Archives for August 2018

Night markets are definitely part of the usual itineraries of people visiting Taiwan. I honestly wasn’t so excited about it during our visit, thinking I’d rather be eating in a vegan restaurant (which is plenty in Taipei btw!). (Checkout 10 vegan eats in Taipei City, Taiwan) I was still game to try it though since I was travelling with non vegans and I was curious what I can eat as a vegan. During our entire trip I was able to visit four night markets in Taipei and the one and only night market in Hualien.

What’s vegan in Taiwan Night Markets?

I’ve noticed three vegan options that are always present in night markets:

• Grilled king oyster mushrooms
• Fruits
• Fruit juices & shakes

Other vegan options that are available in most night markets:

• Sweet potato balls (some has cheese in it)
• Deep fried battered mushrooms (some has egg/milk)
• Peanut ice cream roll (some has dairy)
• Candied fruit
• Sugar cane juice

Tip: Have a google translate app on your phone to confirm if something is vegan. It can be hard to communicate with the locals.

Here’s the list of the night markets that I got to visit.

Ningxia Night Market, Taipei

We went here on our first night to meet up with friends who are leaving the next day. It’s a small night market, just one street, which consists of mostly food stalls. I got grilled mushroom for 100 NTD, which I find really bland.

Ximending Night Market, Taipei

Ximending is also referred to as the ’Shibuya of Taipei’. It’s popular for shopping so I went there hoping I could buy some pasalubong (but wasn’t able to). I had peanut ice cream roll a.k.a ice cream burrito for 45 NTD. 

There’s a stinky tofu stall which didn’t smell bad and the tofu didn’t look like it was fermented. (Stinky tofu can be hard to confirm if vegan since it can be fermented with dairy/ other animal products). Sadly, when I decided to lined up to confirm, it got sold out.

Raohe Night Market, Taipei

I went to this area because I wanted to visit the Rainbow Bridge. (Our furbaby passed away days before this trip and I really wanted to visit the Rainbow Bridge in honour of him. Search about the poem Rainbow Bridge if you can’t relate). Raohe night market is just a few steps away from the bridge. I  had curly potatoes and battered mushroom. Deep fried goodness!!

Shilin Night Market, Taipei

I wasn’t planning on visiting this fourth night market on my list. I went to the Shilin Area to try the vegan takoyaki in Mushyaki but sadly, it was closed, so I decided to go here instead. It’s probably the largest and most popular night market in Taipei. There are a loooot of stalls and I really couldn’t be bothered to roam around. I had deep fried sweet potato balls which are good if only they weren’t hard to chew. (Probably got a bad/old batch)

Dongdamen Night Market, Hualien

Dongdamen night market is the one and only night market in Hualien. It’s probably my favourite among all the night markets we’ve been to – very spacious and organised, has a park next to it and musical performances in different areas. I enjoyed everything I tried as well: deep fried king oyster mushrooms, passion fruit shake & ice cream roll. Also, look at that mountain view from the market!

Conclusion

I really didn’t go around making sure I spot all the vegan options so I probably missed a few (or a lot). I’d make sure to visit the Keelung night market when I come back. I’ve read that there are more vegan options there and it even has a stall where everything is vegan.

Have anything to add?

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Taipei City is known as one of the most vegan friendly cities in Asia. This is one of the reasons I wanted to visit Taiwan, just take a look at this screen capture from HappyCow app showing all the vegan places!

We were in Taiwan for 11 days and we got to travel to other cities aside from Taipei. I will be sharing my vegan eats from other cities, as well as my night market finds in this blog soon. For now,

Here are the 10 vegan eats I got to try in Taipei:

1. Udon in broth from Hoshina

Hoshina is famous for their hand rolled noodles which you can see being made in front of their store. I really like its texture! The flavor of this soup I got was just alright though. Probably a better idea is to get the cold noodles (which they say is a must try) especially on a hot day. (I don’t know what I was thinking getting the hot one ?)

2. Matcha nice cream from Nice Cream

Got to free taste the other flavors but I knew I’d get the matcha. Heheh.

3. Wild Mushroom Bowl from Ohh Cha Cha

I loved the flavor of this dish. The seaweed was a lot for me though and I wish the servings were bigger.

4. Salsa Baby Burger from Tofunia

5. Seasoned Vege & Tofu Donburi from Flourish Cafe

I’m really drawn to ordering rice meals with lots of veggies. I like this one especially the tao pao but the ‘tofu scramble’ could use a little less turmeric.

6. Tiramisu from Vegan Heaven

I honestly don’t remember how tiramisu should taste like but I love that this one is not too sweet. I wanted to try their macarons but it was not available that day. The friendly staff also gave me pineapple cake to try and a map of the vegan places in Taipei with her recommendations. You can get the map at veganaffair.tw!

7. Vegan bubble milk tea from Nutsmilk

You gotta have bubble milk tea where it all started! Thankfully, there’s a vegan version from the recently opened Nutsmilk! I loved it, tasted like the ones I used to get in the Philippines during my non vegan days.

8. Dragonfruit Tea with Cream from Jooce Nut Mylk

The dragonfruit tea has this subtle taste of jasmine which I actually dislike. 🙁 (Although thinking about it, maybe it was just acquired from a previous drink made with the same blender/container.) The cream reminds me of a taste of a chocolate I still don’t remember the name.

Vegan friendly places in Taiwan

With all the vegan places around, you might be wondering why I still chose to dine in a non vegan restaurant. One of the reasons is because I was travelling with non vegan friends and also, I really wanted to try Beyond Burger which is being offered in TGIFridays.

9. Veggie Dumplings, buns and fried rice from Din Tai Fung

There’s a Din Tai Fung branch in the Philippines but we thought we’d try dining in their first branch. There were a lot of people lining up but they have an organized system and we were luckily seated in 20 minutes. The dishes I tried was just alright.

10. Mushroom Beyond Meat Burger from TGIFridays

I was really impressed with Beyond Burger! This just proves that there is definitely no need for animals to suffer just so we can have a good burger. (Request not to put truffle mayo to be vegan.)

Conclusion

I’m definitely coming back to try more of the vegan food Taipei has to offer. I feel like I missed out on trying good vegan versions of Chinese food. I’ve tried two vegetarian buffets in Taipei and Hualien and sadly, I was not impress and it discourage me to try vegan Chinese dishes.

Do you have any recommendations?

Let me know in the comment box below!

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