So, the first restaurant I want to introduce to you all is called "豐盛食堂" which literally translates to "Rich Food Heaven". It is located near the Dongmen 東門 MRT station， a street away from the infamous Yong Kang Street. After about a 5 minute walk from Dongmen Exit 5, you will reach this pleasant, local restaurant, which serves very local Taiwanese-style foods. If you're looking to try something more local and also scrumptious, "豐盛食堂” is very much well worth a visit。 My favorites include the Pork fat dish and the Salty Egg Bamboo.
豐盛食堂
MRT： Dongmen Exit 5
Address：台北市麗水街1之3號 （LiShui Road，No. 1-3, Taipei City）
(off XinYi Road, Sec. 2 )
Telephone Number: 02-2396-1133
Hours: 11:30-14:00/17:00-21:00
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So, my good friend, Andersen (pictured right) is the one who introduced us to the “Rich Food Heaven". He has really good taste, especially when it comes to food. Whenever we meet up, I know I won't be disappointed. After our dinner at 豐盛食堂， we walked a few steps towards YongKang Street and approached a charming little tea house called Tea Room (it is literally the size of the room). The decor was very colorful and attractive, but a tad bit small so big crowds might not be suitable. After having such a large dinner, it was nice to relax and chat over some light tea.
My brother, looking sassy as usual
I love the colors in the tea house.
This is the address, telephone number, and website for the teahouse. The tea was not the cheapest, but the taste was definitely well-worth the price. You can tell they use finer quality tea than most tea houses.
I had the 貴妃蜜香茶 ”Eldest Concubine Honey Tea“ (gotta love that name)
It actually wasn't sweet at all, but the natural taste of the tea was surprisingly good!
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So, stepping away from Yong Kang Street, I wanted to take time to introduce another restaurant that I quite enjoyed: Toasteria Cafe!
Obviously, Toasteria's specialty is it's wide assortment of toast-infused dishes. A lot of the food is really, really good. I have always heard good things about this cafe, and really enjoyed my visit there....well....mostly.
(you can check the website for its dishes and address info) There is more than one Toasteria in Taipei. My friend, Chika and I went to the one in Zhongxiao Dunhua, right beside Honey Creme ice cream shop. I like how they advertise themselves as a restaurant with "only the good stuff", so none of that organic, low-fat, diet crap. "No diet coke, no skim milk, no low fat cheese!!" It's bold, but you come here to enjoy food is basically what it's trying to say!
So, Chika and I like to think of ourselves as "adventurous eaters". We're pretty much open to anything. So when it came down to choosing an appetizer, we saw one that seemed very different and intriguing. The "Mama's Chicken Liver Pate"
We thought it would be a good idea to order it....
*it definitely looks presentable*
Basically, chicken liver covered in juicy cranberry sauce and dried cranberries and some shaved nuts, surrounded by a helpful serving of thin toast
Look how excited Chika is to try something new and exciting!!!!.....
and..........not......so..........
good.......
Look at how fast her face changes! ahha! That's really the reaction both of us had once we lathered up our toast with the grayish chicken liver. We both looked up at each other in confusion. I have had chicken liver before and really liked it, but this dish really killed it for me. I've never had food that I couldn't finish, but Mama obviously doesn't love her children that much to be serving that to them. Chika and I both agreed that the chicken liver smelled a lot like a wet dog, who hadn't taken a bath in 4 weeks. We didn't even finish it, even though we both hate wasting food. We realized why they added cranberries to the chicken liver; they were hoping it would be enough to cover the taste and smell of wet dog, but unfortunately even the taste of the tangy fruit couldn't help. I think we just were unfortunate to choose the least ugly sister of the Toasteria menu because everything else on that we ordered was really really good. I'm not eating chicken liver again, for a very, very long time.
I ordered the MED Eggplant toast, while Chika got the Three Cheese Toast. They were both divine and healthy portions.
Each toast order is served with a side of assorted pickles.
So all in all, I really recommend Toasteria. The price of the restaurant's dishes are very fair, and there are a lot of dishes that sounded really good that I hope to try in the near future. Just one thing's for sure....no more chicken liver. Bahhh!!!
"No more chicken liver for me!"- Chika
Toasteria Cafe
Address: No. 3, Lane 169, Sec. 1 Dunhua South
MRT: Zhongxiao Dunhua (7 minute walk from Exit 1 or 8)
Phone: 02-2752-0033
Website: http://www.toasteriacafe.com
STEPHEN'S SCORES!!! (out of 10)
豐盛食堂： ********* (9) Really good local, Taiwanese food! Fast service (not really friendly), and moderate prices.
Taipei Tea Room: ******* (7) Pleasant tea experience. Nice, cozy, and colorful atmosphere
Toasteria: *******1/2 (7.5) Despite the chicken liver, still highly recommended. A lot of selections to choose from, so something for everyone. The main entrees are delightful. Wish they added fries to the entrees though. One entree might not be enough to fill guys with bigger appetites.
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