mei eats

(Taiwanese -) American Pie

Posted in Baked Goods on May 29th, 2007 by mei| | 3 Comments.

Also known to the initiated as “pies sold from the back of a truck.”

Finding yummy pies (as with flans, carrot cakes, ad infinitum) is quite a bit of a challenge in Taipei but I managed to find a source. Try Mom’s.

Depending on the day of the week, vendors for Mom’s American Style Homemade Pies ï¼ˆè‰¾åª½å’ªç¾Žå¼é„‰æ‘æ´¾) can be found at various locations through out Taipei. Today, Tuesdays, there is a vendor at the 7-11 by Daan MRT station after 4pm. On Wednesdays the pie truck is by the NTU ï¼ˆå°å¤§ï¼‰gate at Xinhai & Fushing from around noon. On Thursdays, Mom’s Pies are sold at two locations: after 4pm at the intersection of Heping and Wenzhou and also at the Lutheran Church by Heping and Fushing South.

Flavors? For the Standard Pies, Mom’s offers Red Bean (yeah, I know), Taro (yesh, I know as well), Purple Yam (uh-huh), Oatmeal, Pumpkin, Pecan, Dutch Apple and Peach. For Cheese Pies there are Cream Cheese, Blueberry, Green Tea, Cocoa, Pineapple Coconut, Cherry, Coffee, Green Bean and Raspberry.

I’ve had the Coffee, Pecan (both pictured in the above from left to right), Pumpkin and the Dutch Apple and I’d recommend all of them.

So now, what would you like in your pie? Hole.

*Snigger*

You may call and order your pies for pick up. It’s 45nt a slice and 360nt for a box of 8 slices. You may mix and match flavors.

Mom’s American Style Homemade Pies è‰¾åª½å’ªç¾Žå¼é„‰æ‘æ´¾
Various Locations
Phone numbers of the different vendors:
Wu 09 2209 1113
Huang 09 3131 1215
Hsieh 09 2232 4060
Hsu 09 3550 4554

Taipei Beef Noodle Competition – NOT

Posted in Chinese on May 26th, 2007 by mei| | 2 Comments.

I was so happy to read this in today’s Taipei Times.

I have to say I only buy the Friday copy of TT just so that I can read the restaurant reviews. For the most part I’d side with the reviewers but that’s not saying a whole lot since the write-ups are usually only mildly opinionated IMHO… but today’s article on a certain beef noodle shop in Ximending put a ear to ear smile on my face… and a destination for dinner.

I actually had a similar experience to Jules (the TT staff reporter). Years back, I recall sitting in a cab listening to the taxi driver rant and rave about this one beef noodle restaurant in Ximending (trust me to remember anything food related, my dears) and although I didn’t follow through with that piece of info proffered to me, I am now thinking Mr. Beef-Noodle-Espouser could very possibly be the same guy singing his praises to Ms. Jules.

The “prize-winning beef noodle shop” that Jules had originally aimed for could only be… well, the one I had bashed in an earlier post. And, yeah, it really isn’t any good. Mr. Beef-Noodle-Espouser really wasn’t lying.

Tonight I had the Beef Tendon with Wide Homemade Noodles (ç‰›ç‹å¯¬éºµ). Beef is alright with me but tendon is always what I lurve in beef, I mean, tendon noodle soup. It has to be done right though. The tendons have to be stewed to the point where the sinewy bits are cooked to a soft mass, albeit one that still holds its shape. The broth was so slurpable. Thank god I went alone (mental note: not a date place?).

There were two choices of noodles: thin and wide. Naturally, the carb greedy beast in me opted for the wide noodles. So fre*king gooooood! Homemade – check. Cooked al dente – check. Happiness? Check! None of the mass produced mess the supposed king of beef noodle shops use.

Service was great as well. I was even offered more broth when one of the staff saw me licking my bowl. BTW, take note – there’s a cute girl working there.

So there. You have it. Another Beef Noodle recommendation. I do still remain faithful to Lin Dong Fang Beef Noodle Soupã€€æž—æ±èŠ³ç‰›è‚‰éºµ from my Top Ten Taipei Tucks post. Don’t ask me to compare these two places. They are both really good… but different. You’ve got to just try them out for yourself.

There’s also Ma Na å—Žå“ª in my neighborhood of Anhe Road which I thought was good but slightly on the expensive side.

Funny. None of these places made it on the list of top Taipei Beef Noodle Shops in 2006.
Tsk tsk.

Niu Dian ç‰›åº—
91 Kunming Street
Ximending
02 2389 5577
è¥¿é–€ä¸æ˜†æ˜Žè¡—91è™Ÿ
Open daily from 11am to 10pm,
except Mondays

Ma Na å—Žå“ª
No. 4, Alley 74
Anhe Road, Section 2
02 2706 4436
å®‰å’Œè·¯2æ®µ74å··4è™Ÿ

Yum (Double Entendre Very Intended)

Posted in Foodie Fun on May 24th, 2007 by mei| | 0 Comments.

Here’s a nice plump one. Let’s crack it open!

And I thought Asians have no junk in the trunk.

Mooching off the generous folks at www.engrish.com once again.

Battle of the Bian Dangs

Posted in Chinese on May 22nd, 2007 by mei| | 1 Comments.

Yours truly has been in Taipei for over x number of years now and I can (proudly?) say that I’ve never had a single 7-11 biang dang (ä¾¿ç•¶) yet. Given that many Taipei-rens dine in and out of convenient stores, I’d say this is quite a feat! Now, before I proceed any further, what exactly is a bian dang?

In two words, “boxed lunch.” (Not “lunch box” as so many Taiwanese folks I encounter seem to say. I don’t eat 7-11 bian dangs and I definitely won’t eat hardware.) To those who may be familiar with the Japanese bentos, bian dangs are the Taiwanese variations.

The anatomy of a bian dang: Rice, a main protein item – usually meat or fish, several side dishes which would almost always include at least one vegetable item and a soup and/or drink of the day. The options are countless.

My absolute favorite type of bian dang would have to be Chi Shang Bian Dangs (æ± ä¸Šä¾¿ç•¶ï¼‰ which translates to “Paddy-side boxed lunch” in reference to the rice used. What makes these boxed lunches special? Perhaps wooden panel boxes that are used to for the packaging. Perhaps it’s also knowing that you will get the same standard menu when you walk into one of these Chi Shang Bian Dang stores. Regardless of which Chi Shang Bian Dang store I go to, a pork chop (æŽ’éª¨ï¼‰ bian dang will taste just about the same as one bought from another store (mmm… industry secrets? I do have a discerning palate!) and always pretty darn good.

Here’s a list of different Chi Shang Bian Dangs from a local store’s website (with photos but in Mandarin only):
The Recommended (æ‹›ç‰Œä¾¿ç•¶), Chicken Leg (é›žè…¿ä¾¿ç•¶), Pork Chop (æŽ’éª¨ä¾¿ç•¶), Chicken Steak (é›žæŽ’ä¾¿ç•¶), Stewed Pork (çˆŒè‚‰ä¾¿ç•¶), Crispy Chicken (é¦™è„†é›žé£¯), Cod (é±ˆéšä¾¿ç•¶), Salmon (é®éšä¾¿ç•¶).

A lone Chi Shang Bian Dang costs about 70 – 85nt.

What I also like, although not all Chi Shang Bian Dang stores offer this option, is to order my boxed lunch with multi-grain rice ï¼ˆé¤Šç”Ÿç±³ï¼‰. The stores usually charge a few more NT$s but what’s pocket change compared to health?

Try these two Chi Shang Bian Dang stores if you live in the Daan and Xinyi areas:
Both stores offer multi-grain rice.

Wu Tao Chi Shang Fan Bao æ¢§é¥•æ± ä¸Šé£¯åŒ…
(relatively close to the NTU Campus)
No. 299
Fushing South Road, Section 2
02 8732 7427
å¾©èˆˆå—è·¯äºŒæ®µ299è™Ÿ

Shi Chuan Chi Shang Bian Dangã€€é£Ÿå…¨æ± ä¸Šä¾¿ç•¶
(close to Liuchangli MRT)
No. 40
Chong De Street
02 2737 2866
å´‡å¾·è¡—40è™Ÿ

Strawberry Cute

Posted in Foodie Fun on May 18th, 2007 by mei| | 0 Comments.

I just had dinner with Mr. Tanenbaum and Ms. Chow. This reminds me to post up this pix that I snapped from Mr. Tanenbaum’s birthday party not so long ago.

I believe the strawberry was from the topping of a cake from Berry and Milk in the Breeze Center. The little green thing to the side is a matcha green tea cookie from Maison Kayser also in the Breeze Center.

I don’t recall the cake and cookie being all that special but
when I put the two together here… Cute. Methinks.

Buying Herbs… the Legal Kind

Posted in Produce on May 16th, 2007 by mei| | 0 Comments.

Everything I love dies.

I hope this won’t happen with my newly acquired sweet basil plant.

Ever since my mung bean plant got uprooted mistakenly for weeds by the family garderner when I was in junior high, I was never able to keep any plant growing for long. Even the cacti plants I had in college all withered away. Talk about having a black thumb.

I finally threw in the towel and bought this basil plant since it’s simply just impossible to find sweet basil in the supermarkets here in Taipei. Wellcome doesn’t seem to carry any sort of basil in a regular basis and although Matsusei does, it only carries the asian kind – holy basil – which is more appropriate for, well, asian cuisines.

I’ve been mooching off my friend’s herb plants for the longest time but there’s only so many leaves a basil plant can grow between pasta sauce cooking sessions so I decided to get one of my very own.

For those you haven’t been to the Chien Guo Weekend Flower Market (å»ºåœ‹èŠ±å¸‚), well, shame on you! It’s somewhat of an institution here in Taipei and even if you lack the green thumb like me it is still nice to go there during the weekends for a stroll or pick up flowers for your better half. (Pale pink half-opened rose buds for me, thank-you-very-much :>)

There are several stalls that carry herb plants but I’d reccommend the stall between Section 1 and Section 2 of the flower market that sells only herbs. Each plant costs 100nt but I believe you get discounts for buying several but if not… haggle! Yeah, I grew up in Thailand afterall.

Besides flower and herb stalls, there’s a seed, seedliing and sprouts stall in the flower market that’s worth a visit. I forgot to take note of which section it is located but I believe it’s close to the middle and on the west side of the market.

Supposedly, it really doesn’t take that much effort to maintain these potted herbs. Just keep them in sunlight, water them daily and prune the plants frequently. My friend, Rose, scatter eggshells on the soil to give extra nourishment.

So far I’ve been doing all of the above. I do love my basil plant – just hopefully not to death.

Chien Guo Weekend Flower Market å»ºåœ‹èŠ±å¸‚
On Chien Guo Road between Xinyi Road and Renai Road
å»ºåœ‹è·¯åœ¨ä¿¡ç¾©è·¯è·Ÿä»æ„›è·¯ä¹‹é–“
Weekends Only

The House of Hong

Posted in Foodie Friends on May 15th, 2007 by mei| | 1 Comments.

I don’t like good-byes.

Recently, there has been too many adieu situations. Parting can be such sweet sorrow and I just try not to think about it. Right.

Ms. Thao Hong is one of the friends that I’ve shared more than a few friendly (food) moments with here in Taipei. And for any of you who were fortunate enough to get to know her I’m sure you would all agree that she is one multi-talented lady. Social butterfly, fashion connosieur, and staunch critic of the Taiwanese dating scene aside, Thao is also one wicked cook.

Yours truly has been lucky enough to be invited to the House of Hong on several occasions for some damn good Vietnamese eating. There was the fresh roll brunch. The pho. And spring roll DIY dinner. My memory may be going but I never forget a home cooked meal.

From top right clockwise: Vietnamese spring roll fillings, rice krispy treat, open spring roll spread, finished spring roll with a dollop of hoisin sauce and sriracha hot sauce mixture (aka cocksauce).

Thao, we never made it to that BÃ¡nh mÃ¬ place out in Muzha (grrr!). That means you will have to come back!

I won’t say good-bye. This may mean, I’ll just have to see you in Shanghai.

Ginger Tea

Posted in Coffee and Tea on May 11th, 2007 by mei| | 0 Comments.

It’s not really tea.

It’s ginger with brown sugar/molasses and oft times there are chunks of red jujube added for good measure. It’s always served HOT. This is what I’ve been drinking all last week when I was sick. Supposedly, this drink is good for chasing away colds, flus and bad circulation. Ginger tea is more of a winter drink and now that summer is quickly approaching I decided to write this quick post about it or else I wouldn’t find another apropos occassion. One can usually find these ginger molasses cubes sold at food fairs around town, especially during fall and winter. I don’t believe I’ve seen them sold in supermarkets but alternatively you can buy brown sugar and mix it with grated ginger to make your own concoction.

Now I better hit the sack and get some sleep or else I’ll end up sick once more and have to drink ginger tea again this week. Not that it’s a bad thing.

Code: Coda

Posted in Non-Asian on May 10th, 2007 by mei| | 1 Comments.

Hunger may be the best spice but I’d say camaraderie comes in a close second. Now don’t you start having assumptions. Yours truly is still the cold hearted objective food eater who could be the most in her element when she scarfs down solo but given the choice – she’d much rather be with friends. So an impromptu dinner for a party of six on a Monday night? Happiness that you can eat.

After much deliberation – and detours – Mei and company ended up at a local American-Italian eatery called “Coda.” The interior is quite spacious and nicely lit with soft lighting. Decor is somewhat prosaic but I’ll cut them some slack – this time. Fare selection is, well, fair. You have your choices of pizzas, pastas and burgers… most of what you’d normally expect at an this kind of establishment. What I found disturbing was the fact that the restaurant does not serve wine by the glass. There are wines by the bottle. Just not by the glass. A certain other pizza eatery in town caters to this one personal quirk and despite the fact that I usually end up drinking more than a glass’s worth, I am a frequent customer just knowing that I can order a nice single glass of wine.

Even before my friends and I decided on the restaurant, I already knew where we were going and exactly what I would be ordering given the likelyhood that we would be eating at that restaurant.

Ravioli. My friend went for the cheese ravioli so naturally I went for the another – the spinach ravioli with tomato sauce. Both Rose and I agreed that mine was the better of the two. The spinach raviolis weren’t mind blowing but for Taipei it was pretty darn good. The sauce was rich and the bread that came with our pasta order was dense enough for sauce-sopping. Rose’s cheese ravioli with pumpkin and gorgonzola sauce was a tad on the rich side in my opinion and somehow the flavors were just a wee bit off. I also have to say that I didn’t find the banal flat yellow color all that appetizing. However, the worst thing about her dish was that it was served way late. In fact, all of our dishes were served quite some time apart. It would have been nice to have all our main courses served together.

The side salads were good. Leafy mixed greens and not stale romaine. Levenade ordered a full Ceasar salad. Didn’t ask him how it was but I took it from his silence at the table that it was pretty good. Miam miam. Kat and Justine’s pastas look okay but personally I just felt that pasta shouldn’t be swimming in so much sauce. Then again TIT (This is Taiwan) and I can’t judge the taste by looks alone. I give Mr. Tanenbaum’s cheesy fries a thumbs up and the hamburger looks as if it deserves the other thumb up. I think I might go for that next time.

Levenade was the only one who ordered dessert – Tiramisu. I thought the portion was too tiny and we both agreed that there wasn’t too much taste to it – just mascarpone and sugar. Would be much better with more coffee and a touch of rum… and perhaps more ladyfingers.

Constructive criticisms aside, I was happy with my dish and at 300nt for my ravioli set I would go back again. With friends.

Coda
No. 23, Lane 283
Roosevelt Road, Section 3
02 2365 2769
ç¾…æ–¯ç¦è·¯ä¸‰æ®µ283è™Ÿ

More Food Humor

Posted in Foodie Fun on May 9th, 2007 by mei| | 0 Comments.

Recently, I feel like I’ve been losing my sense of humor. Or not.

Photos courtesy of www.engrish.com.

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