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The food! Taiwan has such great food! And I hesitate to make a food post because there is no way I can do it justice. I’m definitely not an authority on Taiwanese cuisine. But, I do have my favorites. And we tried to eat as many as we could! So here we go!
Oh Ah Jian, Taiwanese for Oyster Omelette, is one of my favorite street food. It combines a couple of my favorite foods: oysters and eggs. Just can’t go wrong.
Another classic. This simple dish simply hits the right spot. When done right, not only is the meat so savory, but the sauce drips into the rice and one can further enjoy that meaty flavor. Add an egg for extra goodness!
Turnip Cake
Been eating turnip cake since I was young! I usually eat this at dim sum, though readily available even at the freezer aisle from an Asian grocery store… hard to resist ordering in Taipei!
Pictured (starting from top left, going clockwise): Oyster Omeletter, Braised Pork Rice with Egg, Turnip Cake from Tian Tian Li.
Click on pic for link to restaurant.
The mandarin name for the Chinese Donut literally translates to Oil Stick. Doesn’t quite have a good ring to it. But say it in Mandarin, and it conjures the feeling of ultimate breakfast food. The greasy, crunchy, fluffy, stick of oily goodness is then paired perfectly with some warm soy milk to help wash it down. Fu Hang Dou Jiang, is the spot that all tourists go, and for good reason. The donut is consistently good quality. Go early (around 7-7:30) to avoid the worst line.
Pictured: Parts of a Chinese Donut and empty Soy Milk bowls, from Fu Hang Dou Jiang. (Sorry, too busy eating and doing Instagram stories to get a good picture)
Click on pic for link to restaurant.
A Dan Shui specialty. Agei Tofu is a vermicelli stuffed tofu, served in a rich sauce. It is pretty tasty and makes for a filling breakfast or snack.
Pictured: Cathy admiring this Agei Tofu before devouring it. This was from a shop in Dan Shui.
Stinky Tofu is a love it or hate it kind of dish. Cathy loves it and would argue that it’s fragrant, rich, and silky like ripe cheese.
Street vendors typically fry theirs. Pictured is the steamed variety, which is much more fragrant. I don’t care for either. Cathy got her fill!
Pictured: Steamed Stinky Tofu
What can be more extra than a large piece of Chicken. It just works. Find this at Ximending, or night markets. Hot Star so hot, it’s even made it stateside to Berkeley’s Asian Ghetto.
Pictured: Hot Star (one of many locations)
Click on pic for link to restaurant.
Cathy is vegan; while that limits her food options, we were delighted by the vegetarian tasting menu at Yu Shuan Ge. Not only is the food delicious, the presentation was creative and stunning as well
Pictured: One of the dishes from Yu Shuan Ge made to look like sashimi.
My absolute favorite dessert, snow ice has this amazing snow-like texture. It is by far better than the typical shaved ice. (The Korean version is known as Bingsu.) Find this at night markets or from the classic, Ice Monster.
Pictured: Coffee Sensation from Ice Monster (this is a chain from Taipei with two locations in the city, as well as many spots across China and Japan. Even one in Hawaii!)
Click on pic for link to restaurant.
Can’t talk Taiwan food without mentioning Boba, shorthand for Boba Milk Tea. (Though I still prefer the OG English translation of Pearl Milk Tea.) FYI - Boba is Taiwanese slang for boobs. So there you go!
Pictured: Me in front of Xin Fu Tang with the latest trend of Brown Sugar milk tea. I prefer the regular stuff, but it’s still good!
Allen’s favorite fruit in all the world is the Wax Apple. It has such a silly English name, but that’s hardly my concern. It is sweet, juicy, and crisp, like an Asian pear but better.
Real pity that it is only available in tropical countries, and not permitted in the USA. Therefore, I overcompensate and eat as much as possible when I can.
Pictured: Stock photo from https://topologytravel.com/%E3%80%90useful-info%E3%80%91fruit-season-in-taiwan/