Ok, so we’re taking the folks in a few weeks, and naturally, mom is already terrified at the prospect of navigating Taiwan food. So, other than rotating between McD’s Subway, and Pizza Hut every day what do you guys recommend? Chicken (preferably boneless breast, I know its a stretch) is preferred, beef and pork are fine as long as there aren’t weird parts and they aren’t too fatty. Seafood is iffy, I think she’ll be ok with shrimp, but beyond that I don’t know. We’ll mostly be in Taichung/Fongyuan and Taipei.
I’m thinking that shouldn’t be to hard to satisfy, but since I eat pretty much anything I haven’t paid that much attention in the past.
Take your folks to one of the foreign operated pub/ restaurants in Taipei. There, they will be able to order some local dishes but all ingredients and descriptions will be available and your folks can decide for themselves what they’re willing to try.
Redandy, I faced the same dilemma a couple of months ago, when a coworker with a sensitive stomach visited the island. Actually, I would reccommend to stay away from Pizza Hut, Mac D, and especially KFC. Those are like waiving a red flag to the food poisoning bull.
First, I took my friend to Jason’s, and let him have his pick of yogurt and other simple snacks. I also had these cookies and tuna combo from COSTCO. Carry this at all times when traveling, as you do not know where or when -actually if- you will find something suitable for them. I am thinking you will probably take them to Pingshi for lantern release or other turistic places, like Jiufen, which require a bit more planning. Yes, we brownbagged home made sandwiches a lot. Han and cheese keep well.
Cafes such as IKARI, even Dante or Starbucks, have simple meals which are relatively safe. I took my friend to the Shida area several times for meals, where you can find some simple, foreigner friendly stuff, like Jamaica’s fried chicken breast and fries -without a mountain of pepper!
And of course, kept a list of tried and true places, as Alleycats, Bongo’s, etc.
Beef Noodle Soup…Nieu Ro Mien or however its written. Usually good and acceptable to the less than adventurous palates. Also the pork version should work for a change-up.
Justget 'em loaded on gaoliang and once they recover everything will taste bad.
[quote=“TainanCowboy”]Beef Noodle Soup…Nieu Ro Mien or however its written.[/quote]Right. And also dumplings of all varieties. Hotpot should be alright too. Probably best to go to a place with the individual hotpots–shabu shabu or one of the many teahouses that does basically the same thing.
Well, stingy might not have been the right word…maybe some combination of picky, but economical We’ll definitely be hitting up that area, I just hope we can get a clear day so it’ll be worth the trip to the top. Thanks for the links.
That sounds like a good idea. Since I’m always staying with in-laws, I don’t normally get to visit the foreigner hangouts much. That should work for everyone. I’ll look through the forums for people’s favorite spots
Ah yes…I had forgotten Taipei had Costco. That should solve a lot of problems. My folks will think it’s almost as cool as finding a Wal-mart on a road trip
Right… that I think would work – and I think I know just the place (not that there’s only one)
Steamed buns…some with green onions inside.
That egg & flour breakfast thing…the name eludes my sleepy head right now.
They might like some of the bread stuff cooked inside the heated barrel. The stuff they stick to the side and then reach back in to get it. Thats some tasty stuff and fun to watch 'em make.
Tapenyaki is always a big hit with my family and a few have tried it now. Even my uncle who only eats steak with nothing on it, fried egg or chips and has done for thirty years loved the tapenyaki restaurant I took him to. In case you are unaware of what tapenyaki means, its the type of restaurant (Japanese style) that cooks your food on the metal surface in front of you which you eat off.
For an easy chain store try (again Japanese/Korean style) Yoshinoya. They have boneless chicken, boneless beef strips on rice, and I almost lived on the stuff for quite a while. It’s well suited to western tastes, all but the kimchy (pickled cabbage) which is as additional option anyway.
[quote]Tapenyaki is always a big hit with my family and a few have tried it now. Even my uncle who only eats steak with nothing on it, fried egg or chips and has done for thirty years loved the tapenyaki restaurant I took him to. In case you are unaware of what tapenyaki means, its the type of restaurant (Japanese style) that cooks your food on the metal surface in front of you which you eat off.
For an easy chain store try (again Japanese/Korean style) Yoshinoya. They have boneless chicken, boneless beef strips on rice, and I almost lived on the stuff for quite a while. It’s well suited to western tastes, all but the kimchy (pickled cabbage) which is as additional option anyway.[/quote]
That’s another great idea. I had been considering taking them to either a Japanese Steakhouse or Korean BBQ place anyway (where I live has some of the best Korean you can find in the U.S.). It’s probably at least as good and cheaper in Taiwan, and they’ll still feel like their eating local even if it isn’t exactly Taiwanese.
I am trying to teach my kids to enjoy Danish cuisine, and I do it by cooking for them. It’s not too expensive, and with practice, prep times can be brought way down.
It’s not expensive either, and you will be surprised when it comes to what can be had locally in terms of raw materials.
[quote]Is there a chane tht you might cook yourself?[/quote]\
Part of the time, we’ll be staying either with my in-laws, or at a spare apartment they own in Fongyuan, so yeah, we will be doing some cooking. The main concern is that we’ll be spending at least a week on the road away from their place, and probably won’t be getting a hotel with a kitchen. Plus, even with all their pickiness, I think my folks will want to try as much of the local food as their willing to eat.
Thank God I have never had really picky eaters visiting me here, my mum can be a bit picky at times, but my dad is willing to try everything, and then some.
[quote=“Mr He”]Is there a chane tht you might cook yourself?
[/quote]
This is what we have done, supplemented by ‘adventure’ trips to noodle shops and upscale restaurants. Even then it’s hard to please a visitor from home whose diet consists of heavily processed and fast food. Since we only prepare fresh food, our kitchen is seemingly a whole new world to them.
I know what you mean. Fortunately, they aren’t the type that’s going to want to go to McDonalds 5 times a week (I don’t think they eat out at all, other than to go to the local Mexican or BBQ on a Friday night) We should be ok cooking at home and sticking to some of the earlier suggestions. Im not sure what we’ll do when we’re on the road in places other than Taipei, but I imagine if we pack a lunch and stick with basic noodle or dumpling houses for dining out we’ll be alright. Really, now that I’ve thought about it a little more, I think it’s as much a matter of just getting them used to seeing what it looks like as much as it is the taste.
BTW – it looks like we’ll be making stops in Hualien/Taroko Gorge area and Chiayi/Alishan, so any suggestions about those places are welcome!
You say you’ll be in Taichung and Taipei most of the time, so I’d suggest, if you have access to a membership card, taking them to Costco to get some foreign food like pancake mix, bagels, cereal, soups, salad dressings, etc… At least it will be something familiar to them that they can fall back on if they don’t want to venture on the Taiwanese cuisine.
Japanese ramen houses would be pretty tame- usually just noodles, some strips of meat, and a delicious broth.
Spaghetti would also be an easy meal you could make yourself. A quick trip to Carrefour and you’d have everything. If ground beef is too expensive, just cook some chicken breasts, slice, and place over the sauce and noodles.
Well, that was frustrating. The best plans just don’t work when person simply refuses to cooperate. We pretty much gave up on it after she wouldn’t waste half a day to go to Costco, wouldn’t have anything from Jason’s, and had to be begged to even try the dumplings at Din Tai Fung. We finally quit trying to plan for her and just had what we wanted. Sometimes she’d see something that caught her eye and try it, and sometimes she’d have her granola bar or McDonald’s. The thing was, when my wife or I did manage to get her to take our suggestions, she almost always liked it, but still wouldn’t take our word for it the next time. Fortunately my inlaws managed to shove some of the local food down her throat by taking us out and ordering for the whole group. She at least would try that for fear of embarrassing them by not eating when they took her out. Otherwise she probably would have had crappy fast food the whole time.
Other than the food thing it was a great trip…it’s just frustrating because food is one of the major attractions.
[quote=“redandy”]Well, that was frustrating. The best plans just don’t work when person simply refuses to cooperate. We pretty much gave up on it after she wouldn’t waste half a day to go to Costco, wouldn’t have anything from Jason’s, and had to be begged to even try the dumplings at Ding Tai Feng. We finally quit trying to plan for her and just had what we wanted. Sometimes she’d see something that caught her eye and try it, and sometimes she’d have her granola bar or McDonald’s. The thing was, when my wife or I did manage to get her to take our suggestions, she almost always liked it, but still wouldn’t take our word for it the next time. Fortunately my inlaws managed to shove some of the local food down her throat by taking us out and ordering for the whole group. She at least would try that for fear of embarrassing them by not eating when they took her out. Otherwise she probably would have had crappy fast food the whole time.
Other than the food thing it was a great trip…it’s just frustrating because food is one of the major attractions.[/quote]
What did they think of Alishan and Chiayi, I had a trip around there recently and loved it, at least there is a starbucks for them at the top now, although I found it kind of bizarre and they need to redevelop that whole area at the top, the ancient trees rock
You can’t change some people’s food habits, my mother was also horrified when I bought her to a mongolian hot pot and everybody shared the same pot (whoops…I had forgotten that might be a no-no). I know what you mean about frustration because there is so much varied food and snacks here that could make the trip more colourful but what can you do. I’m surprised you couldn’t find anything to eat at Jason’s!
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We’ll definitely be hitting up that area, I just hope we can get a clear day so it’ll be worth the trip to the top. Thanks for the links.
