Mention Tamsui and most will think of cutesy couples taking wefies on the Lover’s Bridge. C-pop fans will even take on that uphill climb just to snap a shot of Jay Chou’s high school. But Tamsui is not only known for its chilly mornings and scenic sunsets. Where there are people, there must be food. We mean good ones to satiate the locals, and captivate the tourists.
Take a 10-min stroll from Tamsui station, and you’ll find yourself immersed in the sights and sounds of Tamsui Old Street. The lines are your best signals, so strategise well if you’re travelling in a group.
1. A-Gei
The first thought that hit us – that’s a carb bomb! Fried tofu is stuffed with glass noodles, then drenched in a soy-based or sweet chilli sauce. Shed your table etiquette as you tear this monster apart, so that flavour nests in the noodles as well. Slurp the noodles after with that fancy Japanese sound effect if you must, and be amazed by how something so simple can taste so good. Pair it with a bowl of stuffed fishball soup in winter or a glass of cold soy milk in summer, and you’d have just started the day right with a balanced meal.
Restaurant: 老店阿給 Original Ah-Gei
Opening hours: 8am – 10.30pm daily
Address: No.4, Ln. 11, Zhongzheng Rd., Tamsui District, New Taipei City, Taiwan 251
2. Pepper Buns
Insistence and patience are necessary to savour the best flavours. A disapproving look was plastered across our faces when idled buns were shoved to us in paper bags. The buns were still warm, but the juiciest have got to be those freshly retrieved from the canister. We bit into mixture of ground pork and black pepper that was moistened with what remains of the juice, delighted at how simple ingredients can taste so good when seasoned well. The buns were crispy on the outside with a tint of chewiness on the inside, reminding us of baked char siew buns. Each bun can be quite filling, so pop two in a bag and run along!
Restaurant: 炭钱胡椒饼 Tan Qian Hu Jiao Bing
Opening hours: 11am – 9pm daily
Address: No. 258, Zhongzheng Road, Tamsui District, New Taipei City, Taiwan 251
3. Fishballs
It may seem berserk that people form a line for fishballs, but that’s what we witnessed! Mind you, this was the scene after the stall’s two levels of seating area had been occupied. Tamsui takes pride in its chewy fishballs, made out of fish paste and meat stuffing. What differentiates this brand from the crowd is the shark meat that it adds to its paste, which adds to the texture and aroma of the snack. Fast, nutritious and extremely affordable, no wonder people are bagging frozen fishballs home after their meals.
Restaurant: 可口魚丸 Ke Kou Fish Ball
Opening hours: 7am – 8pm daily
Address: No. 232, Zhongzheng Road, Tamsui District, New Taipei City, Taiwan 251
4. Castella Cake
The smell of freshly baked goods drew us in, even before we managed to figure out our bearings. Clueless, we stood in line for a good 10 minutes till we realised that the original shop had moved right across the street. And so we abandoned the imposter for the real deal. The anticipation killed. A gigantic stack of cake gets loaded on the metal table, is prepped and measured well, sliced and jiggled into paper boxes, which are then whisked away by happy customers. A cake stack is only good for 8 boxes, so imagine how stabbed we felt when people placed orders in sets of 6. The cheese was the winner – think fluffy sponge cake layered with not one, but two gooey slabs of cheese. The savoury delight was gone by the end of the day, leaving its original counterpart nestled in the backseat till our hunger pangs struck again.
Restaurant: 緣味古早味現烤蛋糕 Grand Castella Cake
Opening hours: 9am – 8.30pm daily
Address: No. 135, Zhongzheng Road, Tamsui District, New Taipei City, Taiwan 251
5. Iron Eggs
High cholesterol alert! We were highly amused to see packs of 20 quail eggs or 6 chicken eggs. Do people really eat so many eggs at a time? These eggs have been repeatedly stewed in a mix of spices and air-dried to create their brown glistening appearance. Not to be confused with tea eggs, iron eggs aren’t as fragrant but are definitely chewier. The saltiness of the soy sauce brings out a concentrated egg flavour, that will pair well with a drink. Tea. Or bubble tea, maybe.
Restaurant: 阿婆鐵蛋 Grandma’s Iron Eggs
Opening hours: 9am – 10pm daily
Address: No. 135-1, Zhongzheng Road, Tamsui District, New Taipei City, Taiwan 251
Book your stay in Taipei here!
HomenHawker Travels 