The little tavern is located in the middle of a small village with no big roads or streets. It is recommended to park along the street which bends around the village (some parkings available directly next to it). From there just take a stroll through the small alleys to the tavern.
They offer some nice seatings outside in the shade under wine. During late lunch time most guests were local people and outside all tables were taken.
The menu has a variety of local food and especially fresh fish.
We had a beetroot salad, fries and fish (e.g. swordfish). Everything was prepared fresh and with very nice flavors. The fries were a bit soft but I wouldn't call it a Greek speciality, therefore not complaining.
The service was very friendly too making us definately come again when being on Samos next time.
This restaurant is one of the few vegetarian places in Zhiben, and it offers both great dishes and stylish decor. Even if it were located in downtown Taitung City, I would still consider it a pretty good option. However, these advantages are also reflected in the prices, which are on the higher side.
This time, I ordered the Thai basil rice, where the pork is replaced with diced tofu. Although there’s no meat, the sauce that is supposed to be tangy, salty, and sweet truly hasn’t missed any flavors, and this oddly complements the diced tofu remarkably well, making it very enjoyable with rice. The rice is made with healthy five-grain rice, and it’s cooked perfectly with each grain distinct and transparent. If visiting for the first time and unsure about what to order, I would definitely recommend this dish. The set meals come with soup.
If you come as a group, you can order more different dishes, such as fresh seasonal vegetables or mountain pepper tofu. Friends who enjoy vegetarian food definitely shouldn’t miss out on visiting Zhiben.
The "8818 Pizza Restaurant" has been on my must-try list for quite some time, and I finally found the time to check it out. The atmosphere of the restaurant is quite nice, especially with the thoughtful decorations for Halloween. There were portraits of celebrities eating pizza and fried chicken hanging on the walls, like Bruce Lee, Michael Jackson, and Marilyn Monroe, which immediately gives a relaxed and humorous vibe as soon as you walk in.
This time, I ordered the seafood pizza and the Mexican chili pizza, both of which were quite delicious. Their pizzas are generously topped, especially the seafood pizza, which has plenty of fresh ingredients. The Mexican chili pizza has a moderate spiciness with a hint of tang from the chili, paired with rich cheese, creating a well-balanced flavor. The pizza crust is thin, but not overly crispy; it has a bit of elasticity that makes it chewy, which I quite like—it gives a satisfying and hearty feeling when you eat it.
I noticed some diners at another table enjoying the fried chicken, and it looked very appetizing, making me want to order it too 🤤. However, the price is a bit on the higher side, so I decided to skip it this time and try it next time. Overall, "8818 Pizza Restaurant" not only offers great dishes, but the environment and ambiance are also very comfortable, making it a perfect place to enjoy a leisurely meal with friends.
Overall Review: 🌕🌕🌕🌘🌑
Dickson's Fooday Review #264
This time I visited a more budget-friendly Korean restaurant.
This Korean restaurant is located in the internal alley of the Shida Night Market, making it quite an affordable place.
The customer demographic here mostly consists of students or local residents.
However, this restaurant also offers online booking through inline services.
Don't underestimate this place; it gets pretty crowded during dinner time!
The Korean dishes here are quite authentic.
Though the prices are low, the overall flavor is actually quite good!
It's perfect for those random weekday cravings for Korean food—a very good choice!
In addition, the side dishes can be refilled infinitely, which is also quite nice.
As for the menu items, all the basic Korean dishes are listed.
From traditional Korean blood sausage soup to various types of budae jjigae (army stew) and bibimbap, and even classic spicy rice cakes and cold noodles are available!
Plus, if you’re a student, you can get a discount with your student ID, which is substantial!
Personally, I think this place has very high CP value (cost-performance ratio).
It’s ideal for the local student crowd looking to eat here!
As for the flavor of the food, I find it quite decent—of a basic quality and standard!
Students from nearby Shida or other areas are very welcome to dine here!
Food: 🌕🌕🌕🌘🌑
Atmosphere: 🌕🌕🌕🌘🌑
Service: 🌕🌕🌕🌑🌑
Price: 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌘
⭐️ Food Section
👉 Seoul Blood Sausage Soup $280
My friend ordered the blood sausage soup.
I honestly had no idea what blood sausage soup was 😂😂😂😂
Since I didn’t get to try it, I’m sorry I can’t evaluate it!
👉 Cold Noodles with Spicy Sauce and Stir-fried Beef Belly $250
The cold noodles here are just the typical cold noodles found in Korean cuisine, topped with an egg.
Being a spicy dish, combined with the refreshingly cold noodles, they are delicious and very satisfying.
This dish is something I definitely recommend!
The portion size is just right—not too heavy or overwhelming, and it pairs wonderfully with the meal!
Additionally, a side of stir-fried beef belly comes with it, but this part felt a bit more ordinary.
It’s pretty much just a simple meat side.
The beef can feel a bit heavy, perhaps the perfect complement to the cold noodles!
If I come back next time, I might just order the cold noodles and skip the beef belly 😂😂
👉 Sausage and Rice Cake $200
This dish combines sausage with rice cakes.
Don’t underestimate this small portion; it comes with four skewers, each containing two sausages and two rice cakes.
For $200, you really get a lot of food!
This dish is quite tasty; however, the portion is quite large!
One person might even be full with just this dish!
This dish primarily shines through its sauce flavor.
Recently, I feel the Korean sauces have been quite well made, flavorful and sufficient!
👉 Omelette
This is a basic Korean-style omelette.
With egg dishes, it’s hard to go wrong!
The portion is quite generous, giving a sense of value for the price 😂
Overall, the portions here are quite substantial.
That day, my friend and I dined here and ordered the aforementioned dishes, but we could only finish about 60% of it; the rest had to be packaged to take away.
In terms of food flavor and taste, I find it quite decent.
You can enjoy pretty good Korean food at this price.
This restaurant has a very high CP value!
⭐️ Atmosphere Section
This place doesn’t really create a special atmosphere; it feels more like a community restaurant or one for nearby students.
The restaurant space isn’t enormous, and the tables are close together.
It doesn’t really set up a romantic or date-like vibe; it’s simply a place to eat!
⭐️ Service Section
The restaurant doesn’t provide any special services; just basic ordering and serving.
However, if you can’t finish your food, they do offer takeout services!
So if you order too much, there’s no need to worry.
Before you leave, simply let the staff know, and they will prepare your food to take away!
⭐️ Price Section
This restaurant's prices are remarkably cheap, which explains why it attracts so many local students.
After all, the student price is directly listed, and it’s about a 20% discount from the original price!
It’s really quite affordable!
Moreover, even at original prices, considering the portion, it’s very high in CP value.
Thus, if you are a nearby student or a working adult with family, this Korean restaurant comes highly recommended!
⭐️ Overall
This place is truly an affordable Korean restaurant.
Even with the low prices, the variety and taste of the dishes are quite good!
Highly recommended for residents living nearby or students to dine in!
🤪 Dickson's Chat Corner 🤪
🙎🏻♂️: Let’s meet at Dongdaemun!
💁♀️: What Dongdaemun? I still have Ximen, North Da Road, South...
🙎🏻♂️: Got no more ideas, huh! Dongdaemun is related to all things Korean!
Girl, how could you not know!
💁♀️: What are you talking about! Of course, I know!
It’s just that Taiwan uses Dongdaemun too much; it’s everywhere!
🙎🏻♂️: Aiya, what I meant was the Dongdaemun Korean cuisine at Shida Night Market!
💁♀️: Oh oh oh... Dong...
Let’s go Dongdong~~~
🙎🏻♂️: .....
Look at that!
Using this opportunity to chat about Korean stuff with the girl can let you know if she’s a Korean wave fan!
During this chatting process, don’t you feel your relationship has improved? 🤪🤪🤪
❤️❤️❤️❤️
😂
🤪 See you next time at Dickson's Chat Corner 🤪
Here’s the translation to English:
Nearby Chengqing Lake is a Thai skewers restaurant - Thai Ghost Skewers. This skewer, barbecue, and late-night stir-fry brand from Tainan offers freshly made Thai-style dishes. It was co-founded by two individuals from the '80s generation. The indoor space is air-conditioned, and there are also serene outdoor seating options. It operates until 1 AM, making it perfect for after work drinks with a few friends.
Because I was too busy eating, I didn’t manage to take photos of the ingredients 🤣🤣. Here, I highly recommend the seafood stir-fried rice noodles for 💰210. The rice noodles are full of Thai sauce and paired with an abundance of seafood, and a squeeze of lemon really enhances the flavor.
The crispy fried Thai fish cakes for 💰120 are practically the essence of a deep-fried fish cake, fried to super crispiness. They are irresistibly munchable and pair perfectly with drinks.
The clear seafood soup for 💰220 is also a must-try; it comes with three large prawns and a generous amount of seafood. It’s wonderful to have a hot bowl of soup in winter to warm up the stomach.
The skewers are quite large and worth their price. The Thai sauce goes incredibly well with any meat.
Dine-in guests can also enjoy free ice cream, which is just so generous.
If you want to see more video introductions, feel free to search on Instagram: ooo.eat.
A ramen shop that is super close to Hsinchu Train Station.
On weekends around 6 PM, there is a queue, but there were only two groups ahead of me.
I waited about 10 minutes before getting in.
The shop strictly requires that everyone in the group be present to queue.
If someone is running late, you can inform the staff, and they will assist. 👍
I placed my order at 10:30 PM.
Basically, they don’t close early, but usually the rich broth isn’t available later at night.
If you want a late-night ramen fix, you can come here. XD
The seating in the shop is limited, with only about 13 seats.
However, the seats are not cramped.
Upon entering, ordering is done via a self-service kiosk.
After ordering, staff will show you to your seats.
You need to provide the order slip to the staff.
They will ask whether you want the broth to be Taiwanese or Japanese style (the latter is saltier) and what level of firmness you want for the noodles.
The food doesn’t take long to arrive, and the soup is served extremely hot, so be careful while eating! QAQ
You can get free extra noodles as long as you can finish them.
The Tokyo soy sauce ramen with Taiwanese flavor and normal noodles is more refreshing compared to the broth at Ramen House Aurora.
The chashu is tender, but there isn’t much meat.
The portion of noodles is small, so sometimes I can’t finish it.
The environment is comfortable and the atmosphere is good, suitable for dining alone or in groups.
I ordered Old Beijing Beef Noodle Soup and Spicy Fried Dumplings. The texture of the noodles is quite good and chewy, but the broth tastes like the base soup from a chain hot pot restaurant with added spicy seasoning. It's decent, but not something I would specially come back for.
The dried tofu is very juicy, and both the texture and seasoning are great. If I come back, I will definitely order it again.
The winter melon tea is delicious and pairs well with the food.
The restaurant doesn't have many seats, and quite a few customers opt for takeout.
The beef sukiyaki rice bowl is $120, and the portion is just right. Each side dish is quite delicious, including the broccoli, egg roll, and tofu, all of which are well-prepared. The beef is served with onions, and overall, I am very satisfied.
The fried pork cutlet curry rice is $180, and it comes with the same side dishes: broccoli, egg roll, and tofu. The tofu is very flavorful. However, the highlight is the fried pork cutlet; you can tell that only a skilled chef could make such delicious pork cutlet. It pairs really well with the curry sauce, making it an outstanding dish overall.
I quite often come here to dine, and I'm generally very satisfied with almost every dish. The owner's attitude is also very friendly. 👍
Environment
The store's decor is bright and spacious, with seating for two and four people, and the tables are not too close together, which creates a less stressful dining experience. Although most dishes require grilling, there are no unpleasant odors in the restaurant. 👍
Dishes
📍 Grilled Sirloin Steak Bowl 💰 290
Two pieces of sirloin steak marinated in a special sauce and then grilled, enhancing the flavor. The beef is very tender and gets more flavorful the more you chew.
📍 House Style Char Siu Bowl 💰 180
Char siu, typically found only in ramen shops, can also be enjoyed here and is served in thicker slices with more portion size. 😋
📍 Spicy Fried Chicken 💰 160
One of the highly recommended fried items, the fried chicken drizzled with a mildly spicy and numbing sauce is very appetizing and makes you want to keep eating.
📍 Crispy Fried Smelt 💰
Unlike the smelt served in school lunches of the past, these are crispier and have plumper fish meat, making them surprisingly delicious.
📍 Crispy Fried Oysters 💰
The oysters are surprisingly fresh and do not carry any fishy smell. Even friends who don’t eat seafood find them very tasty.
‼️ There are free-flowing chicken white soup and Mei Li fruit drinks available for dine-in! ‼️
‼️ There is also a lunch special available only during noon 🍱 for just 💰 99! ‼️
📍 Beef Bento
📍 Pork Bento
📍 Fried Chicken Bento
Parking
Scooters 🛵 can be parked at the front of the store or in nearby white-lined areas.
Cars 🚗 can park in more distant spaces on Section 2 of Jingmao 3rd Road; many parking spots are a bit further away.
Service
There are only two staff members in the store, so there isn’t much time to provide thorough service during peak hours. However, the environment is kept very clean, which makes for a comfortable dining experience. 😌
Payment Methods
Cash 💰
Line Pay
I saw this coffee shop nearby…
A lot of people recommend the banana pudding here. Thinking about how delicious it must be, I definitely have to try it! After all, this kind of pudding is actually quite rare in Taiwan.
When I arrived at the shop, the seating was available for me to choose freely. The staff only helped with ordering, and if you want to avoid the service charge, you can use the automatic ordering machine next to it! I ordered…
❤️ Latte
The coffee tasted very smooth, with no sourness and not too bitter; it's a great afternoon tea drink. If you can pass by in the morning, having a cup before work would also be nice!
❤️ Banana Pudding
This dessert, the banana pudding, has been praised by everyone, but I think it's mainly local Americans who enjoy it, because the sweetness of the banana pudding is indeed off the charts. The first bite was already very sweet and rich, and being able to keep eating it was truly unbelievable! In the end, I only managed to finish the banana part, as I really couldn't handle the rest!
❤️ Egg Tart
I ended up taking the egg tart home to eat! Surprisingly, not many people recommended the egg tart, but I found it very delicious! Perhaps it’s more in line with our Asian palate, not too sweet, and the crust is crispy! If you’re coming to this café, I would recommend the egg tart more!
Overall, I think I would return for the egg tart and coffee ☕️, but I really couldn't order the banana pudding again～ Maybe next time I will try their scone! And those who are interested can also order other things and share with me!
