Okay, I’m been meaning to do this for a while. Here are some of my favorite teahouses in Maokong. Most of these places can be reached from the Muzha or Zoo MRT stations for NT150-200 on a taxi. Maybe NT250 from Qizhang Station. All except the one above can be reached by the #10 or #15 buses that leave from the Zoo MRT and Wanfang MRT. Just show the driver the card or tell him the name. They’ll let you off anywhere and pick you up anywhere.
- The one mentioned above, Zi Zai. Front of card:
And back:
- This one has a lovely red tiled veranda and good lookouts over a valley and parts of Taipei City. You can see 101 when it is clear. Very pleasant on fall and winter evenings or even in summer on a weekday when there are few people. For boiling water for makign tea you get a basin with real coals. Pretty cool. Food is good. The chicken soup pot is great on a cool evening.
The outside looks pretty ramshackle. But here’s the view, though the pic doesn’t show how wide your view is. On a clear day it’s really spectacular:
Just down the road a hundred yards is a very pleasant cafe perched on the side of the road called Cat Got Nothing to do All Day. The serve okay coffee here but they have an incredible open view down a valley and across Taipei. I drive up to Maokong often just to sit on their deck and have a coffee as I watch the sun set. They have a simple but tasteful setting and play light jazzy music. No card for this one. Use the one above to get to the area.
BTW, there is no building here. It’s just a coffee van on the side of the road and a small well-groomed patch of land with tables and chairs. On the other side of the road, the cafe extends up the stairs to another open area.
This is a pic of the view from Cat Got Nothing to Do:
- This one has a lovely indoor setting. It’s like a mini traditional garden with a carp pool. Seating areas are curtained booths. Some seats have glass floors so you can see the reflection of your date’s underwear. Just kidding. So you can see the carp swimming below.
The only problem is this place allows indoor smoking. If anyone wants to set up a poker night, this place has a small booth with a round table and wood panelled walls that would make for a perfect setting.
Never tried their food but they have a good menu. Rooftop seating is open. Great views over Taipei.
- This one could be the greatest, and comes very close at night when its imperfections are hidden. An unparalled view over Taipei city, and above average western style food, are the highlights. The view: you can see all the way to Yangmingshan and actually see the Danshui river feed into ocean. The valley view of Maokong is one of the nicest. No power lines in sight.
The food is lamb, steak, pig knuckle, salmon. The owner lived in South America for 20 years and was a chef there. He speaks decent English and has an english menu.
I have had the lamb, bbqed ribs (so tender), and pasta and it was excellent. No gooey sauce. The chef does not like the Taiwanese habit of dousing everything in heavy sauce.
The upstairs is pretty barebones but when it’s dark you don’t notice, but downstairs has some nice wooden booths on the patio. The tables are cheap but in clean white table clothes and it’s quite romantic as you look out over the million dollar view of Taipei city (no exaggeration) and listen to crickets and cicadas chirp. Go on a clear day or night.
The food is presented well but on cheap plates. Inside the house are several tatami rooms as good as the Wisteria. They have great views so this would be a good place to go for tea on a winter’s day. There is no smoking here. Horrah!
Oh, they also serve drinks, beer and cocktails, and decent coffee. Best latte in Maokong.
Here is the view. Tell me you don’t wish you were there right now:
Next door to this place is a tea house with almost as great a view but a nicer setting in the day. For just hanging out during the late afternoon and catching the sunset, this is a top spot. The setting is an open red brick patio. Clean and tasteful. They serve simple flower tea drinks if you don’t want to make tea. I think they also serve beer. Quite a wonderful spot if it’s not crowded. To get here go right 50 feet as you face the one above.
The food is really lousy here though and around dinner time, when they cook, the whole patio smells of cooking oil. Go in the afternoon, lat evening or a quiet weekday.
- OK, this one is well known (BB mentions it above) and has a very fresh setting in a lovely secluded valley at the end of Maokong. My pick for summer afternoons. What makes it great besides the green atmosphere is all the private pavilions. Great place for an intimate afternoon or a gathering of friends. Open 24 hours a day.
I also like this place because they have set up their own water treatment facility to keep the stream clean below them. It works. I have explored the stream (easy to do from the tea house) and it is indeed very clean. Too small to swim in though.
- Okay, this one is about as close as you can get to the city. From the zoo MRT it’s less than a 10 minute taxi drive, which means it should be around NT120 of so to get here.
The setting is a small cottage decorated with farming antiquities. The outside garden has small stone tables and stone chairs. I believe the tables have plugs right in them for making tea. What makes the setting so lovely is that Zhinan Stream flows strongly right beside you. I’ve been here even with taiwanese families nearby and felt at peace because the stream drowns out their noise. The stream also cools down the area during the summer.
The food here is pretty good. Nice chicken soups and noodle dishes. It’s like having a swell picnic here.