Taipei Food Guide: The 15 Best Restaurants In Taipei
WARNING: This Taipei food guide is incredibly delicious. If you decide to try out the best restaurants in Taipei, side effects will include gaining weight and extreme happiness.
If you’re looking for what to eat in Taipei, this is the definitive list with a variety of places to eat to fit each palette. These restaurants are the must eat in Taipei list. Of course, the top restaurants in Taipei would require reservations or at some you’ll just have to wait for a table.
This Taipei Food Guide Is Only For Taipei Restaurants
Taipei street food is amazing and there are many delicious Taiwanese desserts. Please see my other posts regarding what food to eat in Taipei. This list is exclusively the good restaurants in Taipei and excludes street food and dessert places. Some of these good restaurants in Taipei are my absolute favorite. For some, these are are top restaurants in Taipei to eat.
If your visiting Taipei for the weekend and only have a limited amount of meals, this list of what to eat in Taipei restaurants. There is so much good Taipei food, that I’ll have to separate it in to multiple posts. This article will only have the best restaurants in Taipei.
There is a 10% service charge at some Taipei restaurants. Some will say it on the menu otherwise you’ll find it on your bill.
Pricing: Taipei Restaurant Guide
Since Taipei eats have their own economy of pricing, I’ve broken the pricing up to what you can expect to pay for good food in Taipei. Food is very affordable in Taiwan and it’s rare to spend more than $30USD per person at a restaurant.
Taxes: Taipei Restaurant Guide
In any Taipei restaurant, night market, street food, convenience store and pretty much everywhere, the price listed is the final price. This is unlike in America when tax gets added to your purchase. In Taiwan, tax is already added in to the displayed price.
The only time that the price listed ends up being higher than what you expected is when you get hit with a 10% service charge at a restaurant.
Tipping: Taipei Restaurant Guide
Even if your meal and service are extremely amazing, it’s not expected to tip even at the top restaurants in Taipei. Instead of a tip, most places will add a “service charge” of 10% to your bill.
I like the no tipping policy in Taipei because you STILL get good service. That’s the opposite of my experiences in the United States. You can still go to good restaurants in Taipei and not have to tip.
I’ve been to some nice restaurants in Taipei (Western) that had the “tip” line in the credit bill even after adding a 10% service charge. It’s up to you, but you already tipped. This tipping trick is very common in the United States.
Of course Din Tai Fung is on this list of best restaurants in Taipei! It’s delicious and much cheaper than the other international locations. Din Tai Fung originated in Taiwan and became an international chain after being awarded a Michelin star. This is authentic Taiwanese food to eat in Taipei.
Wait time for all Din Tai Fung locations in Taipei
There are multiple Din Tai Fung locations and that wait time can be over an hour during peak meal times. Reservations can be made by phone (they speak English) otherwise you can just show up and take a number.
If you’ve never had Din Tai Fung before and are looking for things to eat in Taipei, this should be at the top of your list! Try any of their Xialongbao soup dumplings and you’ll be glad you waited in line for such amazing Taipei food.
Golden Formosa 金蓬萊遵古台菜餐廳 is a Michelin rated Taiwanese restaurant. Unlike Din Tai Fung, Golden Formosa 金蓬萊遵古台菜餐廳 specializes in more common Taiwanese food like fried dishes, vegetables and noodles.
The fried pork ribs here are amazing. After one bite, I felt like it was one of the best things I’ve ever eaten. It was crispy, juicy, sweet and a little spicy. It was a symphony of flavors that you must experience if you want to try the best Taipei food.
I’ve rated this place 6/5 it’s one of the best places to eat in Taipei and you need to eat their food in Taipei.
Service is fast and friendly at Golden Formosa 金蓬萊遵古台菜餐廳. The overall vibe is a higher-end restaurant but in the same price range as Din Tai Fung.
When I was brought to G-Woo 鸡窝, I was very apprehensive about having chicken soup. It’s very hot in Taipei and having hot chicken soup doesn’t sound like it would be on the top of anyone’s “food to eat in Taipei” list. But even though I was reluctant to eat here, I went, I ate the casseroles chicken soup and I left extremely happy.
G-Woo 鸡窝 has the best chicken soup you will ever have! It’s thick, full of flavor and very satisfying. Unlike the chicken soup that is served in the United States, this is THICK and is served with chicken so tender that you can effortlessly cut it with chopsticks.
G-Woo 鸡窝 is one of Taipei’s best kept secrets that you won’t find on any tourist Taipei restaurant guide. Don’t worry though, they have menu available in English, Japanese and Korean.
Uncle Shawn 燒肉餐酒館 is on of those places to eat in Taipei that you’ll always remember for the sounds, smells and sights of sizzling meats. After my first bite of BBQ at Uncle Shawn 燒肉餐酒館, time stopped. I reflected on how lucky my life has been to take me to Taiwan just to eat at the top restaurants in Taipei…and then one tear fell from my eye. Uncle Shawn 燒肉餐酒館 is one of the best places to eat in Taipei that serves up happiness.
Make reservations! I’ve been to Uncle Shawn 燒肉餐酒館 twice without reservations and I regretted trying to go to one of the top restaurants in Taipei without one! I ended up waiting almost 2 hours each time. They speak English very well so making reservations over the phone won’t be a problem.
At Uncle Shawn 燒肉餐酒館, they cook the BBQ for you right at your table. This is to ensure each piece of high quality meat is cooked to perfection.
Uncle Shawn 燒肉餐酒館 is known for their BBQ and other modern dishes. The beef tongue, brisket, pork jowl, scallops with sea urchin are all incredible. This is the food to eat in Taipei for BBQ lovers.
Taiwan beef noodle soup is one of the most popular things to eat in Taipei. Master Spicy Noodle 大師兄銷魂麵舖 takes that tradition and puts a spin on it!
At Master Spicy Noodle 大師兄銷魂麵舖 they serve the beef as thinly sliced pieces rather than cubes and serve the noodles on the side. That sounds simple, but they use the highest quality ingredients to create an incredible taste.
Master Spicy Noodle 大師兄銷魂麵舖 serves the best noodles you will ever have. I actually said “wow” after my first bite. I didn’t know how good you can make noodle until finding this food to eat in Taipei.
For some reason, Master Spicy Noodle 大師兄銷魂麵舖 doesn’t make it on to the touristy Taipei restaurant guide. It’s incredibly popular and wait times are typically over an hour. But that’s why I’ve created this list of top restaurants in Taipei so you can experience the best noodles you will ever have!
There are at least 3 locations in central Taipei so look out for it!
If you’ve had Taiwanese Braised Pork Rice 魯肉飯 (Lu Rou Fan) before, then you know this should be on your must to eat in Taipei list. Lu rou fan is super savory, tender and extremely satisfying. It’s a simple dish with braised pork, rice and all the pork fat juices on top for about $1USD!
To eat this good food in Taipei, you’ll need to mix up the rice with the meat and juices. This is to ensure every bite is full of flavor.
Local Taipeirestaurants like Jin Feng 金峰魯肉飯 have amazing food that you can get quickly and are incredible affordable. It’s not one of the nice restaurants in Taipei, but it is one of the tastiest. Jin Feng 金峰魯肉飯 is popular with tourists and locals.
If you’re looking for what to eat in Taipei that’s authentic Taiwanese, then Jin Feng Braised Pork Rice 金峰魯肉飯 is the place for you.
When I’m craving xiaolongbao, my Taipei food recommendation is Shengyuan Xiao Long Bao 盛園絲瓜小籠湯包. You can get high quality and affordable dumplings without the crazy wait.
At some good restaurants in Taipei like Shengyuan Xiao Long Bao 盛園絲瓜小籠湯包, you’ll find an English menu but not an English menu form. You’ll have to match up the English translation to the Chinese characters which makes for an Taipei eating experience.
Shengyuan Xiao Long Bao 盛園絲瓜小籠湯包 is your next best option for Xialongbao after Din Tai Fung. Not only does Shengyuan Xiao Long Bao 盛園絲瓜小籠湯包 have good food in Taipei, they also have bigger and cheaper Xialongbao (soup dumplings) than Din Tai Fung. It’s also located a short-walk from the original Din Tai Fung located by the Dongmen MRT station.
Best of all, it’s cheap and the portions are BIG! Pro-tip: Order a few items to start then add-on later!
Hot pot restaurants in Taipei are incredibly popular. Many places to eat in Taipei for hot pot have different themes and offers to attract customers like “all-you-can eat.” With that said, Wenting Hot Pot 問鼎 麻辣鍋 養生鍋 has good food in Taipei and a lot of other things to offer.
Wenting Hot Pot 問鼎 麻辣鍋 養生鍋 features an unlimited Haagen-Dazs ice cream, a nail salon bar, massage chair, costume area, magic show and kids play area. All of the features at Wenting Hot Pot 問鼎 麻辣鍋 養生鍋 are included with your meal at no additional cost.
The service was modern (ordered from tablets), the place was very clean, luxurious dining silverware, the ingredients were presented very well and the food was good.
Ed’s Diner 美式BBQ燒烤餐館 is classic American BBQ at it’s finest. The best American BBQ I’ve ever had was in Austin, Texas and Ed’s Diner comes incredibly close. Definitely the best American BBQ in Taipei by FAR and much better than I’ve had in Los Angeles.
Trust me, I searched a lot of LA (my hometown) for good BBQ and Ed’s is significantly better in terms of quality, taste and service.
Papparich is Malaysian cuisine at the highest level of quality and taste. I loved the curry laksa so much at Papparich that it inspired me to go to Malaysia just to learn more and eat Malaysian food. After that food expedition, I can say that Papparich 金爸爸 is going to be some of the BEST Malaysian food you can get.
My absolute favorite dish that I have just about every time I go is the Pappa Curry Laksa NT$280. It’s spicy in the flavorful way, delicious thick broth, tasty noodles and super tender chicken that you can cut with your chopsticks.
Pancakes? Hold on, you have to understand that woosaパンケーキ 屋莎鬆餅屋 台北京站店 is much more than just delicious pancakes, they also do all their food very well. On weekends, you can expect to wait up to 2 hours just to eat at woosaパンケーキ 屋莎鬆餅屋 台北京站店!
The pancakes were insanely good. I don’t know how they made it so soft and fluffy, then they fused it with HOT and COLD. HOT, from the buttery cream sauce on one side and cold from the ice cream on the other. The pancake was so fluffy that you could cut the pancakes with just the weight of the fork.
I also loved their Chazuke-Don With Seared Sea Bass in Provence Tomato Sauce. If you’ve ever had risotto, think of a super delicious risotto with tomato bisque. It tastes much better than you imagine.
I’ve eaten A LOT of ramen all over the world. I sincerely think this is the best bowl of ramen I’ve ever had. Everything was so balanced with the flavor. It takes me 40 minutes just to get here since it’s on the outskirts of Taipei, but it’s well worth the journey.
Get the pork broth ramen with slices of chicken and pork. The broth is flavorful, but not too rich and leaves a very clean after taste. The pork is super tender and what’s even more surprising is that the chicken is too! All the flavors from the broth soak into the slice of chicken breast making it extra tender and flavorful.
Hot Chicken
You’d think a place called burger out would sell beef burgers…they don’t. Burger Out specializes in spicy fried chicken sandwiches. If you’ve ever heard of Howlin’ Rays in LA (best chicken sandwich in the world), this comes extremely close to that experience. The hot chicken burger is crunchy, juicy, spicy and will leave you craving for more with each bite! Before I knew it I was done.
The chicken sandwich is a little small so you might want two of them. Otherwise, try the fried tangyuan! It’s a deep fried mochi balls covered in a peanut dust. Extremely tasty and something you can only get in Taiwan.
I know. You’re in Taiwan and you’re going to get a burger. But hang on, if you’re craving some American food Oldies Burger has some of the most unique and delicious burgers I’ve ever had! I’m from Los Angeles and I like burgers. Oldies Burgers would be a top restaurant in LA due to it’s high quality and creative burgers.
After trying 20+ burger places in Taipei, without a doubt Oldiers Burger is the best. Their Parma cheeseburger uses American cheese, crispy Parmesan cheese crisp, grilled onions, a big juicy beef patty (seasoned to perfection) and thousand island dressing. There’s a few more things, but this was like a gourmet In-N-Out burger and one of the best I’ve ever had.
Japanese curry is one of my favorite foods. It can be thick, spicy and full of flavor. Tokyo Curry&Bar 東京咖哩林森店 has absolutely the best Japanese curry in Taipei. I’ve tried about 20+ different places in Taipei and it’s the best curry by far.
My favorite here is the fried chicken curry. The chicken is hand breaded, seasoned and then deep fried. When you bite into it, the chicken is super crispy, yet light and juicy. Probably one of the juiciest pieces of chicken I’ve ever had.
The curry comes out thick, flavorful and a little sweet. They offer a special hot sauce that they make themselves that mixes in perfectly with the curry, but is extremely strong so should be used cautiousuly.
Conclusion
Thanks for reading! I’ve tried many Michelin restaurants in Taipei and have been disappointed by bad food and service. There are a few Michelin restaurants in Taipei that have lived up to the reputation. I’m not sure who approves the Taipei Michelin guide, but I’ve only liked about 20% of what they have listed for Taipei. Many Google Maps reviewers agree and I’ll have a post on the most disappointing Michelin restaurants in Taipei soon.
I’ve created this best restaurants in Taipei list to show other travelers how amazing the food to eat in Taipei can be. Your experience in Taiwan can be amazing when you know what to eat in Taipei.
During my first visit to Taiwan, I didn’t know what to eat in Taipei so I ended up eating at the malls, fast food and the business district. I initially thought Taiwan was boring and good food in Taipei was overrated. That was my mistake.
On my 2nd trip to Taiwan I had a friend bring me to get all the good food in Taipei. Now, I live in Taipei and have started this Taipei travel blog to help other people find things to eat in Taipei.
Thank you for reading my Taipei food guide and if you have any Taipei restaurant recommendations, feel free to contact me or leave a comment and I’ll give it a try!
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