Attracting thousands of tourists from all over the world every year, Taipei, Taiwan is now one of Asia's most popular visited cities. Why should you add Taipei, Taiwan to your travel bucket list you say? You'll learn to understand their people and know more about their culture. Visit and be awed by their incredible skyscrapers. Shop 'til you drop in the mazes of alleys of their night markets. Last, but definitely not the least, drown in the endless stalls of street food.
Taipei, Taiwan is definitely a foodie heaven. Almost every where you go or look, you'll be able to find something to munch on. There's so many options and the sight of endless food stalls may be quite overwhelming especially if it's your first time. Need not worry, just keep on reading and I'll tell you the Top 15 Must Try Street food and drinks that you should add to your list when you visit.
Visiting Taipei anytime soon? Check out my itinerary here and get ideas if you still haven't!
1. Stinky Tofu
Stinky Tofu got its name literally from the aroma that this dish emits. It smells that way because the tofu undergoes the process of fermentation first before being cooked. This may not be everyone's cup of tea and I say so from experience because I really really love this dish, and so when I went here one time with my cousin and aunt, I brought them to my favorite restaurant and ordered this. My aunt tried it trusting my judgement that it tastes good, but she immediately just spat it out right away and said she didn't like it.
This dish isn't one of those food that everyone will love. It will really differ from person to person. I suggest it's still worth a try while you're here and see for yourself whether you'll like it or not.
PRICE: Around NT$ 30-80 per order
ADDRESS: You can find this dish at almost every night market in Taiwan, just follow the fermented aroma and it will probably lead you to one!
TIP: Stinky tofu can be served stewed, steamed or deep fried. I honestly prefer the latter because its all about the crunch!
2. Xiao Long Bao
Xiao Long Bao's are steamed dumplings filled with pork and soup, that's why its also known as soup dumplings. If you've tried Din Tai Fung before then you probably already know what this is. Here in Taipei, Taiwan, you can find this dish almost everywhere. I think I ordered this for every meal I had as it was cheap and very filling.
I always came back to the same place every time I visited. I tried searching it up but I couldn't find it on google map, but you can try any stall/restaurant at Shilin Night Market, you'll find a lot of them here. Or you could also try and line up at the OG Din Tai Fung restaurant at Taipei 101.
PRICE: Around NT$ 50-100 per order
ADDRESS: By subway, get off at Taipei 101 World Trade Center MRT station. Look for exit 4. Soon as you exit, you’ll see Din Tai Fung on your right at the basement level of Taipei 101 Mall.
TIP: Xiao Long Bao's are often served fresh from steaming, so as to not burn yourself, try poking at it first to let the soup out and blow on it for a bit. Or if you're a daredevil like me, then just go for it! Oh and btw, add lots of shredded ginger and soy sauce while you're at it.
3. Beef Noodles
Beef noodles is one of the most common dishes in Taiwan and is loved not only by tourists but locals too. Noodles is one of those staple foods that one can't live without (for me at least). Beef noodles or any type of noodle soup dish can be divided into parts, namely the broth, noodles, and the protein, in this case, the beef. You can really taste that the broth was boiled for a long time and the beef wasn't that tough to chew on. But what I liked most was probably the noodles. It's not the typical thin ones that break easily, the one I had was thicker and more chewy.
We tried the one at Lao Dong Beef Noodle Restaurant, but I'm sure you can order this dish anywhere since almost all the restaurants offer this in their menu. If you do decide to go here, you might want to try their beef burritos, they go well with a bowl of beef noodle soup.
PRICE: Around NT$ 100-200 per order
TIP: This restaurant is very near Ningxia Night Market, so you might want to drop by and check out what they have as well!
4. Minced Pork Rice
Minced Pork Rice is so common in in this place that its also sometimes referred to as the "national rice" of Taiwan. You can find this dish almost everywhere, from street vendors, to high rating restaurants. Minced Pork Rice is composed of rice at the bottom with pork as topping that's chopped to very small pieces and stewed in soy sauce as the main ingredient. Some people may find this oily but I honestly enjoyed it.
We tried this at one of the food stalls in Shilin Night Market. You can opt to try it there or at a fancier restaurant. But I honestly think it won't have much of a difference (except for the price of course).
PRICE: NT$ 30-80 depending on the size of the bowl you order
ADDRESS: Any night market nationwide
TIP: If you're not much of a fan of oily food, you might want to order stinky tofu with this dish to balance it out
5. Chicken Cutlet
Chicken Cutlet is probably the most common and famous street food that you'll find in Taiwan. The very famous brand that you'll find at any night market is Hot Star Chicken. They're very famous because of their 12-inch deep-fried chicken cutlet and any stall would always have a line of people waiting to be served. It can be served with a variety of seasoning like spicy pepper, barbecue, seaweed,etc. or you can also just have it plain.
PRICE: Around NT$ 70 per order
ADDRESS: Any night market in Taiwan or you can visit their actual store: HOT-STAR, No. 104, Hanzhong Street, Wanhua District, Taipei City, Taiwan 108
TIP: If you're on a food trip journey and would want to try as much street food as you can, I suggest sharing this snack with at least 2 more people as it can be quite filling. Their actual store is also near Ximending shopping area.
6. Pineapple cake
Pineapple cake is a famous sweet traditional Taiwanese snack that has a shortcrust coating with pineapple jam and slices as filling. If the Chinese have tikoy during their New Year to bring good luck, the Taiwanese on the other hand have pineapple cake or ong-lai that they usually give as engagement gifts to bless the newly weds with many children.
I tried this for the very first time when we checked in at Uinn Hostel. At the front desk, they had a bowl of pineapple cake that they gave as complimentary gifts to their guests who will be staying at the hostel. When I had my very first pineapple cake, I just knew that I had to buy a box to bring back home because that's how much I loved it.
PRICE: NT$ 100-500 per box (6 pieces inside) depending on the brand
ADDRESS: This is a very famous snack so it can be found almost at every market
TIP: This is one of the most popular souvenirs bought by visitors in Taiwan. (Might just save you some time in thinking of what to bring back to your friends and family back home!)
7. Bubble Tea (Pearl Milk Tea)
Taipei, Taiwan is where Bubble Tea or Pearl Milk Tea originated. So its a no-brainer that you should add this to your list. This is Taiwan's most iconic drink and I don't know a single soul who doesn't love milk tea. From its name, this drink has tea as its base, added with milk and finished off with tapioca, grass jelly, pudding, or any type of topping depending on your taste.
While I was here, I took advantage of every Coco store I saw because they had no long queues compared to the ones we have in the Philippines LOL.
PRICE: NT$ 50-100 depending on the cup size
TIP: You can also try the ones that they sell in the night markets I bet they're just as good. Don't be like me since I just stuck with the brand that I already know.
8. Deep-Fried Battered Seafood
"Seafood" and "Deep-Fried" is like one of those pairs that you just can't separate. Good news, you can stuff yourself with deep-fried seafood here in Taipei, Taiwan because its a very common street food that you can find it almost anywhere, and it's also very affordable considering that seafood is more on the pricier side of the food chain. Every stall has their own variety of choices. I've seen some that purely just have deep-fried squid. While others have shrimp, crab, and even giant mushrooms.
They usually serve it in a cup, already chopped to bite size pieces so it's easy to eat while walking around the night markets. Like the chicken cutlet earlier, you can also have this sprinkled with different flavors or just have it plain with salt.
PRICE: NT$ 50 for a cup (already good for 2 people to share)
ADDRESS: Can be bought at any Night Market nationwide
TIP: If you don't feel like adding too much flavor, try their salt squeezed with lime, best combo ever!
9. Flame-Torched Beef
When I think of beef, I think of fine dining, complete cutlery, and music playing in the background. Who would've thought that you can also find the same quality of beef but with a totally different ambiance. This dish is cooked first on a charcoal grill before sprinkled with your choice of seasoning and finished off with a flame torch just to add that little bit of smokey taste and crunch.
PRICE: NT$ 60-100 depending on the size
ADDRESS: Any night market
10. Papaya Milk
If you love fruits, then you definitely have to try papaya milk. From the name itself, its made with ripe papaya blended with ice and fresh milk. It's creamy and smooth, not too sweet, just right. Don't get me wrong, It tastes no different from the ones you can probably make at home, but it really just adds to the whole street food market hopping experience.
PRICE: Around NT$ 50 per cup
ADDRESS: I tried the one in Ningxia night market, but you can probably find it at any night market in Taipei
11. Pepper Bun
Pepper bun is another very popular Taiwanese snack that you can find at night markets. The bun itself is crunchy and flaky topped with sesame seeds, with marinated pork mixed with scallions as filling. What caught my attention as I was walking around was how they were cooking these buns. The stall had this cylindrical shaped oven that opened from the top with charcoal at the bottom and the buns stuck to the inside, arranged side by side to fill the interior part of the oven. Once they're cooked, they would use a spatula to scrape it off. Now, you can just imagine how crunchy it would be having that very first bite.
PRICE: Around NT$ 40-50 per order
ADDRESS: Any night market in Taipei
12. Egg Tarts
From the other Taiwan street food blog posts that I've read, I don't think Egg Tarts were mentioned in any of them. This may be just my personal opinion but I think that this is worthy of a spot in your list and you can trust my word for it. As we were walking around Shilin night market one time, my eyes spotted this table filled with egg tarts glistening as the light above hit it, each one of them having their own flavor. We bought and tried one on the spot. Then we ended up buying at least a dozen to bring back home since the vendor said that we could keep it refrigerated and it would last a whole week.
They had almost every flavor there is, but I'll only be mentioning the ones I can remember at the top of my head. They had plain egg tarts, blueberry, cheese, pecan, brown sugar, chocolate, and green tea!
PRICE: Around $NT 20 per piece
ADDRESS: I don't know if they'll still be in the same spot at Shilin night market but you can still try. From Jiantan station, walk towards Shilin night market, when you cross the road going to the left side, go and walk towards the very first alley you see. Keep walking straight and once you come across a small alley going to the right side, walk towards that direction and just follow the path. You'll end up with an alley of street food and it should be on your right side.
13. Deep-Fried Milk
Yeah you've heard of deep fried mars bars, or deep fried bacon-wrapped burgers. But have you ever heard of deep fried milk? Because surely I haven't and I never thought, in my whole 23 years of existence, that I ever would. Until I visited Taiwan. This snack starts off with thickened milk, almost like pudding, sliced into cubes, coated with batter and deep fried. Eating this is a whole experience in itself. You get this millisecond of crunchy moment as you bite into the outer layer and finish off with a sweet, soft, kinda like soft tofu texture on the inside.
PRICE: NT$ 20 per stick (with 3 pieces each)
ADDRESS: I tried this at Shilin night market, but I think you can also find it in other night markets
TIP: This is served fresh from being deep fried in very hot oil, I suggest letting it cool off for a bit as to not burn yourself
14. Grilled Chicken Roll
The name itself explains this Taiwanese street food snack. It's chicken that's deboned, wrapped on a stick into a roll and cooked on a charcoal grill. Since it's on a stick, its very easy to eat while walking if you'd like to have it as a snack, or you can buy rice and you already have a meal! I didn't taste any special seasoning when I tried this, but grilling the chicken compared to the usual frying, added a smokey savory flavor.
PRICE: NT$ 40 per stick
ADDRESS: Any night market in the city
15. Yakult Slushie
Yes you heard it right, yakult slushie. If you love yakult then you should definitely add this to your list! For those who haven't tried yakult or totally don't know what it is, it's actually a sweetened probiotic milk beverage fermented with the bacteria strain Lactobacillus paracasei shirotah. Yes it contains bacteria, but don't be alarmed, it's actually good bacteria that improves digestion and helps build immunity. This drink is purely 100% yakult, just frozen, nothing else is added. This is perfect especially when you visit Taipei during summer.
PRICE: NT$ 40 per order
ADDRESS: I tried this for the very first time when we visited Pingxi old street but its probably more common now that you can find it at any night market in the city as well.
TIP: If you happen to visit not during the summer, you can still try this to help digest all the street food that you ate LOL
FIN
DISCLAIMER: I might have missed a couple of Street Food or drinks because to be totally honest, there's just too many good Taiwan food to mention. This post is just my personal opinion and you can use it as a guide to help you choose which ones to try if you're feeling indecisive or overwhelmed with all the options available.
I also used Taiwanese dollars as currency for the prices of the food so that you'll have an idea. To convert it to Philippine peso, just multiply it by 2!
Visiting Taipei anytime soon? Check out my itinerary here and get ideas if you still haven't!
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