Vigor Kobo, Taipei…Prepare to be amazed by your pastry prowess

If you’ve ever wandered around Taipei, the delectable filled pineapple cakes have surely caught your eye. Luckily, Vigor Kobo offer a pineapple cake workshop designed for beginners where they will guide you through the pineapple-making process from start to finish.

The teaching style is informative and fun – the lessons are ‘hands on’! You’ll get to take your practice pineapple cake home.

I’ve become a pineapple cake baking expert. Or at least I certainly want to be. This is the true truth as I say it as it is…

Shi Li Fang, Singapore….profoundly awful

An executive summary: it’s pricey and the food isn’t even that great— likened to “corporate catering,” it’s merely expensive food without a narrative.

Shi Li Fang is a Taiwanese steamboat joint which is misleading with hidden costs, serves mediocre food and service that sucks. Be wary. Be very wary.

I ultimately concluded that “you probably shouldn’t eat at this place.” This is the true truth as I say it as it is…

Smoothie House, Taipei…it tastes like eating clouds

CNN named it one of the top 10 desserts in the world. Taiwanese snow shaved ice (or snow cream) has definitely made a mark on the dessert scene.

Snow ice is made by freezing a block of flavored, sweet milk (as opposed to just a block of ice) and shaving it down into flaky ribbons of layered snow. The ice is fine and fluffy as rabbit down —neither too crunchy, nor too dense and wet—and blend seamlessly into the toppings. Think of it as an ice sundae.

If you go for the trinity of mango, strawberry and kiwi, you’re in for an intensely fresh treat. And the all-mango one = greatness.

This is not food for wimps. Bring a friend or three to share. You’ll thank me. This is the true truth as I say it as it is…

Lai Lai Dow Jang, Taipei…Small eats, and a lot of them, are the big thing here

Venture into Lai Lai Dow Jang and first-timers like me will undoubtedly be intimidated. Here you will find a huge variety of street foods, snacks that are both sweet and savory. Expect to stare at foods you’ve NEVER seen before and be prepared to be pleasantly surprised.

I played it safe and opted for freshly made hot soymilk, you tiao along with an egg pancake.Those with no language skills like me, simply stand in front of the stall, point to what you want and use your digits to say how many.

Here you can overcome your fear and try as many new Taiwanese foods as possible. I’m not saying you will like every dish. But I can guarantee that you will have some surprises and you might crave for some snacks when you’re back home. This is the true truth as I say it as it is…

 

Taoyuan Village, Shanghai…unlikely to become my favorite restaurant, but it’s perfectly decent

Delicious Food Duos of All Time are such greats as bacon & eggs, burgers & fries, ham & cheese, honey & lemon, butter & corn, pancakes & maple syrup. Add the most popular Taiwanese breakfast – doujiang (Soy bean milk) & Youtiao (Chinese fried dough or twisted crullers) to that list.

This Taiwanese canteen-style restaurant’s décor is very pleasant aesthetically, with lots of wood and open space. They make a mean you tiao served up freshly made from the kitchen. The rice rolls were pretty good, tasting like a Japanese sushi roll without the seaweed, and wrapped with sticky rice, deep-fried batter, egg, braised pork, and preserved radish. It also doesn’t make it easier that the menu is written in Chinese characters and the service staff doesn’t speak Engish, so have your Google Translate app ready.

It’s unlikely to become my favorite restaurant, but Taoyuan Village is perfectly decent. This is the true truth as I say it as it is…