takeout/taiwanese: i recommend SHIN YEH x INLINE

hi guys! As you may know, Covid has been peaking in Taiwan and numbers are at a record high and for the first time, I have a number of friends who have caught (and recovered from) Covid. Since everyone is being more cautious and while things are not shut down (like this time last year), I have been definitely eating more at home, cooking and ordering in. So when Inline reached out and asked if I wanted to check out their service, I looked at the list of restaurants and I said YES. I realized that it had been far too long since I had my favorite dishes from Shin Yeh since it's usually a place I would eat at with my grandmother and visiting relatives, but why not enjoy it at home? 

inline is mainly known for their reservation booking service, but they also have a ton of restaurants that you can order from. For Shin Yeh, they have takeout from four locations- Xinyi Mitsukoshi A9, Nanjing, ShuangCheng (original shop) and takeout/delivery from ZhongXiao branch. The menus have slightly different variations at the branches, and I ordered ahead to schedule a time and got the confirmation once the restaurant opened. While you can click on the top right side to change the language to English, it doesn't translate the dishes' names to English (for now), though the newest OS for iphone lets you highlight the dish name to translate. 

If you're looking for what to order from Shin Yeh, here's what I recommend  (with photos) below: 

1. Signature braised pork 欣葉滷肉NT$270  

I was afraid 1 portion of the pork belly wouldn’t be enough since it said it had 3 pieces, but 2 portions was really sizeable with lots of tender chunks of meat! It was still warm when I got it. Would definitely reorder. Enjoyed the leftovers and sauce with rice in a second meal. 

2. Sesame oil kidney (small) 麻油腰只(小）NT$410 

Shin Yeh separated the sesame oil broth so the kidney didn’t overcook. Pork kidney is slightly crunchy and bouncy, yum. This isn't something that I have often, but when I think of this dish, I think of Shin Yeh since it's one of their signatures. It might not be for everyone, but those who love it, love it. 

3. Wok fried pork liver 香煎豬肝 NT$300 

Shin Yeh’s pork liver is slightly sweet and soft. This is another favorite of my family's. IYKYK. Uncover right away so it doesn’t overcook. 

4. Baby oysters with leeks and fermented black beans 

蔭豉蒜青蚵 NT$310 

This was another dish I was slightly worried about overcooking, but it was fine. Juicy baby oysters with the pronounced flavor of fermented black beans - this was one of the first dishes I reached for, and wished I had added a few bowls of sweet potato porridge after eating. 

5. Poached chicken (L) 鹽水土雞（大） NT$480

 I admit I am spoiled by the deboning of Hainan chicken, so the meaty pieces were gone quickly and then the bony pieces were not. 

6. Cashew shrimp 腰果蝦仁 NT$460

They separated the cashews which I thought was interesting, it was either this or the salt and pepper shrimp. This is less work to eat. It's been so long I forgot we like the pineapple shrimp here. Next time! 

7. Stir fried chives with preserved eggs 韭菜炒松花 NT$285

Another perfect with rice dish

What's your favorite dish from Shin Yeh? Check out some other favorites from my previous visits - the clams and loofah or stir fried vermicelli  , or the gua bao. Reminder to self-next time get some sweet potato porridge and pineapple shrimp.

Thank you Inline and Shin Yeh for letting me try my favorites at home. 

desserts/american: i strongly recommend THE PIE GUY

THE PIE GUY

(No storefront yet, order through order forms on Facebook or Rakuten)

website: The Pie Guy's Facebook 

visit reviewed: 2/17/2017

When a friend of a friend emails and says, "I have a friend that makes pies, can I introduce you?" the answer should always be YES. My ranting about the lack of American style pies in Taipei is nothing new and my search for them over the years has led me to try Mom's Pies, Rose Pie, My Sweetie Pie, Drip Cafe (their lemon meringue and banana cream pies were my favorite for awhile), McDonald's (they've kept the fried apple pie all these years), WXY, and now the The Pie Guy. 

Founded this past year, Pie Guy aims to bring traditional American pies with natural ingredients and crusts made with butter, but in mini sizes. He grew up loving and making desserts with his family, playing with the scientific side of baking and his idea for Pie Guy came with taking recipes that had used over the years but adjusting them for mini form. 

There's over a dozen flavors to choose from and I was lucky enough to get a special sampler back to try his top 9 so that I could try them for you guys. Each pie is packaged in a sturdy plastic case and bubble lid and then in a pizza sized cardboard box. (I received this for free, but the opinions expressed are my own.)

OOOOOOOOHHHH. Where do we start? 

The pies from top to bottom: lemon meringue, apple, blueberry, coconut cream, key lime style, chocolate cream, banana cream, chicken and chili. 

The lemon meringue was one of my favorites, with a sweet and tart filling and torched meringue atop.  You can actually find a lot of lemon tarts in Taipei, but it's so much better with pie crust and meringue atop.

Apple pie was another favorite, made with Granny Smith apples, since this is also one of those "lots of tarts but no pie" situations in Taipei. I still remember when I went to BING last year and they had the most amazing apple pie but a few months later when I went back, it had turned into a tart. Now I don't have to look because now I know where I can get my apple pie fix. 

Blueberry is made with Maine blueberries and the filling swirled through the top of the crust so you can see what flavor it is. 

Key lime style has a different crust, with homemade graham crackers that he also premakes. The fresh limes are from Taiwan, so that's why it isn't called key lime and he didn't want to use bottled juice. I am a sucker for pies with a bit of sourness to go with the sweet. Loved this one too. 

Chocolate custard was the right amount of sweetness and comes with bits of bittersweet chocolate atop the whipped cream, which all goes well with the buttery crust.

I brought these to a potluck and they all got devoured after my photos so I didn't get inside photos of all of them. The chicken and chili ones are, of course, best heated up and Pie Guy felt like the mini sizes made them easier for reheating in Taipei kitchens. You can eat them cold, room temperature or ten minutes at 180 degrees in the oven. 

So since Pie Guy doesn't have a store (yet!), he's made it easy to order with forms in English and Chinese on Facebook. Pies come in sets of three (NT$499) and multiples of three, with prices slightly cheaper as you order more, six mini pies are NT$799 or nine mini pies are NT$1069. There are also  weekly popups in Nangang or Neihu so you can see the pies in person, with the schedule also on Pie Guy's Facebook page. 

Usually the pies come is sets of three with the same flavor, but I'm excited to announce that I've convinced Pie Guy to do a special HUNGRY IN TAIPEI x PIE GUY sampler pack, with apple, blueberry and key lime style mini pies! 

You can try THREE different flavors in one 3-pack (which you would usually need to order 9 pies to try three flavors). The flavors available for this set are apple, blueberry and key lime style for a promotional price of NT$449 for a limited time (only until 6/10/2017) which will include FREE shipping, which takes 3-4 days. 

This sampler pack is available only through these order forms: 

HUNGRY IN TAIPEI x PIE GUY sampler ENGLISH order form 

HUNGRY IN TAIPEI x PIE GUY sampler CHINESE order form

I've also partnered up with the Pie Guy to do giveaways on my Instagram and Facebook pages this week, so try your luck with winning some mini pies there. Yay!!! Who doesn't love pies?

desserts/delivery: I recommend THE COOKIE JAR

THE COOKIE JAR

0911-208-337
(02) 8218-2777
order@cookiejar.com.tw

www.cookiejar.com.tw

I had spotted pictures of the cookie sandwiches aka whoopie pies from the Cookie Jar for awhile online, but didn't get a chance to try them until last week when a girlfriend and I decided to fulfill our cookie cravings together.  I pointed her to their Facebook page and she ordered the cookies and brought them over. The cookies from Cookie Jar are made to order by the owner Karen and ordered via phone, email or online through the website or Facebook page and are usually delivered the next day or at an arranged pick up area. The bright pink bag and adorable packaging are perfect for gifting, or to order to share like we did.

Cookies in Taiwan usually tend to be thin and crispy and it's harder to find American style chewy on the inside, crispy on the outside cookies unless you know where to look (I find myself going to Subway or We Love Cookies for cravings or making them at home). But it's always great to have another listing on the rolodex in case a craving hits and the Cookie Jar even delivers (although you have to wait until the next day to fill that craving!)

The Cookie Jar offers a great selection of flavors to choose from- including red velvet with cream cheese frosting, chocolate with marshmallow filling, cranberry oatmeal, carrot cake with vanilla cream cheese frosting and oatmeal raisin.  Whoopie pies tend to typically be a cookie-cake hybrid in texture, and I'd say these cookies were more along those lines and softer than what I expected- not necessarily a bad thing, but I'm guessing that's why they recommend putting the cookies in the fridge if they aren't eaten the first day.

I really enjoyed all the cookies I tried, but my favorite was the chocolate cookie with marshmallow filling- the cookie was not as cakey and the filling was gooey but not too much so. A lot of the frostings in the cookie sandwiches tasted very similar to me, but the marshmallow filling stood out. The chocolate cookie also had chocolate chips in it, so it was a double chocolatey delicious bite.

Yum!

I also enjoyed the carrot cake cookie and cranberry oatmeal which had just the right amount of sweetness if eaten apart from the frosting. A box of 6 cookie sandwiches is NT$250, but if you want just the cookies- a box of 18 is NT$300- and you can mix and match the flavors in your order. Even with all the macaron craziness with the opening of Laduree in Taipei, sometimes a chewy cookie is more satisfying (and more affordable!).

desserts/delivery: i recommend LA CUISINE DE MAMAN

La Cuisine de Maman

0980-392-160 Miss Peng
0988-513-551 Judy

website: La Cuisine de Maman's Facebook page

$-$$

Kid friendliness: large enough to share, if you want to.

Visit reviewed: 3/29/2011

Nothing like surprises for your birthday, wrapped in pretty pink packages and a satin bow. 

The surprise is made even sweeter when it has desserts inside! Thanks to my friend and fellow food lover, I got to enjoy homemade desserts without doing any baking. La Cuisine de Maman doesn't have a storefront, but a gander at their Facebook page shows that they sell homemade 6 or 8 inch apple or strawberry pies (NT$220-380) with various shipping costs. When my friend told me I was getting an apple pie, the words conjured up American style pie topped with pie crust- but instead it was an intricately made, open faced apple tart.

I admired the methodical cutting of the apple slices and placement to make a beautiful flower-like pie. I found the apples crisper rather than soft, and less sweet than I'd usually like, but probably perfectly suited for lighter Taiwanese tastebuds.

The strawberry tart was also emphasizing the fruit's natural sweetness rather than overloading it with sugary syrup. 

Pull it out with the waxy tissue paper. 

This would be awesome with a scoop of ice cream. 

I could see this as an "ooh and aah" alternative for cake for birthdays, Mother's Day, anniversaries, or baby showers.

A slice of each is the perfect accompaniment to catching up on the Good Wife, Grey's Anatomy or Gossip Girl. What a perfect way to welcome summer.

pizza: i strongly recommend MARYJANE PIZZA

MARYJANE PIZZA
No. 25, Lane 44, TaiShun St.
(02) 2368-5222

MRT: Guting or Taipower Bldg

website: maryjanepizza.com English and Chinese

hours: Mon-Fri 12-2 pm, 5:30-9:30 pm
Sat & Sun 12-3:30 pm, 5:30-10:30 pm

Delivery available: minimum NT$500 order to only ShiDa, GuTing, TaiDa, GongGuan districts

$

Kid friendliness: no high chairs spotted, but lots of room for families

Visit reviewed: 5/11/2010



I had heard about Maryjane's Pizza for a long time and I don't know why it took me such a long time to try it, but I'm glad I finally did. With locations at both Shida and Taida, it's a cozy neighborhood pizza joint offering a huge menu of pizzas with fresh ingredients for great prices.





Just from the menu, you can tell that Maryjane has a lot of personality- the cute menu is shaped and designed like a pizza, the pizzas have quirky names and descriptions (there's mention of David Hasselhoff and George Bush? LOL) and the more unusual toppings include broccoli, bacon, ricotta cheese, carmelized onions, artichokes, blue cheese, squid or smoked salmon. There's even a dessert pizza with apple, cinnamon and mozzarella called "Eve's Temptation."

Nothing on the menu is over NT$300 and there is no service charge, but there is a minimum NT$150 charge per person.



If you get overwhelmed from all the choices in the menu (there are no substitutions or additions to their specialty pizzas), you can opt for something off their lunch special, which includes a soup or salad and drink (NT$160-200). Besides the typical cheese and pepperoni, there's Crispy Bacon with Sunnyside Egg or Amigo Rocks (jalapeno, red onions, tomatoes and genonese sauce). Or you can build your own pizza.



It's really hard to decide, but I end up choosing the Pesto Chicken (NT$250) with baked chicken breast, feta cheese, tomatoes and pesto. My friend is feeling the Hola Jalapeno (NT$200) with pepperoni and jalapenos. The pizzas don't take too long to come out, or maybe we are too busy talking and sipping on our ice tea.



The pizzas all come as 10 inch pies, which is a hearty portion for one. When the pizzas arrive, you can smell the bubbly cheese and all the aromatic ingredients. The pizzas are thin crust and on the drier side, but still have some bite to them. Though I expected the tomatoes on my pesto chicken pizza to be larger sliced tomatoes and under the cheese, I don't mind the fresh half slices of grape tomatoes. The flavors of the pizza meld together nicely and before I know it, I've finished half the pizza.



Maryjane Pizza makes for a good quick lunch spot or a place to kick back with some buddies with beers and pizza on the weekend. With a larger group, you could order different pizzas to share and try more flavors.



There's no lingering after lunch though, as they promptly turned off the lights and ushered everyone out when they were closing for their afternoon break. But otherwise, the service is prompt and friendly and our complimentary ice tea was frequently refilled without asking.


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OTHER LOCATION

Taida
No.89, WenZhou St.
(02) 2369-5333


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