dessert/taipei food trend: GLAM AIR

GLAM AIR
at Xinyi Mitsukoshi A11
No. 11, Songshou Road
(02) 8780-2334

MRT: Taipei City Hall or Taipei 101

website: Glam Air's FB page $

Kid friendliness: kids will definitely want one.

Visit reviewed: 4/29/2015

Google "cotton candy ice cream" and spheres of sky blue and glowing pink swirled scoops of ice cream show up. (Personally, as a kid, I was more partial to rainbow sherbet kid rather than the sickly sweet cotton candy ice cream, but that's another story)

The first time I ever had actual clouds of cotton candy stacked on top of ice cream was at Coffee Alley in 2011, where it was more of an interactive experience. A small pitcher of espresso is served to pour on top of the cotton candy so that it melted into a caramel coffee sauce over three scoops of vanilla ice cream. I've since spied imitations at a cafe in LA that opened a few years ago.

Then I spotted wisps of cotton candy on soft serve at Honey Creme, which was more known for their honey comb ice cream.

Glam Air takes it one step further, by making the cotton candy into literal eye-candy. Sugar rainbows are molded and stacked high like Taipei 101 and dry ice is added so that each cup has its own special effects of fog drifting out, its own "Glam Air". The visual result is hypnotizing- you can't help but to feel like a kid again,  those times that your parents agreed to buy you cotton candy. The concept is so simple it's brilliant- cashing in on those kid at heart fantasies for NT$150 a cup. 

Glam Air also has soft serve without the cotton candy (NT$110-140)- plain, with caramel, honey, honey comb, chocolate or with fish taiyaki instead of a cone, or as a float with bright hued sodas or shake.  

Everyone taking selfies with their cotton candy ice cream (and not eating it. Lol)

It's amazing to see how crowded it usually is, even on weekday afternoons, especially in comparison to other ice cream shops in the Mitsukoshi malls. One news clip on Glam Air's Facebook page reported a 40 minute wait on weekends. There's a liquid nitrogen ice cream shop in a different building that had no buzz going on. The thing with liquid nitrogen ice cream is that it looks cool when it's being made, but the end result looks just like regular ice cream- while Glam Air's final result is purposely eye catching.

Each Smokie Cloud is made to order. The three tiers of cotton candy tower are made from freshly spun puffs of sugar then molded into doughnut rings to fit around the soft serve. When it's done, a small scoop of dry ice is put in a larger cup and then the smaller cup of soft serve is placed inside and served.

Selling #dessert #clouds and #sugar #rainbows 🍦🍭🍦🌈 #glamair #cottoncandyicecream #hungryintaipei_dessertcrawl #hungryintaipei #hungryintaipei_dessert #taipeieats #taiwanfoodie

A video posted by Joan (@hungryintaipei) on Apr 29, 2015 at 3:47am PDT

I know by posting this, I'm perpetuating the hype, but dang it if it isn't pretty. It's only a matter of time we see a copycat in the states. I know some of you will go and get one just for the photo ops and it won't even matter how it tastes! Isn't that crazy? Thanks Kirbie's Cravings for the excuse to finally try one during our Xinyi dessert crawl.

Glam Air is one of those businesses that succeeds in the age of social media- you see it online, you try it once for your own post/selfie, but unfortunately it doesn't taste very good.  It's much prettier than it tastes. The cotton candy tasted like cotton candy and I found the soft serve overly sweet, but in the end, most people won't care. We'll have gotten our sugar high and photos and Instagram likes and endorphins from the rainbow hued memories of being a kid again.

burgers/new in town: CALIBURGER

CALIBURGER
No. 7, Alley 7, Lane 205,ZhongXiao E. Road, Sec. 4
台北市忠孝東路四段205巷7弄7號

MRT: ZhongXiao/DunHua

website: Caliburger's FB page

hours:

$$ (NT$275+ per person)

Kid friendliness: yes

Visit reviewed: 4/11/2015

To the casual burger fan, Caliburger would appear to be very close to In N Out- the style of the burger, the fries, the dousing of thousand island dressing and cheese and onions, the palm trees and cherry red trays. But to those who grew up on In N Out, it might not satisfy completely- it might just make you long a little more for the real thing. 

Caliburger took over the space from the previous Sanrio Cafe Kiko's Diner and kept most of the same seating format- except that it tore down the front register and moved it in front of the semi open kitchen. I went during its soft opening, when they were still training the staff and working out the flow in the kitchen, so our burgers took quite a long time. Thanks Caliburger for the sneak peek and the tasting- I know things will run smoother as your team gets more experience.

Though my meal was comped, the Cali Combos were slightly more expensive than I expected- NT$275 for a Caliburger (that's a cheeseburger), fries and drink, while a Calidouble combo bumps you up to NT$345. The burger alone costs NT$175 and the Calidouble is NT$245. Usually when I'm in LA at In N Out, I get just the burger and fries which according to current prices is US$2.10 and US$1.60, let's say with tax is around US$4. I think lower prices for a better-than-fast-food meal is one the things that makes In-N-Out a favorite in the states, besides its taste. With so many burger places now (and NT$80 bentos) in Taipei, Caliburger will need to keep its prices competitive. Even BLT Burger has already closed. Anyone else remember Burger Stop? They tried to bring double stack burger combos to Taipei for under NT$200.

I'd never heard of Caliburger until In-N-Out did its one day pop up in Taipei (confirmed to be really In-N-Out via twitter), and I did research on what other pop ups they were doing outside of the US and why. Part of it is to protect their trademark which Caliburger stepped on when it marketed itself as having "double doubles"  and "animal style fries" when they opened its first store in Shanghai in 2012. The similarities to In-N-Out were not an accident- Caliburger's chef de cuisine Jonathan Wong was a manager at In-N-Out in Northern California and has said that "the model was In-N-Out."  In-N-Out caught wind and sued, and the case was settled out of court with an undisclosed agreement. Since then, Caliburger has added shops in Shenzhen, Hong Kong, Manila, Dubai, Bahrain, with locations set to open in DC, London, Stockholm and In-N-Out territory, Los Angeles.



So is it worth trying? I always think it's worth trying on your own, since everyone has different tastes, but I wouldn't wait in a long line for it. Whether or not you love it, I think will depends on how hardcore you are.

I thought the fries were spot on (especially knowing how hard it is to get fries that also look like In N Out's with Taiwan potatoes, having seen and eaten fresh cut fries at Burger and Co and Lobster Bar that were sweeter and browner). Personally I liked the plain fries over the animal style, excuse me, wild style fries, but I don't love Animal style fries to begin with. Too much going on with the thousand island dressing, grilled onions and cheese- I'd prefer it on the burger. 

I thought the Caliburger was good, the meat, the veggies, the sauce, except I really disliked the bun. The bun was too sweet for me, but it might not be a deal breaker to some. Hopefully they'll keep working on it and make it less sweet. Note you can also ask to have your onions grilled for your burger instead of raw. The beef patty is made from Australian beef. 

I found myself comparing the Caliburger to Burger and Co, my current fave for American style burgers, or to those from the newly opened gastropub Bing. I'd say those are my two go-to places for burgers these days, unless I'm watching a movie and grabbing a Whopper. Burger and Co recently also opened a second shop in Tianmu I'm looking forward to checking out. 

If you're really hungry, you can get the Calidouble (NT$345). If I go back, I'd give this a try and maybe order a milkshake. If you're drooling over these pics, give it try and let me know what you think. I know some of you will be very excited to have a place like Caliburger in Taipei.

desserts/cupcakes: i strongly recommend THE CUPCAKE SHOP

  

THE CUPCAKE SHOP
thecupcakeshoptw@gmail.com
0910-709-178

website: thecupcakeshop.com.tw

$$

Kid friendliness: kids will love the designs and taste

Visit reviewed: 5/7/2014 & 6/3/2014 & 10/31/2014 & 4/29/2015

 

Usually when I eat a cupcake or cookie from somewhere in Taipei, I think to myself, I could make this better myself at home. I know some of you have thought the same thing. There are of course a few exceptions to this rule, and now there is a new find that definitely blows it out of the water.  Last year, a friend brought over some cupcakes to a lunch and I couldn't stop eating them and I've ordered them a number of times since!

Not only do The Cupcake Shop's cupcakes taste delicious, they are also so pretty and fun. Roz, who is the Cupcake Shop's baker and master cupcake artist, does an amazing job with the frosting and detailed pictures. A quick browse through their Facebook page and website showed everything from Superhero logos to Olaf from Frozen to Despicable Me Minions to just fun glittery pink and pastel cupcakes. The Cupcake Shop offers the rare combination of frosting that tastes as good as it looks.

The cupcakes are quite moist since they are made to order and there are quite a number of flavors to choose from. My favorites are red velvet, strawberry, carrot cake and chocolate. In the strawberry, you can actually taste real strawberries, it's not just bright pink cake. There's also other flavors like Oreo, lemon blueberry, pumpkin, mocha, banana and vanilla bean.

Cupcakes come in regular and mini sizes, and the minimum order is 6 cupcakes for regular (NT$550) and 12 cupcakes for minis (NT$460). Added decorations for the frosting will have an additional extra fee (usually a few hundred NT). It's best to order the cupcakes at least 3 days in advance via email or telephone (and Grace and Roz both communicate in English), or you can browse their website for more photos and descriptions. Cupcake Shop doesn't have a physical store, so you arrange pick up with them, usually near Taipei City Hall MRT. The cupcakes come in easy to carry boxes and are taped down so they don't slide and mess up the decorations. Just be sure to open the box carefully and keep away from curious little hands until they are ready.

Sparkles!

I finally remembered to take a photo of one of the cupcake's inside before devouring the whole thing. This is dark chocolate with buttercream frosting. Yummmmm.

I asked for a Hawaiian theme for a friend's birthday, and this is one of the boxes we got. I loved the sand effect Roz made with cookie crumbs. My friend loved it. You can totally discuss with them what your ideas are and what you are looking for. I even asked if they could make a pineapple flavor cupcake, and Roz said she would try.

These are from a Halloween special with pumpkin cupcakes the Cupcake Shop did last Halloween. I loved the scared orange Olaf. Haha. And I loved the pumpkin flavor with the cream cheese frosting.

Of course if you are going to make cupcakes yourself, it would be a lot cheaper. But the quality of the Cupcake Shop's decorated cupcakes is worth splurging on for a special occasion. They definitely taste better than a few birthday cakes I've had at other people's parties, where you ooh and aah for the photo op, but nobody ends up eats the cake. These cupcakes on the other hand, will disappear quickly, and your friends will be asking where you got them and ordering them for their own parties. You might be able to squeeze in your order for Mother's Day!

CLOSED/western/drinks: i strongly recommend DIARY

 

DIARY 
53 Dong Feng Street
台北市東豐街53號
(02) 2706-3553
CLOSED

MRT: DaAn

website: Diary's FB page (hasn't been updated since 2013)

hours: 3:30PM - 1AM

$$ -$$$ (NT$600-1000+/per person with drinks)

Kid friendliness: maybe for an early dinner, but menu is probably suitable only for foodie kids

Visit reviewed: 4/27/2015

Once you see Diary's handwritten coaster notes for their drinks or its ink black bowl of "fried rocks," you won't likely forget it. Even though it had been years since my last visit to Diary, those images had made a distinct impression on me, which is not easy to do given the cluttered landscape of Taipei's restaurants (and I've had a lot of forgettable meals among them).

I hadn't planned on going to Diary when meeting up with a few new friends-- we had actually planned on meeting at a ramen shop, but it turned out to be closed on Mondays. Luckily, Diary had available seats for us at last minute's notice and I was curious about how Diary was since my last visit years ago. Diary has been doing bistronomy before it was a buzzword in Taipei, serving modern, creative food and drinks in a cozy, industrial space since 2009. Diary is easy to miss along Dong Feng Street since it doesn't have an obvious sign, but there's a lot worth exploring on this street (as well as the nearby Siwei Road).

The handwritten menu is more expansive and polished than I remember, with lots of tempting options for shared plates, like lobster soufflé, crab cakes or roasted spring chicken. We end up ordering a crab meat ravioli, a risotto, the fried rocks and lamb shank to share between three people.

Complimentary smoked rolls of turkey are brought to the table, with smoke dispersing when the glass cover is lifted. (Unfortunately I was too slow with the camera to get the cool part of the action before this shot)

Predictably, I order the mojito (NT$280). As indicated on the handwritten note under the glass, Diary's recipe for a mojito is Havana Club 7 year old rum, mint leaf, brown sugar and fresh lime juice. It's a more serious version of a mojito- not as cloyingly sweet as some other bars and a distinct brown color instead of clear when it's made with sparkling water and white rum.

The Crab Meat Ravioli (NT$320) was a hearty enough portion to share with bite size pieces bathed in cream sauce and black pepper. The ravioli dough is a bit gluey for me (maybe underdone a tad?), but we still clean the plate. I was pleasantly surprised with the portions of all the dishes at Diary that night as I remember the dishes being smaller on my last visit, and I dislike it when restaurants serve only four to five pieces of ravioli in an order, especially when it's not part of a set tasting menu.

Mushroom Risotto (NT$300) also delectable and fragrant with mushroom and cheese flavors.

Paired with the bright yellow saffron mayo, the Fried Rocks (NT$320) is the most striking dish at the table. I couldn't stop eating the crispy, squid ink battered, fried fish, squid and shrimp. Perfect amount of coating and crispiness and the seafood inside was still moist and sweet. Darth Vader of fritto misto. If you try one thing at Diary, you must order this signature dish.

The only other restaurant I had seen do black battered calamari in Taipei was the Spanish tapas restaurant Cocina de Jackie, who took the theme one step further and served it in a faux plant pot with a flower. 

Braised lamb shank with fennel (NT$1380) - I was getting quite full by the time the lamb shank and mashed potatoes came to the table, but it was still a happy addition to our stomaches. Some parts were fork tender, and some parts were a little bit tougher, but again, a good sized portion to share. I might try other dishes next time rather than reorder this again.

Reservations recommended for Diary, as the space and seating is limited. 

snapshot/dessert: MISTER DONUT ICE CREAM

I am a sucker for cuteness. 

When I spotted the bright yellow Mister Donut pon de lion mascot peeking out at me from the freezer ice cream section at 7-11,  I had to give it a try. I mean, it's Mister Donut Ice Cream (NT$55) !! 

Not quite an ice cream sandwich, the Mister Donut ice cream's thin exterior is like a ice cream cup cone meets waffle hybrid shell in texture and taste, with one bite revealing the vanilla ice cream inside. The vanilla is a pleasant flavor, not too artificial tasting or cloying sweet- probably the same level of sweetness as a McDonald's soft serve cone. 

I can imagine it would be a matter of time before you make the same type of ice cream bar but with different molds like they do with the red bean cake at the night markets. 

Reportedly you can also buy them at Mister Donut shops (though the number of Mister Donut shops has shrunk considerably in the last few years.. There's one in Hankyu Mall..) and there's also other flavors like strawberry. Have you guys seen them at 7-11? What other flavors are good? Or what other ice cream treats from 7-11?