Danke! 
The french baguette from Flavor Field in some Sogo basements (zhishan, Fuxing) is pretty good , just make sure it’s not to hard, taiwanese tend to pass on it.[/quote]
Thanks for the advice, but I do not consider baguettes as decent bread. 
A baguette is the “fast food” of breads, in terms of quality. Today I was at SOGO and saw what they have there… There is no bread, according to my standards.
This is bread:
And this is how it’s used properly:
Yum yum![/quote]
No pr0nography, please! 
Ah, jamon del bueno…
Yep, MM, my bread comes either from Uma Orsel -best European style, Peter has introduced a lot of new items, really yummy, great for sandwiches; or the organic bakery at Tianhou -not that tasty or varied, but at least it is safe![/quote]
You just gotta get our mutual friend to bake you some icon. Her bread is pretty doggone good. As long as she replicates exactly what she did here in SF !
Yes, bread is no problem. But jamon serrano como Dios manda -as God meant it to be-… fuggedabouit! Not to be found on this island. 
Oh, and it is summertime, too hot to bake.
消す
[quote=“Icon”]Yes, bread is no problem. But jamon serrano como Dios manda -as God meant it to be-… fuggedabouit! Not to be found on this island.
Oh, and it is summertime, too hot to bake.[/quote]
No, it’s not. I baked four batches yesterday, without even needing to turn on the AC. 
[quote=“Dragonbones”][quote=“Icon”]Yes, bread is no problem. But jamon serrano como Dios manda -as God meant it to be-… fuggedabouit! Not to be found on this island.
Oh, and it is summertime, too hot to bake.[/quote]
No, it’s not. I baked four batches yesterday, without even needing to turn on the AC. :p[/quote]
But…
The Oma Orsel addresses in the 2004 news story are confusing: 292 Fuxing N Rd, Taipei (台北市永康街6巷9號). In the story itself it says they moved from Yongkang to Fuxing. However, at the bottom of the website I see only the Xinhai location and a Yongkang location; I called the number for the latter and they confirmed they’re now on Yongkang, but at Lane 10, #8. So I guess they’ve moved a couple times. 
Yep, confirmed, it is No. 8, Lane 10, Yongkang Street, Taipei 10651
The one in Yongkang is this one: Oma Ursel's German Restaurant & Bakery - #15 by Icon
Fixed.
( ご無沙汰しておりますが。たとえばね、 November 4, 2011, 20:00, Taipei : 30 °C. 
)[/quote]
:roflmao: Sad but true. My friend always has problems with her macaroons because of the humidity.
Like in the US or UK, there probably is no genuinely excellent bread to be had here I’m afraid, though some will likely insist otherwise. German/Austrian/Swiss standards for even their most humble of bread varieties are a completely foreign concept, imitated in the exterior only. The essential feature of proper inner/outer contrast, with “knackig” crust (not a chew toy) and an extremely soft and fresh interior, isn’t going to happen. It’s either one extreme or the other; crust too soft (Taiwan/Japan) or too jaw taxing (US). Many indeed look the part, artisanal, dressed to the T (Yamazaki, for instance) but fail to deliver.
Wonderful in a way though, how we can’t get everything everywhere. Authenticity retains its value.
Ridiculous, I am also from a European country and those countries listed would not be able to bake ‘our’ bread properly. They have good bread, yes, but they are not the only ones making bread!
Taiwan has some decent bread these days, it’s not Europe, but there are some good bakeries here now.
I’m pleased the situation has improved then. Your favourite/top bakery recommendations?
Things have improved a lot, really. In fact it’s easier to get good bread in Taipei than most Asian cities. I would go with some of the recommendations above. There are also places I go in Taichung that I don’t know the names of.
Things have definitely improved in Taipei–though I agree that some joints merely mimic the look of decent bread while delivering some gooey sweet concoction. :raspberry:
If you have the funds, and if you’re in the Xinyi/City Hall zone, it’s hard to beat the bread available for take-out at Joel Robuchon’s “Salon de The” located on the 3rd floor of Bellavita Mall. If you’re disciplined enough to stick to the boulangerie side and avoid the patisserie side, it’s less pricey than you might think. 
Guy
If it’s not been said already in the many pages of this thread, Carrefour is a hell of a lot better these days than in years past. Their bread, and there’s lots of choices, is now pretty decent IMHO.
Currently, there are only two places I buy bread from:
[quote]30 Beiping E Rd, Taipei City (台北市北平東路30號)
Telephone: (02) 2351-6268 X201
Open: 11:30am to 2:30pm; 6pm to 9:30pm
Average meal: Meal: NT$600
Details: Chinese menu; credit cards accepted
On the Net: thofood.com
The bakery upstairs is a must-visit for anyone interested in good bread, with some of the best white bread on offer in the city, as well as excellent brioches, baguettes and a selection of fancy breads. This is proper Western-style bread, sold at reasonable prices, with no fluffy pork in sight. [/quote]
Taipei Times review
Problem is bread sells out too quickly. French bread is practically done to order. So better call and place your order rather than go there and be dissapointed. I like that you have the list of ingredients from organic sources prominently displayed, as well as an open preparation area. I like their cranberry-pecan bread, the whole wheat and honey toast and the garlic French brad.
Otherwise, we have Oma’s, which is German bread. They have a new location right on Xinhai road, which also has an open arrangement so you can see them doing their thing. They also serve breakfast there. I am partial to the cakes and pies there.
New address: 1 F., No. 44-46, Hsinhai Road Sec. 1.
Oma’s new space is looking good! Thank you Icon for posting the new address. I wondered where they went after seeing their old location closing up. Now I know!
Guy
Icon - thanks for the heads-up ! Always keen discovering a Bakery I wasn’t aware of.
Just to avoid disappointments - are we talking genuine European quality ?
Meaning : Not the fluffy Japanese cakes, the brick-in-your-stomach flour , nor the fake looks-like-whipped-cream-but-could-be-razor-cream?
Expert advise requested 
[quote=“ceevee369”]Icon - thanks for the heads-up ! Always keen discovering a Bakery I wasn’t aware of.
Just to avoid disappointments - are we talking genuine European quality ?
Meaning : Not the fluffy Japanese cakes, the brick-in-your-stomach flour , nor the fake looks-like-whipped-cream-but-could-be-razor-cream?
Expert advise requested [/quote]
Hell, no, no, no! Any complaints, take them to Peter, the German baker. we are talking don’t drop on your foot, heavy as brick rye. Like back in the ol country, where a baguette has to be able to hit a baseball off the park in order to be considered good. Trust me.
I see there’s a German-style bakery, but is “Peter” a fictitious character, an ideal that any such German style bakery would hope to project? We may be ready to pay Peterchen a visit in the coming days…and are looking forward to it.
The bread-as-heavy-as-a-brick notions partly describes certain varieties of bread in German-speaking countries. Baguettes are of course light in France and its former colonies that adopted the bread. It’s a bit airy with a brilliant light crisp crust that snaps with a little pressure, and is never thick and chewy. Freshness is counted in hours, if not minutes, and never in days.
The notion that heavy sells the concept of German bread, is correct, but does not capture what it is, fully.