Taipei Restaurants

Din Tai Fung

This well known chain specializes in xiao longbao, a special kind of soup dumpling made with paper thin 皮 pi2 (dumpling skin). Din Tai Fung is a well-oiled machine. Though the place is always crowded inside with a line waiting outside, the smiling and bowing waitresses, equipped with walkie takies (and hundreds of spare pens), come around to assign you a number give you a menu sheet (and a pen with which to fill it out).

Once inside you can watch as about a dozen men (all properly equipped with hats and face masks) churn out the dumpling skins, which are passed off, stuffed, weighed, and sealed with neat folds. The attention to detail despite the chaotic nature of such a full restaurant is impressive. In passing out our mugs, which would soon be filled with some of the nicest tea I've had in such an affordable restaurant, the waitress made sure to turn the Din Tai Fung logo towards the person who would drink from it. Of course, appearances only go so far, but at this restaurant the quality of the food matches the swiftness of the machine, and the food was both delicious and filling. Every dumpling and xiao longbao was tightly packed with fresh meats and veggies--an impressive culinary feat with such thin dumpling skins.

Maryjane Pizza

No. 25, Ln. 44, TaiShun St., Taipei

No. 89, Wenzhou St., Taipei

No. 8, Ln. 62, DaZhi St., Taipei

A few days in Taipei is enough to raise your expectations of food. The food here in Taipei, while more expensive than Nanjing, China, is still high quality for relatively low price.

When I saw the menu for Maryjane Pizza I was expecting the food to soar above my elevated culinary bar. High as I knew this bar was, the witty (incredibly well translated) menu full of highly appetizing photos of fresh salads, pizzas, and desserts made me giddy with excitement. However, one bite into the cheese stuffed mushrooms made my shoulders wilt and my smile fade. Though far more delicious than almost anything we have gotten used to in Nanjing and on par with many good restaurants in the US, this appetizer did not sing. The pesto inside was flavorless and watery, and the cheese lacked a certain sharpness that made the whole dish fall flat.

My pepperoni pizza, served hot and fresh in a wicker basket, was much better. The cheese was gooey, the sauce was made from real tomatoes, and the pepperoni was thick and well spiced. Though I certainly cannot rank this pizza as "Top 10", it was still well worth my time (and 180 Taiwanese Dollars). For the price I paid and the craving I satisfied, Maryjane was a good choice. However, I still don't know if I would say it cleared the elevated Taipei culinary high-jump.

Sumi Sushi

My friend and I found this restaurant on a food blog, and for that we must thank "Hungry Girl." This restaurant, though so small it can only fit a few small parties at a time around the sushi bar, should not be overlooked. The chef, a round, bald man who spoke fluent but accented English, spent 20 years in Vancouver with his family before returning to Taipei. He chatted with us as he made our sushi--a dragon roll, California roll, and spicy tuna roll--and gave us some advice on which night market to go to and where to grab dessert.

The sushi, while far from falling apart, had a loose quality about it that gave it a modest presence. This is sushi done right--the focus was not external embellishment but internal quality. All of the ingredients were fresh and flavorful, including the seaweed which had more of a crisp presence than rolls I have eaten in the past.

百八渔场

台北市民生西路44号 (No. 44 MinSheng West Road, Taipei)

One of the receptionists at Star Hostel recommended this Japanese restaurant, so my friend and I decided to give it a chance. The convenient 15 minute walk from our hostel was the first sign of good things to come. Although we had to wait 10-15 minutes to be seated, the lively, popular nature of the restaurant seemed worth it because, as my friend says, "people don't wait for just anything."

To order your food (and pay) you must go to the back cashier, who then gives you a red number to place on your table. While waiting for our main dish, my friend and I helped ourselves to all-you-can drink tea and miso soup (for which you sprinkle in your own scallions and seaweed). The soup was good enough that we had to remind ourselves not to ruin our appetite for the main meal, which was a smart decision given how hearty the portions were.

I ordered something of a "sashimi don", which is the name my friend called my bowl of fresh, thick slices of raw tuna, salmon, and yellow tail resting atop a bed of sticky rice. Seaweed and other greens sat in decorative clusters around the fish, and then I proceeded to drizzle a little wassabi-infused soy sauce over the whole bowl to round the whole dish out.

The whole restaurant experience was a fusion of fancy meets casual. The walk-up order and self-served soup aspect of the restaurant is very casual, but the food is not of a "casual" restaurant quality. All in all, paying 180 Taiwanese dollars for such a delicious meal makes any casual or fancy environment seem worthwhile.