廟口 revisited

廟口夜市 was recently voted as the top night-market in Taiwan. Well, one thing's for sure, the signs there are arranged pretty neatly and the food's not too bad. My stand on night markets is actually there can't be a best one, they're all pretty special and serves great food. Each market has a specialty of its own.

士林has its 超大雞排, 繞合 has 胡椒餅 and 廟口 has its 營養三明治. I have blogged about this infamous 營養三明治 and it's anything BUT 營養. Deep-fried hot-dog bun smothered in mayo with layers of sausage, meat and whatnot. Cardiac arrest coming. But hey, it's the 招牌 at 廟口, who am i to judge.

So a couple of Singapore friends were over for their honeymoon and they decided to go to Keelung so what the heck, I went along. Good friends, who cares if I've been there already.

Surprise surprise, the first dish we had was 鰻魚酥湯 (NTD50), a welcome variation to its better known cousin the 排骨酥湯. Verdict? Bones bones and more bones. Seems like eel ain't such a good choice for fish soup afterall. I spent most of the time picking sharp deadly bones outta my mouth. But it is probably as close to fish soup as I can find here.

Next up, a quick snack of grilled Taiwan sausages with raw garlic, and may I mention Count Dracula's probably skipping this region because Taiwanese garlic is strong. goes very well with the crunchy sausages. The host's daughters sure enjoyed their snack =) Cute kids. (photo later on)

The other thing 廟口 is famous for is its buttered crabs (奶油螃蟹), which we didn't have a chance to try. Our host didn't recommend so we skipped it.

This is the only night-market I've been to so far that has numbered stalls. It's so... neat. Not entirely my idea of a night-market.

Well, next up, Number 16, 天婦羅 (Tempura) (NTD40) The Taiwanese interpretation of Tempura is actually mostly doughy stuff and wrapped in usually beancurd skin. In this case it's fish paste and it's lightly grilled. Pour on some sweet sauce and you're done. Not my favourite dish cos frankly, I can't understand why they need to pour sweet sauce onto stuff anyway. Like their Or Lua. *Sweet or lua, shudders*

Now Kelvin tried the infamous 營養三明治 and didn't like it. Yes it's the one we came back for after taking a queue number 390+. He likes fried stuff but didn't like this dish. However! We discovered another gem in 廟口 and it was 現烤三明治. A cheap knock-off you'd say but it's goood. (NTD50) Kelvin couldn't stop talking about it after he's had it. Even after a few days when we were back in Taipei.

The difference between them both is that one deep-fries everything, one grills everything. The difference ends there. They're both still smothered knee deep in mayo. Cardiac Arrest repackaged.

And boy the gastronomic tour doesn't end here. Hell we ain't even started. With our hosts still going strong, we kicked off round two. These three little fellas can sure eat. The mom did the sensible thing and was the "designated driver".

Kelvin's other weakspot was sashimi. Xianzhi told me that they've had sashimi almost every day while they were in Taiwan. I could live with that. The sashimi here is fresh and tasty. The salmon was slightly oiled and smooth and even a little crunchy if you know what i mean. So good... Now that's a look of a happy man.

Next, we washed it with dessert. (plural). Silky smooth beancurd, I had mine with red-bean. Yum yum. I'm an absolute sucker for beans. They had theirs with peanut. Heavenly too.

Next up, 削冰. Again, red-bean flavoured for me, peanut for them. Thick and creamy, fullbodied icecream. Who needs Haagen Daz?! And i bet it's healthier too.

Healthnut Rating: -none-
Comments: Ate too much so I'll just not say anything to justify anything.

勞力的成果, Fruits of Labour

With Great Food Comes Great Responsibilities, or something like that. After the Perfect Storm came the not-so-perfect cleanup. I was recalled from Taipei to help out. Hey, me and Iggy did all the dirty work of clearing out soggy inventory, boxes, documents and all. Our entire office basement was flooded.

These botaks over here just came conveniently after all the dirty work was done and carried them all away. But it does bring back memories of SAI-GANG in the good ol army days. Hey, even their superior was doing that eye-power thing and barking out orders without lifting a finger. We two countries do have something in common in this aspect.

So after the pump cleared up the water after two-three days, the office was still in a mess but serviceable now. So for our troubles, we all went out for a good solid hot-pot dinner - Szechuan style.

It was hot! I stuck to the yin portion of the pot after tasting the red-yang soup, nearly roasted my tongue off. There was pig's blood, intestines, straw mushrooms, fish-paste, meatballs, dumplings, thinly sliced 五花肉, you know, the usual hot-pot stuff.

I think the thing about steamboats is that if you're with great friends, it's really a good experience. But of course the food here is excellent as well. The service was top-notch too. Good conversations always make the meal, I share this belief with a good friend of mine.



Healthnut Rating:

Comments: By default, steamboat is healthy. And i'm ignoring the fact that one always overeats at steamboats. and this round isn't any exception either. But I earned it.

The Perfect Storm

You know this blog is out-dated when I'm blogging about getting stuck in the typhoon that left Taiwan months ago, and we're talking about the first of two too. But better late than never said the procrastinator.

First there were light showers, but I still managed to make my way to the Taiwan External Trade Association to settle some issues on our booth in November's Medical Trade Fair. After a good morning's work, I gave myself a treat to Starbuck's Ice Blended Dark Mocha (my first in like 5months?) (NTD160) Man, if you've been reading how much i'm spending on food now, you'd know this is ouch on the pocket.

Healthnut Rating:
Comments: Nothing too unhealthy about that except the cost.

Then came the Perfect Storm in the evening. Why risk it when you can let the pizza-delivery guy do all the dirty work? So we ordered Domino's for dinner when it was raining and pouring and gusts of strong winds were ripping through Taiwan. Pizza business booms during typhoon season i was told.

Seafood Special and some hot wings sure hit the spot in a cold, nearly winter night. TV and some ice-cold, water too. Thought i was gonna say beer didn't you?

Healthnut Rating:
Comments: Pizza's never a healthy choice with all that melted cheese, and yummy toppings and crispy grilled crust. Hot-wings with that spicy sauce and crunchy grilled chicken skin. But what was I to do? It's was pouring out there.

A Taste of Hong Kong 燒臘, or maybe not

Okok, I admit, this 港式燒臘 is probably as authentic as Malay 咖哩here in Taiwan, which I assure you it's nowhere near the real deal. But you know the saying, beggars can't be choosers.

This is the Duck Drumstick Special (NTD80). I chose it when I needed some meat in the system, and boy, it's not just some meat, it's SOME meat. Just look at the size of the drumstick, and the char siew pieces too.

The side dishes were so-so, but there's something addictive about this springy, coiled seaweed thingy they serve here in Taiwan. It's gooey and chewy and all. Hey heck, I am starting to enjoy watching baseball, maybe I am turning Taiwanese.

The duck meat was succulent, but as all 便當s, the food was semi-warm. Roast meat should always be served hot and hopefully with a crackling layer of skin. But what i said about beggars...

Healthnut Rating:
Comments: I didn't eat the skin and I don't eat the skin. Maybe a nibble here and there but that's it. I only eat the skin when it's worth eating, like on good 燒肉 (sio bak). Not here it ain't.

Back again.

Back again after two months of inactivity, but of course that doesn't mean that i haven't been eating anything for the past two months. It just means that I've accumulated two months worth of good food to blog about - otherwise better-known as procrastination.

Nothing to fancy after a long break, just a simple set breakfast (NTD70) at my usual breakfast place. Which i still maintain serves the best breakfast any day. Though the lady boss can be classified as a Food Nazi, lucky i'm on her good books. She actually turns people away (a. they're not her type of customer b. she's too busy to cook their "complicated orders", basically it means she doesn't feel like preparing that dish at that moment c. any other reason) But hey. who cares! I'm not on her list, at least not all the time. I still get turned away...

I love the scrambled eggs here, she's beats em up real good. Probably why she doesn't like doing it all the time cos she really spends a good deal of time beating those eggs. And her home-made mash potato salad is so good...

Healthnut Rating:
Comments: Breakfast here is always rather healthy AND tasty, in case you're wondering. Except the occasional 卡拉雞排 which of course is deep-fried.

RAW! Sushi Bistro

Train hard, eat harder. That's probably the motto of the dear ol' Murtabak karate gang. The reward after a few tough karate sessions is the satisfying Murtabak, or Naan, or Masala.

I joined this dojo at the right time. It was time for their annual makan session, where current/past/budding students show up and MAKAN. The "crime-scene" was set at Raw Sushi Bistro, this atas upmarket fusion japanese food place near Taipei 101. The sin of gluttony's about to be committed (25 times over: total attending)

Beetles, if you're all reading this. This is where I'll give the next treat to you guys. Our kinda place, or maybe only for one particular B.

It was a subdued start. I was new, so must 樸素 and act shy abit. Orange juice it is. Friendly cordial chat. The trees, the sky, the moon, the birds... A good 1hr. Almost all late-comers arrived.

Now we're talking. gloves come off. Let's makan! Bring on the Asahi! Ahhhhhh, that's more like it. Ice cold beer... We alternated between black and normal Asahi. Black Asahi's slightly more bitter than the usual stout.

The dishes came out in timely fashioned, with nice breaks in between. Not too rushed, but yet fast enough to maintain the pace.

Appetiser was pan-seared tuna salad. Good. Then honestly? I lost track... hahaha. Grilled Kurobuta pork. Mixed Tempura. Dragon-roll sushi. Sashimi. Sushi sushi and more sushi. I don't mean this in a bad way, just that it's still all sushi.

Breaded prawn. Succulent and fresh. I finished the basil leaves and everyone though I was weird.

Beer & more beer during the pauses between each dish.

I always admire how the chefs manage to get the right-sized portion to sufficiently whet your appetite and still satisfy. Haven't really got much fine-dining opportunities but I'll take em when they come.

Good conversation is lubricated by the flowing beer. Before we knew it, we've come to the end of our gastronomic extravaganza at RAW!

Not before we washed down our meal with more BEER. Too much good food to describe each dish with gusto.

The overall experience was fantastic. It's always nice to pamper yourself at these atas places occasionally.

No ratings for this post =) Because I ate too much! it's off the charts!