hotpot/taiwanese: i recommend QIAO TOU HOTPOT

QIAO TOU HOTPOT
(or BRIDGE HEAD HOTPOT)
No. 157, Dun Hua S. Rd, Sec 1, 2FL
(02) 2777-5608

MRT: ZhongXiao/DunHua

hours: 5:30 PM - 3 AM

$$ cash only

Kid friendliness: no high chairs spotted; spicy side of hot pot will be too spicy for most kids

Visit reviewed: 3/2/2010



Qiao Tou is the kind of mala hotpot place for seasoned mala huo guo eaters who know what they want and how to do it.



There's no menu with pictures or English (you order off a check off sheet), the accompanying sauces are off to the back near the counter with no explanation of the right soy sauce/vinegar/chili ratio, and even the location is a bit hard to find with a 2nd floor location with a might-miss-it sign and an entrance that looks like you might be going up an apartment building. (It's a couple doors down from Cosi o Cosi.)



But once you get into your groove, it is good. I managed to get a good 50/50 ratio of soy sauce and vinegar with a dash of sesame oil (I think) to offset the spiciness of the mala soup and add a level of complementary sourness. I like to alternate scooping up stuff from the spicy and the non-spicy side to save my tastebuds from total numbness. When you first sit down, it might feel a little cold with the fans and air con, but you'll appreciate it when it starts getting warm from the steam from the hotpot and heat from the spiciness.

One of my favorites is the crispy you tiao to dip in the deep red soup, but a few seconds is long enough if you want to still have some crunch.



You can't overthink mala huo guo- the murky, blood red broth is complete with big chunks of all-you-can-refill congealed duck's blood- otherwise it starts to look like a meal only a vampire would love. (A perfect date night idea for the Twilight lovers in your life to role play, anyone?). Over the years, ya xue or duck's blood has grown on me- the unique firm and jelly-like texture, more meaty than tofu, accented with a coat of spiciness from being boiled in the pungent soup.

Some won't be able to stomach it, while others crave it.



And speaking of stomachs, I wasn't a fan of the tripe, which has a crunchy chewy bite feels like trying to eat an oversized rubber band with goosebumps.



Instead, try the pillowy handmade fish dumplings, and swish around the fresh cabbage leaves and slices of meat until they wilt and curl up.




Or the chewy slices of pork intestines.



For the uninitiated (or vegetarians), a menu that includes duck's blood, pig's stomach and intestines and chicken feet can sound horrifying, but know that you can enjoy mala hotpot without ordering those items. And if you can't handle the heat, you can stick to one side of the pot.

For first mala hotpot first timers, I can see how a place like the popular Tripod King works better with its English menu filled with pictures, but at Qiao Tou you have a lot more elbow room and don't have to wait hours for a table without a reservation.

A complimentary grass jelly dessert comes to the table after the meal, but skip it and wander to next door neighbor Gelateria Cosi o Cosi instead, like we did, to soothe the lingering heat in your mouth.

hotpot/taiwanese: i strongly recommend MALA YUANYANG HOTPOT

MALA YUANYANG HOTPOT
No. 62, SiNing S. Road, 2 FL
(02) 2314-6528

MRT: XiMen

website: mala-1.com.tw

hours: 11:30 AM- 4 PM (NT$399); 4 PM - 5 AM (NT$459)

$$

Visit reviewed: 9/7/2009



Walking into Mala, I knew I was going to like it.

First off, it's all you can eat and mostly self serve, so you can mull over if you want seafood, veggies, ramen or fried you tiou from the abundant wall of choices without having to wait for a server to come to your table (which sometimes takes too long at other places when they are busy pushing the vegetable cart around) or feeling guilty about piling up your plate up high repeatedly.



Second, there's also all you can eat dessert- which includes not only a freezer of Movenpick, but also Haagen Daaz ice cream, which is proudly displayed at the entrance as well. Smart move, considering that a scoop or two of name brand ice cream is half the price of all-you-can-eat entry fee. If you don't want ice cream, there's also fruits, flans and cakes to choose from.



Third, it was packed on a Monday night. The setting is modern and bustling- groups of friends talking over music and spicy hotpot. Don't even try to add in friends who come late like we did, as tables are allotted for only 2 hours or so and then booked through the night to other reservations.



Did I mention the wall of food?



It had everything and it was fresh and tasty- more types of soy and tofu than I could name, packaged ramen, shrimp, mussels, scallops, fish, fishballs, at least four types of mushrooms and lots of cabbage, chinese cabbage and vegetables. The servers were efficient about constantly refilling pans that had run out.



I put half of my goodies into the non-spicy side and half into the mala side, especially the you tiao which soaks up the spicy broth and is crispy and soggy at the same time, sort of like a crouton bathed in french onion soup. I find the broths here a bit saltier than the others I've tried, as I was pretty thirsty the next morning.



And there's the meat. Lamb, Black Angus beef, chicken- just ask the server and they will bring the trays of thinly sliced meat to dunk and swish and devour.



To combat the spiciness, there's quite a few self serve drinks as well as Coke in glass bottles and Taiwan beer. There's also an array of soy, sesame, vinegar and chili sauces to mix and match to your own liking (though all labeled in Chinese).

I recently passed the famous (and some say overrated) Tripod King in a taxi and saw the lines outside. Save yourself some waiting and a few bucks and try out some of the other Mala places in town. Advance reservations strongly recommended though!


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OTHER LOCATION:
No. 86, DingZhou Rd, Sec. 3
(02) 2365-7625

hotpot/organic: QI-MIN ORGANIC HOTPOT

CLOSED! a/o 2013

QIMIN ORGANIC HOTPOT
128, Zhongxiao E Rd Sec 4, 2 FL
(02) 2772-5123

MRT: Zhong Xiao/Dun Hua

website: qi-min.com

hours: lunch: 11:30am to 2:30pm
dinner: 5:30pm to 10:30pm

$$=$$$

Kid friendliness: spotted an older kid there. roomy but calm atmosphere

Visit reviewed: 6/2/2009




If you're crazy about organic foods and don't mind paying a premium for it, then Qi-Min Organic Hotpot is the place for you. I had passed by Qimin many, many times, but always thought it was too pricey to eat at. My friend wanted to check it one day while craving hot pot, so we agreed to go.

A lone menu and staircase is the only sign that there's a restaurant upstairs. Before you get to the actual restaurant, there is a room with display cases of their organic goods, as they also have a home delivery service of meats and vegetables you can use to cook with at home. Their motto is "from farm to table" which is also a movement going on in the States, eating more things grown locally.




Once you step in, the atmosphere has to be one of the most spartan and regal hot pot places I've ever seen.



Their set menu runs from NT$600- NT$2680(! for two) which includes seasonal appetizer, a choice of broth, a basket of seasonal organic greens, your main protein, a choice of two sauces, a choice of starch and vinegar disgestif and dessert. There's also an English and Chinese menu full of pictures of additional or ala carte sides you can add such as dumplings, squid balls, veggies, seafood.




I ended up choosing the Prime Beef Shortrib in the Organic Vegetable and Mushroom Broth, with Qimin and Lemongrass sauces. There's also a bonito and dashi broth or a Lushan Chicken broth.



The appetizer was delicate and stylishly presented. The bite of pork I had was good.



We chatted and waited for our water to boil. For hard core shabu-shabu'ers, you should cook the meat first and then throw in the veggies. But we were hungry, so put in some veggies first.




Once in awhile, nature sounds from a CD they played would come on the speakers. My friend was startled by the frog sounds that came out of the blue- we all giggled at her reaction.

I was pleasantly surprised at the amount of meat I got. Long sizeable slices that made for some delicious beef consumption.



I was going to get the Organic Noodles for my starch, but the picture in the menu looked like such a small amount, I got what my friend who had been here before got- the Steamed Rice with Shrimp. Good call.



The Lemongrass sauce gave the meat and vegetable a sour, citrus flavor that I haven't had with hotpot before.. double dipping it in the lemongrass and the soysauce and garlic flavor gave the right salty, fragrant kick. At Qimin Hotpot, it's quality over quantity, so I savored the food I got, instead of wolfing down everything like I usually do at all-you-can-eat shabu shabu Momo Paradise.



The lunch ended with a pumpkin pudding and plum-like vinegar drink. Both flavors I happen to dislike, so after a tiny bite and sip, I left it alone.



Would I go back? With so many hotpot options in town, probably not- there's mala spicy hotpot and the jazzier Orange hotpot if I want to splurge. Or even the mushroom overload Bai Gu Yuan, where the broth is so flavorful from the different mushrooms, it's good for even non-vegetarians. But if you've got an organic health nut friend you gotta impress, Qi-Min should do the trick.

hotpot/taiwanese: i recommend TRIPOD KING SPICY HOTPOT

TRIPOD KING SPICY HOTPOT or DING WANG
No. 89, Guangfu N Rd
(02) 2742-2116

website: tripodking.com.tw

hours: 11 AM - 2:30AM

$$

Kid friendliness: i think i saw high chairs. not for picky eaters. only spicy hotpot or pickled cabbage soup hotpot

Visit reviewed: 1/6/2009



If you haven't heard about "mala huo guo" or spicy hotpot, then you've been missing out on the perfect meal for a cold and rainy day in Taipei. "Mala" hotpot is a spin on the regular hotpot, but offers a ultra-spicy deep red blood colored broth to cook your meats and vegetables in.



Tripod King or Ding Wang is one of the more famous joints in town- my girlfriends were raving for weeks that we had to try it and said that every time they attempted to call to make a reservation the line was busy. Sometimes it is easier to just go there ahead of time and get a reservation in person.

I'm assuming that the name Tripod King comes from the shape of the hotpot- a huge metal bowl with three short feet.



There's a set up fee just for the all you can drink broth- NT$98 per person- and then you pay for whatever additional plates of sliced meats, fresh fishballs or vegetables you want (NT$90-290+). If you want to have a half spicy and half not spicy like we did, it's an additional flat fee of NT$150. It ended up being about NT$500 a person for our group of girlfriends- it would probably end up more for a bunch of guys.

The menu is in English and Chinese with a picture for almost everything. I did giggle at a few typos and the way they attempted to describe the more unusual parts of animals. Would you like some "rice nuddles," "selected rectum" or "selected honey cumb?"





But one thing that is pretty smart is that they have "assortment" plates for each type of thing they offer- for example, they offer 5 types of handmade dumplings, if you can't decide, you can get the sampler plate that has 2 of each. They also have sampler meatballs, sampler mushrooms, sampler



I also almost giggled after the waitresses bow after each time they come to your table. The first time was novel, but after each time (a glass of water, a refill of the soup, a new plate of vegetables) it kind of was a time waster when you were trying to flag down the waitress from another table.



After you first sit down and order, they bring the hotpot to the table and all the dishes. The "mala" side already has large chunks of tofu and duck's blood (it looks kind of like chocolate tofu, as my friend's sister used to call it when she was a kid). The non-mala side has pickled cabbage and pork that gives the broth a slightly sour flavor. You can then go to the back of the room and get your own sauces and rice.




Supposedly you're supposed to use the creamier sauce for the mala and the soy sauce for the pickled cabbage, but I used them both.

And then once you get cooking, you've got a bowl full of food. There's huge ladles for everyone to use- if you're a first time hotpotter, try to keep your personal chopsticks out of the hotpot as well as remember to use a different pair of chopsticks to cook the raw meat.

Other favorites you should make sure to order are the "youtiao" or fried breadstick that will soak up the broth with a crunch, kind of like dipping your garlic bread in soup at an Italian restaurant. Also they have freshly made fishballs that they will spoon in for you.



I wasn't so crazy about the Szechewan mini-meatballs, but mostly everything was good. The mala is too spicy for me to drink, but I enjoyed digging out some duck's blood and tofu and eating it with the rice. But I'd cook my meats and other things in the preserved cabbage side.

This trip to Tripod King was actually after going to another Ding Wang that I liked better. Tripod King's name in Chinese is Ding Wang2 (Wang meaning King, so 2nd tone), and the less famous but equally good Ding Wang4 is the 4th tone. The other Ding Wang4's non-mala broth was not a pickled cabbage broth but their own hotpot broth, and they also offered lunchtime NT$100 noodles that were so delicious (and to be reviewed!)

My friend said that once they had a reservation for 10 or 12 people and they were all squished at a table for 10... which is all fine, except that they all had to share just ONE hotpot. If you can't wait to eat, you might be better off at the all you can eat Momo Paradise which has a hotpot for every 2-4 people.

But if you can get a seat, you shouldn't turn it down. And if you can, go with a bunch of friends or family so you can enjoy chatting while you sharing good food, and can try more things when you order for more people so you don't have a huge bill for just yourself.

hotpot/japanese: i recommend ORANGE SHABU SHABU

ORANGE SHABU SHABU
No. 135, Da An Road, Sec 1, B1
(02) 2776-1658

website: orangeshabu.com.tw

hours: 11:30AM - 11PM (other location open til 2 AM!)

$$-$$$

Kid friendliness: high chairs available

Visit reviewed: 11/8/08



A lot of the shabu shabus in Taipei are probably interchangable- after all, how hard could it be- give your customer a pot of boiling water, a plate of meat and vegetables and let them cook it themselves. But some places, like Orange Shabu Shabu, offer some unique things to set themselves apart from the rest.

I had been to Orange Shabu Shabu (in Chinese, it would sound like the color Orange and not the fruit Orange) a long time ago- maybe around the time I had started my blog. I remember the space being on the dark side and with semi-private sectioned seating, as if you could make a shabu-shabu space look like the cousin of a lounge bar. Its menu also offers a lot of fresh seafood- Emperor crab, oysters, scallops, shrimp- as well as sashimi. Dinner will probably be about NT$1000-NT$2000 per person, depending on which set you order.



They also have imported copper pots that you share to cook your meats and veggies.



Make sure you get an order of the super sweet corn. It's already cooked, so you just need to let it boil in the water for a little bit before you eat it. It's crisp and addictive.



Someone at the table ordered seared oysters and I'm glad they did! I love oysters and usually prefer eating them deep fried over raw or steamed, but the grilling gave the skin a nice semi-crispy finish that was a nice contrast to the mushy insides.



For dessert, you can choose between pudding or almond jello. But their almond jello is like the kind at Shin Yeh and a few other places, where it's more like mochi-gelatin than firm gelatin. A lot of people like it, but I don't like the texture in this dessert.




The atmosphere is perfect for date night or romantic night out, but still good for eating out with friends or family. Orange is a popular place, so definitely make reservations in advance. Their new location is open until 2am at night!

Other location:
29, RenAi Rd, Sec 4, 2 FL
(02) 2771-0181
Hours:6 PM - 2 AM


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