The Food Lover's Guide To The Best Taiwanese Eats In The Metro
Hungry for a taste of Taiwan's delicious cuisine? All you need is a good appetite, an open mind, and this list curated by food explorer par excellance JJ Yulo
Here we are in Manila at a time when moving around (a.k.a. travel) isn’t exactly possible, at least not yet. So where do you turn if you want a taste of Taipei? Fortunately, all is not lost – if you're craving Taiwanese food, the good news is there are a surprising number of establishments serving it. Perhaps not the most extensive selection, at least in my radar, but enough to satisfy cravings and pique curiosities. So here is my guide to Taiwanese food in the metro.
Before we dive in, let me just say that Taiwan has always been a bit of a mystery to me. I found out at some point during my school days that a sizable number of my Mandarin teachers – I went to a Chinese school – were Taiwanese. I remember lessons about the mystical mountain Alishan, and the life of Dr. Sun Yat-Sen who was a prominent figure in Taiwan’s history. But that was about it. Until I met my brother’s Taiwanese friend. He broadened my perspective about Taiwan in the best possible way: he fed me. Thus began my fascination for Taiwanese food and culture. Since then, I’ve had the good fortune to be able to visit Taipei several times, including a food tour in 2019.
While a few trips hardly makes me an expert, I certainly took the opportunities to really soak in whatever I could, including, of course, their food (fine, more like scarf down whatever I could hehe). And so, after my serious “research” and after reading up on it a bit, I’ve come to the following observations. Obviously, a lot of their food is rooted in Chinese dishes, but through many factors have spun off in other directions, too. First of all, a lot of Taiwanese dishes are simple and have that “home cooking” vibe – evolving from humble dishes, hence you’ll see stuff like offal, off cuts of meats, pickles, dried and concentrated condiments, and the like. I noticed they value freshness, too – I got this California produce driven vibe – observing that they eat lots of vegetables (which is great!). From all the things I’ve tried, I noticed that they season until the dish is balanced, just on the border of bland (at least for a typical Pinoy’s palate). To be honest, I love how clean tasting their food is – something we call could learn from. Perhaps there is a connection flavor-wise to Japanese cuisine – the Japanese were once their colonizers, and there is still a prevailing Japanese influence (Japanese food lovers will be happy to note that there are a LOT of cheap teppanyaki restaurants and they’re awesome!)
If you want to check out my guide to Taiwanese food in Manila, just click through the gallery below.
Let's eat Taiwanese
Let's eat Taiwanese
Mien San Noodle House
If I could pick one to start, I would definitely hit up what in my eyes is the grandpappy of mainstream Taiwanese eats in Manila: Mien San. This was the place where I had my first taste of it, so many years ago, care of my Taiwanese friend. Back in the day the original branch was near Makati Avenue, but they since moved the main branch to Gilmore in Quezon City where it became a true legend. Definitely get some spicy dumplings – tender dumplings swimming in a tangy chili sauce laced with vinegar – to wake up the taste buds. (Photo: @miensannoodlehouse)
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Mien San Noodle House
I always get onion pancakes – crispy and tasty, on which I slather chili sauce. For mains, rice toppings are great: mushroom fish rice was always my go to. Fish fillet and mushrooms in an addictive sauce, with a lot of sides and rice. Sate noodles are always good too, if crazy filling (you may have to be wheeled out after) as is some cucumber on the side to refresh. Explore their packed menu, eat a lot, and get some frozen dumplings on the way out so you can enjoy Taiwanese food at home, too. (Photo: @miensannoodlehouse)
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Mazendo
One of Taiwan’s most iconic dishes is beef noodles aka Niu Rou Mian. There are, apparently, a lot of versions of it. It’s a deep flavored rich broth with tender beef chunks, slightly spicy (or a lot spicy, which is how I like it!), with nice chewy noodles, with some leafy greens and usually with pickles too. There are beef noodle holes-in-the-wall around the city (pre-you know what) but I honestly don’t know if they’re still there, so I’m glad we have Mazendo. Their red roast beef noodle is the kind of soulful noodle dish that’ll lift your spirits – great to have around these days when we all need some of that. It’s quite well done – the beef is a little fatty, and really soft, the broth is deep (but I’d love more heat hehe), and the noodles pleasantly chewy. (Photo: @mazendoph)
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Mazendo
Do try their other dishes too, of course – I’m particularly fond of their vegetarian dumplings in sesame sauce or in spicy sauce. Oh, and pro-tip: the Salcedo branch has a Chatime too, so you can order some milk tea with your noods! (Photo: @mazendoph)
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Din Tai Fung
The rock star of all Taiwanese joints is still Din Tai Fung. Pandemic or not, people still line up even if it's just to pick up food. But there’s a reason why they’re one of the top dogs – they work hard on their consistency and service. They’ve a whole bunch of stuff on their menu – everything from starters like their funky yummy Taiwanese Kao Fu, to fried wontons, to dry noodles, to (a must) their signature Xiao Long Bao. (Photo: @dintaifungph)
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Lugang Cafe
Since they opened, I’ve been a big fan of Lugang Café. They, too, have a menu that’s above and beyond Taiwanese food, but to me their Taiwanese dishes really sign. Check out their Taiwanese stewed minced pork set (aka Loba Rice, think Taiwanese comfort food that’s somewhere in the vicinity of an adobo), classic Three Cup Chicken, and even their Omelet With Preserved Turnip. Bonus: on their website, they also have a lot of frozen dishes to enjoy at home! (Photo: @lugangcafe)
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Shi Lin
Homegrown Shilin has been around for quite some time too, and is always another good choice for your Taiwanese fix. They stick to tried and true dishes, for the most part, which means you don’t have to worry about ordering something that won’t agree with you. Pork chop rice or chicken chop fried rice with a side of cucumber pickles is always a good choice! (Photo: @shilinph)
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Taiwan White Chef Bento
Taiwan White Chef Bento is something my brother whispered into my ear, and I’m glad he did. It’s on Grab (that’s how I got it) and only makes lunch. They do a Taiwanese style “bento” of one main and a bunch of sides. Bentos are definitely a thing in Taiwan – once available only in train stations, they’ve evolved into grab and go meals that everyone loves. (Photo: TCWBKitchenette)
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Taiwan White Chef Bento
White Chef makes pretty awesome value-for-money dishes – check out their spicy chicken, fish cake, or even their version of loba rice. The best part for me was that the vegetable sides were also given a lot of love! (Photo: @TCWBKitchenette)
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Greetings From Taiwan
I’m pretty sure you’ve all been spending a lot of time at home, too. You can also turn to enablers of food things Taiwanese, like my go-to Greetings From Taiwan, which is a grocery of sorts that lives on IG. If you trawl through their offerings, you’ll find a lot of goodies to help you cook Taiwanese at home: stuff like fish floss, Taiwanese sausage, boxed beef noodles (limited quantities, but get it when it's there!), sauces and condiments, and even sweets like nougat (if you’ve never tried Taiwanese nougat, this is the place to get it). Home cooking rocks,too! (Photo: @greetingsfromtaiwan)
Photo Credit: ORDER HERE
Now go on a Taiwanese food adventure!
This little list is certainly not definitive, as there are several still on my radar I want to try too. But the point is this – a truly yummy taste of Taiwan isn’t too far away! Get to it, keep an open mind, and taste away!
Photo Credit: @greetingsfromtaiwan
Follow JJ Yulo's food adventures on @nekkidchef on Instagram.
Lead photos: Lugang Cafe, Mazendo, Shi Lin
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