mmm-yoso!!!

Taichung - Taichung Second Market, Taichung Sixth Market, and a Visit to Dawncake

For our stay in Taichung, I selected Le Meridian. The rooms were the most comfortable of all the places we stayed at in Taiwan.

And there was a vast and good breakfast buffet.

The variety was quite impressive. A nice variety of Western and Asian dishes.

You were provided with a card for your table. You left it on the "green" side for when you went exploring for food.....

And then flipped it to "red" when you were done to let the folks know they could clear your table.

We enjoyed our breakfasts here.

We enjoyed our time here.

Unlike the other places we'd be visiting, I hadn't made any plans for our full day here. We had one destination in mind for the day, we needed to get some pineapple cake from Dawncake for my MIL. And while Miyahara was owned by Dawncake, we decided to walk on over to the main store on Taiwan Boulevard.

During our walk it seemed like Taichung is a bit spread out and there was only 1 MRT line in the city at the time of our visit. So, we didn't do much except explore. Like in other cities in Taiwan we found an interesting contrast of the modern and stylish....

With the old.....

As the architecture seemed to change on every block on this portion of Taiwan Boulevard.

There were many alleyways winding their way around, with some of them specializing in electronic shops or hot pot and the like.....

There also seemed to be a large number of 24 hour arcades in the area.

One of the places the folks at the hotel and the Missus's Instagram searches recommended we visit was Taichung Second Market. While we weren't very hungry due to just finishing breakfast, we headed on over to have a look.

During the Japanese Colonial Period, this was known as Shintomichō, a high-end shopping area. 

Now it's known as a place to get "good grindz".........

And as we soon learned, lines are usually a good thing in Taiwan and they can move pretty fast, like at this Lu Rou Fan stand.

There's quite a variety of food available.

Along with the expected produce, seafood, and meat purveyors.

Taichung Second Market
No. 87, Section 2, Sanmin Rd.
Central District, Taichung City, Taiwan

We stopped for a short tea break.

Where the Missus noticed a super long line going down around the block. She went to investigate and I crossed the street to take a photo.

Apparently, this is a very popular place selling Castella Cake, named Banshin Castella Cake.

Yep, those lines......

All of this and it was just after 9 am!

We headed further up Taiwan Boulevard, to the rather modern Xitun District, full of office towers and high rises.

 We came across what looked like a hotel....it turned out to be the Splendor Hotel, with a bunch of vendors selling all sorts of plants and crafts. The Missus read one of the signs and noticed that the building is called "Park Lane" and on the third floor was something called "Taichung Sixth Market". Since it was still early and Dawncake didn't open until 10 we decided to check the place out.

We caught the elevator up to the third flood and arrived at what I'll call a very modern food hall/market of sorts. There were some food stands but they weren't open yet.

Like I mentioned earlier; we were struck by the contrasts of the old (Second Market) and the new.

While all the food stands were closed, we found this tea booth.

The young man working the stand was so kind and friendly. The Missus loves Her tea and he took the time out to explain the source and flavors of all the tea; which was from his family's farm in Alishan and told us to have a seat.

He proceeded to make us multiple samples of each! Telling us to take our time and enjoy.

It was such a nice experience and we bought a couple of bags of tea. 

We'll make sure to return if we're back in Taichung!

Taichung Sixth Market (in Park Lane by Splendor)
403 Jianxing Rd.
West District, Taichung City, Taiwan

By now it was after 10am and Dawncake was open.

The Missus's Mom enjoys pineapple cake, so we decided to pick some up on every stop during our trip. Dawncake is probably the best known brand from Taichung.

The shop is large and bright. We were given some samples and the Missus got Her Mom a box.

Meanwhile, I came across something I had seen the previous night at Miyahara.

And this time I just had to get it.

It's actually tea that is sold in what could pass as an album cover. So, the Missus got more tea and I got that wonderful album cover...because "I'm forever missing them....."

Dawncake
No. 512, Section 2, Taiwan Blvd.
West District, Taichung City, Taiwan

Happy Mother's Day!

Taichung - Dinner at Wow Cool (瓦庫燒肉)

As I mentioned in my previous post on Taipei, I hadn't realized that we'd be in Taiwan during a five day holiday weekend. So, the only rail transport I could get to our next destination, Taichung was the High Speed Rail that left at 546pm. It only took an hour to arrive at the Taichung HSR station, which was quite far from our accommodation located across from the regular train station in Taichung. On a positive note, taxi fare in Taiwan is very inexpensive by US standards and getting a cab to our hotel was a breeze.

It was dark when we arrived and we check in and headed on out. Right around the corner from the hotel is the famous Miyahara building, which is owned by Dawn Cake, a well known pineapple cake producer. 

The structure was once a large ophthalmology clinic owned by Miyahara Takeo during the Japanese colonial period. It has now been nicely restored with an interior that flaunts a Harry Potterish theme. The ice cream stand in the building is very popular. There was something that instantly caught our eye, which we'd end up getting at Dawn Cake's main location when we visited the next day.

Of course, there was the question of "what's for dinner"? It seemed that many of the places around the hotel except for hot pot places were closed. And, at least for us, it was just too hot and muggy to even considered hot pot. So, we went decided to go for a recommendation from the taxi driver that drove us from the National Palace Museum the day before. During his conversation with the Missus he mentioned that his grand daughter lived in Taichung and also told the Missus her favorite restaurant. He also said there was one item there that once you tried there "would be no turning back" to another version again!

So, we set out looking for the place, weaving down various streets and alleyways.

Folks at the hotel didn't seem to know about this place. Neither did several folks we came across at various businesses. Until one older gentleman pointed the way. Turns out the English name of the place is "Wow Cool"?!?

And it's basically Yakiniku.

We quickly ordered some liquid refreshment.

While the Missus perused the menu. There were quite a few groups of younger folks eating piles of pork, beef, and seafood. We just can't put all that stuff away like that anymore and decided on the Wagyu cuts.

And a good amount of veggies....which were of good quality and tasty.

   The Missus really loved the yamaimo and the meat was buttery, beefy, and so tender.

But what was so delish as to make us not be able to "turn back" once we tried it?

Well, it was the chicken stock provided for each table for free!

And my goodness, it was delici-yoso! 

So full of "fowl flavor", rich, with an wonderful "tongue feel".

Who'd have thought. You walk into a yakiniku joint, only to find that the chicken broth would have you "never turning back"!

This was an interesting start to our visit to Taichung.

Wow Cool
No. 16 Minquan Rd, Central District
Taichung City, Taiwan 400

Taipei - The National Palace Museum and Lunch at Dian Shui Lou

Our next destination in Taiwan was to be Taichung. Usually, I'd arrange for transportation and time our arrival to close to check in time at our destination. This time though, there was a little problem. Apparently, there a holiday Qingming Jie (清明节 - "Tomb Sweeping Day") which is big deal in Taiwan. Traditionally, during this period  families visit the gravesites of their ancestors and clean (thus the "sweeping") the sites and present offerings. This was a Saturday and the start of a 5 day holiday weekend where it seems everyone travels. Well, I had a heck of a time arranging transportation and in the end we'd juggle the HSR (High Speed Rail), TRA (Standard Rail), and Private Car hire to get us to our destinations. There were no HSR nor TRA tickets available during regular hours. I finally managed to get us a high speed rail ticket form Taipei to Taichung that left at 545 pm. And our hotel was nice enough to hold our luggage.

So, this gave us more time to explore Taipei. We really wanted to visit the National Palace Museum. There was one item we really wanted to see, the Jadeite Cabbage, dating from the Qing Dynasty, it is probably the most popular item in the museum. In fact, folks I know from Taiwan have called it the "Mona Lisa" of Taiwan!

Initially, the Missus wanted to walk the 5 1/2 miles to the museum! But I was kinda bushed from the 12 miles plus we'd walked the previous day and taxis were so reasonable in Taiwan, so I talked Her into getting a cab. Which turned out to be fun. The Missus got some good dining tips from our drivers and some input on the place we had lined up for lunch!

We arrived and paid admission, then headed to where the main treasure(s) of the museum are, only to find that the Jadeite Cabbage was on loan! Oh well, at least got to see this.

Can you guess what it is?

It's called the "Meat Shaped Stone" aka the "Dongpo Rou". Sure does look like it, yeah? Here's the version we had in Hangzhou....

Man, do the Taiwanese have a thing about food or what? So, while we missed the "Mona Lisa" of Taiwan, I' dubbed the "Dong Po Rou" the "Venus de Milo of Taiwan"!

All kidding aside, the collection here was amazing.

We were especially impressed with all the jade carvings and vessels. Some were so tiny and of course in keeping with the food theme, see the "eggplant" snuff bottles?

The carvings and designs were so intricate.

There's quite a bit too see here, but we enjoyed the ceramics and jade collection the best.

 Of course, in typical fashion, when there's just too much to see, like when visiting the Louvre, we called it after about 3 hours.

I think the next time we visit, we might arrange for a private or small group tour to get the most out of our visit. After all, we gotta see that Jadeite Cabbage right?

It was time to head off to lunch. During our walk the previous day, we passed a location of Dian Shui Lou, a restaurant that specializes in Jiangsu and Zhejiang style dishes and also serves Xiao Long Bao. According to the Missus, the poster outside the restaurant indicated that DSL had beaten DTF for best XLB in Taiwan! So, we decided to head off there for lunch.

In the basement of the museum is info desk and the friendly folks there will call taxis for you. When the woman asked where we were headed, the Missus replied "Dian Shui Lou, Huaining Street." The friendly woman told the Missus that her family often goes there for celebration dinners! 

A cab was called for us and we were given the Taxi's number, clearly visible on the vehicle, and instructed where to wait.

Our Taxi Driver this time around was super chatty and was quite enthusiastic about food. In fact, he made a recommendation for Taichung, his daughter lives there, and for a place we'd visit later in the trip. He said he preferred DTF over DSL though.

The restaurant wasn't very busy when we arrived, though it filled up quickly thereafter. I believe folks with reservations were guided upstairs. The decor is quite upscale.

Of course, after seeing "Venus de Milo" we had to order the Dong Po Rou.

 The fat on this was quite velvety, but the meat kind of dry. The flavor was a lot milder, lacking in the sweet-soy, ginger, and slightly pungent tones I'd used to in this dish. It also had a bit too much of a greasy mouthfeel for us as well.

We also ordered the Crab Meat Rice with Egg Yolk.

Lovely looking dish, but the rice seemed to have the texture close to congee which we didn't care for. Not much "crabiness" to this as well. The egg yolk added a touch of velvetiness.

We also ordered the combination Xiao Long Bao. Which in retrospect might have been a mistake.

It's because our favorite was the traditional pork version. First off, the wrappers were too doughy for us, second, some of the dumplings, especially the versions with basil and the shrimp and gourd were really bland. Of course, there was the "19 folds make it better thing"......but as far as we're concerned, you can have 30 folds....if there's a lack of flavor and "soup" and the texture is not to your liking it doesn't really matter, does it? I could go on in detail about each flavor, i.e. the shrimp and gourd didn't have enough "soup" and was really bland, etc......but I won't. I'll only say this wasn't as bad as what we've had here in San Diego. Still, we weren't particularly impressed.

Our favorite dish of the meal was the Bittermelon with Salted Egg.

Nice puckery-astringent taste with the savory-salty flavor of preserved egg. This was quite interesting and satisfying.

We also ordered the Chou Doufu here.

But while being nicely fried; crisp exterior, creamy interior, this was not especially savory and funky.

As a whole this meal was our biggest disappointment of the trip. Still, in terms of damage, at least from the US point of view; at $60 this wasn't too bad.

Dian Shui Lou (Huaning)
No.64 Huaining St
Zhongzheng District, Taipei 100 Taiwan 

And we got to see what I call the "Venus de Milo" of  Taiwan.....

Taipei - 2/28 Peace Memorial Park and Ningxia Night Market

After lunch at Lao Shandong Homemade Noodles we decided to slowly make our way back to the hotel for a break before heading out in the evening.

But first, we would stop at one of the hundred of tea/boba shops for some light refreshment.

We ended up making 2-4 "tea stops" everyday....these places are so inexpensive....our drinks would usually be 30-35NT$ - think $1 -$1.15! We stopped at so may places that I just couldn't keep up with documenting them.

We made several stops on the way back.

This one is the Taiwan Provincial City God Temple.

This temple is dedicated to the "City God", Chénghuángshén (城隍神).

This was quite a busy and colorful temple. This page has more info if you're interested.

There was one last stop for us. A few blocks away was a large and pleasant park, where the National Museum resides. On this day, there was a group of students looking to take what seemed to be school yearbook photos?

The park was lush, green, and quite pleasant, especially with temps hitting the 80's with the equivalent humidity.

It was fun watching folks enjoying their lunches; or in the case of this pooch trying to get a squirrel to play with it.

This park was established in 1908 by the Japanese; the first European style park in Taiwan. It was then renamed Taipei New Park when the KMT took over. The current name is in recognition of what is called the 2-28 Incident. Which is detailed on this sign (click to enlarge)

Event which led to Taiwan being under Martial Law for 38 years.

Hard to imagine all of this taking place in such a peaceful green area.

We got back to our room and took a nice nap in airconditioned luxury.

For dinner, well, we thought it would be a nice night to finally go to a night market. After doing a good amount of research, we decided on Ningxia Night Market. I know many folks recommend Shilin Night Market, but after doing some reading, it seemed that night market has many more tourists. We'd have our choice validated by several cab drivers during our stay. The best quote was "Shilin is the place where tourist and young people go to spend money on things they don't need. Ningxia has better food and less crowds." 

We decided to walk the mile and half to and from the market.

When we arrived, except for a couple of stands, things weren't too busy. Things would start picking up a few minutes later.

Ningxia Market stretches along a single street, lining both sides of the avenue. There are also restaurants on the street as well with any choices.

We decided to walk the length of the market before making our choices.

My first choice was a Scallion Pancake with Salted Egg Yolk.

This was crisp, fairly light, the eggy flavor coming thru quite distinctly.

Of course, once the Missus saw...well, more liked smelled the "fragrances" from this booth Her mind was made up.

The chou doufu was still being fried up, so we were guided to the table behind the booth.

Soon enough, the Missus's stinky tofu was delivered. Man, the smell was quite potent, though nothing like what we had in China.

And in terms of chou doufu, this was "all bark and no bite". It was crisp and smelled the part, but was very mild in flavor. I guess the Missus's rule for me still goes "if you can eat it; it isn't stinky enough!"

As we walked back down the street we saw this stand.

These looked good so we ordered some. After ordering, the mushrooms were refried to heat and crisp up.

Crisp and earthy enoki and two types of oyster mushrooms.

  We'd enjoyed the vibe at the Ningxi Night Market, though I think the Missus had gotten Her share of fried food and really wouldn't order much for the rest of the trip!

We also enjoyed the walk back which took us thru some other neighborhoods in the Datong where places seemed open a lot later than where we were staying. There seems to be more younger people and boutiques and other shops the Missus enjoyed.

I was kind of bushed when we got back to the hotel. I guess I was a bit our of shape and not used to putting in the mileage like we do in, say Paris?

Obviously, I slept well. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Taipei - Exploring Wanhua and Lunch at Lao Shan Dong Homemade Noodles

We decided to spend our first morning in Taipei exploring the historic Wanhua District, which includes the Ximending Pedestrian area.

We walked past Taipei Main Station, then took a left at the North Gate (Cheng'en Gate).

 One of five city gates in the city, it is the only one of the gates that still maintains its Qing-era appearance. 

As we walked down Yanping Road we quickly noticed that many shops, including coffee houses don't open until at least 11am in the area. It was interesting to see folks doing prep and cleaning work along the way.

We then headed to the Ximending area, called the Ximending Youth Shopping District, and often described as the Harajuku of Taipei. There's some interesting funkiness and fashion in the area. We passed an street that was totally given to tattoo and body piercing shops.

Though it wasn't very crowded; we believed that 9am was too early for the young and hip to be about; especially on a weekday (this was a Friday). Though we did see quite a few "influencers" along the way.

They were easy to identify; Taiwan seemed quite casual in dress and these folks dressed up quite a bit. They also seemed to have a small entourage with them and acted like they "owned" whatever area they were in. It really seemed that it was "all about them". We'd try to avoid them at all costs during our trip.

We decided to head on over to Longshan Temple and passed quite a few red brick buildings. These are said to be Qing-era structures.

We saw a sign that said "Bopilao Historical Block", so we decided to follow the sign, which lead us to a street lined with red brick and wooden buildings that have obviously been restored.

This is Bopilao Historical Block.

You can read more about it here.

We enjoyed checking out these historical buildings. The street was amazingly quiet.

Most of the buildings were closed, but we found one that was open and had some interesting history and photos of businesses that used to occupy the street.

The quiet was soon interrupted by the sound of chatter outside the building. We found Taiwan to be pretty quiet, at least in terms of folks talking. It was definitely more like Japan/France than China on that note. 

Well, guess what? A group of influencers and their entourage had taken over the street. 

There were actually eight of them in total. It was time to head on out.

 Longshan Temple was only about a block away. 

We hadn't really read up on religion in Taiwan and were surprised to see how religious people were here!

There's an interesting combination of Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism called Chinese Folk Religion that is the most practiced in Taiwan.

The most popular hall seemed to be for the deity of Love and Marriage.

There's a park across from the temple, but it seemed occupied by homeless folk, which seemed, at least to us, quite a rarity in the city. I later found out that the area near here used to be the "red light district" of the city.

From here, we decided to head to our lunch destination. It was still a bit early so we stopped at a couple of other temples along the way.

This is Qingshan Temple.

Qingshui Temple. You can read about the "Nose Dropping Divine Progenitor".

 

Our last stop before lunch was at a square with this red brick building.

This is Nishi Honganji Square, once the site of the largest Japanese Buddhist Temple in Taiwan. A fire in 1975 destroyed the temple, leaving the Shuxin Hall and the Bell Tower.

We had decided to get some Niu Rou Mian for lunch. I looked at my "list" of places close by and we chose one. Of course finding it; even with Google Maps was interesting. By now, the Missus came to realize that folks in Taiwan were quite helpful and She asked a gentleman at one of the businesses close to where Lao Shan Dong Homemade Noodles was located. He quickly pointed into the doorway of the large building we were standing at and told the Missus it was downstairs in the basement. Apparently, the Wan Nian Building is a popular shopping mall and in the basement is a maze of eating establishments. We just did a circle until we found our destination.

Lao Shan Dong Homemade Noodles.

It was just about 1045, the place opens at 1030 and there was just one other party in the place when we arrived.

A table was pointed out and we sat. From our dinner the previous night, we knew to check off what we wanted from the ordering pad. Another wrinkle here was that there were side dishes in the fridge; you just head on over and pick out what you want.

This is what we chose.

Each one of these dishes is 40 NT$ ($1.30/US).

Man, this stuff was so good.

The cabbage was crunchy, yet nicely sour. We had quickly noticed that what we were eating here in Taiwan wasn't overly salty and this meal was no exception!

The Jellied Pork had a nice crunch and toothsomeness.

The young man whisked away the tofu and pidan and soon returned it to the table with a thick soy sauce drizzled on it.

Loved the beany tofu, the soy sauce had a nice umami, with a light sweetness. The Missus loved the pidan.

Based on the previous night's dinner, we also ordered some jiaozi, this time the pork and chive version.

My goodness! This was one of the best versions we've ever had. The wrappers were so tender, with a perfect "chew" to them. The filling had a nice, balanced pungent porkiness to it and was so tender and juicy. This resets the bar for what we now expect in restaurants.

And then it was the Niu Rou Mian.

So, first the good. The knife cut noodles are probably some of the best I've had, al dente, but tender, a wonderful texture. I now have a reference point for what the Taiwanese call "QQ". The beef is wonderfully tender and deeply flavored. Were this fell short for us was the broth. While it wasn't overly salty and the richness and tongue feel was excellent, it was kind of weak in the beefiness.

And since this place is a Michelin Bib Gourmet restaurant, we expected more.

Still, we loved the jiaozi and side dishes and the price for our lunch came out at 430 NT$, think $14/US...... Geez, it's really hard to complain, right?

Lao Shandong Homemade Noodles (in the Wan Nian Building)
108 Xining Rd.
Wanhua District, Taipei City, Taiwan

Taipei - We Arrive and 93 Tomato Beef Noodle

Our flight to Taipei was about a half hour late. Getting thru customs in Taoyuan Airport was amazingly efficient and since we only had carry-on luggage to deal with, finding the Airport MRT station was also quite easy, as was getting and loading up EasyCards, Taiwan's travel smartcard. Our Airport MRT train left on time and we arrived at Taipei Main Station in around 40 minutes. Now here's where it got interesting.......dealing with Taipei Main Station was crazy. All the floors, all the different lines; the MRT/Metro/HSR/TRA all leave from various tracks at Taipei Main Station. Even with the Missus being fluent in Mandarin it was a beast. We deal and have dealt with train/metro travel quite a bit, heck we even survived Shinjuku Station which claims to be the busiest in the world. But man, trying to find the MRT Blue Line to our hotel, well it just had us flummoxed. Maybe we're out of practice? 

Anyway, our hotel was just one stop over on the Blue Line, so we decided to take a cab. Which turned out to be great in several ways; first we discovered Cab Fare in Taiwan is very reasonable with a start at 85 NT ($2.60/US) and 5 NT every 200 meters or so. Cab fare to our hotel ended up being 95 NT, think $3.11. Second, we got our first taste of how friendly cab drivers (as a whole) were in Taiwan. They loved conversations. In fact, the Missus would make it a habit to get dining recommendations from Taxi Drivers during our stay in Taiwan.

We got to our hotel and checked in at around 830pm. The staff at the Resonance Hotel were very professional and accommodating. After freshening up, we decided to head on out to grab something light for dinner. This is when we noticed that many businesses seem to close fairly early. It was 845 and most restaurants in the area were closed. We also noticed that there seemed to be either a 7-11 or Family Mart on every corner. Even more than Japan!

After walking up and down a couple of streets, we settled on this place.

Which specialized in Tomato Beef Noodle Soup! The menu is posted on the wall, you are given a paper to check off your selections. The interior and dining is simple.

We ordered the Beef Tomato Soup and some jiaozi. The Missus had a view into the kitchen and quickly told me; "they are making the jiaozi to order!" And then, "he's cutting the noodles to order as well!" We'd find that this is the norm here in Taiwan.

Our Pork and Cabbage Jiaozi arrived hot to the table.

The Missus walked over to the condiment table and poured us some black vinegar. This jiaozi was very good, fluffy, tender wrappers, tender and nicely seasoned pork filling. Better than anything in San Diego...in fact, just about as good as anything in the SGV!

Then our noodle soup arrived.

 Man, the beef was so tender and beefy! The knife cut noodles were a bit thick for my taste, but the texture was very nice, good pull, not doughy or overly chewy. The broth was light on the beefiness and edged on being too sweet. We would have liked a bit more tangy-tomato flavor as well. Still this was quite enjoyable.

And then came my favorite item of the meal, the Fried Pork Chop.

Crisp, yet tender, we loved the porkiness. We'd come to enjoy the pork in Taiwan, it's definitely not "the other white meat here". In fact, the Missus would make fun of me after I enjoyed each pork chop saying; "Taiwan, the land where Kirk never found a pork chop he didn't like!" Which was true. This version was smothered in black and white pepper and we liked the sinus clearing effect of it.

This ended up being a nice, random first meal in Taiwan. And heck, it was just over nine bucks! 

93 Tomato Beef Noodle (93刀削麵館)
No. 3-2, Qingdao E Rd.
Zhongzheng District, Taipei City, Taiwan

We had a nice night of sleep. I woke a bit early, had some tea and just looked out at our view of Taipei.

We decided to head on out and do some exploring. Walking out of the hotel straightened us out! We had left San Diego with temps in the 50's to 60's. Here in Taipei highs were in the 80's with some humidity to match.

We headed out on Zhongxiao East Road, one of the main thoroughfares in the city. 

With the sounds, the smells (is that chou doufu I smell?), the lively, yet mellow vibe hitting us. We were so happy to finally be here and couldn't wait to do some exploring!

Thanks for stopping by!

Formoosa

During my walk down Convoy while waiting for my takeout order a couple of weeks back, I noticed something about that strip mall with horrendous parking at 4646 Convoy. Yes, Red Moon Noodle House was gone, but the parking lot at just after 11 was pretty empty. Hmmm......there are a couple of places I'd wanted to try in that mall. I wondered how parking would be at 11 on, say a Monday. So, I decided to take a chance and arrived right before 11 on a Monday and the parking lot was pretty empty. I could get an end spot which meant a bit more room for my car. I decided to take a chance and see how things were at Formoosa, a Taiwanese restaurant opened by the company who owns Steamy Piggy.

I recall this place being Bao's Awesome Burgers and Sandwiches and then one of Junya Watanabe's restaurants, a concept temaki place that didn't last too long. In fact, it looks like the sushi bar set-up is still in place here. There are a couple of small tables, but it's mainly bar seating. The young man working was super friendly and nice. I took a seat at one corner of the bar and was the only customer in the place until right before leaving.

Ordering was super simple for me; it had been so long since I'd had a Niu Rou Mian  I decided to order that ($14.50). The bowl arrived, fairly hot, the portion size quite large.

   This was a not so good bowl, the best item was probably the boiled eggs which had been decently marinated, nicely cooked, and not overly salty. The broth was mediocre, the beefiness was achieved using the "wave" method....that would be that it tasted like a piece of beef was waved over the bowl to give it flavor. It needed more anise tones and complexity. There was a light spice and a hint of Sichuan Peppercorns, but was super salty.

The beef itself was tough, lacking in flavor, and the interior was cold. On my next visit, I'd notice something about the prep of the beef that was missing on this visit.

    The "knife cut noodles" seemed of the mass produced variety. It was too brittle, lacking in any doughy "pull" and stretch.

Other than the wonderful young man working the front of house, this was quite disappointing. 

Of course I needed to make a return trip. I did so on a Tuesday at 11 and was again the first customer in the place; though this time several more folks came in as I was eating. The young lady working, I believe her name is Kiana was simply fantastic. Friendly, warm, efficient.....and I watched her torch the beef in the Nu Rou Mian before it was served. When I commented on that, she told me that it is supposed to be served that way. Regardless, I don't think torching of my beef would have made my NRM any better.

I started things out with the Popcorn Chicken ($10.50). This was the best item of the three I had at Formoosa, though that's not saying much.

The chicken was moist, but I didn't care for the batter which lacked crispness; the whole thing was rather gummy. It also lacked enough seasoning, no five spice flavor, in need of salt and pepper. Well, here's something interesting, The previous sentence rung a bell...and wouldn't you know it. Take a look at what I wrote about the popcorn chicken in my Steamy Piggy revisit post. I guess it's the same recipe.

Much like Niu Rou Mian, I haven't had a decent Niu Rou Chuan (beef roll) in....well, longer than I can remember. So I decided to order that as well ($10.50). This is what arrived.

 There were two things I noticed right off; look at that puddle of oil the beef roll is lying in. Also, check out all that cucumber.....I thought that this was a beef roll, not a cucumber roll. I really think they're going for something massive here instead of thinking about proportion. The beef was basically the same cut as what's used for the NRM, but with the addition of the fatty parts which are chopped. There was a ton of hoisin sauce. The bread was thin, short on green onions, but fairly crisp...at least what wasn't a greasy mess was.

And check out all that cucumber. Well, at least you'll get your veggies...sort of.

It was kind of a bummer because I really like the folks working here. They can't control the kitchen. I just wish the food was a bit better. As it is, much like Steamy Piggy, it's a concept first business.

I did learn that eating in this strip mall is possible; if you do it early in the day and week.

Formoosa
4646 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111
Hours:
Sun - Thurs 11am - 930pm
Fi - Sat 11am - 1030pm

Postscript:

So, I occasionally go to that "four lettered" site to get address and hours of operation info for places when I'm finishing up my post. I went to that site and was amazed at how many "reviews" (In heavy quotation marks) were available for a place that has only been open about 10 months. I also noticed the super high scores. I wondered to myself "what am I missing here" and then I recalled something I saw on the QR menu.

So, you have to write something and then show it to the Server to get credit. Hmmm.....

I then decided to actually read some of those postings, which I never do. Some of them were interesting.....

And my favorite:

I had a good laugh. As a whole it's not my business. I just thought it fascinating. Interesting business model. Maybe I should read those reviews more often, huh?

Meet Fresh- Treats (Mira Mesa)

mmm-yoso!!! welcomes you back.  Once again, Cathy is writing because, once again, Kirk and His Missus are vacationing.

There are two locations of Meet Fresh, a Taiwanese dessert chain,  in San Diego.  One is in the HMart parking lot in Mira Mesa.  The other is in the strip mall on the SouthEast corner of Clairmont Mesa at the 805 (where there was a Souplantation and still has Niban, a McDonalds and Starbucks).  The menus are the same, the air conditioning is wonderful, the hours are different.  Each location is equidistant from home; we've been to both.
 Walk in, order and pay.  There is a menu above the register and another full menu on the wall.  There's also a laminated one at the register.
 Soon your number is called and/or displayed when your order is ready. 

 Q-mochi set with almond pudding and red beans ($6.75) was presented in this cute dessert bento box/serving tray with tiny cutlery.  The two types of mochi were slightly different in flavor, topped with a light Carmel sauce and toasted coconut.  The sweet red beans were (and always are) a tasty treat and the almond pudding, when tasted before everything else, had an excellent flavor; the texture remained perfect and never got watery. 

 This was a hot fresh milk tea with boba ($6.25)which was ordered out of curiosity.  I liked it. This is a medium shaved ice ($11.75) alongside an iced lemon black tea ($4.50)
 There are a few choices of shaved ices along with three sizes (the prices are $9.75, $10.75 and $11.75).  Topping combinations are varied and all sound good.  I pointed at one on the laminated menu at the register.  The cylinder shaped Q-mochi, potato balls (sweet potato/taro), jelly and mini mochi balls surrounding the ice cream topped fluffy milk soaked shaved ice made each bite unique.  We ended up taking a lot home.

A nice place for a relaxing treat. 

Meet Fresh 9420 G Mira Mesa Blvd 92126 (619) 877-8818 open daily noon-10

7051 Clairmont Mesa Blvd #303 San Diego 92111(858) 740-3789 Open 4-10 Thurs-Sun   Website

Sunday Stuffs, Is It Getting Hot Around Here Edition - Mike's Red Tacos Brick and Mortar Coming to Clairemont, Yin Tang Hot Pot Replacing A-Bowl, and Jomaru Korean Hot Pot Coming to Kearny Mesa.

Is it getting "hot" around here or what? I went and did my morning shopping this past weekend and decided to take a bit more time to see what was up in the Clairemont and Kearny Mesa area. And by coincidence all three places I noticed have a bit of "heat or spice" to them......

Mike's Red Tacos Brick and Mortar Coming to Clairemont:

I noticed the sign while driving up Genesee, so I took a short detour into the parking lot where Kroran is located.

This is where I believe Wings Republic was located. Even though I wasn't the biggest fan of the food truck, I'll probably check out the brick and mortar location when they open. I have a feeling they'll be pretty busy.

4310 Genesee Ave
San Diego, CA 92117

Driving down Convoy, I went into the parking lot of Convoy Pointe Plaza to see what was up with the rebuilding of China Max (actually not much). And saw this......

Yin Tang Hot Pot Replacing A-Bowl:

In the former location of A-Bowl.

Bummer.....

4690 Convoy St.
San Diego, CA 92111

Jomaru Korean Hot Pot Coming to Kearny Mesa:

Drove past the strip mall that houses Tajima, Song Hak, and Steamy Piggy. I noticed a sign saying "Jomaru Korean Hot Pot". 

The name sounded familiar....and reading this post jogged my memory. We saw Jomaru Gamjatang locations in Seoul. Never got to try them though.

4681 Convoy St
San Diego, CA 92111

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Stay safe!

Tea Station (one more post)

Here you are, reading mmm-yoso!!! on this lovely day.  Kirk and His Missus are still vacationing while Cathy is writing.

The first time I wrote about Tea Station was in 2007; I was fascinated with the concept.  This San Diego Franchisee location of an internationally owned snack/small meal/beverage/shaved ice dessert spot remained open during COVID-19, which is so nice. (The Mister and I stop in pretty regularly, with posts about visits in 2011, 2012, 2013, 2016 and 2019).  We usually order one item to share, along with a beverage.  There are Monthly Specials and Lunch Specials but I am listing the regular menu prices.  There have been a few changes, with the ability to order from your table as well as at kiosks and the cash register.

The menu is about the same, serving some tasty food. Green onion pancake with egg ($7.99) is a good choice.  The flaky, crisp egg topped pancake is served with a good chili sauce.  Tasty and a nice snack.
 Tea dumplings ($13.50) are pretty much a craving.  Sure the price has increased over the years ($6.50 in 2007), with the flavors remaining consistent.  
 Marinated chicken meal set ($16.96) was our choice one day.  The plump pieces of lightly breaded flavorful chicken were memorable and served with the sides of three condiments and rice.  You might notice everything above was served in disposable packaging...another COVID-19 result, but also easy for leftovers.  We did eat in.  Desserts, however are served on 'real' plates.  Peanut butter toast ($6) was a perfect snack along with a pot of hot tea.
 One very hot day, the Iced coconut combination ($8.50) was what we craved.  Everything-sweet red and black beans, grass jelly, mochi and coconut milk over ice, served in this very large bowl.  A great choice when you do want a bit of everything. Then again, my craving was dark plum with grass jelly shaved ice ($7.50)-prune juice and grass jelly.  Pure flavors and yes, a definite craving.
 Peach yogurt snow ice ($6.75) is a great beverage.  I notice that there are quite a few yogurt based (probiotics or just tart?) beverages available everywhere and have started to order those, because maybe they are "better".  Anyhow, this was tasty.   Fresh lemon green tea (large)($6.50) was ordered with no sweetness and light ice.  We were warned.  Fresh squeezed lemon juice- tart! You can taste the green tea as well as the lemon, which is quite fascinating. Will order again. 
 There are three ordering kiosks at the entrance (in the cash register area).  The screen saver all summer was for these fresh fruit teas ($3.99 each, with a minimum order of two).  You could choose black or green tea.  Apple, pineapple, watermelon, lemon, lime, kiwi. Not too sweet, very refreshing. The screen saver/offer stopped at the end of September.  I sure hope this beverage/fruit salad comes back.  

A good spot for relaxing with a snack. Some changes due to COVID-19.

Tea Station 7315 Clairmont Mesa Blvd San Diego 92111 (858) 268-8198 Open 11:30 a.m.-midnight daily website