Can’t wait for the evening alcohol service to begin, I headed to the night market
I had planned to spend the whole day at the hotel, enjoying the evening alcohol and snack service after swimming in the pool, but I ended up with some free time, so I headed out to patrol the nearby night market.
It seems I’m just not the type to sit still.
See here for photos of my stay at the Grand Hyatt Taipei.
Related Article：Enjoy a complimentary stay on a high floor of the Grand Hyatt Taipei, a 5-star hotel in Taipei
Take the red subway line and travel one stop to Xinyi Anhe Station.
From Google Map
The area circled in orange is the “Linjiang Street Tourist Night Market.”
Along the narrow street leading from Xinyi Anhe Station to the Linjiang Street Tourist Night Market, there were several foot reflexology massage shops, so we spontaneously went in for a foot reflexology massage.
This is the shop we used.
We were surprised to find out it’s open 24 hours!
The prices at most shops around here are all in a similar price range, with the cheapest being 450 Taiwanese dollars for a 40-minute foot bath.
I got a really intense massage.
Payment is cash only, so be sure to have the money ready beforehand.
My tired feet felt so good after getting a massage.
Now, I’ll continue my stroll.
The massage made it the perfect time to explore the night market.
This is the entrance to the Linjiang Street Tourist Night Market.
The time is just after 6 PM.
It seems the night market opens at 6 PM.
Right by the entrance, there was a yakitori (grilled skewers) shop and a sausage shop.
They looked delicious.
Around 6 PM, even if you’re looking around cautiously, you can still pass by pedestrians and motorcycles coming from the opposite direction.
It would probably be much more crowded later in the evening.
There was a fresh juice stand in the middle of the night market. It said “Hayashiya” on the sign.
Further inside, there was a restaurant where you could eat in, and it looked delicious.
Personally, I was interested in the Pork Rib Noodle Soup and the Si Shen Tang (a medicinal soup made with Chinese herbs and pork offal, easy to drink).
And the place that caught my eye the most, and actually had a long line, was this pan-fried dumpling shop.
It was located on the corner of the intersection with the main street near the exit of the night market.
The sign read “Lin Ji Shanghai Sheng Jian Bao,” so that seems to be the shop’s name.
The menu consisted only of pan-fried dumplings and pan-fried dumplings.
Later, I found out that it is indeed a very popular shop with a constant line.
The last time I was in Taipei, I tried the night market north of Taipei Main Station, so this was my first time at this one. It seemed to be more bustling with locals than tourists.
Compared to other night markets, the streets were a little wider, making it relatively easy to walk around.
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After wandering through the night streets, I found a surprisingly delicious bowl of yakisoba waiting for me
Leaving the night market, we head out onto the main street.
The traffic is so heavy that police officers are directing it.
I took some photos of the beautiful night view from the pedestrian overpass.
After walking around quite a bit from here, I finally arrived at “Ah Ming Hong Kong Style Stir-fry.”
Its location is at the blue star mark to the lower left of Taipei 101/World Trade Center Station.
From Google Map
The entrance is narrow, but there are 5 or 6 tables in the back.
There was an older man cooking near the entrance and an older woman working there.
They also seem to offer takeout.
Neither English nor Japanese was spoken here, so I tried to communicate using Google Translate, but the woman rattled off a rapid-fire series of Chinese sentences.
After several attempts, they seemed to realize we were foreigners and showed us to our seats, repeatedly saying “thank you” and appearing to be in a pretty good mood.
When they realized we were Japanese, they said “Something spicy?” and brought us something like spicy pickles.
It was our long-awaited dinner, but as the sign indicated, they don’t seem to serve alcohol.
It looks like a local diner.
Water is self-service.
Orders are placed by writing on an order form and handing it in.
Based on the imagery of the kanji characters and what I’ve eaten before, I ordered stir-fried pork with water spinach, stir-fried shrimp with egg, vegetable and egg soup, and stir-fried shredded pork noodles.
“Zhu rou” means pork, so it’s stir-fried pork with water spinach; “xia” means shrimp, so it’s a shrimp omelet; the other dishes are a soup with vegetables and egg, and stir-fried noodles with shredded pork.
After a short wait, the yakisoba arrived first.
It looked simple and unpretentious.
The colors were all brown, so I honestly thought, “Oh no, I’ve finally made a bad choice in selecting a restaurant…” and started eating with a heavy heart.
However, contrary to my expectations, after a couple of bites, my opinion changed: “Hmm? Delicious? Oh, it’s delicious!”
It was a taste I couldn’t have imagined from its appearance.
Next came the stir-fried water spinach.
It looked just as expected, and tasted just as good as I’d hoped.
Next came the shrimp omelet.
While the eggs were a little too firm, preventing it from being a perfect 100, the saltiness was just right and it was delicious.
This is the spicy pickles the lady gave us midway through our meal.
I dipped a little bit in egg and ate it, and it was really spicy! No, actually, it was extremely spicy.
The last dish served was a mild-flavored soup.
The green vegetables turned out to be Chinese cabbage.
Personally, I would have preferred a slightly stronger flavor.
The restaurant seemed to close at 7:30 PM, and they started cleaning up while we were still eating.
Perhaps the lady who was initially rushing us was trying to ask something like, “We don’t have any alcohol, and we close at 7:30 PM. Is that okay?”
Feeling full, we strolled back and saw the illuminated Taipei 101 at night.
And next to Taipei 101 is a dazzling building,
Din Tai Fung, which I had sadly given up on visiting during the day due to the three-hour wait, welcomed me with a warm welcome.
Since Din Tai Fung doesn’t take reservations, I’d like to try again next time with more time to spare.
This particular Din Tai Fung is located at the entrance to the underground restaurant area of Taipei 101.
There aren’t any convenience stores around here, but there’s a slightly upscale supermarket at the edge of the restaurant area in Taipei 101.
They sell beer and juice there, so the supermarket in the basement was convenient for picking up small items.
阿明港式熱炒
Address： No. 61號, Wuxing St, Xinyi District, Taipei City, 台湾 110
110台北市信義區吳興街61號
Business Hours：11:00~19:00
Closed：Sunday
TEL：+886287882785
My Memo：
There’s a cook (an older man) and a floor staff member (an older woman). The older woman primarily speaks Chinese. It’s best to assume she won’t speak English or Japanese. At first, she rattled off in Chinese, which was quite intimidating, but when she realized we were Japanese, she spoke broken Japanese and said “the spicy one,” recommending a spicy side dish. She even sent us off with a “thank you,” which completely changed my initial impression.
The restaurant closes at 7 PM, so I recommend going early.
While the individual dishes weren’t exactly visually appealing, I cautiously tried the fried noodles that came out first, and to my surprise, they were incredibly delicious!
It seemed to be a local Chinese restaurant frequented by locals, loved by the community. It’s not flashy, but it’s a hidden gem for everyday use!
Pineapple cake is definitely the best souvenir
I didn’t buy many souvenirs in Taiwan this time.
This is the only souvenir I bought from Taiwan.
It’s a pineapple cake, and all things considered, pineapple cakes are delicious.
