters, shellfish, oysters and bubbly.



HOUSEWARES/WINE BAR



Before this section was filled with beautiful but expensive glass vases, ceramics, cookbooks and housewares. I thought it was very smart of AAD to transform most of this area into a corner for a wine bar as well as a transition area into the supermarket, with fresh fruits and veggies. Maybe a glass of wine and cheese to end the night?

SUSHI TO GO


If you've ever enjoyed supermarket sushi, then you'll be awed by the variety of rolls, sliced sashimi, mini chirashis and even cooked seafood packaged and ready to eat. I used to live off of spicy tuna rolls at Nijiya in West LA and loved their rolls wrapped in the yellow soy wrapper and I think this is the first time I've seen that wrapper in Taipei here at AAD. Granted, it is supermarket sushi, so the rice will be cold and slightly hard if it's later in the day, but I feel the fish is comparable to the sushi you'll get at the AAD standing only sushi bar with less of a wait. But the rice can be pretty bad, even for supermarket sushi, so you might be best getting sashimi or rolls. 

The sushi at AAD's sushi bar isn't the best there is to be eaten in Taipei, but the sets are a great value for price and better than sushi I've paid twice the price for in LA. Just grab a ticket early for the waiting list for the sushi bar so you can spend your time browsing while you wait. The popularity of Addiction Acquatic Development comes from the whole complex, not just the sushi bar, as well as the value and freshness. I've definitely come here over the years to grab a box of uni, some sashimi or even some rolls. 




On this visit I tried the pre-cooked lobster and it wasn't as good as I expected, slightly overcooked and not sweet.. would skip it next time.



Crab cucumber roll with sweet shrimp and ikura 
I'm totally happy with the smallest box of bafun uni (NT$510) that AAD has and eating it with a bowl of rice at home. Sweet, creamy and indulgent, but a whole lot cheaper than ordering uni at the sushi bar and getting just one piece.  This is my favorite thing about Acquatic.



The sushi bar and outdoor courtyard where you can order live seafood to be grilled are the same, so you can look at my previous review for pictures. 

AAD has also added a hotpot restaurant now, Tresors De La Mer, on the other side of the courtyard where you can order live seafood (choose them from the tanks) and meat for shabu, as well as order grilled seafood, sashimi, oysters, and sushi hand rolls from the hand roll cart. It's the perfect place for the relatives/friends that don't want to stand while they eat, and you can sample a bit of everything Addiction Acquatic has to offer in one place. (Full review coming!)


Addiction Acquatic Development is definitely a must visit in Taipei for any seafood or sushi lover, and an awesome place to have as a neighborhood market.  It's been open until midnight for awhile now, which I think is so crazy, but I might have to go late one night to see what's available and how crowded it is at 11pm on a weeknight! 
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snapshot/vietnamese: i still recommend SAVOY

August 31, 2015, 10:45 pm
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august 2015 zhongxiao shop

Thick slices of bbq chicken, slightly sweet mayonnaise, pickled radishes, carrots and cucumbers  in a toasted chewy yet crusty french loaf. I was so ravenous that I tore into the chicken sandwich as soon as I got home. I wanted to try the newly opened Lee's Sandwiches, but it was a bit far me in the Taipei Main Station neighborhood. So I went with something familiar- the chicken banh mi (NT$160)  from Yue Yuan. Except this time it came with tomato. I love tomatoes so I didn't mind it was a bit different than I remember it, but the flavors, chicken and bread were the same as the one that that I've had over the years and fell in love with at first bite years ago. 

Savoy is also known as Yue Yuan (their Chinese name), but a few years ago they went through some rebranding and now the shops sport bright orange signs saying SAVOY instead of the original yellow and black signs that had their chinese name 越苑 and in English, the word "pho." Their pho is still solid, as are their dry rice noodles, but I love their sandwiches for a quick bite on the go.

feb 2015 anhe shop



SAVOY 越苑
No. 10, Alley 32, Lane 216, Zhongxiao E. Road, Sec. 4
忠孝東路4段216巷32弄10號 
(02) 2731-9597
11:30AM- 9PM

Original Shop
No. 12, Ln 155, Dunhua N. Rd
台北市敦化北路155巷12號
(02) 2718-0660

Anhe Shop
No. 8, Lane 103, Dunhua South Road, Sec. 2 
台北市敦化南路二段103巷8號
(02) 2701-2523


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brunch/new american: i recommend SPOT TAIPEI

September 7, 2015, 7:46 pm
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SPOT TAIPEI
No. 58, Lane 233,  Dunhua S. Rd., Sec. 1
台北市大安區敦化南路一段233巷58號 
(02) 2775-4117

MRT: SYS Memorial Hall

Hours: 

website: Spot Taipei's FB page

visits reviewed:  5/18/2015 & 9/7/2015

Yesterday at lunch, my friend nudged me to put up some posts of newer places sooner. "You eat at all the new places first, so you should be the first to post about it." I responded by saying, that I do post quickly, but mainly on instagram and she gave me a mental kick in the butt to do it for the blog too. So I'm gonna try to do a blitz of posts of new places and menus for y'all... every time I scroll through my Instagram, I do feel a tinge of regret that I don't have the time to do full posts at the same time, but usually when I'm blogging, that usually means I'm not sleeping. Like right now.




Spot Taipei is a great new addition to the New American and brunch scene in Taipei, featuring affordable prices, generous portions and most importantly some hearty, tasty dishes not yet found in Taipei. Not be confused with the also lovely Spot Theater, the independent movie house founded by Hou Hsiou-Hsien, Spot Taipei is a restaurant tucked in an alley behind Ming Yao Shopping Center (i.e. the mall with the huge Uniqlo, now next to the huge Forever 21) on ZhongXiao East Road near SYS Memorial Hall. 

I recommend going with a group if you can, to be able to share and sample more plates, and order some of my favorite dishes. I've been twice since its opening, once during its soft opening and my second visit was yesterday, so the menu has changed slightly since my last visit. 



The most popular dishes are from Spot Taipei's all day brunch menu, such as the chicken waffle sandwich, the corned beef hash, the french toast and eggs benedicts. Most restaurants in Taipei have a signature dish-- the thing you see on social media that makes you want to eat your next meal there. For Bing Burger, it's their bone marrow burger. For Belle Epoque, their boba milk pancakes. For Drip Cafe, their cronuts. For Pig and Pepper, it's their funnel cake. For Spot Taipei, it's their chicken and waffles sandwich and their cornflake crusted French Toast, something that's big back in the US that's yet to trend in Taipei. (You can also find fried chicken and waffles at NOLA and previously at Bakery 49, but that's all that comes to mind.)



Let's start off with some of my favorites from today. Favorite things today at @spottpe were the spicy chicken wings, scallop crudo, ribeye steak and roast chicken with creamy mashed potatoes. Skip the green salad (too salty and plain), the miso pork belly (too dry). Otherwise the service was good- they were accommodating and friendly. Still have yet to try the pancakes here!! 

Scallops crudo- Hokkaido scallops with candied chorizo and homemade rice crackers (NT$290). Scallop lovers could easily eat 3-4 pieces, which if my eyeballing estimate is correct is about one scallop. Not looking at the menu, I thought the toppings were sundried tomatoes.


Chicken wings - dry rubbed and fried, pickled celery, dijon sriracha with blue cheese sauce (NT$180 for 4) 

THESE CHICKEN WINGS were some of my favorite things of the meal. If you are a chicken wing lover, you gotta order this. I had two of them, but could have easily eaten more. The skin was crispy and coated with spicy sweet sriracha. I didn't taste the blue cheese at all, but I didn't miss it. Fun twist on traditional buffalo wings.



Pan roasted chicken - half chicken deboned, wilted chinese kale, potato puree, chicken jus, chives and chervil (NT$460)

The pan roasted chicken is a table favorite every time I've been here. The potato puree is buttery and creamy (rivals the mashed at Robuchon) and the whole dish just works.


Fried chicken waffle sandwich- batter fried chicken, asian ranch, gruyere cheese, pickled onions (NT$400)

I enjoy the chicken waffle sandwich- the waffle isn't too heavy, the chicken is tender, the portion is hearty, so it can be a filling meal for one, or shared between two or four people. Each time I've eaten it, I wished both the waffle and chicken are crispier. If they could offer a version of this sandwich with the same level of crunchiness and flavor as the wings (with a little cabbage slaw) that would be AAAAAmazing. Right? Fried sriracha chicken waffle sandwich!! It sells itself.



Ribeye for 2- 22 oz USDA Prime ribeye, sous vide, chimichurri sauce, confit garlic, arugula (NT$1800)

At my first bite, I wished I wasn't so full so I could eat more. The ribeye was perfectly cooked to a nice medium rare, but still had a nice charred crust while being juicy on the inside. The confit garlic were creamy and melt in your mouth and I really liked the chimichurri sauce, which was slightly creamier than other places that I've had it. I ended up enjoying the leftovers at home later.



Duck confit croquette benedict- sous vide duck confit croquette with lemon hollandaise (NT$280) 

This came at the end of our meal, so I took a quick bite. The poached eggs were perfectly runny, the hollandaise had the right consistency and flavor and the lemon give the heavy dish a lighter accent. The shredded duck confit is mixed with sweet potato then fried into a croquette. Would be nice to see if Spot Taipei could do a great crabcake eggs benedict. Swoon.


Roasted Heritage Cauliflower - mix of griddled heritage cauliflower topped with almonds, raisins and lemon juice (NT$220) 

I liked the purple cauliflower the best, most of the broccoli and cauliflower were still quite crisp. I would have preferred them a bit more tender. But I love how Spot Taipei doesn't forget to include veggies on the menu and goes beyond salads. 


Mixed mushrooms- king oyster, oyster, maitake and enoki mushrooms (NT$180)

 


SPOT Burger - gruyere cheese, caramelized onions, chinese lettuce with fries and house pickles (NT$380) 


Miso pork belly - miso brined pork belly, 8 hours sous vide with mini salad and English muffin (NT$260) 

Today's pork belly was overcooked or too lean- it was quite dry and the salad was overly salty so we left this unfinished. The buttered English muffins were good though, so one could put this together to be a mini sandwich bite. 



Green salad- seasonal greens, fried shiitake mushroom crisps, sesame cookies and soy lime vinaigrette (NT$180) 

I wouldn't order this again. The first time, the vinaigrette was so salty, I had to reject it from my mouth. They replaced it for us without a problem, but the fried shiitake wasn't very crispy and the salad was quite plain. 



As you can see, the menu is mostly the same from the soft opening back in May 2015, with a few seasonal changes. 



Not currently on the fall menu - salmon carpaccio. I really liked the charred broccolini (NT$150) and corn mezzi rigatoni (NT$300) on the previous menu. Great dishes for vegetarians and I never thought about pureeing corn to make a creamless pasta. Will totally have to try that at home someday.





The coffee beef shortribs- with peppers, potato and egg on top (NT$280) was one of my favorite dishes of my first visit. Feels a tad healthier than corned beef and something I would totally order again.



pan roasted chicken from first visit


Last but not least, the Ferrero Rocher cornflake crusted frenchtoast with nutella dipping sauce. (NT$300) Not too dense and almost tasted like a cinnamon bun stuffed with sliced bananas. The chocolate flavor doesn't really come out in the french toast, you need to dip it in the Nutella for the chocolovers. The whole thing is deep fried, so it is an indulgence. This dish takes #spottaipei a little longer to prep, and just as well, since it was like a dessert. Recommend for sharing, comes with 4 big pieces- it would be too much for one person as a meal. 


Spot Taipei has been fairly popular since opening, especially on weekends, so reservations recommended. They have two floors of seating, great for larger groups, though the upstairs loft seating is a bit dark with low ceilings. Look forward to seeing new additions to their menu from their international team in the kitchen (Email me when you get the crispy sriracha chicken waffle sandwich going!!) Haha!
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news: TAIPEI NEW RESTAURANTS ROUND UP SPRING/SUMMER 2015

September 9, 2015, 8:30 pm
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Kiko's Diner closed, making room for Caliburger's opening in spring 2015
New restaurants in Taipei to mention since my last round up. It astounds me the rate of new restaurants opening up every few months in Taipei. This great feature on nbcnews.com features two places opened recently by Asian American expats bringing "unapologetic American food" here, Spot Taipei and Little NY Pizzeria. And they aren't alone- Bing Burger is opened by Chef Leon, who is a SF native trained at Cordon Bleu, Brookhurst Seafood Bar features Boiling Crab inspired cajun seafood and Drip Cafe's owner/chefs bring their experiences from Southern Cali and Las Vegas.

New Taipei Restaurants 2015 spring/summer
  • Achoi at amba zhongshan (Chef Kin Ming Lam was previously from Michelin starred Jean Georges in Shanghai)
  • Lee's Sandwiches 
  • Thai and Thai at Mandarin Oriental
  • Square Pizza al Taglio
  • Tigertopoki at Hankyu
  • Wunique Patisserie
  • Brass Monkey (at XinYi Vieshow)
  • Yun Jin at Grand Hyatt Taipei
  • Rest and Run 
  • Spot Taipei
  • Burger Fix
  • Solo Pizza
  • Brooklyn at ATT4Fun (taking over Fat Angelo/Belgian Beer Cafe's spot)
  • Yellow Lemon at Xinyi Mitsukoshi A4 (they revamped the whole floor so it's more of a food hall than food court now)
  • iPasta and Samba Pizza also at Mitsukoshi A4
  • Top Cap (opened by same Chef as Danny and Company and ACut)
  • Ye Shanghai
  • Caliburger
  • Voodoo Doughnuts (yup the one from Portland!)
  • Herban Kitchen and Bar
  • Roots Creative
  • Ya Ge at Mandarin Oriental
  • Ephernite
  • Danny What's Nabe
  • Mini K at Neo 19 (sister restaurant of Korean restaurant Major K)
  • Brookhurst Seafood Bar
  • Naked Food
  • Pizza Denise in Tianmu 
  • O Rose ice cream (French ice cream)
  • RexMex 
  • Mayur Indian Kitchen 4Ever (first (and only?) Indian buffet restaurant in Taipei, opened by MIK)
  • Corner Office
  • Suann's Fish and Chips (Danshui)
CLOSED (I know there must be more. Please help me fill in the blanks in the comments!)
  • Kiko's Diner (Sanrio Cafe.. dang it never got to post this! The loco moco wasn't half bad either)
  • Fat Angelo's at ATT4Fun (that was fast :/)
  • Capone's 
  • Piazza (damn, never got to blog about this one either)
  • Snow King Ice Cream (closed its 60+ year old location in Ximen, will reopen this fall)
  • Macaroni Grill (only been there once since they moved to Minsheng E Road. there have also been a ton of new great Italian restaurants opened since then. but thank you Macaroni Grill for filling a hole for American Italian food in Taipei when you opened)
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snapshot/taiwanese: OREO MILK TEA at PRINCE DRINKS

September 13, 2015, 6:10 pm
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PRINCE DRINKS
No. 2, Lane 8, ChiFeng St.
台北市大同區赤峰街8巷2號
(02) 2550-0376

MRT: Zhongshan

hours: 11:30AM- 7:30PM

website: Prince Drinks' FB page

$ (cash only. I think they deliver if you order over 6 cups)

Kid friendliness: you can probably ask for a version with just fresh milk and oreos, but why not just make it yourself at home

Visit reviewed: 9/4/2015

After devouring award winning pizza next door (review coming!),  a picture of milk tea topped with crumbled Oreos caught my eye. I usually don't succumb to such temptations easily, but it has been HOT lately and I hadn't had a milk tea in so long, so I gave in. Let's say for "research purposes" for the blog.

I forked over NT$65 for an Oreo milk tea and answered the usual "how sweet, how icy?" questions. I made it half sweet (since there was going to be sugar from the Oreos) and less icy, but they suggested that we have it with no ice. The cup was huge, similar to a Large or Extra large at most boba shops and it was mostly tea with one third fresh milk. It was interesting drinking the crushed Oreos as they were absorbing the liquid and becoming mushy- as all kids know, similar to eating dunked Oreos, but this way it was much faster. I didn't finish the drink and I still prefer an Oreo shake, but I'm sure we'll keep an eye out now for Oreo milk tea drinks wherever we go now.



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korean: AJEOSSI

September 15, 2015, 11:30 pm
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AJEOSSI CAFE
No. 23-1, Minquan E Rd, Sec. 6, Neihu District
台北市內湖區民權東路六段217號 
(02) 2796-3616

MRT: Huzhou (Brown Line)

hours: 11:30AM - 9PM, Closed Mondays

website: Ajeossi Cafe's FB page

kid friendliness: no high chairs spotted, but room for strollers. non spicy dishes available 

visit reviewed:  9/10/2015



Ajeossi is a casual homestyle Korean cafe in Neihu, opened by Koreans owners in February 2015. Next door there was a ramen shop that had a line of 20 or so people waiting. At first, we thought the line was for Ajeossi, but alas it was not. Can different kinds of Korean food work in Taipei (besides the popular soondubu, kbbq and spicy rice cake hotpot)?


The atmosphere is like a coffee shop with warm wood walls and tables, with a projection screen playing Korean soaps over the bar/counter. A huge teddy bear keeps watch from the corner and two clocks hang on the wall, one with Taipei time and the other for Korea. 


Hello, Cheon Song Yi!


The menu has only ten or so dishes, with the focus being on drinks- O'Sulloc Korean tea, milk teas, coffee, tea, vinegar soda and a few cocktails. They also had desserts on their menu, but 2 out of 3 were crossed out. I could make out most of the dishes in Chinese, but luckily my friends read Korean, so they picked what to order. The first few are mostly rice and pork dishes (Soy sauce rice,  kimchi pork belly or spicy pork belly or kimchi fried rice with optional cheese),  the next three are Korean rice cake and the last is the cold noodles.   


We decided to get the Korean style soy sauce rice (NT$200),  kimchi pork belly with white rice (NT$200), cold ramen noodles with chogochujang (NT$180), and Korean rice cakes dubokki w spicy zhajiang sauce (NT$240). There's no English on the menus, so these are my translations! You can see the banchan is very simple- kimchi, seaweed and some pickles/cucumbers.



The first dish is something you could make at home, and something owners said that it's the kind of dish they make when there's nothing to eat at home. The Korean style soy sauce rice (NT$200) is rice mixed with soy sauce, fried egg and bacon and a pile of seaweed strips atop. There's no bimbimbap here, at least not the kind with all the julienned veggies that need a lot of prepping. I liked this, but if I made it myself I wouldn't mix soy sauce into the rice. 


The cold noodles (NT$180) was probably my favorite dish, though it wasn't the usual soupy naengmyeon. After quizzing my friend, she guessed that they used cho-gojuchang for the noodles. I knew about gochujang, Korean red pepper chili paste aka Korean sriracha, but I hadn't heard of chogojuchang which was more vinegary and spicy. Will have to find some #chogochujang sauce so I can try making this at home and experiment with both!! 


Again this is something you could probably make at home with the right condiment, since the cucumber, tomato and half boiled egg were more homestyle than precise. 


Korean rice cakes dubokki w spicy zhajiang sauce (NT$240) Korean zhajiang sauce is thicker and sweeter than Chinese zhajiang mian sauce and this dish also had a spicy kick. I liked this and it's very different than what you'd usually find around town. If we didn't get this, then I would have tried the ramen cheese spicy rice cake.


Kimchi pork belly with mini lettuce and white rice (NT$300)- Pork was a tad dry, but I still thought it was decent. It was better than a lot of the dishes that I've tried around town (I had some of the worst stringy bulgogi at usually good Dubu House last year)


Ajeossi's random location makes it so that you really have to seek it out if you didn't live in the neighborhood. It seems like a mostly residential neighborhood, so not an area I'd normally pass by. But I'm glad I got to try it and that it's offering a different type of Korean fare in Taipei. At the very least, if you're having Korean soap withdrawals, you know now where to go.
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Snapshot: HELLO KITTY x MCD's fried pineapple pie

September 17, 2015, 6:14 pm
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If you're a fan of McD's fried apple pie, like I am, then you might find yourself trying the fried PINEapple pie in Taiwan. When I ordered it, I didn't even realize it was going to come in Hello Kitty-fied cuteness. Then I realized that I missed the whole Hello Kitty x McDonalds Taiwan menu (basically sticking HK's face on the packaging) they were doing the past month and the launch of the Hello Kitty toys. 

As for the taste? The crust is essentially the same crispy flaky goodness as the fried apple pie. The inside is a thick pineapple gel filling that is overly sweet and sugary, similar to the filling of those old Hostess pies. The pie is served hot, so be careful when digging in. Let's be honest- most of you will try this just because of the hello kitty cuteness, not the taste. 


Cuteeeeeee Hello Kitty x McDonalds toys- hello kitty ladybug, pineapple, strawberry and watermelon !! 


They should just stick Hello Kitty on everything for a few months and see what happens! Haha. 


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american/market: i strongly recommend WELLMAN'S MARKET

September 24, 2015, 9:00 pm
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WELLMAN'S MARKET
No. 472 Zhongshan N. Road,  Sec. 6, Tianmu
台北市士林區中山北路6段472號
(02) 2871-4454

MRT: Shipai

Hours:

Visit reviewed: 9/24/2015


Have you ever looked for Pop Tarts, Rice Krispies cereal, hot dog buns, Spam, enchilada sauce, food coloring or corn meal in Taipei? I know you have since I've gotten your emails over the years about "where to find..." and I've been looking too. 

Now you'll have at least one place in Tianmu to go to- Wellman's Market. I'd heard of it for years, but never made the trek out to investigate, but I'm telling you if you're a long time resident of Asia and willing to pay a little extra instead of loading your luggage with groceries from the states, then it's worth the trip. Instead of doing a scavengers hunt around Jason's/City Super, Carrefour, Wellcome and your local market's "import aisles", the entirety of Wellman's will look familiar to those of us from the states. It's probably how our parents felt discovering the local Ranch 99/Nijiya/Korean market rather than shopping the sad instant noodle aisle at Ralphs. Lol! There is even a  small selection of personal care goods like Irish Spring soap and various shampoos and deodorants.


Let's just walk through the aisles- there's only three since the market isn't huge, but it's packed from top to bottom.

Duncan Hines cake mixes- chocolate Devil's food, fudge marble and Betty Crocker fudge brownies sit in rows below Old El Paso, Snyders and sour cream, garlic dips.


Lots of salsas, nacho cheese, canned beans, taco shells and sauces for Mexican food DIY. Even corn meal to make your own tortillas! It's actually really hard to find corn meal in Taipei.




Tomato pasta sauces and jams and jellies like apricot, green fig, lemon curd and raspberry. I also spotted cherry, blueberry and apple pie canned fillings- I remember my mom used to use the cherry filling to top homemade mini cheesecakes.


The cereals! Rice Krispies, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Honey Smacks, Frosted Flakes and more. Note a box of Rice Krispies is almost NT$300 so you will have to really love it to buy it. Imagine the rice krispy treats you can make!!!


Small packs of hotdog and hamburger buns so you don't have to buy the megabucks from Costco.


Candies like twizzlers and Oreo Hersheys.



Poptarts and lots of them. I remember going through a pop tart phase in college but haven't really touched them in the past 10 years. Who's been looking for pop tarts in Taipei? There's also spice mixes and seasonings, and funnily enough, brown paper lunch bags and Reynold's aluminum foil, supplies we take for granted in the states.


Here we have the dressings, mayonnaise, mustard, honey, Hershey's chocolate syrup. Sriracha.



Spam and turkey spam to make your spam musubis.


Baking supplies like food coloring, active yeast, baking soda, baking powder, vanilla extract, strawberry extract. I know you can find these things here at the DIY shops too, but some of the comfort is being able to recognize brands you like and read the English instructions that aren't covered up in a Taiwanese sticker for translation.


Different types of Swiss Miss hot chocolates, even with mini marshmallows since that's the best part of hot chocolate right?



Wellman's has a small refrigerated goods section, with small tubs of sour cream, heavy cream, whip cream, and some deli cheeses, chorizo, salami. The chorizo iberico is actually quite addicting.  Next to the front are also some root beer and other beverages.



So good luck finding what you've been looking for at Wellman's. Doesn't hurt to ask them if you don't see what you are looking for. I asked them about Jello, but they said that Taiwan doesn't import Jello anymore. For those of us who've been living in Taiwan a long time, you might find yourself oohing and aahing at something you forgot that you wanted/needed on the aisles at Wellman's. 

What have you been looking for in Taiwan/Asia that you couldn't find? Comment below and maybe we'll find it!
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cajun/seafood: i recommend BROOKHURST SEAFOOD BAR

September 29, 2015, 7:31 am
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BROOKHURST SEAFOOD BAR 布魯克海鮮吧‬ 
No. 43, Lane 308, Guangfu S. Road,
台北市大安區光復南路308巷43號
(02) 2741-4857

MRT: SYS Memorial Hall

website: Brookhurst Seafood Bar's FB page

Hours: 5:30PM - 12AM (last order 11PM) Closed Mondays

Kid friendliness: for seafood loving kids, you can order non spicy versions or fried appetizers available.

Visit reviewed: 9/12/2015


Anyone who's eaten at Boiling Crab has likely joined the cult of digging into bags of cajun spiced boiled seafood, getting your hands dirty and leaving the carcasses of shrimps, clams and crabs all over the table. While I was a little late to the game, my cravings for the Whole Shebang buttery seafood has led to me to look for Boiling Crab inspired restaurants knockoffs  in Taipei. Currently in Taipei, there are three that I know of Brookhurst Seafood Bar (the newest and only open at night), Shrimp Daddy (they have Taco Thursdays) and Chili Crab (the one on Minsheng E. Road.) RIP those who were too early to bring Cajun seafood boil to Taipei-  Firebite, Spicy Alley and the Boiling Seafood.

The menu has a few appetizers like onion rings, cajun fries, baby calamari, chicken wings and honey mustard fish and chips, but the focus is on the seafood. You can choose from clams, mussels, white shrimp, hokkaido scallops, grass shrimp, lobster or king crab legs to boil in one of three sauces- Lemon Zing, Cajun Steeeez or Brookhurst Bang. There are four levels of spiciness to choose from- non spicy to the hottest level "I Dare You." Add ons include potatoes, corn, broccoli, okra, oyster mushrooms, sausages, baby corn, or sides of rice, baguette or noodles as your starches. There is also Boston Lobster, Dungeness Crab or Hokkaido Hairy Crab available, but only if you order it in advance. Since most of the items are by weight, then shrimp is the best deal since its shells are comparable lighter than crab or lobster.

If you want to get a combination of seafood, then you can do a BS Combo as our waiter suggested as well, which is a mix and match ranging from NT$999-NT$5990.



Bibs available for everyone to freely get messy.





Excuse the blurry photos- I think I was too hungry to focus and anyone who's ever eaten seafood knows how messy it gets, so after a few obligatory photos, I dug in and my hands were too buttery to take more pics. #grubandchug The seafood was fresh, flavors were there and though I was missing the fresh limes and salt and pepper that I'd grown to love at Boiling Crab, I would go back to Brookhurst Seafood Bar again.  I might even have to order a dungeness crab in advance.


I couldn't tell the difference between the two sauces at first, but once we hit the bottom of the bag, one sauce was spicier than the other. We would have also ordered some raw oysters, but our waiter told us they were also cooked in the bag. Doh. Their instagram and Facebook seems to disagree.




Some of you might wonder if it's related to Brookhurst Pho, and it's actually in the same spot. It started taking over Brookhurst Pho at night in March and it was so successful, I guess they took over the whole space as you can see from the signage change, so RIP Brookhurst CaliPHOnia. Brookhurst Seafood Bar is currently only open at night and advance reservations strongly recommended.


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taiwanese/breakfast: i still recommend FUHANG DOU JIANG

September 30, 2015, 5:44 pm
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FUHANG DOU JIANG 阜杭豆漿
at Huashan Market, 2F
No. 108, Zhongxiao E. Rd., Sec. 1
台北市忠孝東路一段108號華山市場2樓
(02) 2392-2175

MRT: Shandao Temple station

hours: 5:30AM- 12:30PM; Closed Mondays

$

Kid friendliness: no high chairs spotted. room for strollers and family seating

Visit reviewed: 9/22/2015
Last visit reviewed: 9/2010



My favorite thing from FuHang Dou Jiang is the thick sesame flatbread hou bing 厚餅 (NT$38 with egg 厚餅夾蛋) and the only thing I'd wait in line here for. Waiting in line took about 25 minutes last week and the line was still around the block when I left with my to-go order at 10am weekday. 

Before this place was known to mostly (only) locals until #CNNfood asked me for some non-touristy places and I mentioned this to them. Little did I know CNN's list of 40 must eat foods in #Taiwan they compiled would be passed and copied around the world. So now there's a line everyday and filled with mostly tourists, many clutching Japanese guidebooks. The good thing is that Fuhang is efficient, spacious and clean and provides service in multiple languages. The bad- it became a tourist destination rather than a local's secret and us locals gotta wait longer now. #mybad 

The first time I took a friend there after the list had been published a few years ago, I was shocked that the line went down the stairs and down the street on a weekday morning. Now those lines are a regular sight so I don't go to Fuhang very often since there are other great neighborhood Taiwanese breakfast places to grab and go. 

    


But when I had some stuff to do in that neighborhood recently, I decided I wanted to get some breakfast to go. When I got there on a Tuesday morning, the line of people patiently waiting was already around the block. 

So I started waiting at 9:37AM hoping the line would move quickly, since I had to be somewhere nearby at 10AM. 


Finally saw the entrance at 9:48AM. 


Still have to wait in line going up the stairs. 


Once you get up to the second floor and can see the food court, then the wait isn't too long. If you are planning on eating there, then I would have someone scope out an area to sit while the other person waits in line to order. 


You can see the busy kitchen working nonstop to make sure there's enough shao bings and you tiaos to go around. 





Got to the front at 10:02AM, so about a 25 minute wait that day. 

Once I got to the ordering counter, the first lady asked me "what do you want to order?" in Chinese. Lots of people are taking pictures, so it's her job to move us and the line along. When the people in front and behind me didn't respond, she quickly launched into the question in Japanese to which the people responded. You give your drink order first, then your food order to the next person, then pay the third lady before you carry your order away. It's fairly quick so it's best if you know what you want ahead of time, so the line keeps moving. If you can't read the Chinese characters, they do have an English printed menu to look at upon request. 



The only thing I would wait in this line for is the hou shao bing since its the only place I've found it. I added an egg that day so it was NT$38. There are other places where I prefer the salty soy milk and you tiao and more in my neighborhood. 

"I love the thick sesame flat bread at Fu Hang because it has a slight sweetness, a thin crispy layer and soft center from coming straight out of the hot metal barrel," quoting myself from CNN.com. Lol.


 

SO have you waited in line for Fuhang Dou Jiang? Was it worth the wait? 

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taiwanese/dessert: i strongly recommend SAN HE MIFUN TANG & TAI DA PANGNIU SHAVED ICE

October 4, 2015, 9:40 pm
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SAN HE MIFUN TANG 三禾米粉湯
No. 3, Lane 61, Linsen S. Rd, Zhongzheng District
台北市中正區林森南路61巷3號
(02) 2392-5489

TAI DA PANG NIU BING 胖妞冰店
Lane 18, XuZhou Rd
台北市徐州路18巷口

MRT: Shandao Temple or NTU Hospital

hours: closed Mondays 6:30AM - 3PM 


visit reviewed: 






If you want to eat like a local in Taipei, a bowl of mifun tang 米粉湯 (rice noodle soup) isn't a bad place to start.  A sign that a place serves mifun tang (besides the characters in Chinese) is the huge vat of boiling tofu and noodles at the front like the one at San He Mifun Tang. Pair it with a plate of mushrooms, tofu, pork belly, seaweed, offal and bamboo, you are good to go for less than NT$200. Even though I've lived here for so long, I usually don't go to local shops like this because I don't know what to order. Luckily, I tagged along with some friends on this day and they did all the ordering and it was one of the better bowls of rice noodle soups that I've had in awhile (better than the bowl at Keelung night market and just as good as the one at Tonghua Night market.) Because the broth is clear, it doesn't look as flavorful as the more well known beef noodle soup or the popular Ah Chung flour rice noodles in Ximending, but don't be deceived. A hot bowl of fat, slippery rice noodles has a broth that rivals any ramen broth you'd slurp in its umami for only NT$25.



A photo menu is always a helpful reference.


I shared a bowl with a friend, and the restaurant kindly gave us a bowl filled with extra broth rather than an empty bowl. Sometimes some places overcook their rice noodles, but I found the texture here just right. 

Mushrooms and "oil" tofu油豆腐 (NT$20)


Pork belly (NT$40), chicken heart (NT$50) and seaweed. I liked all the side dishes we ordered and would order them all again. These three plates were shared between 6 people.


Fresh Bamboo (NT$30) is always a favorite side dish.




On our way back to my friend's hotel, we came across a corner shaved ice stand- Tai Da Pang Niu Shaved Ice. It looked too good to pass up on a hot day, so we decided to get a bowl. You can pick as many toppings as you'd like and I got it with condensed milk of course (NT$50)- tapioca, green mung beans, grass jelly, peanut...



Generous with the condensed milk and we polished off the shaved ice before it melted. If you're staying at/near the Sheraton Hotel or near NTU, you can come look for this corner at XuZhou Road. So good. Can't beat it. For this price, you could have two bowls.



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japanese/italian: NAGOMI PASTA

October 20, 2015, 11:50 pm
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NAGOMI PASTA
No. 20, Lane 50, YiXian Road
台北市信義區逸仙路50巷20號

MRT: Taipei City Hall

hours: 1130AM-9PM:

Price: $$ (cash only)

website: Nagomi's FB page 

kid friendliness: lots of pasta dishes and some fried calamari/chicken appetizers. 

VIsit reviewed: 10/21/2015


Couldn't get seats at the pasta place I wanted to go to, so we ended up trying Nagomi Pasta, a Japanese Italian restaurant with lots of fusion dishes like duck with yuzu pepper pasta, mentaiko seaweed pasta or fried chicken soy sauce spaghetti. Turns out the owners are the same as Primo Trattoria, which serves more traditional style Italian pastas and pizzas. There are quite a few Japanese Italian pasta places in Taipei, one of the most popular being Bellini Pasta, but Nagomi has a larger variety of pastas with over 20 pastas on its menu, but doesn't offer up any pizza. 


The menu is in Chinese, Japanese and English (thankfully) sprinkled with a few photos. There are daily specials in Chinese on the board and you can make your lunch a set with a small salad and dessert by adding a small fee. Besides pastas, there are also baked pastas with cheese, Japanese hamburger, steak with teriyaki sauce-- all the sort of things that would fit in at a restuarant on Sawtelle. The menu reminds me a little of the now shuttered West LA Little Osaka restaurant Blue Marlin, except that there's no uni pasta at Nagomi.




Nagomi sits about 20 people in the front of the restaurant and there's additional section of seating in the back. 


Caesar Salad NT$160
Fresh and crisp, but nothing you couldn't put together yourself at home. Dressing was also lighter and not as creamy as the American style Caesar dressing.


Salmon Ikura pasta with butter, onions and mizuna NT$360
First reaction was that the pasta was quite buttery, the second was that some of the pasta was torched since they seemed to have seared the salmon atop the pasta. This would be nice with udon instead of spaghetti, but it's mostly pasta here, imported from Italy. 


Chicken, deep fried gobo, chili, sesame, soy sauce spaghetti NT$260
This had a kick to it, though my friend didn't seem to notice. 


Mixed mushrooms, egg, homemade meat sauce, grana padano NT$280

I saw the soft boiled egg on the menu, and I had to order this dish. This is probably the least fusion-y of the 20 or so pasta dishes on Nagomi's menu with a bolognese meat sauce and freshly grated grana padano cheese. The sauce here does taste like Bellini's version, as it is on the sweeter side. 






While I enjoyed this dish, I didn't like that the soft boiled egg was cold, especially with a hot dish. I've had bad experiences in the past with cold soft boiled eggs and since that means it was premade, you don't know how long the egg has been sitting around. From my recollection, the egg at Bellini (the first place I've ever had the soft boiled egg on bolognese pasta) is served hot.

The first time I spied Nagomi Pasta was when I went to Solo Trattoria (opened by Solo Pasta) around the corner. The next time, I think I would still prefer to go to Solo Trattoria. They have a stewed beef cheek zitoni pasta that is divine. Or come back with more people to order more dishes to try. Had a little bit carb overload with three pasta dishes and not as much protein.


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drinks/snapshot: HELLO KITTY BUBBLE

October 29, 2015, 4:16 am
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HELLO KITTY BUBBLE 
NO. 172 DaAn Road, Sec. 1
大安路一段172號

MRT: ZhongXiao FuXing or DaAn

Kid friendliness: Oreo, banana and banana chocolate smoothies available for non-caffeinated drinks as well as winter melon lemonade 

Visit reviewed: 10/29/2015


Just a peek inside Hello Kitty Bubble, a small tea shop decked out in Hello Kitty and friend that's been open since last year. The red bowed storefront is a magnet for a Hello Kitty lover like me so I had to get a few pictures to post and share. (Although I remember passing it a number of times before when the storefront just had some decals outside and not such an elaborate entrance). Along with Hello Kitty, the Little Twin Stars, My Melody and Badtz Maru are all getting their fat straw drink on. Maybe a place to check out if you've already gotten your photo ops at Hello Kitty Kitchen and Dining (formerly Hello Kitty Sweets) and the Hello Kitty snacks souvenir shop. 

Menu includes hot or cold teas, milk teas, sodas, smoothies and lattes, with drinks ranging from NT$30-60. 






And if you don't want to be seen carrying around a Sanrio cup but need some coffee since your girlfriend dragged you out to take pictures here, there's a Cama coffee right next door. 


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