Monthly Challenge, Foodie, Travel

Fish Eyeballs in Taiwan

There are some foods I’m reluctant to try when traveling

I toured the entire Island of Taiwan in 2018. I stayed in the cities of Taipei, Sun Moon Lake, Kaohsiung City, Taitung City, and Taroko National Park. We also made stops along the way in-between cities to see the sights.

We were treated to all sorts of Taiwanese food–some was really good, some was okay, and some was–um, different?

I’m trying to be politically correct here because what is normal to people in the east, is not normal to people in the west. And vice-versa.

Traveling with an open mind to discover what people eat in Taiwan was an eye-opening experience.

One day we had lunch in the fishing town of Su-Ao Harbor. There were all sorts of interesting fish creatures stored on ice out in the open. I ventured around and snapped a few photos. I wondered if any of these daunting creatures were going to be served to us at lunch.

The lunch itself was not memorable but the fish were unforgettable.

Another interesting meal we had was a traditional Hakka lunch in Nantun.

Basically it was pig’s knuckles. We had some Indian vegetarians in our group who politely declined the offer to try this special dish. I tasted the broth but it wasn’t my cup of tea. The vegetarians offered some of their food to me and I was happy to oblige.

The Taiwan beer I had with the Hakka lunch was pretty good.

The buffets I had at several of the hotels I stayed were satisfactory to superb. I didn’t take a lot of photos of the food I ate because I’m not a big foodie blogger. I’m more interested in the sights than the food. Of course, food speaks to the culture of any country and is certainly something to learn about in your travels.

The airplane food on Eva Air in Premium economy class.

I had dumplings at several different restaurants. All of them were delicious!

In Taipei, there is a surf shop called Vast. It’s adjacent to their eatery called Vast Cali. I had a nice salad and fresh fruit drink there as you can see above.

The best dumplings I had were at the Din Tai Fung restaurant at the Taipei 100 shopping mall. There is always a line to wait and get in. That’s because they make the dumplings fresh. You can watch them being made through glass windows. It’s a special treat to try if you ever go to Taipei, Taiwan.

We stopped at a cute little restaurant in Hengchun called La Maison. (it’s also a B&B) It was surprising to see some mementos showcased from the famous Taiwanese director, Ang Lee who made the movie “The Life of Pi”. Apparently he had made a stop there one day, and signed plates for the owners of La Maison B&B.

It was a cute find to discover this little “beach bistro” with a welcoming cat outside the door.

I hope the fish eyeballs did not take you aback when you first saw the photo. ;) Let me know in the comments if you’ve ever eaten the eyes of a fish and what it was like! Thanks for reading.