Food In Taiwan

As I get ready to leave Taiwan, I have realized that many of my earlier observations from when I first arrived here may be, more or less, hogwash. At the very least, some amending would be helpful. But rather than rehash old stories and perceptions, why not fall back on the lazy blogwriter's crutch: lists! So, I present to you, part one of my favorite things about Taiwan.

As any knife fighter or cliche-ridden grandma will tell you, the quickest way to a man's heart is through the stomach. While culinarally-adept women may not be particularly common in my social circles, I certainly did begin to fall for Taipei due to its amazing assortment of boutique restaurants and nightmarket-style local cuisine.

To begin with, let me be clear; there are certain things that Taiwan as a rule does not do well, namely bread and cheese. Some might protest that, in Waiguoren(foreigner) enclaves like Tienmu or Shida, this bakery or that restaurant will remind you of home. I don't buy it, and regardless the overall point stands. Cheese is absurdly overpriced, I assume because it comes from the gilded steers of Kiwi Midas's palace and is personally cultured by Rupert Murdoch. Worse, Taiwanese bakeries follow the (in my opinion awful) Japanese tradition of letting no piece of bread go uncovered by mayonnaise, sugar, and/or dried pork fibers.

But these failings not withstanding, there are worthy feasts to be had in the winding, crowded backallys that embody Taipei nightlife. The nightmarket is the organ that pulses life through Taipei and is glue that bonds Taipei's pauper and prince alike*. Even the corporate shopping malls of Ximending or the area around Taipei 101 were built to resemble the flea-market atmosphere of the more organic shopping growths of Shilin or Gongguan. Vendors grilling pork and spicy calamari or baking salted pheasant eggs and red-bean cakes in wafflemaker-like contraptions inhabit makeshift-looking stands built in front of pharmacys or clothing stores.

Stalls selling noodles or one of the many varieties of dumplings can be found on any given side alley, along with fruit vendors or soup shops. And of course, the everpresent Milk Tea alchemists synthesize iced tea-and-fruit concoctions with milk, juice, and/or small jelly-like blobs to be sucked up with a straw. Of course, my personal favorite eateries are the breakfast nooks that fry to order sandwiches(sanmingzhe), wraps(danbings), turnip cakes(loboagao), fried dough (youtiao), or whatever else one may desire that can be cooked in vegetable oil. Nothin' better than an egg and doughstick sandwich with a glass of sweet soy milk. At 56NT(under $2USD) for the lot of it, quite affordable too.

Of course no city that lacked foreign cuisine could really hold my attention the way Taipei has. If you are looking for Asian food, Taipei is predictably wonderful. Late night Mongolian hot-pot restaurants or Tepanyaki joints can frequently be found even if you are far from the main shopping areas. Sushi chains offer reasonably priced snacks inside subway stations and in street shops with conveyer-belts bringing food to your table. Aaarthula's (man, I cannot spell that name) runs an amazing Sri Lanken Curry operation, with wraps for now or frozen containers for home, out of a modest concrete cube in the Xindian nightmarket. Hong Kong or Korean style restaurants litter the commercial districts, and Vietnamese, Indian, or Thai restaurants hustle for hungry nightmarket cruisers.

More surprising is the quality of the western-style restaurants. Certain cuisines, such as Italian or Mexican, are never really done right (though I can vouch for one Pizzaria in particular, called the Pizza Bar, on BaDe Road between the RT Mart and the KMT headquarters). But by and large the European and American style restaurants are very good. N.Y. Bagels is a solid starting point for homesick New Yorkers. Jake's Country Kitchen sports meals straight out of a Norman Rockwell painting in Tienmu, and Frankies in Yonghe serves fantastic South African meat pies. In particular, Taipei sports many very good burger joints. In Shida, Evan's American style hamburgers competes with KGB's(Kiwi Gourmet Burgers), and elsewhere one can find any kind of burger, from delectable sliders to massive towers of meat and cheese and toppings.

Coffeehouses of varied expense are quite common. While one can find plenty of Starbucks, they are merely one comparatively expensive chain competing against other established brands such as the Japanese import Ikiri Coffee, or the local franchises Dante's and Mr. Brown's (complete with racist mascot!). On top of this, there are a plethora small mom-and-pop operations selling expresso-based drinks. Even 711 sells a decent latte for $1.61 USD.

Actually, one of the most interesting things about Taipei is how few monopolies you see among the chains. McDonalds competes with Burger King and Japanese Mosburger (complete with “burgers” prawns between rice-buns). 711 competes with FamilyMart and Hilife. KFC competes with local chain Two Peck. Subway competes with a whole roster of ex-Subway franchises that took the Subway stuff, changed the name, and stopped sending royalties back to the states. Heck, even Dunkin Doughnuts competes with Mr. Doughnut (though, as I have previously mentioned, they are both owned by the same company – shades of Deus Ex's coffee competition).

As I am going home to Westchester, I won't exactly be without quality cuisine. Still, there is definitely something special Taipei's food. When I am stateside and peckish, I will surely miss the halogen-lit streets that have filled my belly so many times in the past two years.

*I almost certainly borrowed that phrase from somewhere other than Mark Twain. Imitation is the most sincere form of... something. Probably theft.