Restaurants in Taiwan
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Dintaifung
With Taipei's most celebrated dumplings, Dintaifung is deservedly popular for Shanghai-style treats made fresh to order. Try the classic xiǎolóng bāo (steamed pork dumplings). Very popular with locals and visitors alike, so either phone in reservations (they speak enough English) or prepare to queue up.
reviewed
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Bongos
Have a hankering for poutine (French fries topped with cheese curds and gravy) and pasta, or perhaps some salad served with a secondhand science-fiction paperback? In addition to serving good Western-style lunches and dinners, including the aforementioned Canadian favourite, Bongos has a comfortable reading area, outdoor seating and a huge collection of used books for sale.
reviewed
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Tainan Tan-tsu-mien
Odd though it may seem to have rooms decorated like Versailles and Vienna in Snake Alley, that's what you'll find here. Select your own fish and seafood out the front and the chef will suggest a preparation method (grilled, steamed, fried etc). Don't forget to try the shop's namesake noodles (made with ground pork).
reviewed
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Amigo Mexican Food
Got a hankering for Mexican? Amigo has tacos, burritos, home-made soups and other 'south of the border' favourites. Dishes are served with flair matching a genuine taco-stand ambiance.
reviewed
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D
5 Cent Driftwood House
This is one place that you should at least have a gander at. It's across from the Eternal Golden Castle. Designed by an artist from Tainan County, who had no previous background in architecture, the house will either strike you as daring, original and awesome, or proof that people should stick to their field of expertise. The outside is indescribable, though if we had to describe it we'd say it looks like a castle battling cancer. If this sounds harsh it isn't meant to be – the restaurant is a quirky, idiosyncratic work of love and we quite like it just the way it is.
reviewed
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Sababa
This excellent new eatery serving falafel, hummus and other middle-eastern food is already so popular that the kitchen exhausts their supply of delicious home-made pita before we get there for our typically late dinners. But it would be selfish to not list Sababa just to keep the pita for ourselves.
Instead, we're just going to exaggerate how hard the place is to find. Really. It's so very hard to find! You'll probably have to settle for one of the three dozen other restaurants on Alley 54, leaving the pita for us regulars. Good luck.
reviewed
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Doggy & Yummy
One of the latest trends in Taipei is pet-friendly restaurants, that is, places where pet-loving city dwellers can take the pooch (or pot-bellied pig for that matter) out for a good meal. Though most tourists tend not to bring their own pets, doggy restaurants are fun places, especially for travellers with children (besides, we couldn't resist listing at least one of these odd eateries).
Doggy & Yummy has decent Western food such as pasta and fried chicken and an English menu that's definitely dog (and kid) friendly.
reviewed
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Beitou Squid
This funky little eatery in Tianmu serves excellent traditional Taiwanese dishes such as pork and seafood dumpling, cold cucumber salad and tofu with thousand-year eggs. But the coolest part is the decor. Old 1960s Taiwanese movie posters adorn the wall (they're for sale) and the shop sells kitsch nostalgia items including wind-up cars and candy cigarettes. John Waters would just love this place.
reviewed
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He Xiang Delicious Food
A long-standing favourite streetside eatery in Tianmu, He Xiang has kept the same tiny menu for decades (the picture menu on the wall behind the counter has almost totally faded). The speciality of the house, and a local must-try, is the bamboo-steamed sticky rice with red pork and vegetables, wrapped in a lotus leaf and served with hot sauce. Look for the faded picture of this dish above the entrance. The restaurant is on the north side of the street, just east of the Zhishan MRT. Another excellent dish is the shrimp-ball soup. Nothing fancy, just cheap, good and very Taiwanese.
reviewed
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Grandma Nitti's
A mainstay of Taipei's Western community, Nitti's serves comfort food such as waffles, burgers, Philly-cheese steaks, Mexican dishes and family-sized pastas. Best bang for your buck are Nitti's all-day breakfasts, served from 9am to 5pm. At NT$180 for the usual eggs, pancakes, bacon, ham, hash browns and bottomless tea or coffee, it's the best deal in the house. There's a comfy streetside terrace and the windowed space upstairs is a great place to mull over newspapers. Animal lovers take note: Rainbow (aka Grandma Nitti) is a mainstay in Taiwan's animal-protection community, so if you wind up adopting a pet and want to know how to go about bringing it back home with you…
reviewed
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Xiangyi Vegetarian Heaven
Easily one of the best vegetarian buffets in Taipei, this narrow two-storey restaurant is usually crowded, with the ground-floor seating generally taken by the monks who eat here daily. A beautiful assortment of Taiwanese vegetarian cuisine is cooked fresh and served to the lilting sounds of Buddhist songs coming from an overhead boom box. The restaurant has no English signboard, just look for a yellow sign above the door or follow the sounds of soft Buddhist chanting.
reviewed
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Chiantan Food Court
Avoiding food in Shilin is a bit like avoiding casinos in Las Vegas; you really need to be committed to manage it. Until recently the centre of the night market had a food court with teppanyaki booths, noodle stalls and milk-tea joints, but after many artery-clogging decades, city elders deemed the place a fire risk, and moved most of the food court's purveyors of tasty grease to their new home in the Chiantan Food Court, located just across from the Jiantan station.
reviewed
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Yang's Bakery
This 40-plus-year-old, northern-Chinese style place is unpretentious to the max and has no English menu, but that doesn't matter. Order yourself some dàguōtiē (long-rolled dumplings, steamed then fried) or yángjiāshuǐjiǎo (pork dumplings) and you'll see what we mean. Yang's is also a good place to get yourself a bowl of niúroù miàn (beef noodle soup), one of Taiwan's most famous dishes.
reviewed
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Lavender Garden
At the bottom of a long, steep stairway that (eventually) leads up into Yangming Mountain lies this excellent restaurant set inside a two-storey home surrounded by an aquatic garden. Amazing health-oriented Chinese dishes such as 'health-tonic hot pot with 10 Chinese herbs' will give you strength for the climb ahead. Then again, as Lavender Garden's desserts are delicious as well, you might want to save the meal as a reward for the climb down.
reviewed
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Ostrich
Welcome to Ostrich, Taipei's first and only (at least to our knowledge) restaurant specialising in the tall and gamey bird. Ostrich steaks, ostrich burgers and ostrich noodle soup are all on the menu at this upscale restaurant just around the corner from Core Pacific City. (That's the mall shaped like a large ostrich egg. Coincidence? We think not.) Ostrich also serves drinks and has a good selection of wines from California, Australia and France.
reviewed
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Geneva
We were saddened to learn that Ticino's (our old favourite Taipei Swiss restaurant) had closed its doors, but happy that Geneva has picked up the flaming fondue torch. Though pricey, Geneva uses only the finest cheese to make its fondues and the best home-baked breads and imported meats for dipping. Leave room for desert, an amazingly decadent chocolate fondue served with fresh strawberries. And of course, don't forget to order the sparkling wine.
reviewed
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Sweet Dynasty
Though specialising in Chinese desserts, Sweet Dynasty also serves a wide variety of mouth-watering dishes such as Shanghai prawns, braised beef ribs with bitter melon and other Chinese classics. Desserts, of course, are amazing, so top off your meal with a slice of taro cake or a dish of mango pudding. Come during tea-time (2pm to 5pm), when dim-sum specials bring dish prices down as low as NT$49, making feasting cheaper.
reviewed
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Haw Kuang Vegetarian Restaurant
At the other end of the spectrum is this amazing vegetarian buffet just down the block from the Onion and a few blocks northwest of the Shilin Night Market. Why is this among Taipei's best vegetarian buffets? Simply put, the chef is a genius, with an eye for both colour and flavour. Arrange your meal from dozens of beautifully prepared vegetarian dishes and enjoy. Imagine yourself a painter and the white cardboard tray your canvas.
reviewed
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Hooters
The opening of Hooters in Taipei caused quite a stir. If you've ever been to a Hooters in America, you know that the women who work here are chosen for their looks, outgoing personalities, and willingness to join in spontaneous hula-hoop performances. The ladies of Hooters Taipei live up to the franchise's expectations. Food and decor is pure Americana - how you feel about that depends on your personal bias.
reviewed
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Cottonfields Organic Health Store
Need something to balance out the night markets' stick-meat, fried tofu and assorted artery-clogging goodness? Taipei has a number of places to get organic fruits, vegetables and other healthy products. Our favourite place is Cottonfields, which sells the sort of stuff you'd find at a farmer's market in places like San Francisco. They also sell salads and have a great juice bar with upstairs seating.
reviewed
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Yonghe Congee King
One of our favourite postdrinking-binge breakfast joints, Yonghe Congee King is clean, well lit (but not too bright) and serves perfect post and prehangover foods such as home-made dòujiāng (soymilk), luóbuógāo (turnip cake) and qīngzhoù. If this doesn't settle your stomach, consider laying off the Taiwan beer and Whisbih for a while.
reviewed
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Lanka Curry Restaurant
One of the less flashy (and less expensive) South-Asian restaurants in Taipei, Lanka has been serving excellent curries, sambals and dhal dishes for nearly two decades. If you're feeling especially adventurous, try the fish-head curry (the priciest item on the menu, but well worth it). Whatever you get, order their special appetizer, 'Lunu Dehi', it's diced onion mixed with lemon pickle.
reviewed
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Chi Kin Dandanman
This is a fun place to try traditional dànzǎi miàn, because the restaurant is set in a Japanese-era merchant's house. Dànzǎi miàn means 'two baskets and a stick' and refers to the baskets used to carry the noodles around for sale. The dish is a simple, refreshing mix of noodles with a tangy meat sauce. This shop uses no MSG.
reviewed
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Lai Lai Seafood Barbecue Restaurant
For fresh seafood head over to Cijin Island's seafood street, or try the locally recommend Lai Lai. It's the kind of place you go to eat good seafood, drink cheap beer (NT$70 a pint), and be loud like the locals. You can barbecue right at your table or just tell the staff how much you want to spend and they will arrange dishes for you. Be sure to tell them of anything you don't eat (like fish head, perhaps?).
reviewed
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Yuan Shu Vegetarian
This restaurant has received a fair amount of press coverage for its new-school renditions of traditional Taiwanese favourites. Vegetarian meals are prepared in the classic Buddhist way, not merely meat but also garlic and pepper free. Hotpots are a specialty as are the pumpkin rice noodles and delicious tofu dishes. The sign outside reads simply 'Vegetarian'.
reviewed