[Updated July 2017] Taipei has recently seen an explosion of bars coming on to the scene here. From beer gardens to craft beer houses, from speakeasies to glamorous lounges, from wine bars to whiskey bars. I am certainly not complaining, and my favorites among these many choices are: Alchemy (not that new, but nonetheless a…
Tag: travel
Journey to Kinmen Island 金門: A Must in Taiwan
This past week I took a 3 day 2 night trip to one of Taiwan’s major outer islands, Kinmen Island. It was my first time to Taiwan’s outer islands. Kinmen is simply incredible, and has become my favorite domestic destination in Taiwan. Filled with history, tradition and true old-school Taiwanese flavor and friendliness, yet fully in…
[Updated] Review: Alexander’s v. Morton’s Taipei; U.S. Steakhouses Face-off in Taiwan:
[UPDATED March 2017] In the last couple of months two well-known American steakhouse chains opened their doors in Taiwan for the first time. One is Alexander’s Steakhouse from Cupertino, California* and the other is the famous Morton’s Steakhouse. When I heard about these openings I was rather excited but apprehensive as well because for…
Review: Paris 1930 Winter Black Truffle Tasting at the Ritz Landis Taipei
Last week we had dinner at the Paris 1930 Restaurant in the Ritz Landis Hotel, Taipei. They currently have their limited time Winter Black Truffle Tasting menu. The 11 course menu came down to around NTD$4200 (USD$125) per person without wine, which is more expensive than their usual offering and definitely expensive in Taipei but…
Review: The Tokyo Station Hotel, Tokyo Eats & Sites
My apologies, this is a bit of a belated guest post/review from my sister who stayed at the Tokyo Station Hotel in Tokyo, Japan in December 2015. December 9, 2015 The Tokyo Station Hotel just celebrated their 100th birthday on November 2, 2015. At a century old, the hotel is full of life and grandeur….
The Marriott Taipei and Garden Kitchen Restaurant
The Marriott Taipei [Scroll down if you just want to read about the food!] Taipei’s newest hotel had its soft-opening in July this year and will officially open sometime this month (at least from the last I heard). The Marriott Hotel Taipei is located in Dazhi, right by the Miramar shopping center and across the…
[Updated] Review: Restaurant Toh-A 桌藏 and 山海樓 Mountain and Sea House Vintage Taiwanese Cuisine
[Update] I just had dinner at 山海樓 Mountain and Sea House again the other night and it impressed me a lot more than my first visit. Everything we ordered, from stuff we’ve had before, to new seasonal creations, were all on point. The restaurant has recently gained a lot of popularity and as such its been…
[Updatded Sep 2019] Restaurant Ephernite: Bringing Chic Neighborhood French to Taipei’s Rising Haute Cuisine Scene
Bonjour! [Updated September, 2019] It had been a long time since I returned to Ephernite. Likely 3-4 years since my last meal here. All I can say is things have only gotten better. The food from Chef Vanessa is ever more refined, creative and sophisticated. Wine list curated by Claude is ever extensive and one of…
Cuba: Traveling Back to 1950 for a New Hope With National Geographic Expeditions
Hola! I recently had the great opportunity to be a part of a National Geographic Expedition for the first time. We booked ourselves on one of the increasing number of “People to People” trips for U.S. Citizens to travel to Cuba in the wake of President Obama’s announcement to lift certain bans, including making it…
Review: Amanpulo, Philippines
Hi All, The following is a guest post by my sister, she and her husband recently visited and stayed at the Amanpulo in Palawan, Philippines. Amanpulo is their second Aman resort experience, after Amankora in Bhutan. The #1 hotel chain on my list of places to stay and check out is any of the Aman…
Review: Phulay Bay, A Ritz Carlton Reserve; How a Great Management Team Can Go A Long Way
Hello! This year for our winter family trip we opted for something closer to home that didn’t have a long minimum night stay. We chose to return to Thailand have not returned there for our vacations for over 7 years now. To switch things up, we decided to try a new spot in Thailand, having…
[Updated Nov. 2017] MUME v. RAW: Taipei’s Newest Trendsetting Restaurants Successfully Bring Haute Cuisine to Taiwan
Hi All, For most updated thoughts scroll to the bottom. [Modified] Original Post: This winter, Taipei saw the opening of two brand new restaurants serving multi-course haute cuisine. One is Mume, the other is Raw. Both have similar concepts in crafting fine dishes from local Taiwanese ingredients. Bringing the concepts of haute cuisine and…
TheGastronomicTraveler 