Could you suggest any good restaurants/cafes with outdoor seating? Would like to find some nice places to enjoy the sun and a meal. Also possible to bring my baby along.
Thanks
Carnegies has a beautiful outdoor deck. Its a great place to relax on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon.
Forchetta–An Ho Road
forumosa.com/3/viewtopic.php … =forchetta
VVG–Near Zhongxiao and Civic Blvd.
forumosa.com/3/viewtopic.php … hlight=vvg
“Herbs” on Loli Rd, just off An Ho Rd has a great patio, but the food is disappointing. Good place for a drink on a nice spring evening though.
CK
Can I bring my baby to sit on the patio at Carnegie’s? Thanks for the other suggestions, I’ll check them out soon.
You may indeed. However we are not permitted to serve your baby alcohol, I’m sure you understand. Unfortunately, we don’t have a bouncy castle.
Cheers
Bob Marshall
General Manager
Carnegie’s Taipei
[quote="TpeBob. Unfortunately, we don’t have a bouncy castle.[/quote]
I am sure I saw a few Bouncy Castles there last Wednesday night - that’s ladies night - right?
I thought you were renoun for the proliferation of ‘bouncy castles’ at your establishment! That’s why my wife won’t let me set foot in there without her. 
Cheers,
CK
It had truly never occurred to me that the word ‘castle’ is used in some quarters as a euphemism for parts of the anatomy with ‘bouncy’ properties 
I am as of this moment undecided as to whether this revelation should worry me or not and even more undecided as to whom I should direct this concern. :s
Uh… not too sure about bouncy castles, but the following have outdoor seating:
Grandma Nitti’s–old standby
Hao Yang–I think this is the “WG” that Alien was referring to, but I remember it as “VG”, as in Very Good; good food, good brunch, plenty o’ tables
Les Amis–nice brunch (only one outdoor table) located in alley behind the Cashbox KTV across from the Chunghsiao SOGO
Dimmer–(only one outdoor table) but great food (like Risoto w/ truffles!) and nice ambience
Also, I believe there are still a couple of places on the 2nd Floor of the Breeze Mall overlooking the plaza–tons of umbrella-covered seating on wooden decks. Probably the largest outdoor seating in Taipei.
There’s got to be more–especially in Danshui, also near Taida and Shida, and on Yungkang Street.
Yeah, was thinking of those, too. There are two places, one entirely covered but with sun shades/blinds at the sides and one covered with umbrellas. Both are a tad expensive though.
Head out to Bali, across the river from Danshui. The whole riverside area is being revamped with boardwalks, biking trails, cafes, restaurants, etc. When I was there two weeks ago several cafes had 2nd floor balconeys overlooking the river. Also nice for you and your baby as you can stroll along the river on a brand new all wood boardwalk.
Take the MRT to Danshui and then catch the ferry across.
Also, for you and a baby go to the Zoo Mall at Mucha Zoo. They have an entire outdoor eating area that is very nice. Also they have these giant electric teddy bears on wheels your kid can sit and ride around on. He or she will love it.
For the best balcony in the world head out to Fushing, in Taoyuan County. The outdoor cafe at the Youth Activity Centre is literally set in heaven. Well, actually, there’s an even better spot just down the hill a bit at a cafe on a bluff of land owned by a cool aboriginal guy. Better coffee here too and the owner, who used to be a pub singer, will sometimes take out his guitar and sing.
Some tea houses in Maokong have nice balconeys and patios too. I posted about one last summer that’s part of 150 years old stone house recently converted into a tea house. Good food there, too.
Actually, come to think of it, the tea houses in the mountains in Mucha are a fantastic outdoor eating experience. Also noticed a French restaurant on Minchuan between Chienkwo and Fushing called Champs Elysee (sp?) They have a huge outdoor seating space that looks really nice, though I can’t comment on the food as I haven’t eaten there. For cafes, I like the Post Cafe just off Kwangfu and Chungshiao, by the Kwangfu parking lot. Seems like there are more and more terasses lately. Unfortunately, most of them are just a couple table and chairs out by the door.
Cheers,
CK
Maokong, which I mentioned in my post, refers to the mountainous area around Mucha where all the teahouses are in case people don’t know.
God, that’s a horrible, horrible place! Was there a few weeks ago. Jam packed with mouth-breathers, strewn with trash, all-pervasive fetid reek of river sewage mixed with burnt cooking oil, nasty little overpriced “eateries” that made Bitan seem like the Riviera by comparison.
Never, ever again!
Actually, while the food is not up to much at Bitan, it does have several cafe/restaurants overlooking the water there with wooden decking, awnings, etc. Its unpleasantly busy on sunny weekends, but weekday evenings its almost deserted.
In any case, its at its most pleasant IMO on drizzly days, when you can still sit outside with a cofee or a beer under the awnings watching the rain sweep across the lake. They have those out-door heater things as well, so its nice even on a cold day.
You get there by taking the Hsintien (green) MRT to the end of the line.
Also, if you cross the suspension footbridge, there’s an old open-sided teahouse perched on a cliff above the lake which is fairly pleasant place to sit.
Bitan
Maocon
Jiufen
are places all full of restaurants/cafes/teahouses with outdoor seating and views.
Ok, if we widen the circle I suggest the tea house at the nature park (FuXing Shan?) near Ba Ling up-town, that is on the mountain along the Northern cross-country “highway”. Just drive up to Shang Ba Ling, then follow the road on the ridge right to the end. Now that’s a patio to sit on and enjoy a tea/coffee!
Sandman, that’s bizarre. I was there a few weeks ago too and the place was spotlessly clean, the river had no smell, and the boardwalk was a dream to walk along at night with the twinkle of lights across the river at Danshui.
Mind you I went on a drizzly day so the crowds were thin but I can’t believe we’re talking about the same place. Will have to go again. :s
Maybe, but its not a word of a lie, I swear.
Oh, all right then – maybe it was because it was the first nice day after that long rainy cold spell that brought the grockles out in force. But really, the food outlets were disgusting, there’s no other word for it. My wife and I were eventually reduced to dining on 7-11 sarnies.
I didn’t try the food so I can’t comment on that. But I remember commenting to my wife how new everything looked. No stains on the roads, no rust on the metal, no damaged sections on the boardwalk. There’s still a lot of work being done to the river bank so maybe it is better to go at night. I think the area is developing nicely, however. No green concrete bamboo fences at all. 
Rivers can be fickle about their smell. I walk along the Jingmei river in Mucha quite often and yes, there are days when the smell is pretty strong. Most days, however, there is no odor.
In general, Taiwan is the most two-faced travel destination in the world. I took some friends out to see Shifen Waterfall last month after telling them how beautiful it was only to find the green-blue waters were now mud-brown with sediment, and the falls had about a third the volume compared with the day I went. My friends could still see that the potential (especially after I showed them photos) but what a difference a few weeks can make.
I’m going to go back to Bali next week and give another report.
By the way, did you get to the archeological museum out there? It was closed by the time we arrived but it looks interesting. The unused sewage plant beside it is hilarious. It looks like a row of giant earthenware jugs with indians painted on them.