Hamburgers and Hotdogs in Taiwan

Hi Everyone,

I’m thinking of opening a hamburger and hotdog place in Taichung.

My question is: are hamburgers and hotdogs popular in Taiwan? Do you or your friends wish there are better hamburger and hot dog options in Taiwan?

I understand you guys already have McDonalds over there but IMO McDonalds is disgusting.

I guess I’m trying to gauge the demand for hamburgers and hotdogs.

A little about me: I’m a Taiwanese American, came to the States when I was 2 years old, now I’m 36. Looking for new opportunities.

Thanks in advance for any responses.

Hamburgers are popular. It’s so hard to find a good one, although most locals don’t know a good burger, for example cali burger here in Taipei. It’s absolute garbage but people love it, it’s also a complete copy of in n out which makes it even worst for me. The menu, cups, trays and names of things look like in n out burgers but it taste like cardboard. I thought they would close right away but locals seems to think it’s good. Burger ray’s is the best, not just by Taiwan’s standards but it’s just overall good.

Hotdogs I don’t think will do so well. Most people will opt to eat a 711 hotdog. Don’t compete with 711 items that are cheap and common. I don’t think you can win there.

imo burgers are one of the western foods that taiwanese do well. i’m usually happy with what i’ve had. pasta and pizza? hell no. but the burgers are usually pretty good imo. i’m not american though, so i actually don’t know what a real burger is or how it should taste. i’m in taipei too, no idea how it is down in taichung.

On the other hand burger places are a dime a dozen now (though not sure about Taichung. If it hasn’t hit there yet, probably a good idea.) And people are familiar with hot dogs. If the quality and variations etc were there, some Americana maybe, it could be an interesting idea.

I just don’t think I would go to a place for hotdogs. Plus you would have to compete with Taiwanese sausages on the street.

I don’t know, I would go to Nathan’s or something for a hotdog back home, every city seems to have its popular hotdog joint with various toppings etc. Not sure about the Taiwanese sausages, you may as well say hamburgers would have to compete with guabao.

Five years ago I wouldn’t have said hamburger places would catch on like they have.

Thanks for the feed back guys. Yeah I think I would open it in Taichung-- my hometown. Is beef used on the patties or is it pork? I’ve been told beef is more expensive in Taiwan.

You are considering opening a business selling hamburgers and hot dogs and are asking if beef or pork is used!!! Wow…one would think a hamburger joint owner would have that question ticked off the list by now.

Beef, of course!

Pork is less expensive, but local beef or even some imported beef is not all that expensive.

A hot dog shop will fail. A burger joint that does burgers well and adds hot dogs to the menu might do ok. Burger joints are a dime a dozen in the North. Most Taiwanese go to 7-11 for a hot dog or Costco. They are big sausage eaters not hot dogs. German bratwurst might do well. Most Taiwanese will opt for a sausage or hot dog without the bun. Keep that in mind.

Obviously beef is ideal but other meat (turkey, Bison, etc.) is used for the patties, even here in the US. In Iceland lamb is used for their burgers and hotdogs because it’s cheaper than beef. I wasn’t sure what meat is available in Taiwan and I’m not going assume beef is as readily available in Taiwan as it is in the US. Thanks for the reply though.

In Taipei, burger spots are opening everywhere and a lot of them are charging a premium for the American favorite. The cheapest specialty burger from a burger shop I have seen is around 180-200NT. A double would cost an extra 50-70NT more. In Taizhong the cost would probably be 20-30NT less than it is in Taipei.

It won’t hurt to serve burgers AND hot dogs, but not specifically the latter. I actually don’t really know a store in Taiwan that sells specialty hot dogs (like that shop in Hollywood), but it won’t hurt to think about it after some more market research.

Mostly beef patties, but it would be smart to offer alternatives since it’s not about the cost, but a lot of the population in Taiwan do not eat beef. Reason being that the first settlers in Taiwan were mostly farmers, most of them used cattle to graze and as transport, so people didn’t eat their companion. Might want to take that into consideration.

There’s not too many regular Taichung users on here, so it’s best you get some opinions from people in Taichung. Compared to Taipei, their tends to be more traditional families living there, so their choice of restaurant may not be western. However, not saying western restaurants wouldn’t thrive there, just something to consider.

Good points you brought up Ranlee. I remember my parents telling about the farmers and they really not eating beef.

12 posts were merged into an existing topic: Best pizza in Taipei

American Pizza beats the Taiwan pizza hands down, as does the Italian pizza which beats American pizza, IMO. Americans seem to go quantity, which is not bad if you are into that, Italians go for quality, thin crust pizza with excellent dough, sauce and cheese is to die for. Taiwanese all to often have neither quality or quantity.

Hamburgers and hot dogs, I love with grilled onions, but good luck finding anywhere that does that. But I would suggest thinking about the price point of the alternatives. for example, 50NT will get you simple bowl of noodles or dumplings, with a couple of side dishes maybe 100NT, 100 to 150NT and there are choices like buffet (where you can pick and mix from dozens of dishes) or good bowl of beef noodles, Sushi express, Ramen. People will ask themselves why would they pay that for a hot dog. (I would if it were a good quality hot dog and good hot dog bun, but I’m by no means the majority)

If you are going to do burgers and dogs, you need to also work on your french fry game.

@Mick Not sure I agree with you on what punters will pay. If you have a quality product, great ambience and intuitive, timely service, you can certainly carve out a niche for yourself. La Mesa, Whalen’s, On Tap, Carnegies, House of Pizza, Foster Hewitts, The Lighthouse, et al, all have medium-ranged prices and seem to be doing ok. Whereas, a priced-to-please joint like Green Hornet struggles.

Sure, there is lots of cheap eats around. But there is plenty of room for more. To the OP I say “jia yo!”

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Agree 100%, with a theme restaurant you can certainly do that, but at that point you are a long way away from the nasty ass hot dogs in 7/11 and priced outside fast food like McDonalds. But there is a crowd for it, but then you better be offering more than just hot dogs, pizza and hamburgers.

The location is also really important. Don’t take Taipei city center as an example of what you could do elesewhere.
It’s by far the richest part of the island and for some reason folks will spend more in Taipei city than in the outskirts of Taipei city. It’s a weird thing.

Anyway burgers have been done to death already even in taichung. Don’t bother.
BUT there is probably plenty of space for other cuisines or specialities. Restaurant biz is cutthroat everywhere most ppl lose money. FACT. Don’t invest money you can’t afford to lose.

The best burger in Taipei without a doubt is next to Taipei main station on Huayin Street.

OldiesBURGER 新美式文化料理
No. 57, Huayin Street, Datong District, Taipei City, 103
02 2552 6222

https://goo.gl/maps/6ojLSBPd3FT2

Fads come and go like the latest bout of diahorheaa here.

A couple of years ago it was cheesey chicken from Korea now its weird sandwiches in hipstery restaurants supposedly based on Bangkok street food.

Asian food or Asian versions of western food is usually the most popular option.

Agree, even location within Taipei city is important. I watch a lot of places fail trying to spend money on ingredient for a large variety of menu items and equipment to make them instead of keeping it simple and pay for good location and a simple menu.

OP, I think your next step, if you haven’t done it yet, is to get on the island and see what you can learn from visiting local burger shops. I think if you got passion for opening up shop, go for it, but make sure you have done the necessary research! Some users here have opened up shop and can probably give you good pointers, but you gotta figure out what works and what doesn’t.

Did you guys get to try out Otto pizza (behind Ming Yao Dpt Store in east district) while it was still open? I’m not one for Italian style pizza, but that place was bomb.com