Looking at Uber and Food Panda, all I can see for breakfast is copy+paste dupes of your typical 早餐店。
Where can I find real American breakfast, or perhaps a wholesome bakery that has something breakfasty? Something like The Diner, but I’m not expecting anything as amazing as that rare gem (my fav!!!).
I must rant a bit about local “brunch” places, while I’m here:
Eggs are cooked until dry and dusty
Brunch is essentially dinner item with egg on top
Bread is always “that cheapo white bread”
The ham is often spam-like.
Bacon is also spam like and cooked for only 2 seconds
For the rare occasion you see french toast, it’s always with honey.
Everything has cucumbers, finely chopped so it’s hard to pick out
That thick, “bagged mayo” is creepy AF.
I do like DanBing, Mantou, etc too - I can usually find something, but I’m missing the good stuff!
TBH I don’t think you’ll find any such thing. Western-style bacon and ham just doesn’t exist in Taiwan, AFAIK. There used to be a guy selling proper sausages and cured-meat products online, but I think he’s no longer in business, and the Taiwanese-run restos certainly don’t use such things. The weird spam and weird bacon is just what the suppliers provide.
“Western” breakfasts in Taiwan - and I’ve tried quite a few - are invariably disappointing. You might as well just make yer own. If you really want the resto experience, try the top-end hotel buffets at breakfast time. You’ll pay top dollar, but you’ll get exactly what you’re looking for. IIRC The Far Eastern does a pretty good spread with good-quality “American” breakfast items. The closest “ordinary” resto I’ve found with a passably-acceptable fryup is Marcus, outside Zhishan station.
I’m more interested in Cantonese/Hong Kong-style congee shop. They are just not the same as the ones in HK. And a lot don’t open in the morning, more like a novelty. Siu Mei shops taste strange too.
The Diner has everything and more - even better than American diners. I was mostly wondering if something else existed.
JBs in TianMu used to be amazing, but went cheap after COVID and the food reflects it wildly. I tried 3x revently, in denial, but I won’t be going there again. If I’m paying 500 for a Diner meal, may as well just go to The Diner instead if its not amazing.
2nd Floor cafe is decent, but of course incomparable to The Diner.
Theres an amazing place in HsingChu called Chonky Diner that’s amazing and almost as good as The Diner (but takes an hour to get your food; super short staffed).
Edit: Omas German Bakery isn’t breakfast, but if feeling heavy bread, mmm…
I thought American breakfast is milk and cereals. Cereals are really expensive in Taiwan for what it is. I should be getting Wagyu beef for that price.
I’ve always liked Bea’s Bistro and Auntie Nia’s. Both are in Daan and both do a nice job serving up American style diner fare. Not as great as The Diner, but then again, you won’t have to wait in line for 30 minutes.
Man, HK food here disappointing… Found a few siumei shops, one of which has a HK lady (ordered in canto to her, she even gave me free sides😂) which are decent, but went to a 茶餐廳 near my chinese school, got a 沙嗲牛麵， a scam! No peanuts bits in the sauce, cloves of garlic, random veggies in the soup… Noodles and meatbwere ok, but the dish was not that at all…
