Yeah, and if that Missouri city keeping it alive was newsworthy as suggested by @lostinasia’s article, it looks like the rest of America was trying to kill it.
Taiwan, on the other hand, apparently said “That looks nice!”
I thought everyone was trying to be different by doing the same thing
Has anyone here tried the PB burger?
I think I had one once, long ago, at KGB? Nothing wrong with it, but I’m a boring traditionalist for burgers: barbecue sauce, cheese, bacon, ideally onion rings, but good onion rings are hard to come by here.
Hmm, and thinking of onion rings makes me miss A&W.
EDIT:
I did a little bit of googling about this, and “peanut butter on burgers?!” seems like the 2020s version of the 1980s (?) “pineapple on pizza?!” Plenty of surprisingly recent articles or posts about it as if it’s new and exciting, and lots of others “Ho hum, whatever.”
In Canada they have poutine
Thailand had A&W, at gas stations mostly, that’d be another good one. They did root beer floats as well
I imagine it started that way. “Hey, look at us, we’re so crazy, we put peanut butter on our hamburgers!” Now it seems to have reached the point of, “Yeah, of course we put peanut butter on our burgers. Duh. It’s only natural, just like peas and mayo on pizza. Would you like a side of chicken feet or pig intestine with that?”
So many better ways to add more protein and fat to your burger, if that’s your goal. Cheese, a second patty, bacon, etc.
Indeed! But the A&W near my parents’ place is also near a New York Fries, so if I want onion rings, it’s A&W, and poutine is at New York Fries.
Setting specific chains aside, poutine’s a dish that I wish became more common here. There’s The Poutinerie near Gongguan, but their hours rarely suit mine.
Yeah, I usually drink a can or two when I go back, though last time I found it way too sugary (I guess that’s a good sign, because it means I’m consuming less sugar here). You can sometimes get it in the ASEAN stores here as well.
Yeah, that place is hit and miss. If you’re ever down south there’s Yale, among other places, in Kaohsiung. For some reason it seems half or more of the western bars/restaurants in that city are run by Canadians, so you get more of those kinds of staples down there.
At the restaurant in the Thai gas station I’m thinking of they had it on tap, with a fancy tap up front at a bar counter. Classic
I believe they’re referring to the burger chain, which is yet another one that exists all over Asia and not in Taiwan (but maybe used to be in Taiwan?). The root beer is available at western import stores in Taipei, also, I believe, like Dr. Pepper. Now if we could get some Cherry Coke Zero. Mmmm.
A&W root beer is often available in City Super (maybe Mia C’bon too?). It’s an OK occasional sugary, um, not luxury, treat? Sure, barely. I value the adjacent Canada Dry ginger ale more highly.
Yaletown also has odd hours, but the poutine is acceptable and the smoked meat is divine
Lighthouse and Foster Hewitt’s are Canadian owned and run as well, but I didn’t care for the poutine in either place. Anywhere else? Should we have a poutine of Taiwan thread?
Ah okay, my mistake. I’m not sure I’ve been there (maybe once somewhere in Malaysia).
We’ve got typical Taipei-centric ones:
And a specific thread about Whalen’s, which I believe served the best poutine I’ve had here. The thread ends in 2017 with them discussion of a new location:
Ah, of course. Maybe that dude who did the Kaohsiung burger thread can do another one. Kind of a wanker though, that guy…
it’s me, I’m that guy
That’s the one thing that kinda bothers me too… But then again, I chose to move to Boise, ID, far from all the SoCal regional stuff, so I’d have to get used to missing out on it even in the US…
- Tommy’s (bring on the freakin’ chili!!! If I’m not having acid reflux that night I’m not alive!)
- The Hat’s Pastrami Dip (Gandolfo’s in Meridian scratches an itch, but not as satisfying… Wonder how Liquid Bread in Da’An is, now that we’re on the topic)
- The Habit (although they are expanding; I’m actually friends with an ambassador that oversaw the expansion to Cambodia. Yes, Cambodia; I’m shocked they haven’t expanded to Taiwan too, but have 3(!!) stores in Phnom Penh! Make it make sense!)
- King Taco (sure, I can name 2 food trucks and 3 restaurants that have better Mexican food, but it’s a chain for the sake of this thread)
- Then also although they have a presence in the Boise area now but also worth considering for Taiwan:
- Carl’s Jr. (Western Bacon)
- Jack in the Box (Bacon Ultimate)
- Culver’s (My favorite in the Midwest)
Funny you said that; I knew the guy that helped get Quiznos into Taiwan (guy named Duane/Dwayne?), but even he said it was a tough sell while the US stores were crumbling. Kind of a pity since I LOVED their French Dip; it was better made than a lot of standard restaurants, even if the au jus was from concentrate. Speaking of French Dip, that’s what Taiwan needs too! I tried looking just now and can’t find anywhere in Taipei that serves it (and of course Google has to freaking conflate it with French Toast so I’m having to spend 30-60 seconds looking at the menu, then being disappointed with every result)!
Many locals believe (and insist) that Starbucks is fairtrade coffee store hence it is expensive.
Gordon Biersch used to have quite good French Dip / Beef Dip sliders - my favorite thing on their menu. Then it became GBA and the quality went down across the board, catastrophically so for the beef dip. Now I can’t find it at all on their menu, but maybe it’s hiding somewhere.
I don’t recall having it anywhere else in Taipei. A pity, because it’s one of my favorite meals. At least Liquid Bread and Woolloomooloo have Reuben sandwiches. Banh mi used to be somewhat difficult to find, but is now basically everywhere.
Edit: And Lee’s (banh mi) Sandwiches is another chain that tried to make it here, had big lines for a few months, then left.
Interesting. I hadn’t heard that one before. I thought they got away with the high prices because they are viewed as a luxury brand in Asia, somehow— like an Instagram accessory or status symbol. “Look at me with my coffee that cost roughly my hourly wage. Never mind that there’s better coffee at a lower price down the street.” Sort of ironic since it is basically the McDonald’s of coffee. I didn’t know they were working the free trade angle.
The easy availability of banh mi in Taipei is one of the few culinary highlights here for me. Love it. I mean, they’re not as good as in Vietnam, and they cost 3-4 times as much, but for sandwiches in Taiwan they’re pretty damned good, and cheaper than in the west.
In my experience every “Reuben” I’ve seen in Taiwan is made with pastrami instead of corned beef, which makes it not a Reuben at all, but still pretty tasty if done right. That’s another thing Yaletown in Kaohsiung does well.
Edit: Okay, upon looking it up, I see that there is something called a “Montreal Rueben” that uses Montreal smoked meat, which is basically pastrami, instead of corned beef. I guess that explains why all the Canadian-owned places in Taiwan make Ruebens with pastrami. Actual corned beef Reuben is one of those things I always try to get at least once every time I’m back in the US because I can never find them here. Other things on the list for me are good Mexican food, BBQ, Italian beef, and hot dogs.