五草車中華食館 南昌店

【Foodholic Niko @ Taipei】

This is another Chinese restaurant referred to as a budget version of Din Tai Fung. The menu is very similar to Din Tai Fung, and today I inexplicably wanted to eat this type of cuisine, so I came to Wucaoju, which has been on my to-eat list.

"Wucaoju Chinese Restaurant, Nanchang Branch" is located near Guting Station, about a 3-minute walk from Exit 2. The sign isn’t very eye-catching, but basically you won’t miss it because there are really a lot of people queuing at the entrance!

We arrived at almost 6 PM on a holiday, and surprisingly, we had to wait for 6 more groups ahead of us; to wait for a table, you need to register with the staff, and if your number is called out, you need to line up again.

The number of seats inside is not very many, with only about 10 tables, so the dining space feels a bit crowded.

The service is reasonably attentive; as soon as we sat down, the staff served us hot tea. However, this restaurant only accepts cash, which is a bit inconvenient.

Pork Rib Fried Rice $210, Shredded Pork Fried Rice $180
Both fried rice dishes taste quite similar; it's just the basic, simple style of fried rice that Din Tai Fung is known for. The aroma mainly comes from the eggs, salt, and scallions—it's tasty, but not the kind I personally love, which would have onions and soy sauce added in. The shredded pork fried rice had some fried chilies added, but it wasn’t spicy at all; the chilies felt more like decoration. You can add some sauce from the spicy dumplings halfway through to change the flavor a bit. I found the fried ribs to be average; they were good, but not memorable.

Spicy Shrimp Fried Dumplings $175
There are 8 pieces in total, and I chose mild spicy; the spiciness was sufficient. The shrimp was very large, as you could tell from its appearance, but for some reason, towards the end, it had a taste of artificial flavoring that I personally didn’t like.

Water Spinach $100
I chose to add chili, but just like the fried rice, it wasn’t spicy at all. The water spinach wasn’t cooked well, so I suggest eating it while it’s hot; once it cools down, it becomes less appetizing.

Overall, the food performs at about 65-70 points, but since the prices are still higher than a typical snack shop and you have to queue, my willingness to return isn’t very high.