Another trip to Spain... in Taipei

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It is, once again, time to commemorate the day when Mom suffered terrible tummy pains all those years ago. After staying in Hong Kong for the last couple of years, this year I've resumed the old habit of flying home and spending the day with the Parental Units. Choosing a venue became easier this time, as many restaurants are closed on Mondays, and I decided to return to Molino de Urdániz. Since my happy first visit more than 3 years ago, this Taipei outpost have gotten themselves a second macaron, so I was really looking forward to more modern Spanish cuisine.

The current menu is called "Clásicos y Evolución", which features classic dishes created by Chef David Yárnoz at the home based in Spain as well as creations using locally-sourced ingredients.

I was a little annoyed with the restaurant's service at the very beginning, as they seemed intent on having us start our meal right away after we sat down. It should have been obvious that I was setting up my cameras to take pictures at the beginning, before the mayhem was about to start, but the staff completely ignored this and insisted on putting food on the table before I was remotely ready...

Pine spring: mushroom consommé - poetically named "pine spring (松泉)" in Chinese, this was not officially on the menu but offered as an extra treat. We were asked to first taste the mushroom consommé - made with 4 different types of mushrooms - on its own. Then we were to mix in the paste on the cup's rim - made with ground, dried mushrooms that was infused with pine needles - and taste the mixture. This helped to warm up the stomach to prepare for the meal, and Mom loves mushroom soup so she was pretty happy.

Tradición: Caramelo de pimentón relleno de mousse de txistorra - a signature dish I enjoyed on my last visit. The thin tubes of sugar were filled with a grainy txistorra mousse made with local Taiwanese pork, paprika, egg, and butter. Loved the smoky paprika.

Pickled: pepino encurtido y aliño de hierbas, pepino osmotizado, crema de ostras, hierbas y notas lácteas - poetically named "backyard (後院)", this, of course, is the signature dish of the restaurant served at every meal, which really wow'ed me last time. It's so pretty to look at, and evokes the restaurant's backyard with "shrubs" and "pebbles".

The "shrubs" were ribbons of pickled cucumber delivered a hit of fruity acidity. Then the creamy "pebbles" made with French (were they Gillardeau like last time?) oysters, milk, and Grana Padano definitely got the oyster flavors. The green sauce made with herbs also tasted of oysters, and mixing it all up showed the interplay between briny and acidic flavors. This was still very enjoyable the second time around.

Shell: snow crab, almond cream and dashi foam - poetically named "setting sun (斜陽)", Japanese snow crab is slow-cooked and mixed with amaranth seeds as well as very finely diced shallots and ginger. Served with sweet almond milk along with a foam made of kombu and katsuobushi (鰹節), the latter bringing big, punchy flavors.

Blanco: aro de coco con manzana encurtida y crema de almendra - poetically named "flower dance (花舞)", we have a ring of creamy mousse made with coconut milk and sugar, where the light, savory flavors from coconut milk came through. This was filled with ajoblanco in the middle made from almond cream, sherry vinegar, and olive oil. There was a ring on top made of green apple discs that had been pickled in rice vinegar and basil, garnished with some flowers from Chinese flowering apple as well as sage. The fragrance from sage was very strong. Nice and refreshing for a summer night.

Delicacy: quail, koji, seaweed and chimichurri - poetically named "mound of koji (麴嶺)", the local quail was marinated with shio koji (塩麹), and served with some sauce made with honey and the quail jus. Garnished with herbs and I wondered if that included kaffir lime leaves.

The quail came with chimichurri made with seaweed. Definitely a little spicy kick here.

Soil: potato, olive oil - poetically named "rolling stone (滾石)", this was meant to evoke the the pebbles or stones rolling down the side of a hill... and was made with deep-fried potato skin as well as mashed potatoes.

We also had dehydrated powder made from two different types of oil - olive oil and smoked sunflower seed oil. I thought the powder made of olive oil was more fragrant.

Coastline: amberjack, mushroom - poetically named "floating island (浮嶼)", we see thin slices of white button mushrooms and Chinese flowering apple floating on top of the foamy sauce made with fish stock and vinegar. A very visually-pleasing presentation with all white color tone.

This was actually my least favorite dish. The slices of greater amberjack (紅甘, a.k.a. 勘八) caught offshore from Keelung (基隆) was too "fishy" and much too strong after aging. Even the acidity from the sauce could not save it.

Producto: vieiras frescas, beurre blanc y koji - poetically named "mountain and water (山澤)", this was covered in a beurre blanc made with koji, and sprinkled with some powder made of dehydrated scallops skirt (ヒモ). Honestly, I'm not completely sure that I like this beurre blanc...

The Hokkaido scallop was lightly cured with lemon juice and olive oil for less than an hour, so the texture was really soft and fluffy, and the flavor was pretty sweet. We had really finely diced onion and ginger here, too. I think I would love the dish more if it came with something else other than this beurre blanc.

Root: scallop coral, beetroot and walnut Royal de salazones ahumados, verduras y licuado vegetal - since I don't want to touch beetroot, I was served a dish that I enjoyed on my last visit - poetically named "green meadows". Still got the egg custard made with smoked anchovies and sardines, topped with a cucumber and herb sauce. We've got pea pods, Asian spinach, and Tonkin jasmine (夜香花). Very nice, and Foursheets was happy to get more greens.

Sea: coral grouper, nori and meunière sauce - poetically named "rhythm of the ocean (海韻)", the coral grouper (紅條石斑) from the waters between Taiwan and Penghu (澎湖) Islands came with a sheet of nori that was cooked with caper juice. Served with a thickened meunière made with fish stock, lemon juice, and Taiwanese soy sauce... and kinda tasted like beurre noisette to me. Naturally, the acidity in the sauce worked well with the fish as well as the seaweed.

Leather: wagyu, truffle and beetroot Ruby: chicken - the restaurant offered us an alternative to the beef with beetroot sauce, and I was curious to try it. Poetically named "ruby (紅玉)", the Ruby chicken (紅玉雞) from 18 Ranch (十八養場) around Sun Moon Lake (日月潭) is so named because the feed for the chicken includes some Taiwan Tea No. 18 (台茶18號) - a.k.a. Ruby Tea (紅玉茶). Accompanied by a ring of chicken liver mousse and chicken jus, along with shavings of summer truffle. Well, the chicken was very, very tender, and Taiwanese raise better chicken than what one can find it Hong Kong, but it was just chicken.

Brioche - the texture was more like cornbread, actually, and together with some sage sauce and the olive oil the flavors reminded me of focaccia.

An off-menu dessert poetically named "gift of the earth (大地之禮)". Pine nut ice cream, seaweed powder, caviar, and sea grapes.

A very interesting combination with sweetness, savory flavors, and umami.

Learning: black garlic miso ice cream, salted hazenut praline, citrics and koji powder - poetically named leafy shadows (葉影)", the ice cream was made with hazelnuts, black garlic, and white miso. Topped with a slice of seaweed glazed with sugar, and decorated with dots of hazelnut sauce and koji powder. Not sure why the kitchen decided to give us some cornflakes (like from a Kellog's box) with the ice cream, but whatever...

Mignardises

Basque cheesecake - made with some blue cheese.

Canelé - it was a FAIL last time, and tonight it was worse. Still misshapen and this time it wasn't even the right color.

Lemon marshmallow

Tuile - with some white chocolate.

Chocolate truffle

Per SOP I brought a bottle from my birth vintage, but I knew Foursheets wanted a sip of something else first, so we ordered a glass of Cava to start:

2019 Gramona Imperial, disgorged June 2025 - this was kinda bland, to be honest. It was easy drinking but not particularly interesting.

1970 Mouton-Rothschild - decanted 10 minutes after opening, and served after 30 minutes in decanter. This was still fragrant and really woodsy, and still got cassis and black fruits. About an hour after opening we got some coffee, and after an hour and a half lots of tobacco smoke came, which was just classic Pauillac. So soft on the palate now at this age, and this bottle drank better than the last 2 or 3 I've opened.

I was really happy that I chose to come back. While not every dish was a hit, it was something I knew mom would enjoy, as she did last time. I also wanted a new experience for Foursheets. Having been annoyed with the rushed service just after we were seated, I have to say that Stanley was really attentive and accommodating for the rest of our meal. He realized mom wasn't able to see very well, so he was very patient in his explanations and announcing his actions while clearing/placing silverware and plates. This made me very happy, and I'll remember his kindness for a long time.