Tasting Journey #192 - 大腕燒肉

大腕燒肉
台北市敦化南路一段177巷22號
02.2711.0179

High-end, VIP-service izakaya.

High quality ingredient.
Personalized service where each griller serves only 2 sets of customers.
Well-prepared dishes.
All reflectetd in the price.
Spent NTD$1,600/person for a full meal.

Worthy mention dishes are:
- yam in cheese dish - cheese and yam goes so well together. Very generous amount of mozarella cheese that blends super well with the yam.  You probably need to run 10 lapse to burn all that calories off though, but it's ok to splurge because it's sooooo tasty
- all the meat are well grilled - juicy and crispy at the perfect ratio
- 天梯(?) - apparently the vocal cord of pigs....? crispy like a cartlidge
- garlic butter dipping sauce - goes well with any dish

Tasting Journey #191 - 雞匠餐廳

雞匠餐廳
台北市大安路一段52巷8號
02.8773.8885

Another izakaya place in Taipei. What's unique about this izakaya is that it is actually in a "restaurant-style" setting.  No wooden tables/interior deco that portrays Japanese culture, this place leans more towards fine dining.  The portion is also much larger for sharing instead of the typical bite-size in izakaya's that are meant for beer drinking.
Food quality is decent, but of course also reflected in the price.
A safe choice to take foreigners to.

 

 

Tasting Journey #190 - 鵝肉城

鵝肉城
台北市遼寧街77號
02.2752.2142

 Located in the an area where only locals will visit, the LiaoNing Night Market.
This restaurant serves lots of seafood, fresh seafood.  Unlike many of the other hot stir-fry places, the dishes served here focus mainly on non-processed food, allowing tasting to its freshest and raw flavouring.

Great value for the price.  Don't expect fancy cutleries or clean restaurant. It's a place where you can laugh loud and show great hospitality.

Tasting Journey #189 - Kura Sushi

Kura Sushi
台北市南京東路二段101號
02.2568.1519

Kaiten sushi, at $40/dish.
A fun and unique experience.

 

The lid pops open at a hinge instead of the conventional removable lid.

Touch screen computerized screen for ordering.

 

Every 5 dish allows for one draw opportunity. The prize is a cellphone strap with one of their dishes as the hanging deco. A well thought-out marketing scheme, as guests would try to eat more to round up to multiples of five for more draw chances.

In addition to the standard rotating belt, you can also make special orders all via their computer touch screen.  It will be served to you in an "express belt" where your selection will stop at your table. The
Express lane that stops at your table.  The computer screen will also show its estimated arrival time.
The computer screen will also show its estimated arrival time.

 

 

Empty dishes are dropped in this slot counter that adds up your total dishes consumed.  Also used to count the number of dishes for billing purposes.

Unlike typical green tea served in Japanese restaurants, Kura serves matcha - thumbs up!

Kura also serves more than just sushi. They also have tempuras & soup noodles. No sashimi though, so you quickly become full with all the rice ingested.

 

Becareful not to overstuff yourself!