taiwanese/event: TAIPEI INTERNATIONAL BEEF NOODLE FESTIVAL 2011

2011 TAIPEI INTERNATIONAL BEEF NOODLE SOUP FESTIVAL 
EXPO DOME, EXPO PARK
No. 1, Yumen Street
台北市玉門街1號

MRT: Yuanshan

website: tbnf.tw (official site has English but hasn't been updated since 2005)

A bowl of beef noodle soup is like the chicken noodle soup of Taiwan- a bowl of comfort, one of the must eats if you visit Taiwan, and one of the top things missed once you leave.

It's almost that time of year again, so I thought I'd pull out my photos from last year's 7th Annual Taipei Beef Noodle Festival and post them up to prep us for this year. If it isn't on your calendar, then save the date now, as it usually happens every fall (and hopefully the details will pop up soon!). A few years ago, I caught the festival in front of Taipei City Hall, but last year they moved it to the Expo Dome near the Yuanshan MRT. The Expo park might look familiar to those of you who caught the Flora Expo there.

Follow the golden signed road.

If I could offer a few friendly pieces of advices to the organizers, it would be (1) If you are going to romanize the Chinese for the event, then please use "niu rou mian" and not "new row mian." I know that it's probably too late ("new row" is now even in Wikipedia for beef noodle soup), but when I saw it last year, I was confused. Heck, if you are going to try to make foreigners try to pronounce it correctly, it would be closer to "neo" than "new." Or at least capitalize the "r" in Row if you are going to separate the words. Anyways, probably not going to happen, but I had to get that off my chest. 

But maybe they can hear me out about my next point. (2) All the pamphlets and information at the event are in Chinese. There's a handy booklet with all the beef noodle shops at the event, and their addresses to visit after the event, but it's ALL in Chinese, and no separate English information whatsoever. If Taipei wants to become a top international foodie city, or have tourists flocking from around the world to come sample bowls of beef noodles, then they are going to have to do the homework and help us out by printing up some English. I (of all people) know that it's a tedious task, but it would make a world of difference. And the demand is there-- I know because the readership for the blog has grown so much and that's because of the lack of information in English out there about Taipei destinations, and not the lack of love for Taiwanese food. If you need an English consultant, let me know!

At the entrance, there's a small entrance fee and the inside is split into two sections- one is various vendors selling foods to eat or take home, like Taiwanese sausages and the other (more crowded) side is where all the beefy, soupy goodness is.

Be prepared to wait in line and to take some time to find seating. If you've ever been to an Asian food court on a busy weekend day, you know what I mean. Even though the seating was more than in previous years, it still wasn't enough. Bring some friends and tag team. Have one save seats and switch off browsing for beef noodles.

Over 30 vendors bring their best to create a one stop shop for beef noodles lovers and sell small bowls for NT$50 each to sample and slurp. Besides being a food carnival for the past seven years, there's also a competition for the official title of Taipei's Best Beef Noodle Soup. There's different categories to compete for- best traditional spicy braised, best clear broth, and most creative. Last year's winner for best hong sou or red brothed niu rou mian ended up being first time participant Chef Hou Chun-sheng whose bowl can be tasted at Room 18 beat out 200 competitors. I didn't get to try it last year, but maybe I'll look for it this year.

I was a bit impatient, so I opted for booths with the shortest lines. I figured that I could always try the champions on another date and I didn't want to wait in long long lines for lunch. Others might have a different approach, only wanting to wait for the best.

I didn't do a great job remembering which noodles were from which booth since everything was in Chinese, but I'll try to take notes this year.

Lots of food being prepped on the fly, like tripe and tendon to eat as a side dish or in the noodle soup.

I waited in line for some beef rolls, but I probably would skip it next year. There was barely any beef in the roll, filled with mostly lettuce, and I've had better at the food courts.

Working as fast as possible for the hungry people in line.

Where's the beef? Hehe.

A good bowl of beef noodle soup should have equally delicious sum of its parts- the broth, the noodles, the beef and the flavors all play a role. If you've never had knife shaved noodles, where the chef sends slivers of dough flying into the boiling pot, you must give it a try. This was probably my favorite bowl of the bunch I tried that day.

My last bowl was also chosen because there was no wait, but definitely not a traditional bowl. It had udon noodles and kimchi and thin slices of beef. Probably most like something I could make at home, but maybe this year I'll have to wait in line for some of the previous winners.

japanese/tsukemen: MITA SEIMENJO

MITA SEIMENJO 三田つけ麺阪急台北店

at Hankyu Mall 

No. 8, Zhongxiao E. Rd, Sec. 5, B2

台北市信義區忠孝東路5段8號, B2

(02) 2729-9699

MRT: Taipei City Hall 

hours: 11AM -  9:30PM

$$ (NT$240-400/person) cash only

Kid friendliness: no high chairs available, no room for strollers, may be a long wait in line.

Visit reviewed: 10/22/2012

Taipei diners love to wait in line. Or maybe they love food so much that they are willing to wait in line for it, no matter how long. The first time I passed by Mita Seimenjo (aka the tsukemen place) was after lunch at Smith and Hsu upstairs and there wasn't really a line since it was already late afternoon. But I was curious since I had become addicted to tsukemen in LA at Tsujita and I made mental note to return. 

The first time I tried to eat at the Taipei  branch of the Japanese tsukemen chain, I made a last minute lunch date with a friend and started waiting in the line. She hadn't arrived by the time I got to the front of the line and I was promptly informed that I couldn't be seated until everyone in my party arrived. It was annoying seeing people pass me by, at least 4 groups or so, while I was waiting at the front. Once my friend arrived, they still didn't seat us at the open seats since the kitchen was so slammed. Since I was in a bit of a time crunch that day, we ended up eating next door at the roomier Azabu Sabo.

So the next week, of course, I had to return. I went with a different friend a little before noon and the line took about 10-15 minutes to get us inside. Mita Seimenjo's interior is a bit cramped, with small tables and booths surrounding a large table in the center that serves well for solo diners. Printed on the back of the shirts on the waitresses rushing around is "Tokyo Mita, Japanese soul food, serving tsukemen since 2008." 

While waiting in line, we discovered that the price was the same for a small, medium or large bowl of tsukemen (NT$230). Only the extra large bowl cost extra (NT$270). Or you could get a regular ramen if that's what you were craving.

And what the heck is tsukemen? Literally, it's dipping noodles.  A dish where you dip the noodle into the broth, instead of the noodle and broth being served together like ramen.

Tsukemen's broth is typically thicker and heavier from being boiled down longer, so that the sauce sticks to the noodles, and has both a fish and pork flavor. If you want to drink the broth, you can pour hot water into it to dilute it and drink it that way. At Mita Seimenjo you can order the noodles either hot or cold. We decided on cold since the waitress said that's how people typically order it in Japan.

The fried chicken (NT$120) arrives first and it ends up being my favorite dish of the day. Crispy, burning hot at first bite, juicy karaage.

The spicy tsukemen (NT$240) arrives not too long afterwards, and to my disappointment the pork and egg are also cold. The egg is also a regular hard boiled egg, not gooey like the soft boiled egg I've favored elsewhere.  

I guess you could warm it up in the broth, but the broth is hot, but not steaming hot. I also ended up ordering the spicy version which was a tad too spicy for me and overpowered the flavors of the rest of the bowl. 

The noodles are also thicker than regular ramen, like a fat spaghetti. It's very chewy, but the medium bowl was quite filling.

The gyoza (NT$70) were alright, stick to getting crispier guo tie elsewhere.

All in all, I was slightly disappointed. It definitely didn't live up to the flavors from Tsujita and it definitely wasn't worth waiting in a long line for (twice!). Maybe I would have been more dazzled by it if I hadn't tried Tsujita first?

If you still want to give it a try, I'd suggest avoiding peak times (go before 11:30AM or after 1:30PM, and don't go with too large of a group, and of course make sure everyone is there when you get to the front of the line). My noodle/broth/eggy egg craving was left so unfulfilled that I ended up trying Ippudo the day afterwards. Do you get the tsukemen craze or do you prefer the standard bowl of ramen?

western/drinks: i recommend LOVE LOVELY

LOVE LOVELY 美好生活古董行
No. 3, Lane 345, Alley 4, RenAi Rd., Sec. 4
台北市仁愛路4段345巷4弄3號
(02) 2771-3800

MRT: Zhongxiao/Dunhua

website: Love Lovely's FB page

hours: 12PM - 10PM

$$ (about NT$300-600/person)

Kid friendliness: high chairs and kids meals available

Visit reviewed: 6/19/2012 & 9/7/2012



Part Alice in Wonderland, part vintage shop, part cafe makes up the whole of Love Lovely, another new cafe making its mark in Taipei's East District.



Opened earlier this summer, Love Lovely's lovely decor has already landed it on a new book about, what else, Taipei cafes. I was invited to check it out by my friend before they soft opened, but the menu has since been revamped, so I'll be writing about my most recent visit.

The store section of Love Lovely serves as a living room counterpart to the restaurant's roomy dining area, with a large white bookcase and long tables filled with treasures to Instagram about. All of the items are handpicked by the owner and brought over from Europe. There are no price tags or obvious way of knowing that things are for sale, so if something catches your eye, just ask (though some pieces are actually just for decor as part of the owner's collection and not for sale).

The vintage pieces feel quite classic and modern, or is it that what's old becomes new again? Love Lovely's vibe is more Anthropologie than Antique Roadshow. I haven't really seen the hybrid shop/cafe model in the states, but in Taipei, the eclectic VVG restaurants and Whiple House come to mind.

Lots of charm in the small detail in everything, from the menus covered with vintage newspaper articles to the napkins and letterpress paper coasters bearing the hand drawn illustrations that seemed to have escaped a tea party from Lewis Carroll.

The English and Chinese menu features mostly Western fare, with salads, pastas, chef specials and desserts. Lunch and dinner sets are available, that include choice of sparkling water, glass of red or white wine, coffee or tea with an additional NT$70.

There's also Little Princess Mermaid or Little Price Ranger meals for the kids (with the sets costing more than the adult fare. Haha!)

The Dutch baby definitely caught my eye and I made sure to order the oven pancake with carmelized apple before my meal was over.

I had to start off with the truffle fries (NT$180) which I devoured on my first visit.

I wanted to try the quiche, but it had unfortunately been reserved by another big group to serve the whole pie with a candle atop instead of birthday cake, so I had to pick something else. The Nicoise salad (NT$230) had big chunks of potato, hardboiled eggs, and sprinklings of tuna, olives and baby corn.

The set menus came with a cup of soup- it was a broth of something or another.

I really enjoyed the black and white fried calamari (NT$210), which had some pieces breaded in squid ink batter to give an eye catching appearance. The serving basket for this and the truffle fries are fun.

We all also talked ourselves into getting the Frozen coconut mojito, which was inspired by the signature drink from The Modern Honolulu hotel. I had no idea what it was until it arrived to the table, but food je t'aime was quite excited, having had the real thing before in Hawaii.

Coconut rum + lime juice + fresh mint + ice = mojito smoothie- Now this is definitely the way to have a lunch.

I wasn't as crazy about the sauteed mushrooms and shrimp (NT$150) as I was about the other appetizers.

Bolognese Tomato Meat Sauce Spaghetti (NT$280/set)

My cousin is a VIP customer at Love Lovely, so she was able to talk them into making her favorite dish from the dinner menu, the shortrib steak for us. I would definitely order this again, it was nicely grilled and tender with that shortrib chewiness.

Before we were done eating, I wanted to make sure to order the dessert so we weren't waiting too long while it was baking and made to order. The oven pancake with apples is definitely a must try and is quite large. It probably can be shared with at least 4-6 people- we had three and barely made a dent. The pancake was fluffy and slightly crispy on the edges and is basically a dessert yorkshire pudding (if you've had that at Lawry's). It's more eggy than sweet and tastes more like a fluffy cream puff shell than an American pancake, and serves as a crust to the carmelized apples. I'd definitely order this again, and add a scoop of vanilla ice cream next time.

I think I'm going to have to try making this at home sometime.

So whether you're browsing for random pieces from Paris to put on your bookshelf or a place to linger for afternoon tea (for scones, cupcakes, whoopie pies or tea), wander over to the alley near Lane 216/Yanji St to find Love Lovely.