A satellite city of central Taiwan's Taichung, Fengyuan doesn't have a tropical beach or a sky bar with views of a flashy urban grid below. But an entertainment hub near the industrial suburb's railway station has spawned at least 50 places to eat. The recipes are diverse or unusual enough to draw customers from outside town.
Pedestrians taking an immediate left from the Fengyuan railway station and following Zhongzheng Road will find tofu meatloaf, vegetarian sushi rolls and ice cream with flavours such as eggs and peanut butter. There are Thai noodles and kebabs boiled Tokyo-style. Iced tea topped with a salted foam goes for about HK$10.
As for dinner, an offshoot from the main road dubbed Miao-Dong Snack Street works like a typical Taiwanese night market, except the kebabs and seafood start frying from about 10am. To get there, follow Zhongzheng Road left from the railway station, veer right at a three-way intersection and look for a temple on the left side. Restaurants are along the main drag as well.
"Fengyuan is small, so everyone just descends on this district to eat," says Lu Liang-chuan, owner of the Xin Xiang Gu Wei traditional Taiwanese restaurant, as she rushes between orders.
Here are five places to try, all within a five-minute walk: