Beef noodle soup: hers and his

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We're back in Taiwan so one of the things we must do is to have beef noodle soup (牛肉麵). Sankala and I each have our favorite shop for this, so we found time to hit both.

First up is Lin Dong Fang Beef Noodles (林東芳牛肉麵), Sankala's favorite. It's not a very premium version but does a very good job delivering good value for one's money.

Half tendon half beef noodle (半筋半肉麵) - I took a small bowl today whereas Sankala chose the bigger portion, much to my surprise. I still do like the star anise in the clear broth along with other Chinese herbs, and the beef shank and tendon were both tender.

The most sinful bowl of rice

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Now that my quarantine period is over, I can start to meet up with friends who I haven't seen in far too long. J and I have known each other for almost 20 years, and we last saw each other 5 years ago. I was definitely not passing up an opportunity to catch up with her. I wanted something casual as it's just the 3 of us, and as it happens, My Stove (My灶) is really close to her home. This was perfect... because I've been craving a certain dish for a long, long time...

Steamed chicken (水果雞) - we pre-ordered half a chicken as this is very popular. The chickens are apparently fed on a diet which includes fruits, hence the name of the dish. Nice and its own but better with the different dips and condiments.

Braised pork rice (滷肉飯) - for this interview with the South China Morning Post, this was among one of the dishes I mentioned that I most wanted to have once I was able to travel again. So here I am!

Taichung hop 2022 day 2: triple-recommended

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After a late one last night, it was not surprising that we would get a slow start this morning. We reluctantly bid the hotel bed goodbye and checked out just before our early lunch, and thankfully Shan-Shin (膳馨創作料理) is within walking distance from the hotel, on the other side of the National Museum of Fine Arts.

I thought things would be easy at a restaurant serving up Taiwanese cuisine since we could order à la carte, but that just meant I would inevitably over-order…

Preserved radish cracker (菜脯餅) – our welcome snack was nice but the seasoning powder definitely packed lots of MSG…

Stir-fried egg with mixed chili (椒香催淚蛋) – with a Chinese name like that, one naturally expects the chili to deliver so much heat that it induces tears just like tear gas. But… no. Not really spicy, even for a wimp like me. The fragrance of chili peppers are there but there’s very little heat.

Taichung hop 2022 day 1: sedap Singapura

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The real reason for dragging the Parental Units to Taichung is dinner at JL Studio. Jimmy Lim (林恬耀) is, of course, now a familiar name on the food scene in Asia - having climbed the ranks of Asia's 50 Best Restaurants and also bagging himself 2 macarons along the way. I was first introduced to him a few years ago in Macau, but as his playground is not in my hometown, it was never convenient for me to go check it out. Well... I'm in Taiwan for a whole 3 weeks this time around, so I figured I could plan a trip. Since Little Rabbit is a regular customer, I asked her to join our little gathering.

The young side of our table took the alcoholic beverage pairing while the old fogeys took it easy. But first, Jimmy very kindly offered us an extra bottle of Champagne so the Champagne Monster could start the meal with a smile on her face... and the old fogeys got to drink it, too!

2012 Huré Frères Instantanée, dégorgée le novembre 2019 - pretty lean on the palate, since it is, after all, extra brut.

Taste of home: Kueh pie tie - in a variation on the classic, we have botan shrimp (牡丹海老), cuttlefish, and shredded carrot and radish... toppped with a ton of herbs like chervil and flowers like chrysanthemum. The dried shrimp flavors were pretty strong.

Taste of home: Rose kueh - the achappam came in a savory variety with green soy beans and pea shoots - the latter delivering very green flavors along with coriander seeds in the sweet pea cream on the deep-fried dough.

Taichung hop 2022 day 1: the sweetest day

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We're taking the Parental Units on a short hop to Taichung for the weekend. I'm kinda surprised that mom hasn't been here since that concert back in 2008 - and they didn't even stay over - so this would be a nice change of scenery for her.

The train ride on Taiwan High Speed Rail was smooth and uneventful. After a 20-minute ride in a taxi, we arrived at The Place Taichung (台中大毅老爺行旅). It was much too early to check-in, so we left our bags with the hotel and went for a stroll. It would be nice to do a short walk on the grounds of the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts (國立台灣美術館) across the street.

I chose Caffè Firenze for lunch because, in addition to its proximity to the museum, it was the one place among many recommended to me by a friend that was least likely to cause issues with mom's palate. An added benefit, as it turns out, was that we were the only customers for lunch today - a definite plus when one is spending time with one of the top two cities currently with the biggest Covid case counts...

I ordered a selection of antipasti, primi piatti, and secondi piatti. Imagine my surprise when one of the primi piatti showed up first, before any antipasti. I questioned our waitress, and the answer I got was that since the veggies were still being grilled, the pasta naturally arrived first. HUH?!

Handmade king prawns and Burrata ravioli - the only handmade pasta on the menu. Yes, the dough was kinda al dente, and the presentation was kinda pretty, but both mom and Sankala complained that the prawns in the filling weren't fresh. Maybe due to poor business, the prawns had been frozen for too long.