Formosan Restaurant

Ordered the following:
1. teppan Seoul filet with mixed sauce– good, nice amount of spice/​flavor
2. Chive dumplings– I didn’t try it because I don’t like chives. The other people I ate with showed me the inside of the dumpling and it looked too chivy
3. Pork chop with rice– good pork chop and tofu
4. Braised beef noodle– was not expecting it. It was clear and not the standard Taiwanese braised beef. I will not order again but others liked the dish

If you are from Taiwan, this is restaurant will remind you the night market food, the taste almost same as Taiwan favorite.

This is actually a 3.5 star. Wanted to give this a higher rating especially since this place has been around for some time and was one of the original Taiwanese restaurants in the area.
Arrived for a late dinner and quickly ordered the Ny York and Filet Mignon sizzling platter. The food came out quickly and was pipping hot as expected since it is a sizzling platter. The quality of meat was not exceptional but you are paying a discount. The service was attentive and nice. Could have done without the salad and soup personally.
Bottom line: for the price you can’t complain.

The 4 stars is primarily for the shave snow that is here. It’s by far one of the best I’ve had. I’ve had their food before as well (pop corn chicken and the sizzling plates etc) but i come here pretty much just for the shaved snow. all the flavors are great it just depends on what you’re in the mood for. My favorites are kiwi and strawberry or the mango and strawberry.

As a cook, u really have to respect urself. I know this place is cheap but doesnt mean food should be this bad. Fly near my food before get serve, because restroom just next to the service counter. only good thing at this place they have Air Condition.

I and my friend were very disappointed. The dishes is neither European nor Asian. Like what an Asian would think what French or Italian cuisine should look like or taste like.
The name Formosa is Portuguese and I would have not that surprised or disappointed if the food was influenced by Portuguese cuisine. Why French or Italian ?
Don’t even go there.

There aren’t very many Taiwanese restaurants in O.C. when there is more Chinese food everywhere. I am always looking for Taiwanese food when I eat so much Chinese all the time I just want some different foods, spices and flavors. I really can tell if its authentic Asian food or not when I like to order mostly my favorites all the time.
The portions are small so if you’re on a diet or want a light meal its the place to go. I had the Taiwanese sausage, corn, bok choy, tea egg and rice that was good. My friend ordered the pork chop with the corn, boy choy, tea egg and rice that she thought was ok. Prices are cheap here and the food is good not too bad for a small authentic place.

Love this place so much! I ordered chicken steak sizzling plate.
Their specialty is the sizzling plate, which reminded of similar restaurants in Taiwan. They also have steak, pork steak, and fish, as well as surf and turf combinations. You can choose to have rice or noodles as a side dish, and it comes with salad, soup, and garlic bread. They also have other traditional Taiwanese dishes.
If you are looking for Taiwanese style food, come here and try it :)

I used to go here pretty frequently. After a long break, I went back and was a little disappointed. The food was just okay. kinda bland. I still like that I can get a steak and rice somewhere though… I hope it gets better.
(Fried tofu was still great!)

They’re drinks are very underwhelming. They aren’t quite at the level of bad but they definitely aren’t good. I think I’ll just stick with the food when it comes to this place, and go else where for my drinks.

Came here for lunch and I ordered take out; the portions were big and I love how authentic the tastes of the food was!
I’ll definitely come back again :))
Oh and the best part… they cut the meat in pieces for you if you order take our, SUPER thoughtful!

Ok, so if you are coming here and expecting a Michelin star food & service, then you will rate it a 1. Negative even.
It’s actually a 4 star… But just want to offset the average rating after reading some harsh reviews: P
If you come and expects a Taiwanese fusion, nightmarket styled food, without the crowd, and cleaner, decent quality of meat, then yes it’s a 4−5star. (Only talking about the steak dishes)
I think this place deserves minimum of 4 stars… And it’s unfairly rated lower because there are many people who randomly «dropped» by to try, yet just didn’t understand or are not familiar with the concept of Taiwanese fusion steak & night market food.
And when the waitress say it’s «spaghetti,» they really just mean «noodle.» So for those Unilocalers who are crying about «wahhhhh, it’s not spaghetti! (Thinking about it needs to be doused in Olive Garden tomato sauce). Calm down! They meant noodle! Choice of rice or noodle!) lol. It’s not a big deal if it’s lost in translation.
For those who are «confused» about the concept… There’s nothing to be confused about. It’s just a completely different style of casual fusion with a Taiwanese cultural twist. This style is very popular in Taiwan for many decades.
Anyway, it’s a pretty decent joint if you’re craving for good quality meat/​steak (can’t go wrong with the fillet mignon). I’m a very picky eater (picky as in the quality of food and not the interior décor). And I really don’t mind being their repeated patron… Because they do use good quality meat… And not those meat glued, all-​you-​can-​eat crap. (Makes you wanna second think AYCE joints) :O
And the service… C’mon, it’s a mom n pop shop! Don’t come in and expecting La Cienega Blvd Beverly Hills restaurant row treatment.
Pretty much it’s a come-​in-​with-​pajama, eat, go home and take a nap kind of meal.

I went here with friends a couple days ago. Got a Steak with mixed sauce and pasta.
Food was ok. Salad was iceberg lettuce with a small dollop of thousand island dressing. Soup was a bit bland, but you can spice it up with lots of black pepper. The actual dish was alright, but the spaghetti comes in a ball and the inside of it is still cold, so you have to detangle everything and submerge it into the sauce/​onto the plate to heat it up. I ordered the steak medium rare, it came out medium.
Service could have been better. They forgot that I wanted my sauce on the side, and they completely forgot to bring me my Milk Green Tea. My friend was given the wrong sauce (he wanted black pepper, got the mushroom instead). My other friend got the fried tofu appetizer and when she asked for more sauce, they forgot. They also forgot to bring us our waters when we wanted water.
The food was only Ok. Nothing to write home about. The service was meh. It was easy to flag the waitress down, but she forgot so much… maybe she was new? Regardless, I wouldn’t come back here given a choice.

Formosan is in the same plaza that hosts Thailicious, Szechwan Garden and a bunch of other Asian restaurants so I decided to try it for lunch in-​place of one of my regular places a couple of days ago. At the peak lunch hour there were only two other tables that were taken in this restaurant so it did not seem too popular but by the time I left it was 70% full so it is frequented by people in the know. I was not sure if this was a counter service place where you order and then sit or if I would be shown to a table as there were no signs but after about a minute at the door the lone sever showed me to my table.
I decided to get the beef tenderloin with spaghetti sizzling platter ($ 9.95) and which comes with salad, corn soup and garlic bread. It seems that the steak comes topped with a sauce and you can select either the pepper sauce or the mushroom sauce so I went with the pepper sauce. Service was fast and I got my food in under five minutes. I asked for the stake to be cooked medium but I felt that it was a little on the done side. What I didn’t like was that they had topped the steak with way too much sauce and it was literally floating in the sauce which drowned the taste of almost everything else. My advise would be to ask them for a light sauce on the platter with some more on the side in case you want your stake drenched. All the sides were so-​so. The garlic bread had too much butter and very little garlic flavor but was well toasted with a good crunch. The soup was ok and the salad was just lettuce topped with a thousand island dressing.
If you try to benchmark the steak you have here with what you will get in a fancy $ 40+ steakhouse you will be disappointed but considering the quality of food for the price paid I feet it was pretty good. I will be back to try some more of their sizzling platters.

Came here on a monday night and it wasnt busy. My girlfriend and I seated ourselves.
We both had the beef tenderloin with spaghetti and it was pretty good for the price of 9.95. The food was filling and good. The service was pretty good but they did forget to deliver us the complimentary garlic breads for our entrees and it wasn’t busy. The food was pretty good so I’d give the a four star otherwise it would be a three for forgetting something that we should have gotten without asking.

Formosan is a quiet little restaurant located in the same plaza as Kariya ayce. It offers some great selections and never disappoints me.
I got the sautéed filet mignon (medium rare). It was cooked to perfection. You can choose mushroom, black pepper, or a mixture of both sauces. I chose the mixed sauce and spaghetti noodles (vs rice). The sauce complimented the filet and everything tasted superb. The filet was tender, juicy, and sizzling hot. The egg continued to cook for a few moments on the hot skillet. I poured my mini gravy boat of sauce onto the hot skillet so all the flavors could mesh together.
Tried the fried rice, which was really good. The tofu with dipping sauce was incredible. The sides were good as well — salad, bread, and corn soup. I had the passion fruit icy and it really hit the spot. I was full and satisfied and would come again. A delicious, satisfying meal.

Mrs recommended this for lunch as she liked the place when she visited with her colleagues. We ordered the following:
1) Taiwanese Sausage,
2) Sausage Fried Rice, and
3) Tenderloin Steak.
Pros:
1) Extremely fast service,
2) Portions are decent for price, Bill came out to $ 30.00 including tip for everything we ordered.
3) Food had a different kind of flavor, (Different = Good)
4) Adequate parking in this strip mall.
Cons (Only from my perspective):
Only problem is that I checked off this kind of cuisine without thinking to myself, «I have to return back». This restaurant even though has a lot of things going on, is just not my kind of a joint, I guess. Sorry Formosan, not your fault.

I’ve been back a few times, difficult to check in sometimes because there’s a lack of reception in that area. Since my last review, someone from this esteemed company reached out to let me know that my review was read and taken into consideration (which was nice to know).
Also there’s a new staff member. He’s truly on top of things. There’s been a big change in service. Before our drinks wouldn’t arrive until we were half way or merely done with our meals. The past two times, our drinks arrived along with our salad, and all else was smooth sailing from start to finish. This new staff member is like a one man team. Behind the counter ringing up orders, waiting on tables, etc. Quick and efficient, and perfect for those taking a lunch during work hours.
Love this new change in service,

Taiwanese food, drink & dessert.
One of my favorite Taiwanese restaurant.
Like any restaurant you need something that’s unique to attract customers.
Here, they have the sizzling plate dishes. Section «D» of their menu.
My favorites are:
D3 Pork Chop
D4 Sole Fillet
D7 Beef Short Ribs (must try)
Each meal includes a salad w/​thousand island dressing, soup & garlic bread
With each order you have options of:
*Rice Or Spaghetti
*Mushroom or Pepper Sauce or both
Each dish is topped with a fried egg
Delicious.
Aside from the sizzling plate dishes, they also have other Taiwanese dishes:
Popcorn Chicken, Fried Cuttle Balls, Beef Stew Noodle Soup (which is really good) & more.
For drinks, they have an assortment of milk tea, boba & fruit drinks to choose from.
My favorite is the Papaya Milk. Yummy
For dessert, you’re not a Taiwanese restaurant unless you have some Taiwanese slush on the menu.
The orders are quite big (good for sharing with your friends) Topped with the fruits of your choice & other condiments and of course condense milk.
Service is generally good, but communication sometimes is an issue. Mandarin is the main language spoken here. But I have to say, their English has been improving steadily.
Pricing is very reasonable
I love this place because I can have spaghetti with the sizzling plate items and I love spaghetti :)
I’ll definitely be back.

First & Foremost… Formosan.
While waiting in line for the Grand Opening of Daiso Japan Artesia, I shot the breeze w/​a cute Taiwanese women & asked her which were her favorite eateries in the area. She recommended Formosan. Hey, if a Taiwanese recommends the Taiwanese food at Formosan, then I’m game.
My buddy Stephen treated me to dinner after I helped him move some of his fruit trees from his parent’s place in Mission Viejo. I made the call for Formosa & I finally made it to this nearby restaurant after all these years.
Entrees come with —
Soup & Salad —
The salad is boring iceberg lettuce w/​thousand island dressing. The soup is white cream corn soup. I’m not fond of iceberg lettuce as a salad, but I was so hungry that it actually seemed edible. The white cream corn soup was thick & a nice reprieve, even in the hot weather
Garlic bread —
Crunchy, crispy, garlicky. Tasted great w/​garlic in every bite.
Sauteed short rib —
Holy cow! Look at the size of this beast! I had the choice of mushroom sauce, black pepper sauce or a mixture. Then, I had the choice of white rice or spaghetti. Meat was cooked to preference. Medium-​rare, baby! Tender, juicy & oh so delicious. The black pepper sauce provided quite a kick. I had the chili sambal at the ready to spice things up, but didn’t need it. The carrots & peas, accompanied w/​runny egg added to the richness of this dish. Definite winner.
Seating is limited. The restaurant is more of a no-​frills hole in the wall. Nothing flashy or fancy. Also offered on the menu are various flavored teas & shaved snow.
Service was sufficient. I think I saw the server fall asleep at a nearby table. Hey, it was pretty hot today. I was falling asleep driving back from Mission Viejo ;p
Overall, Formosan, you are a local gem & I can’t wait to come back & try your other culinary delights. It’s too bad that you don’t have your cuttlefish appetizers anymore, as I was game to have them, but I enjoyed every bite of my sauteed short rib, cooked to perfection.
I’ll be back.
Highly recommend
NOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOM