Friday, October 26, 2007

where can you find... the best waffles in Taipei?

When I first moved back to Taipei, I always had a lot of questions about where to find this or that.. I want to try something new because I know there are a lot of people who visit the site who actually do live and eat in Taipei with some great knowledge (though some of you just come to look at pictures of xiao long bao or beef noodle soup. hahah), or are looking for something in particular.

So I want to try every week to post "where can you find..." something and PLEASE respond if you have an opinion.

Also- if you have been LOOKING for something, let me know, either in the comments section or email and I will post it up in a future "where can you find..." and hopefully our fellow readers (lurkers!) will help us out.

So this week- where can you find the best waffles in Taipei?

Some places I've spotted waffles- coffee shops, McCafe, Hyatt Cafe, Big Tom's, Joyce Cafe- where it's more for afternoon tea or dessert.

I think the best waffles I've had in Taipei were at the Formosa Regent Hotel. That was a few years ago so I should go back to refresh my memory and see if it's still the same. I like my waffles light, airy and crisp, not thick and cake-like which tend to be the case here.


not taipei: from the Campanile in LA



Also if you make your own waffles at home, what's your favorite recipe or where do you get the mix or waffle makers? I find it easier to use a mix as a base and add a few things. While they have Krusteaz at Costco and various Japanese brands at the supermarkets, I haven't been able to find Betty Crocker here so I actually brought a box back from the states... I think I will bring back a waffle maker too on my next trip around.


AZIE at Grand Formosa Regent Hotel
41 Chung Shan N. Road, Sec 2
(02) 2523-8000 ext 3157


CAFE at GRAND HYATT TAIPEI
No.2, Sung Shou Road, 1FL
Taipei, Taiwan
(02) 2720 1234

JOYCE CAFE
No. 22, Ching Cheng St
(02) 2713-8362

What have you been looking for?? :)

edited 4/2009

I think all this time I had the Grand Formosa hotel confused with the Far Eastern hotel.. and I think that the good waffles I had years ago was at the Far Eastern since the Grand Formosa revisited was NOT good. I will have to revisit the Far Eastern sometime and see, and it makes sense since it's a Shangri La hotel.

13 comments:

J said...

Got your blog by mistake when searching for the new restaurant in Taipei 101. Lovely blog. Will sure to check back soon ;)

joanh said...

jim: thanks for stopping by! hope you visit more and let me know what you think.

Anonymous said...

I like your blog, very good help for me.
i'm french an I'm looking for the best macaron in taipei... If you have any ideas... let me know!

joanh said...

hmm.. okay. i have some ideas but i will ask next week! :) thanks for visiting!

Anonymous said...

Taiwan waffles doesn't have the buttery goodness that you find stateside, but it is lighter and has some unique twists to it. The cha for tea near brother hotel has some green tea waffles that are decent and the coffee shop at fnac in the donghua area near sogo has a few variety. As you said, the waffles in taiwan are more of a desert rather than a breakfast item so it is adjusted to fit the desert category. So far i am disappointed by what i get as "waffles" in taiwan.

abstractpoet said...

Hey, great idea with the "where can you find..." Unfortunately, you can add me to the list of people who have been utterly unimpressed with the waffles I've had in Taipei, particularly the ones at ice cream/frozen yogurt joints (including Big Tom's).

I'm sure you can pay like a million bucks for a decent waffle at one of the big hotel restaurants, but even to me it seems like that would be an inexcusable extravagance.

I am, however, a fan of the PANCAKES at Citizen Cain, though I haven't haven't gone back for a while (anyone know if they've resolved their cockroach situation??).

joanh said...

jo-nast: hmmm, thanks for the suggestions!! i know, i prefer the breakfast type over the desserty type.

abstract poet: pancakes at citizen cain? wow i've been missing out! but ewww, cockroaches? EWWW. from what i remember, the wafffles at the hotel weren't more than you'd get at a nice brunch place in LA, but i will have to revisit to see if it was good or if i was just hungry that day. hahahahh. and surprisingly, being a hotel waffle does not guarantee its goodness (i've had PLENTY of AWFUL waffles in hotels in Beijing and Shanghai)

abstractpoet said...

yeah, they were the small ones, but still. that's why we've been staying away, especially at night. BUT, if they've fixed that problem, Citizen Cain does have one of the more underrated, bang-for-your-buck Sunday brunches in Taipei. the pancakes are great, as is the scrambled-eggs-and-sausage set.

oh, and i do have a request: i LOVE soul food (ribs, corn bread, collard greens, mac and cheese, the whole nine yards) and have yet to find a good spot in Taipei.

Anonymous said...

xia mi,

I really don't know how to judge a "good" macaron (because I never had them before I moved here), but I do think the chocolate ones at "珠寶盒" 19-1, Ln 33, Lishui St, Taipei (台北市麗水街33巷19號之1) are pretty tasty...

Anne

Anonymous said...

I decided to take part in a lasagna cook off this weekend - only to find out I can't find half the ingredients I'm used to using in the US! Do you know where I can buy fresh or frozen spinach, zucchini, or a 9x13 baking dish? And while I'm at it, I could use a 9x5 bread loaf pan, a pie plate, and some large serving bowls.

As for restaurants, if you ever come across one serving south indian food (dosas, idlies, pongal, uttapam), then I'd love to hear it.

I'm also looking for the best cha siu bao - I've tried a few around the city and either the bread isn't right, or the pork is wrong, or both.

And how about an authentic french baguette and a good old fashioned new york style bagel?

joanh said...

anne: thanks for the recommendation!

lin: yeah, i had a hard time finding baking stuff as well. the best (and cheapest) place to get baking pans and serving plates would be IKEA. as for frozen spinach, haven't looked, but you should try JASON's Supermarket at 101 or CitySuper at Breeze or green Sogo.

haven't had good cha sau bao in Taipei. french baugette try Maison Kayser bakery in green Sogo and bagel try NY Bagel.

Liam said...

I don't know the name of the place but my girlfriend took me to a place near Zhongshan station. I want to say exit 1 but I am not sure. It was very close to the Mitsukoshi. We went on a weekday at 4:30pm and there was a 20-30 min wait. I hear there is always a wait. Most people get their waffles. We got the strawberry cream. It had huge strawberries, with a sort of whipped cream, and a scoop of ice cream. Waffle were nice. Freshly made.

I really wish the had some maple syrup though to go with those waffles!

Jacy said...

I have a waffle store in Shida Area.
The waffles are different to others in hotels or restaurants.

Please if you are interested in waffle, take a look on my blog.I put some photos and some info but they are written in Chinese.

It would be wonderful if you can have a try and write some comments here. Currently,we offer only carry-out but i bet you would love it.

Have a good day

:)