Discount for Forumosans:
until Monday Sept. the 15th we’re slashing NT$20 off any order of potato wedges that accompanies one of our sandwiches. To qualify, just say you’re from “Forumosa”.
Ex: Masala Curry Pita with regular order of potato wedges = NT$85
Ex: Salsa & Lemon Burrito with regular order of potato wedges = NT$99
We’ve sped up the process over there, but if you want to order in advance to save time, by all means feel free to call Clara at 0921-779-279. Orders above NT$300 enjoy free delivery (no tip required either).
By the way, we have a new cafe-style table and a couple of chairs out front for those not enamored of the bar-stool arrangement installed by our neighbors.
Finally, I’d like to thank everyone for the kind comments above.
I went there with a friend the other night and took advantage of the cooperation with the tea stand in front; it was very nice, a good combination. The staff remembered how they messed up my order last time and took pains to get it right this time. We sat at the one table near the street, good atmosphere, though there’s nothing you can do if the wiff of sewage comes around once in a while I guess.
A couple of weeks ago, the wife mentioned an ex-pat order that got messed up (and the trial of getting the responsible helpmeet to accept any fault). Glad they got the order right for you this time around. As to the sewage, the table being right up against the alley makes solutions problematic. But I’ll make an effort tomorrow to cover up both of the offending city drains out there.
Smell of sewage… an unfortunate reality in Taiwan! Last two times I ate at Burger King, I was assaulted by the smell of sewage in the dining area! And these were two different restaurants!
I’m definitely planning on stopping by at Biff’s this week for some tasty grub and some gab with the fine staff.
a) We’ve added a couple more options to our burrito list. Our new bacon, chicken & cheese burrito (NT$99) has proven an instant favorite. Another option is made-to-order burritos (NT$109): with these you can have the staff slap anything inside. Curry, fried chicken, bacon & cheese w/ cilantro in addition to the regular fillings (refried beans, etc.) is a combo I like for example.
b) We’ve got a new french fry: batter-dipped crispy. Quick-fried, they’re scrumptious at NT$39. Myself, I prefer them to our potato wedges, but we stock both.
c) Our pita sandwiches are now made with a different pita-bread, one that’s hand-made, not frozen, and has a distinctively rich whole-wheat aroma and more body when you sink your teeth into it. A step upward in the munching experience.
c) We’ve installed new tables and chairs (in a decent wood-stain) allowing us to seat up to ten people. So feel free to stay a while or bring friends.
Nah, walked past just the other day. They’re kinda hidden away behind the tea-in-a-bag shop now though and somehow there’s also a small clothes stand in the same space with the two of them and the nail shop… :loco:
At least I think they’re still in business, as I saw the sign and what looked like their small stall, although the seating seems to be gone now.
Still in business…it’s just farther back in the same space. I was there yesterday.
The tables and seats are also farther in the back, in front of the salon. It’s rather crowded space, but the new arrangement makes the rent less burdensome.
Weird…I walked by that space 3 times looking for the big English sign that used to be out front but didn’t see it. This would have been around 5:30 on Sunday night, so they should have been open.
I don’t know what the deal is with their sign. There’s a huge banner there for some other business that obscures all the other signs.
Also, the last couple times I went there, there was a group of people standing by the pulled tea stall, blocking the entry into that area. Anyway, Biff’s is right behind the pulled tea stall.
I’ll talk to them tomorrow about it. It really isn’t very visible from the street.
Glad to know it’s still open.
It’s fantastic value and food but has always seemed woefully empty whenever I went.
They definitely have to get up better signs and increase their visibility.
I’ll be back now that I know it’s still hiding back there.
We’re still open, but we close on the 21st of this month. Then we’re done. We don’t have plans at the moment to re-open elsewhere. The biz was essentially a make-work project for my wife. She’s going to try her hand at moving clothes next.
In retrospect, we probably should have opened a restaurant. Beyond that, Alley 49 where we are, is a death-trap for fast food operations. Family restaurants and clothes do fine. But every other sort of operation loses its shirt. For example, there’s a fast-food place selling a spicy chicken dish at the top of the alley, next to the Shi-Ta Rd. entrance, which used to move 600 orders a day when they were located on busy Long Chuan St. Since moving to our alley a few months ago, their business has shrunk, slowly but surely, and in the end, dramatically. They’re currently down to averaging 150 orders a day. And I don’t think they’ve bottomed out. So they’re leaving too. The smartest fast-food owner was someone who rented space near us for two weeks. That was enough for him. He didn’t like the results and packed up… ha… We should have done something similar. So it goes.
Running a business was an interesting experiment. Business is the grim reaper of great ideas. Unlike politics, where a smart-mouth can sell his or her own party on just about anything and partisan autobiographers and historians rewrite history in their party’s image confirming the soundness of superficially persuasive, but fundamentally imbecilic slogans and a-historical received truths. In business, hifalutin ideas are as likely to fail as brutishly simple-minded ideas are likely to succeed. Not because business is simple or brutish; it’s neither, but because Occam’s Razor applies in spades. And nothing trumps experience. Not hope, faith, or vanity. So it goes.
It was also a great window for viewing the local community. Revived my faith. Everyone’s been great. Highly supportive. Mutually assisting. Except for the blowouts and meltdowns of a nearby noodle guy. The wife’s had to call the cops on him several times. He even gets violently jealous when he sees or hears other people having a good time. And I never saw any cut-throat capitalism. No mafia. The only shakedowns came from real-estate agents who were so amateurish that their top pressure tactic was phone calls consisting of nothing but heavy-breathing.
Anyway, thanks for the patronage. Again, we’re open through the 20th.
Oh no! That sucks… I loved the vegetarian burritos and pitas, they were my favourite food in the Shida Night Market.
Thanks anyway to you and your wife for giving it a go and for giving us more yummy food options.
Noooo!!!
Say it ain’t so…
I’m sorry I haven’t been a better customer, I love your food, but I’m having a hard time convincing my GF to let me eat there, as she always wants something local…
Please share your secret recipes with us here at Forumosa at least, as I have no idea how you make those great marinades and sauces.
I’ll be sure to come by once more before you close.
