9 must-eat restaurants and night markets in Taichung

Taichung is one of Taiwan’s biggest cities. In fact, it’s the second biggest by population, bigger than Taipei and second only to New Taipei City. As you’d expect from a city with over 2.7 million people, it has a dizzying number of food choices, especially in a country as food-centric as Taiwan.

1. Second Market

If you’re in the mood for traditional Taiwanese breakfast, then Second Market is the place to go to in Taichung. Open since 1917, Taichung Second Public Market is a 7,000 square meter market with over fifty shops and three hundred stalls. There you’ll find all kinds of meat, produce, and spices, as well as multiple stands selling cooked food like baozi, noodles, lu rou fan, and black tea. As you can see from the long line of people below, it’s especially popular for breakfast.

2. Chun Shui Tang (Original Shop)

If you’re a fan of boba or bubble tea, then you absolutely must have one here at the original shop of Chun Shui Tang. It’s one of two Taiwanese establishments that have a legitimate claim as being the inventor of bubble tea. The other is Hanlin Teahouse in Tainan.

If you’ve never had boba before, it’s a Taiwanese drink which at its most basic is black tea, milk, sugar, and tapioca pearls. It was invented in Taiwan but it’s become hugely popular worldwide. There are countless varieties of boba today, including here at Chun Shui Tang.

3. Fu Din Wang

Not only was it mentioned in a few blog posts, but one article described this restaurant as the place to go to in Taichung for pork knuckle. Aside from braised pork knuckle, they also specialize in lu rou fan or braised pork rice. Check out that bubbling cauldron of pork knuckle deliciousness. Taiwanese pork knuckles are slow cooked for hours until they’re fork tender and the meat is practically sliding off the bone. Fu Din Wang was packed during lunch but it looks like they do a lot of business with takeaways as well.

4. Ding Wang Hotpot (Tripodking)

Like lu rou fan and beef noodle soup, hot pot or shabu shabu is another beloved Taiwanese dish. Popular in East Asian countries like Japan and China, hot pot is a soup dish containing a variety of ingredients like seafood, thinly sliced meat, noodles, vegetables, tofu, and different types of fish and meatballs. A simmering pot of one or two kinds of soup stock is left on a burner at your table along with your ingredients. You then drop the raw ingredients into the pot yourselves to cook.

5. Smokey Joe’s

Smokey Joe’s serves mainly Tex-Mex cuisine but they do offer many global dishes as well, like burgers, pasta, and paella. Smokey Joe’s is a huge Tex-Mex restaurant with an American Vintage theme. It’s a beautifully designed restaurant with multiple dining areas and vintage memorabilia adorning every space.

6. Miyahara Ice Cream

Miyahara is the most famous place for pineapple cakes in Taichung. It’s so famous in fact, that it’s one of the most visited tourist attractions in the city. Though Miyahara is best known for its pineapple cakes, it’s beloved for its ice cream as well which you can try from their small shop at the side of the main store. As you can tell from the markings on the floor, Miyahara Ice Cream is used to serving long queues of customers.

7. Hui-Sun Coffee

Hui-Sun Coffee is a popular coffee shop in Taichung that specializes in siphon coffee, a method of preparation that produces a delicate, tea-like cup of coffee. They gave a demo of the process and it was pretty cool to see, like watching a chemistry experiment. The coffee beans produced in Huisin Forest are described as being some of the very best in Taiwan. If you’re a coffee connoisseur and are interested in trying good local coffee in Taichung, then you may want to try a cup here at Hui-Sun Coffee.

See more: 6 reasons why Taiwan should be your next adventure

8. Zhongxiao Road Night Market

Zhongxiao Road Night Market didn’t seem to have as much food variety as other night markets. But more importantly, it didn’t feel as safe. Unlike other markets that are closed to vehicular traffic, this one has stalls on either side of busy Zhongxiao Road. Zhongxiao Road Night Market was offering lu wei, a type of Taiwanese braised food which is considered a distant cousin of hot pot. Commonly eaten as a snack, it involves braising a variety of ingredients in broth, then adding spices and sauces to the cooked food.

9. Fengjia Night Market

Home to an estimated 15,000 shops, restaurants, and stalls, Fengjia Night Market is described as the biggest night market in Taiwan. It’s a popular night market with a huge selection of food choices, so if you had time to visit just one night market in Taichung, then it should be this one. You’ll find many different types of grilled seafood at Fengjia Night Market like scallops, clams, squid, oysters, sea snails, and abalone.

Source willflyforfood

The best resorts for honeymoon in Maldives

If romance is the king of emotions, then Maldives is its kingdom. Long spread of beaches covered with sparkling white sand, palm trees lined up across the shores, beautiful cottages and resorts nestled in the most secluded regions known, this island is the perfect place for love birds to rekindle the spark and fall in love. Maldives is known as honeymooner’s paradise and that is for a reason.

COMO Cocoa island

COMO Cocoa Island is a boutique resort located in the South Male Atoll with only 33 overwater suites and villas. Uniquely inspired by dhoni boats, the gently curving wooden vessels used by local fishermen, each room has its own private terrace that directs you to the watery expanse and horizon in a second. Surrounded by spectacularly clear waters, the land itself is made up of live coral reefs and sand bars, making the natural ecosystem truly distinctive.

For a private dining with your partner, the resort offers several private dining experiences across the island. Activities such as shark adventure snorkeling, catamaran snorkeling, to sunset cruise can be done near the island. For quieter moment, COMO Shambhala Retreat, offers full range of holistic Asian base therapies.

Mirihi Island Resort

Perfect for those looking for a water villa honeymoon on a modest budget, the Mihiri Island Resort offers excellent value in addition to high quality and excellent service. This is a 4-star resort with only 30 water villas and 6 island villas, and almost nothing of interest to families and no nightlife to speak of, making it very much of a romantic couples resort, which is very fitting for a lot of visitors.

The water villas are not huge, and they do not have TVs, but otherwise they are very nicely appointed, making them ideal for honeymooners. The spa features Adam and Eve treatments, but there is also great diving and snorkelling here and other water sport options. Especially in the off-season, the Mihiri Island Resort is a fantastic bargain for a honeymoon resort.

Shangri-la Villingili Resort and Spa

Number three on our list of top 10 resorts in Maldives for honeymoon is Shangri-La Villingili Resort built on one of the largest islands in the archipelago. The villas range from vast ocean retreats to tropical tree houses, and the CHI spa offers a holistic remedy. It is hands down one of the top resorts in Maldives for honeymoon.

One & Only Reethi Rah

One & Only Reethi Rah is still the king best resorts in Maldives for honeymoon. The rooms are built enormously and luxuriously with high ceilings and beautifully furnished with private pools, overlooking the sea.

Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru

The blue relaxing waters at the Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru will give you a spirit to enjoy life. The resort is surrounded with swaying coconut trees, pure white sand, coral reef and the blue clear waters. An ideal destination for couples, Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru is amongst the best resorts in Maldives for honeymoon.

Read more: How I Fell in Love with the Maldives

Source Internet

Best traditional dishes in Cambodia

Often wrongly overshadowed by the cuisine of neighbouring Thailand and Vietnam, Cambodia’s cuisine takes in a range of mouth-watering dishes. With no shortage of places to eat local across Cambodia, here are a few dishes to whet the appetite.

Fish amok

Often referred to as Cambodia’s signature dish, this creamy curry can be found in abundance. Made using fillets of freshwater fish, it is diced and covered in coconut milk, eggs, fish sauce and palm sugar. Kroeung – a paste made from pounded spices and other ingredients, such as turmeric, kaffir lime, lemongrass and shallots – is common in khmer cooking, and is also added. The traditional way to cook the dish is steamed in a banana leaf shaped into a bowl, within which it is served.

Chicken and banana flower salad

The perfect remedy to a steamy day, this refreshing dish is rich in flavour. Tender chicken breast amid crunchy banana blossom flower, fried shallots, garlic, chillies and lemongrass, with fresh lime squeezed on top. Crisp, clean and fresh.

Kuy teav

Another popular street food dish to start the day with, kuy teav – or noodle soup – is also available throughout the day. Made from pork or beef bones and rice vermicelli, the flavoursome broth is topped with fried shallots and garlic, bean sprouts, green onions and aromatic herbs. Pork or fish balls are added, with some varieties featuring beef. Side portions often consist of chilli paste, half a lime and hoisin sauce.

Beef loc lac

Another dish common on restaurant menus is beef loc lac. While the addition of French fries is a relatively recent modernisation, loc lac is a salad. Here, stir-fried strips of tender beef sit atop a bed of crisp lettuce leaves, sliced tomatoes and cucumbers and rings of raw onions. Often, it’s served with a fried egg placed on top. However, what really makes this dish special is the dipping sauce of lime juice and pepper – make it Kampot pepper to make the flavours truly pop.

Prahok

Undeniably an acquired taste when served as a main course alongside rice and a side salad, prahok is a staple to any Cambodian dish. The crushed, salted and fermented fish paste is used unsparingly as a seasoning adding a strong salty flavour. Its pungent odour has earned it the nickname of Cambodian cheese. Whether you love or hate the sound of it, there’s no avoiding it in Cambodia.

Khmer curry

While recipes can wildly vary – along with the spice rankings – a Khmer curry is generally mild and mellow, with an almost sweet aftertaste. Containing chicken; coconut cream and milk; fish sauce; herbs and diced sweet potatoes; garlic; shallots; turmeric and ginger, the thick, flavoursome and aromatic broth is served with either rice or a baguette.

Lort cha

This dish gets its name from the short fat noodles that are its main feature. They are stir-fried with beef, broccoli, beansprouts to add crunch, herbs, and lashings of fish sauce and soy sauce. A fried egg is placed on top, with an accompaniment of sweet chilli sauce. This is sold in street carts throughout the country.

Nom banh chok

Readily available across the Kingdom, the popular dish of nom banh chok is made of thin rice noodles, shredded banana leaves, beansprouts, cucumber, mint and basil, topped with green fish curry. It is often sold by woman precariously balancing a pole on her shoulders containing the ingredients on either side.

Green mango salad

Full of flavour and colour, this is another dish that packs a punch. Crunchy, zesty and super refreshing, it features fresh chilli, fish sauce, sliced green mango, sliced tomatoes and shallots, pickled cucumber, onion, peppers and fresh basil or mint. Another good lunch option when the humidity strikes.

See more: 7 reasons why you should visit Cambodia at least one time

Source: Internet