Taiwan 2014: Day 3 (Taipei Breeze Centre 微風廣場 - Guang Hua Digital Plaza 光華商場 - Ximending 西门町)

If you missed out any of the previous posts, here are the links:
Day 1 Part 1 (Singapore Changi Airport - Taoyuan International Airport)
Day 1 Part 2: (Yongkang Street 永康街 - Taipei 101 台北101 - Shihlin Night Market 士林夜市)
Day 2 Part 1: (Four Seas Soy Bean King 四海豆漿大王 - Goose Meat Shop 鴨肉扁 - Ximending 西門町)
Day 2 Part 2: (Raohe Night Market 饒河觀光夜市)

Day 3 - A relaxing slow-paced day in Taipei just shopping around the underground area. Electronics shopping at Guang Hua Digital Plaza and some night exploring at Ximending.

Before we got out of the hotel I snapped a few pictures of the lobby area just so you can get a good look! I love this lounge area with cushy seats and sofas that we can rest and relax on.

You can also use the computer in the lounge area to surf the web or check-in online for your airline or any other matters (research for what activities to do?)

The reception counter is just behind the seats in a big and spacious lobby area!

Those green and blue doors are the lifts which you can use to head up to your room, just across the reception and check-in counter. Right at the back of the photo, there is a huge toilet which is clean and for everyone's use in the lobby area and also a pantry where you can warm up food or get some free drinks!

Christmas spirit in the air in Taipei Breeze Center. Sesame Street was the theme in 2014.

Stopped for lunch at a restaurant in the Breeze Centre called 紅豆小館 - this is the Dong Po Braised Meat 东坡肉.

Cured Jellied Pork - served cold and rather refreshing - probably not for the squeamish though!

乾扁四季豆 Fried String Beans - the best dish we had here! Slight crunch and very fragrant.

蝦仁炒飯 Shrimp Fried Rice - not that great although the rice was soft and fluffy.

Sliced Pork Fried Rice

Stir-Fried Rice Cakes with Mustard Greens and Pork - something interesting but very filling.

Scallion Pancakes - meh

Zha Jiang Mian - mehh too.

I'm not sure if this place is still there in the Taipei Breeze Center because last I checked their name was no longer on the directory. They sell Shanghainese food in this restaurant but its so-so, not too great unless you're looking for some restaurant food and every other place is too crowded.

Pick up some snacks like Beard Papa's amazing cream puffs at the first floor!

Now for those of you who didn't know this, Taiwan is a massive tech-land. They are one of the biggest producers of tech stuff and you can get them at amazing prices!

One of the few places you can get stuff is Guang Hua Digital Plaza 光華商場 which is full of tech stuff at amazing prices. If you are Singaporean and you know about Sim Lim Square, this is pretty much what I'm talking about - only that this place is way bigger and full of shops throughout which sell you technology at crazy prices. Since I missed out taking a couple photos, here are some I picked off Google.

光華商場Guanghua Digital Plaza – Consumer Electronics
No.8, Section 3, Civic Blvd, Zhongzheng District, Taipei | 台北市中正區市民大道第3段8號
Telephone: +886-2-2341-2202 | Opening Hours: 10am – 9pm

 

They sell anything from laptop spare parts to modems to phone covers, phones, gaming stuff and tech gadgets. Its a pretty amazing place - about 5 floors of tech awesomeness!
I'd recommend finding out the price of that particular item in your country before you come here just as a precautionary measure to check if it is truly cheaper. Most things are cheaper but some accessories and tech items are at almost the same price in Singapore.
Hungry? There's a food court at the basement - and some yummy bubble tea!

There are two main electronic places in Taipei - Guang Hua Digital Plaza and NOVA Electronics Mall. Honestly, I think there's no need to bother with NOVA because its more expensive and sells very basic stuff like phone accessories/speakers/cameras/laptops. Here's some information about them if you're interested anyway!

NOVA資訊廣場Nova Electronics Mall – Consumer Electronics
No. 2, Guanqian Road, Zhongzheng District, Taipei | 台北市中正區館前路2號
Telephone: +886 2 2381 4833 | Opening Hours: 11am – 10pm

Head to Ximending for an amazing sizzling plate of steak at reasonable prices. I've recommended this place previously on my blog post - Black Tomato Steakhouse 黑蕃茄牛排.

Choose your cut of steak and it comes with pasta, sauce, egg and vegetables like this. There's also a free flow of soup, bread and drinks - and you get to choose one dessert! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

黑蕃茄牛排 Black Tomato Steakhouse
108, Taiwan, Taipei City, Wanhua District | 武昌街二段 29 號
Tel: +886 2 2375 7980 | Opening Hours: 11am-10pm
- Choice of any steak comes with free flow of drinks, soup, bread, coffee, tea and 1 dessert cup.

The bustling crowds of Ximending even at night!

Cute doggy modelling for doggy suits

This concluded a relaxing and slow-paced day exploring Taipei and doing some shopping for not only the ladies but also the tech geeks!

Stay tuned to the next post where we explore Jiufen, Shifen, and Jing Tong Mining Town followed by more shopping and eating at Raohe Night Market!


Till then,

Fly Safe and Eat Happy,
V

Taiwan 2014: Day 2 Part 2 (Raohe Night Market 饒河觀光夜市)

Hey there fellow internet people - welcome to Day 2 Part 2 where we now travel down to Raohe Night Market - the avenue of amazing street food packed into a two-laned street of awesomeness.

If you missed out my earlier posts and just caught on, here are the links:
Taiwan 2014: Day 1 Part 1 (Changi International Airport - Taoyuan International Airport)
Taiwan 2014: Day 1 Part 2 (Yongkang Street - Taipei 101 - Shihlin Night Market)
Taiwan 2014: Day 2 Part 1 (Four Seas Soy Milk - Goose Meat Shop - Ximending)

Just thought that I'd split them up so you wouldn't be overwhelmed with too many photos in one post and I'll include some of the photos from my previous trip in June 2014 just so you know what amazing stalls you're in for when you get there.

This temple is one of the iconic landmarks for you to recognise Raohe Night Market because it is situated at one of the entrances. Good news for any of you who have not been there in a while - there is now a new subway station right outside Raohe Night Market - basically the right side of this photo is the entrance to the subway.

If you used to take the train (railway) to Raohe Night Market by alighting at 松山火車站 Songshan Train Station, they have now built a 捷運松山站 Songshan MRT Station much closer to Raohe itself. Don't get confused between them both!
From Taipei Main Station, take the train to Zhongshan Station (or walk) and then transfer to the Songshan MRT Line to board the MRT to Songshan MRT Station.


At the front of Raohe Night Market, you will usually meet a long line of people getting the famous Charcoal Oven Pepper Pork Buns 胡椒餅. 

The long queue that I met when I was queueing for pepper buns in June 2014! Didn't get any photos this trip because I split up with the family to make buying street food more efficient.

Photo from Tripadvisor: The famous Fuzhou Pepper Biscuits. Look at how thin the skin of this bun is - fantastic. The meat is also packed full of yummy juices and absolutely tasty.

My Verdict? Since the queue clears really quickly for this stall, I do recommend you queuing up to try one. There is no discount for buying more, so if you want to save some of that tummy space, simply buy 1 or 2 before hopping over to the next yummy street food stall. With its juicy meat buns and thin biscuit/bun skin, this stall is highly recommended.


福州世祖胡椒饼  Fuzhou Ancestor Black Pepper Buns
台北市饒河街249號前 | 249 Raohe Street, Taipei
(within Raohe Street Night Market, near the entrance with Chinese temple)
Opening Hours: Daily 15:00 to 24:00

*As you can see, i wrote down "near the entrance with the Chinese temple", shown two photos above. There are 2 entrances to Raohe Street Night Market and the one that I've been guiding you to is this same entrance. 

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Next up: Grilled Hotate!

 
Check out my video of the grilling in action! The guy working here is really friendly and he makes really yummy hotate - my favourite is the seaweed flavour. That is amazing - the special set of 4 has a variety of 4 flavours but not all of them taste that complementary to the grilled hotate.

 My verdict? Not too bad and worth a try - something different to try other than your regular street food finds. Always consistent in terms of quality.

No address - but a couple stalls further down from the Pepper Buns!

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Following Stop: Tamago =)

This is how well this stall has been doing.

When I went to Raohe Night Market 饒河夜市 in June 2014, this stall looked like this:

When I went back to Raohe Night Market in December 2014, the stall had moved further down the lane to be at the corner of an alley and got upgraded from a tiny stall to a pretty big L-shaped store to accommodate their long queues and never-ending line of customers:

A really large storefront with clear signs and cute fortune cats with extremely friendly staff! We went back two days later and the lady recognised us teehee - we must have greedy faces!

My all-time favourite: Lobster Salad Tamago - creamy and amazingggg =)

My brother's order of Tobiko Tamago or Fish Roe Tamago - both our orders are the most expensive of the lot but they are truly amazing. The price difference as compared to the other choices they have is not that great so we felt it would be worth our money just getting these expensive ones.

My verdict? A must for all eggy-lovers. The tamago (omelette) is smooth, firm and yet soft. The corn and cheese inside the egg provide a nice texture and bite to the smoothness of the egg. The creamy lobster salad on top shows that they don't scrimp on good stuff (there were plenty of "lobster pieces" in my lobster salad and the added bonito flakes gave the dish that wonderful Japanese flavour. The tobiko provided a lovely different texture and dimension of taste to the soft and creamy tamago.
TWO THUMBS UP - HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

爆漿玉子燒 Tamago Stall
No. 153 Raohe Street, Taipei | 台北市松山區饒河街153號
Opening Hours: 5pm-12.30am (Weekdays), 5pm-1.30am (Weekends)

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We were such lazy people that we went for feet massages on Day 2!

Great massage with relaxed feet!

Pretty doggy sleeping outside the massage palour

Cute toy poodle I recognised from my trip in June who belongs to an elderly man who sells socks and stockings. This dog sits quietly at the stall and is so adorable!

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My sister found this stall that makes customised hand-painted shoes. They already have some cute prints on them but the stall's painter can paint on any extra initials or cartoons you might want. Just pick a shoe with a suitable colour, design and size for yourself and hand it to the store owner - who will ask you if you want any extra customised paintings on it.

Each shoe has a fixed price of NTD690 and is unique. According to the stall owner, the shoes can be washed and scrubbed without any of the colours or paintings coming of. If you want any additional customisations, you can just inform them of what you want (they will ask you to write or draw it out) and they will ask you to go take a walk around the night market while they get that done for you so that it can dry properly.

The shoe designs are really adorable and cute - it is quite amazing to see the artist at work too! The shoe prices may be a little steep for cloth shoes but perhaps you could consider that they go towards the artist's hard work!

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The Takoyaki stall at Raohe Night Market is famous.
Takoyaki is a ball-shaped Japanese snack made of a wheat flour-based batter and pan-fried in a special takoyaki pan which allows them to be formed into a perfect round ball. It is typically filled with minced or diced octopus, tempura scraps, pickled ginger, and green onion and topped with takoyaki sauce, mayonnaise and bonito flakes.

日船章鱼烧 Takoyaki Stall
In front of No. 182 Raohe Street, Taipei | 台北市松山區饒河街182號前
- NTD40 for one serving

Making balls and balls of Takoyaki - each box costs NTD40 and is piping hot and delicious!

This was a splendid street snack that we took back to the hotel for some feasting in the lobby and debrief of the next day's activities.

We found this stall on our way home. Quail eggs with prawn pieces inside, and you get to choose your toppings and sauce. So simple but so amazing - better than the Takoyaki I would say. This stall is somewhere opposite the tamago stall. This is a mayonnaise or salad topping.

This particular one was a nacho cheese topping - YUM!

It was a great night of feasting and delighting in tantalising flavours of street food. We went to bed with happy, satisfied tummies. Make sure you leave in time to catch the last train or 2nd last train depending on where your accommodation is at because its easy to get carried away with so much eating. Catching a cab is fine but just in case you wanna save a couple bucks remember that the latest you can leave is 11.30pm.

Let me know if you have any questions or queries!

To end of, here's a summary video of our trip on Day 1 and 2:

Till then,

Fly Safe and Eat Happy,
V