for some time now, i 've been curious about a certain restaurant within a stones' throw from my apartment. everyday, without fail, @ any given time of the day, there is a gaggle of taiwanese queuing up for something to eat. about two weeks ago, i finally asked a taxi driver what the restaurant served. my interest piqued for this fabled fanguan. after almost a year of seeing this larger than life lineup, my curiousity got the better of me. it was time to check it out.
my mission, should i choose to accept it was to find out what the G.D. fuss was about. so, money in one hand, camera in the other, elisha, seb and i set out on sunday night to try out the fare. as we approached, there was already a line of about 15-20 people waiting for their turn. we stood @ the end but, not for long as more and more people also took a spot in the line.
eagerly anticipating what awaited us, i attempted to take a closer look @ the place. from the outside, it was a small, non-descript eatery like any other throughout the country. as i peered inside it was strictly a no-frills affair replete with folding table, plastic stools and a menu which consisted of 5 variations of the same thing...noodles, noodles and you guessed it...more noodles.
soon enough it was our turn to order. we each got an order of niu rou mien, or beef noodles. unsure if it would fill our hungry bellies, seb offered to wait for the food while leesh and i went to another restaurant only a hop, skip and a jump away. it also only serves one main dish with a few variations, but is also incredibly busy. it's claim to fame is xiao lung bao, or, small dragon dumplings. tasty.
we all arrived home @ the same time and couldn't wait for our first taste of the highly-renowned noodles. chopsticks @ the ready, we tucked in and...well, they tasted like any other beef noodles we had before really. what was all the hype about? we had all eaten this dish many, many a time before. p'raps i don't possess the discernible palette necessary to notice the differences between restaurants. in my opinion tho, if you've tried one bowl of beef noodles, then you've tried 'em all. it was a unanimous decision that they weren't the beef wellington of noodles, but more like the big mac. at any rate, i don't think i'll find myself waiting in line for them again anytime soon. the lesson learnt, don't believe all the hype.
1 comment:
If I have told you once I have told you a thousand times Taiwanese food is pretty much all shit. I've lived here and tried it many foods many times I've even thought maybe if I continuously eat it I'll develop a refined palate for the subtle differences in such fine cuisine as “stinky tofu”, “boiled sweet potato leaves”, “bone soup” and “deep fried whatever the fuck it is.” Now you can call me an uncultured slob (it wouldn’t be the first or last time an Australian has been referred to as that) or even xenophobic but the truth is I enjoy many meals from all over the rich tapestry of countries and cultures that is our amazing planet but Taiwanese cuisine isn’t one of them. Taiwanese food originates from the Taiwan formerly being very poor and devoid of too many resources that one could cook with so people were forced to use anything and everything that was available to them, even thing with no nutritional value (i.e. sweet potato leaves and bones). Some people like this food and I say fare fucks to them but if they eat the food I enjoy I believe as far as foods taste, nutritional value and appeal goes the proof is in the pudding.
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