JANUARY: Taipei Eats

For my January post, it's gotta be about my trip to Taiwan! It's been 5 years since I've been back... Which is crazy! Cuz before that, I went back every year! I definitely missed it. 

The food this time around was a bit disappointing though. Since I was there during Chinese New Year, I didn't realize most of the restaurants/businesses would be closed! T_T We still had some pretty good stuff though. Here are my top 5 bites or meals! (In no particular order.)

ManTangHung Spicy Hot Pot
Inside Bellavita Mall by Taipei 101.
B2, No.28, Songren Rd., Xinyi Dist., Taipei City
Phone: 02-2723-6300

AYCE spicy hot pot! There are different menu packages to choose from. We did the cheapest which is NT$799 I think and it was already more than enough options. My parents have done the more expensive options and said it's not much better. They even gave us complimentary seafood platter. This is a fancy hot pot place. The decor was very modern. They had several private rooms for larger parties. And they have not one but FIVE self serve ice cream stations.

So good! They also have other dishes to supplement the hot pot. Like Lu Rou Fan (braised pork on rice)... one of my all time favorite Taiwanese dishes. Hot pot in Taiwan is one of the best imo. Quote me on that!

Ming Yue Tang Bao (Soup Dumplings)
No.40, Lane 171 Tonghua Street, Taipei 106 Taiwan
Phone: +886 2 2733 8770

One of my must visit places in Taipei. I'm so happy this place is within 5 min walking distance from my Grandma's apartment so we'd been going here for most of my life. We almost always never have to wait and my family and I think it's better than Ding Tai Fung. Yea, I said it. I think DTF is overrated and overpriced and why wait in line if I have a better option!

Soup Dumplings

Sauteed Cabbage

Sauteed Water Spinach

Black Sesame Mochi (with peanut powder). OMG, so yum!

Tsujiri
Inside SOGO Food Court
106, Taiwan, Taipei City, Da’an District, Section 4, Zhongxiao East Road, No. 45 B1
Phone: +886 2 2721 6863

I'm pretty sure I've seen a shop with this name when I was in Japan. It's probably a chain but also maybe just a popular name?

I got a ceremonial matcha (matcha with water) and a matcha cheesecake. It was a combo so I saved some money! The matcha was beautifully green and so good. The unsweentened tea paired well with the cheesecake, even though the cheesecake itself wasn't too sweet. I loved the layers and the bitterness of the matcha. One of the best desserts I had on this trip.

Thai Town
Inside Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Xinyi Place A9
7, No. 9, Songshou Road, Xinyi District, Taipei City, Taiwan 110
Phone: +886 2 2723 9987

Thai Green Papaya Salad. Great flavors and textures!

Special Rice. So pretty! I'm not really sure what the red specks are in there... I didn't taste anything particular. But I love that it was served in a silver container... kinda made it feel like fancy rice.

Yellow Curry Chicken. Super tender. So tasty.

Stir Fry Water Spinach. My most favorite vegetable!

This was one of our more expensive meals. It was just me and my mom so typically we'd just go to the food court and get something for way cheaper. But we saw this and she said it was good, so we went. Funny though, it's STILL inside a department store!! Wow! One of the best meals of my trip. We ordered a lot of food but we ate it all!!! 100% would go back to this place.


The Who Cafe
110, Taiwan, Taipei City, Xinyi District, Zhuangjing Road, No. 214 2F
Phone: +886 2 2758 6512

On my last day, my parents and I went to this cute little cafe recommended by my cousin. I told her I wanted to go somewhere with 3D latte art and she found this place online. It turned out to be kind of a cat cafe. All the decor were were of cats as were the cups and saucers. They even had a resident cat walking around the cafe.

I got a matcha latte (unsweet) and it came with a cute kitty 3D latte art. The mug was saucer and spoon were also TOO CUTE!

We got dinner as well. The prices for food were a bit expensive compared to what other options we had but the portions turned out to be pretty big and they were really delicious! I love that there were multiple veggie options on each plate. You order the protein and it comes with whatever vegetable options they had that day. I LOVED all of them! Cabbage, creamed corn, spinach. And the protein was served in a super cute mini cocotte (dutch oven). Very filling meal... I didn't have room for dessert. I wish I had discovered this place earlier cuz I would've gone back for more drinks and dessert!

Extra entry ~~
2nd favorite dessert of the trip. Two Day Souffle Pancake.

Inside Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Xinyi Place A8
No. 12, Songgao Road, Xinyi District, Taipei City, Taiwan 110
Phone: +886 923 312 545

Inside another food court. Lol. The Chinese food courts are just on a whole other level. You'd never need to go to a free standing restaurant. There are SO many options and the decor is always on point. They make the American food courts look so so sad.

The fluffy Japanese pancakes are quite common in Taipei now. I saw several places that did this... although they all looked slightly different. My dad and I wanted dessert after lunch so we just went to the first one we saw. SO FREAKING SOFT! This wasn't nearly as tall as the one I had at Gram in Tokyo but I haven't seen one as tall as them anywhere. This was even softer than Gram. It was almost like eating clouds. Topped with a dark chocolate sauce, it was almost unsweetened chocolate. I really liked it. Not too sweet at all, so pillowy, and cute in its little box. I think I like the one from Japan better, but this was also a good experience. If you like sweet desserts, this would not be a good choice.

~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~

MARCH: La La Land Kind Cafe

So... I was actually a little worried on my pick for March. I have had some good food but nothing came to mind on what to feature. But then my friend told me about this coffee shop called La La Land Kind Cafe that was having their soft opening around the end of March. I was like "huh?" I've never heard of this place, but the day after, I saw an article out on it. Turns out this is the new business venture by Francois Reihani, one of the minds behind Pok the Raw Bar, my FAVORITE poke place. He also went on to open Bar Stellar. This guy just has the talent for business ideas. I DEF gotta check this place out!

Soft opening was on March 23rd. As I drove up this neighborhood road behind Lower Greenville, I see this bright white house. Incredibly cute and cheerful. With a white picket fence and everything! When you walk in, OMG, the cutest. The white and bright yellow accents, it just cheers you up. I remember it was kind of an overcast, meh day, but the colors at La La Land will make you smile. :) Oh.. and they have a doggy friendly area on the side of the house. D'awwww!

La La Land Kind Cafe
5626 Bell Ave.
Dallas, TX 75206
(214) 579-9550
https://lalalandkindcafe.com/
Price: $-$$

As soon as you enter, several people greet you. You order at the counter, they give you a number, and they bring the food and drinks out to you. Guess what, they have an entire menu section for MATCHA! Pok gets the best matcha, so they must have high grade matcha powder here as well. They have some very interesting combinations of flavors too. The other half of the menu are different coffee offerings. They also have a really interesting loose leaf tea section (which I discovered 3 visits later. haha.) Plus they have most of the available Alternative Milks (almond, oat, coconut, soy) +$0.75~

On our first visit, it was so hard to pick what to order. We went with what was prettiest. :P
Campfire Latte (toasted marshmallow, chocolate, graham cracker, hot) $5.20~ The melted marshmallow over the edge of the cup is such a cute idea. My friend ordered this and I got to try it. It's really good!

French Toast Latte (cinnamon, maple syrup, hot or iced) $5.20~ This is the cutest!! They've really got the presentation down. Flavor wise, you can definitely taste the cinnamon but I'm not sure if I think french toast when I drink it... still tasty tho!

La La Avocado Toast (mashed avocado, lemon, red pepper flakes, cilantro garnish) $6.20~ I think the price has increased on this btw... but I forgot to snap a pic of the menu last time I was there. The bread they use for the toasts is really great with the avocado. I love the crispy edges, and it's a hearty toast. It's one of the only savory options on the menu right now. I'm hoping they'll add more food options soon!

Banana Brulee Toast (hazelnut spread, caramelized bananas) $5.50~ OMGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG. I mean, just look at the picture. It tastes just as decadent as it looks. So simple... nutella and bruleed bananas, but just perfect.

Chocolate Chip Cookie $4~ And then I fell in love even more. This cookie, y'all. It's the best (and worst*) thing to happen to me in the past month. It is my dream cookie. HUGE, for one. Perfectly crispy on the outside with so many nooks and crannies. I have no idea how they make it that perfect on the outside. Inside is still soft, but NOT under baked. It's my idea of a perfectly textured cookie. And of course chocolate chip cookies are my absolute favorite. When it comes to you warm... ERMUHGUH! I can't contain my drool right now. *The reason I say it's the worst thing to happen to me is because, within 1 week of their opening... ONE... I had about 5 cookies. XD Bye bye, beach bod! Haha.

Thanks for the hat!! :D

At the end of our first visit, we each got a matcha drink to go.

Matcha Latte (iced) $3.50~ I felt like there wasn't enough matcha. But I have been informed that since the soft opening, they have increased the amount of matcha in the lattes. Gotta give it another try!

Strawberry Fields Matcha (matcha latte, strawberry, beetroot, hot or iced) $5.20~ Pretty! And really delicious. I'm kind of a matcha purist so I don't like to mix things with it, but this was a really good combo.

Here are some other menu items I've tried throughout my many visits. I think in the first 2 weeks I was there almost every other or every 2 days. :P

Flat Green $3.50~ This is matcha with milk, but the ratio is less than a latte so you get a stronger matcha flavor. Loved it.

Mighty Mocha (cold brew, espresso, cacao, iced) $5.20~ I wanted to try this since I love mochas. But WHEW! Too much coffee for me. This is definitely not for weak hearted! There's a lotta coffee and caffeine in there, folks. For those of you that get 3+ shots of espresso in your drinks, this may be for you! They were nice and gave me a regular mocha instead.

Breakfast Empanada (baked egg, bacon, potato) $4~ I liked this. It went well with the salsa they gave me on the side. I just wanted more! It's definitely not enough to fill you up if you want it as a meal. Better order like 4+. haha.

Ice Blended Drink (espresso base, thin mint flavor) $5~ It was a warm day, so I wanted something cold. This was yummy! Wished it was a bit creamier though. Definitely tasted the chocolate mint flavors.

So... do you love it as much as I do yet? If not, this will get ya. La La Land Kind Cafe serves a much bigger purpose than just serving us great drinks and foods. It supports Reihani's nonprofit, We Are One Project, which "provides the right tools for businesses to come together and employ foster youth". "La La Land is a training ground for aging out foster youth. At La La Land they will learn the basic the fundamentals of job skills. Timeliness, cleanliness, customer relations, productivity, and teamwork." (from We Are One Project website). SO. FREAKING. GREAT. This is definitely a mission and business I can stand behind. And as long as they keep making those cookies... just TAKE ALL MY MONIES! :P

This place has been packed every single day since it's opened, so I'm sure a lot of you already know about it. But what great concept, purpose, and quality. The menu is 100% organic, btw. No big. Haha. Plus they're open early, and they close late. Perf.

~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~

Thai Style High Tea @ Bangkok on Beltline

I love afternoon tea, high tea, any kind of tea + dessert type events where you can relax, eat, and hang out with your friends. :) I went to a few tea places while I was in Vietnam in August, so it was fresh on my mind. So me and another blogger friend of mine decided to take action and actually plan one. We were searching for some options of places to go when I came across someone's Instagram post on the tea at Bangkok on Beltline. Now this was already on my radar, but I had for some reason forgotten about it. They only have high tea on Saturdays from 2-4PM and it's by reservation only because they have to prep all the goodies. The date we had planned was a Saturday so this worked out perfectly. And to our luck, the PR company for Bangkok saw my comment to that post and reached out. Yay!

Bangkok on Beltline - Thai High Tea
100 S Central Expy #108
Richardson, TX 75080
(469) 930-9755
http://www.bangkokatbeltline.com/
Price: $35 per person

Most of the group were already food bloggers so now we are being hosted! Woohoo!! All of us got half off the regular price. It was great, since we were initially planning this as just a casual outing with friends. Yay. Thank you so much for hosting us, Bangkok on Beltline and Red iD Agency!!

I had seen pictures, but it was even prettier in person. We arrived on Saturday and the table was decked out with three 3 tiered tea trays FILLED with beautiful and colorful creations. I think it took us a full 30 minutes to get all of our photos taken... haha. Food bloggers, amiright? :P

We then met the owner of the restaurant and he proceeded to explain all the different items and the progression of the tea service.

We started with the Bottom Tier and work our way up. It has all the savory items. It is also paired with a Chinese Green Tea. With unlimited refills. I think I had 4 cups of this. I drink a lot of tea.. haha. Especially when I'm eating sweets too. The tea is light and unsweetened. There are sugar cubes for those who wanted sweetness.

Pad Thai Croissant. What a creative combination! East meets West. I wished the pad thai was warm, but I think that's kind of hard to do since the tea trays have to be prepared before the party arrives. Also... we took forever taking pictures. haha. The pad thai had a sweetness to it which I wouldn't have liked if I was eating it for dinner, but since this is mainly pastries and desserts, it worked well with the buttery croissant.

Chicken Satay Sandwich. This was my favorite. It had really great flavor. Almost a curry flavor in there.
Yellow Curry Puffs (filled with potato). This was also really good. The crust was flaky, not dry. The potato had good flavor. I'm assuming this is a vegetarian friendly item.

Middle Tier:
This one is paired with Chrysanthemums Tea, one of my favorite teas of all time. When I go to dim sum, I ALWAYS have to order this. It's a flower, and you can definitely get the florally fragrance when you sip it. I lost count on how many cups I had of this one. haha.
This tier had most of the Asian influenced desserts.

Black Rice Pudding (with coconut milk, palm seed jelly on top). Reminded me of all those Asian desserts I grew up eating. I enjoyed the rice pudding texture and I love coconut milk. Can't say I've had palm seed jelly before though. Yay for trying new things!
Rice Crackers with Caramel Coconut Sauce. The rice crackers were Asian style... so there's basically no sweetness to it. Just the slight nuttiness from the rice. If you are expecting a rice crispies treat, this ain't it. You can spread some of the caramel sauce over the rice crackers. The sauce itself was quite interesting. It was almost more savory than sweet... reminded me a bit like peanut sauce in Vietnamese/Thai cuisine.
Sticky Rice (with Thai Coconut Custard). I still don't fully know what all is in this. But the sticky rice was inside a layer of pastry or something. I liked this a lot, especially the coconut custard.

Top Tier:
Unsweet Thai Tea was served with this tier. I was curious to try it because I've never had Thai tea without the condensed milk or sugar... I really liked it. It almost tasted sweet on its own without adding sugar. It went really well with this tier. Actually all of the teas were paired really well with their respective tiers. I was quite impressed!

Pistachio and Raspberry Macarons. Beautifully made macarons. The colors were so pretty with the Matcha Tiramisu. The textures of both macarons were both really good. I especially loved the pistachio's flavor.

Green Tea Tiramisu (with red bean). This was the favorite of the group. Not only was it beautiful, it was delicious. The matcha cream had a rich matcha taste. I was surprised to find a layer of red bean in there, which added an interesting texture. Again, this is where the Asian influences play into a typical dessert. Definitely one of the best desserts in the display. I wished I could've taken some home... but it was in a glass so I couldn't.

We also got some of their signature Flower Sesame Cookies. These are light and crispy and really cool looking!

We were all stuffed! Some people couldn't even finish all of the different items. A few of the girls came in and scoffed at the amount of food saying they were still gonna be hungry after. They ate their words. It was a lot. I would recommend eating a very light lunch or none at all before you go to high tea in general. You'd be surprised how much little sandwiches and cakes can fill you up! Plus you're drinking a ton of tea. Well, at least I was. I had to go to the bathroom twice!! haha. I think I drank well over 10 cups total.

We had SO MUCH FUN! It was a super unique experience with the Thai inspired flavors. I've definitely never had a tea experience like this before. For the price point, this is a great value in Dallas for high tea. Most other places I know are at least $50+ a person. I highly recommend you try this. Great for a girls' day out, or a bridal shower. I'd even do this for a birthday party! :)

Thanks again for hosting us!! :)

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~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~