Taipei offers more than night markets and Hokkien soap operas; the Taiwanese capital is a city that reveals itself in layers to those who return.
Louise Bourgeois’ Crouching Spider (2003) at Fubon Art Museum. Photo: Mavis Teo
“Taipei reminds me of New York; not in scale, but in how each neighbourhood has its own pulse,” says Aaron Chan, founder of Riant Capital, a private equity firm involved in Taiwan’s hospitality scene (as owner of the Park Hyatt Taipei and Capella Kenting, among others). What draws him in, he says, is how the city unfolds. “The best coffee, the edgiest designs, the most memorable dining experiences – they’re all tucked into alleys and roads off the thoroughfares. You won’t stumble on them unless you know where to look.”
Small plates, big stories
A dish of abalone, asparagus, bamboo and caviar at Eika. Photo: Mavis Teo
The Michelin-one-star restaurant Eika, for instance, is not in Taipei’s popular Da’an or Zhongshan districts, but in Dadaocheng, an area whose appeal lies in its contrasts. “Heritage architecture, dried seafood and old tea merchants amid signs of urban renewal such as independent bookstores, a Le Labo perfume boutique and an Olympus camera shop,” as Alain Huang, chef-owner of Michelin-one-starred Restaurant A, describes it.
Eika is the quiet comeback of Ryohei Hieda, whose sudden departure from the Michelin-two-starred Shoun Ryugin Taipei in 2022, when his reputation was unmistakably on the rise, left the industry stunned. Hieda opened the 16-seater Eika in January 2024, cooking Taiwanese ingredients with Japanese techniques.
“Everything about Eika, from decor to plating, feels like Hieda-san: restrained but rich in substance,” says Huang, who was wowed by the chilled pumpkin and orange soup with purple sweet potato.
A dessert at Eika. Photo: Mavis Teo
About 8km to the east, at La Piada, in Songshan, Milan-born William Di Nardo offers casual, convenient Italian flatbreads, or piadine.
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“La Capocollo is my favourite,” says Huang, of the version filled with cured pork shoulder folded into tonnato sauce, arugula, tomato and pickles.
For hearty local fare, Chan points visitors to Xian Jin Seafood Diner, a 30-year-old business in Songshan, and the “best pig liver stir-fry in Taipei”. The laminated menus, loud regulars and wok smoke are all part of the experience.
