Taiwan Pork Chop House

Hole in the wall authentic Chinese place. We were touring NYC w my family and my cousin took us here insisting their pork chop rice is the best. We got four chop rice, my daughter wanted the wonton noodle soup, oyster pancake, hot oil wonton, marinades tofu, and lotus root a sweet rice. Pork chop rice was pretty good but my pork chop was tough at certain area, I didn’t care about the lotus w sweet rice and the wonton noodle soup looked just ok. The oyster pancake was pretty good.

【Recommended】
I ordered:
Pork Chop over Rice *** $ 5.25
A gem in chinatown! Pork Chop over Rice is their signature dish. For under $ 6, the quality is amazing. The dish consisted of 1 fried pork chop, sour pickled vegetables, and minced meat sauce over rice. A taste of Taiwan in New York for an affordable price.
【Tip】 Cash only! No credit cards.

Didn’t really taste very Taiwanese. Got the beef noodle, oyster pancake, and minced beef rice. It was just OK. Good price points tho. Doubt I’d come back

At 10:30am, I was hungry for lunch. I came across a review for this place and someone stated that they deliver to the financial district (which is where I am). I was super excited and put in an order at 10:45am. Don’t judge me.
There’s a $ 15 minimum order for delivery. I ordered $ 19 worth for just myself. Don’t judge me.
They arrived about 25 minutes later which is much quicker than I expected since they are in chinatown and I am in FIDI. I purposely ordered before the lunch rush so that I could get my food without a long wait. If you fail to plan, you plan to fail, people.
Now on to the food. I ordered the spicy wonton appetizer. They were out of this world. Even though the delicate wonton shells were sticking to each other by the time they got to me, one bite into the spicy oil and spices and I was completely blown away. Seems like such a simple dish, there’s so much flavor. This wonton is a must eat.
Next I tried the salt and pepper chicken which came in a brown bag. Little bite-​sized morsels of fried chicken doused in salt and black pepper. It was very flavorful and not greasy at all. I shared with my coworkers who were all very happy with it.
I then tried the pork chop and rice combo. The pork chop was decent. It was a nice large and juicy piece. I like when they leave the fat in. The minced pork sauce underneath didnt really blow me away. May Wah is still KING in this area. May Wah’s sauce is greasier and saltier but that’s where the flavor’s at. Be sure to pick up a jug of water after the meal as the wicked thirst is guaranteed to kick in after such a meal.
And finally, I tried the beef stew noodle soup. The noodles came in a separate container to prevent the noodles from soaking up all the soup and breaking down the noodles before the customer gets to it. The broth was good. Had good flavor and is typical of this dish. Ive had this at other places where the broth was super bland. As I sit here typing this, I can almost feel the MSG film enveloping the insides of my mouth. I wish they didnt use so much MSG and just stuck with natural flavoring such as bowling bones for many hours to get the flavors (like ramen) or using chicken broth. For about $ 5 a dish, I suppose ain’t nobody got time for that!
All in all, it was a great meal. I now need a gallon of water and a nap but it was all well worth it!

As Apotheke likes to advertise, Doyers Street is definitely off the beaten path. However, I’d say the little detour is worth it for those in pursuit of a good, filling lunch on a Chinatown budget (less worth it for Apotheke, but that’s another review.) I can’t speak to Taiwan Pork Chop House’s authenticity, but the other reviewers seem to affirm it.
What I can attest to is their namesake pork chop over rice. I can gripe about the occasional tough bit of pork, but overall it was a very tasty pork chop. Surprisingly, it was the «over rice» that proved to be the real star, with pickled cabbage and a kind of minced meat sauce carrying the heft of the sour-​savory flavor. My advice is to mix it with the rice to ensure flavor in every single bite. It went down quite nicely with the green tea on offer.
Décor is traditional Chinese-​restaurant-​in-​America; a lot of red and gold, a lot of fu manchu-​sporting caricatures, etc. It’s small, quiet, in fact empty when I went in for lunch. Staff is polite but distant, the photo album menu is a big help if you don’t know what you’re looking at and the full menu is posted for those with a more discerning eye.

I have heard about this place form different friends and finally found a chance to visit it. We had the signature dish, pork chop over rice plus fried chicken leg! The pork chop was absolutely amazing. It reminds me those lunch boxes I used to have in Taiwan; It was very Asian style! The Fried chicken leg was crispy but a bit small.
My husband and I both got thirsty after the meal. I guess they might put too much salt in the pork rice. Even thought it was a bit salty, we still enjoyed our meal. I can’t wait to come back and try different dishes!

I’ve only been here for a takeout order of their Chicken Leg over Rice and whenever I speak about a Taiwanese Chicken Leg or Pork Chop over Rice dish I can’t help but compare it to the other 2 popular spots for it, May Wah and Hua Ji. Quite frankly, May Wah is THE gold standard for Taiwainese rice dishes and comparitvely speaking, Taiwan Pork Chop house’s version of the popular dish is not bad at all.
The Chicken Leg was fried really well and the chicken was very juicy. I dare to say that their Fried Chicklen Leg might actually be better than May Wah’s! Yes, I said it! It’s a very close race, but both are just about neck in neck in that department. In addition to the Chicken Leg, the dish had minced beef, green vegetables and the usual pickled mustard greens. The only thing lacking was the minced beef sauce that May Wah is so famous for. Taiwan Pork Chop House’s Chicken Leg over Rice included the minced beef, but the dish is jus tnot complete without the sauce.
If you happen to be in the Chatham Square area and don’t feel like walking over to May Wah, Taiwan Pork Chop House definitely makes for a good alternative when it comes to the infamous Chicken Leg over Rice. Except for the missing minced beef sauce, the rice dish is about as spot on as I have ever tried.

This place is LEGIT!!! My girlfriend said this is one of most authentic Tawainese restaurants in Chinatown. I would have to concur with that.
Location is right across from the Post Office in Chinatown.
The restaurant looks like any other ordinary Chinatown restaurant, but the food is super delicious.
We went with the jellyfish with cucumber, mushroom rice cakes, spare ribs soup, chicken leg over rice, and another side of chicken leg.
The Jellyfish with Cucumber was very refreshing and had a good subtle garlic taste to it.
The Spare Ribs Soup was hot and very tasty.
Mushroom Rice Cakes was good. Had a lot of mushrooms, cabbage, and bean sprouts. It had a good variety of textures.
The Chicken Leg over Rice was the bomb!!! The Chicken Leg was fried up perfectly. It was crispy on the outside. Juicy and succulent on the inside. The rice was amazing too. The rice has pickled greens, ground pork, and cabbage. The rice was so flavorful and delicious.
Only negative was one of the chicken legs was not cooked all the way through and you could still the redness.
All in all it was a very delightful meal and it won’t cost you your bank.

Disclaimer, this is a typical Chinese dive restaurant but it’s so good!
Really great value! Entrees are only like $ 5-​$ 6…but be prepared with cash as they do not accept card. Loved their Taiwanese popcorn chicken entrée and pepper pork chop. Comes with a hefty bowl of rice and some pickled greens. Would definitely come back here again!

Cash only.
Got the $ 5.75 beef stew noodle soup (to stay) and $ 5.25 pork chop over rice (to go).
I was excited to try taiwanese style beef noodle soup but was pretty disappointed, mostly by the broth. The broth just wasn’t too yummy and lacked a strong beefy taste. It almost seemed like they slacked off and dumped some beef bouillon and water in place of longer cooking time. However, the amount of beef was sufficient and it was tender and yummy. Noodles were like frozen, packaged noodles.
Pork chop over rice was good though! They only give 1 piece of pork chop. but TONS of rice. The rice lasts maybe 2 meals. but I can’t say the same about the pork chop.
I would come back for the pork chop but suggest you stay away from the beef noodle soup — there’s much better ones out there.

Awesome pork & vege wonton with spicy oil, with garlic sauce, It was awesome when you put some soy sauce on it. It’s a nice restaurant for Chinese in US. I’m live in SF, this restaurant even better than bay area’

This store make me feels like I’m in Taiwan.
Fried pork chop definitely us the best dish on the menu. I also like the seaweed with the dried tofu. Beef noodles soup was underwhelmed with super chewy beef chunk. Oyster pancake tastes like nothing I remembered from Taiwan. And kimchi was just so so.
I also ordered the shaved ice with Taro, yellow jelly, green beans, and condensed milk. Green beans are fresh and good. The rest was just ok.
Overall, this restaurant is under performance based on the high Unilocal reviews. But I’m just happy to find a sorta Taiwanese restaurant in Chinatown, hence the four stars.

I’m almost afraid to write this review and have it become super popular amongst the Unilocal community.
I ended up here because of a long line at another restaurant but I couldn’t be happier. Firstly, it was amazing that they had pictures for all their dishes. I came with an American and the restaurant gave us a photo album of their dishes. This album contained their dishes and not just glamor shots of food. This made it super easy to explain what the dishes were and what to expect.
We ordered the Lotus Root w/​Glutinous Rice, Oyster Pancake, Salt & Pepper Chicken, and Pork chop. Everything was delicious! Personally, I think the Salt and Pepper Chicken could have been more flavorful but the chicken was moist, which is sometimes an issue elsewhere. My favorite dish amongst all that we ordered was the Oyster Pancake. It was crispy on the outside and filled with oyster flavor on the inside.
This is a no-​frills restaurant. There was a little bit of a wait while we were eating but the staff didn’t rush anybody as it is they usually do at other establishments in Chinatown. They were super nice, when we asked for a take out container.
Will be back soon!

I enjoyed everything and had a good time with my nephew. I recommend anything with pork in it.

I love the Taiwan Pork Chop House! Not only is it because it is the food of my people, but it is also just so damn good. I almost always get the pork chop over rice and add a marinated egg for 50 cents extra. The entire meal is so cheap and so delicious. The rice is plentiful and topped with their awesome marinated ground pork sauce and pickled mustard greens, salty with a great hit of acid from the pickled mustard greens. I mix that whole baby up so ever grain of rice is covered in that sauce. Couple it with some fresh fried pork chop, both tender and moist, and you got yourself a great meal!

I got their ramen noodle soup with minced pork and veggies. This dish was fairly cheap and filling, but not the tastiest. The soup base was bland, but the veggies were fairly fresh. The meat level was below normal as there were about eight super small pieces throughout the entire bowl… the wonton noodle soup was good, though, although it needed a bit more seasoning just like the ramen noodle soup; pepper and soy sauce are great flavor savors!

My family came to visit over the Holidays and we had already been to Flushing for good Chinese food. Saturday night, we were deciding on where to eat for dinner. My family has already been to all the popular restaurants in Chinatown (Joe’s Shanghai, 99 Favor Taste, Tasty Hand Pulled noodles, etc) so I wanted to take them to somewhere new. I found Taiwan Pork Chop House on Unilocal and the pictures made it seem like it would be a good choice. It turned out to be quite the opposite.
This is a no frills restaurant, so service was brisk and quick. The staff wasn’t very friendly and the food wasn’t that Taiwanese at all. The beef noodle soup came out dark… broth almost black so I was confused as to what they put in the soup. The oyster omelet was nothing like a real oyster omelet in Taiwan, or even Flushing. It was oily and looked like a fried pancake that had no taste. I ordered the Beef Stew Over Rice and it was awful. The sauce was white and slimy — I was afraid it was all MSG. But I wonder if they even added MSG because the dish had absolutely no flavor.
Maybe the restaurant was better when it was previously called «Excellent Pork Chop House» but I was not impressed with the food at all. The whole meal was disappointing and I was embarrassed that I even took my family there for dinner. What a waste of a meal.

Came here tonight and the best part of the meal was the hot tea. Strangely, my friend and I got our cups refilled intermittently, while the white group of patrons got a whole kettle to themselves as well as fawning service.
The meal also cheap. Without tip, it came out to about $ 18. That includes shaved ice with tapioca pearls and red bean, vegetarian noodles (the noodles looked like lo mein and tasted just so so), pork chops over rice, and wonton in hot oil.
All the food came out super quickly but the pork chop over rice looked very unappetizing, as did the wonton in hot oil. I could barely eat half of the wonton in hot oil because it tasted somewhat foul — like cold leftovers that had been reheated for a minute in the microwave.
The pork chop over rice was a hearty portion that didn’t skimp with the meat, but it’s not Taiwanese food. I’ve eaten it cooked in basically the same way at Shanghainese restaurants and I could eat only half of that because it was so greasy.
Did not enjoy and would not come back if any other options available.

2.5 stars. Personally, I thought this place was quite underwhelming. After going around flushing and eating in other places in Chinatown and New York, I was expecting much better. This place is sit down, but it’s almost like fast food– chinese food. Everything did come out pretty fast and the food was ok, but I just wasn’t impressed. I wouldn’t crave this food nor would I recommend this as a must try. If i was in the area and needed something quick to eat, I would come here, but otherwise, I’d say there is better food in the area.

I’m conflicted about this review. On the one hand, the food is solid, but it’s not Taiwanese. Had it been labeled something else, I would be adding another star.
That said. Get:
1. The Oyster Pancake. Treat it as a Korean Seafood Pancake, and not like anything you’ve had in Taiwanese nightmarkets.
2. Barley and Pig Intestine Soup. This was delicious. It wasn’t greasy and had a ton of Danggui in it, so it’s close to authentic in my book. If they added a dash of rice wine, it would’ve been perfect.

Very inexpensive, no frills, solidly delicious food.
My favorite dish is the chicken leg over rice. The skin is perfectly crisp with a lot of meat, and you get a nice-​sized bowl of rice with pickled vegetables to go with it.
I also recommend the wontons with hot oil, the salt and pepper chicken, and the marinated egg.

Do you want to chop the bill of your NYC meal in half? At $ 5.25, Taiwan Pork Chop House has a steal of a deal. This simple dish contains fried pork chop, pickled vegetables, and rice in a bowl. The roads and alleyways leading up to this hole in the wall, remind me of the villages and towns in old Chinese Kung Fu movies. I will be back to settle more of my Taiwanese food cravings or to fight off evil westerners on the streets.

My husband and I had come to Chinatown on a Saturday afternoon, initially to go to Boky. Turned out Boky was under renovation and was closed for a few weeks. We walked around the area but could not find anything that struck our fancy. We wanted to try a new place that is not full of tourists. So Unilocal to the rescue again!
They had a good selection of dishes — some were similar to each other, just varied in terms of rice/​noodle accompaniment and sides. We were really excited about the visual menu. It’s always helpful to see what the dish looks like before you order it.
While nothing was super extraordinary or truly excellent, the pork chop was surprisingly tender. We were both fans of the wontons with spicy oil. The shredded pork with pickled cabbage over rice was only okay. Everything was dirt cheap so we didn’t complain. We are curious about their noodle soup dishes and will be coming back to try it.

This is exactly what a Taiwanese restaurant should be. A good selection of Taiwanese style dishes at very low prices. I stopped in one night and tried their Pork Chop over rice (排骨饭). The pork chop had a great flavor but I will say it did have some tough pieces in it here and there and some tiny pieces of bone scattered through it which were fun to pick out of my mouth. I did not really care for the flavor of the minced pork under the pork chop but the chop itself was pretty good.

I was most looking forward to the oyster pancakes but was strongly disappointed by them. They don’t have the right consistency or taste as good oyster pancakes. It was definitely more like korean pancakes, which would have been fine if that was what I had actually wanted. The salt and pepper chicken was good and crispy. The fish ball soup was also decent and had a nice broth. I didn’t like the shanghai rice which was just a mess and seemed like it was made out of whatever was leftover in the kitchen. The pork and vegetable wontons in spicy oil was huge but in a bad way. These should be made smaller so it’s not overpowered with filling. The sauce was also lacking and would have been a lot better if it was spicier and more flavorful. Good cheap prices but would rather spend more on better tasting food.

No frills but fantastic food. I gotta give it up to my fellow Unilocalers. This was the best Chinese/​Taiwanese food I’ve had since coming to NYC. We tried both the pork chop and chicken leg over noodle and rice respectively. Absolutely wonderful– special really in terms of the taste. You can’t find a better meal under $ 7 anywhere in the city.
We also had the salt and pepper chicken which I loved but my friend thought was more batter and less chicken, and the country duck which we both agree we could have done without.
Still thinking about that chicken leg over lo mein. Can’t wait to go back…

I was craving something new for dinner in Chinatown and since I haven’t had Taiwanese in a while, I decided on this place! The place isn’t bad. It’s pretty big for Chinatown and the place was packed. People kept coming in and out so this place must be legit.
The people that work here are pretty nice. They even have an album of pictures of the food on the menu. I thought that was pretty awesome. I wish I knew about it before I ordered.
Pork chop rice — I’ve had better pork chops and especially Taiwanese pork chops. The pork chop is okay so I was disappointed. As for the veggies that this dish normally comes with, I was disappointed in that as well since I was looking for a specific taste and it wasn’t there. This isn’t to say this dish was bad, because it wasn’t. I’d eat this again, but there are better.
Chicken leg — the chicken leg was much better than the pork chop. The skin was nice and crispy and the chicken was nice and juicy. I recommend the chicken leg over the pork chop.
I’ll definitely be back because there are other items on the menu that I want to try. Yes, I was a little disappointed, but I’m glad this place is around the neighborhood since it offers variety.

Since moving to Manhattan, I had been searching for good, cheap Taiwanese food FOREVER, and Taiwan Pork Chop House was hiding under my nose this whole time. Right around the corner from Nom Wah Tea Parlor, and underground bars Apothéke and Pulqueria, is this small, hole-​in-​the-​wall shop that serves pretty bomb Taiwanese food, and I’m beating myself over the head for not discovering this place before. Apparently, it was named Excellent Pork Chop House previously, and I just had no idea that they served Taiwanese food. Shame on me for not delving deeper. Anyways, after reading up about it on Unilocal,my roommates and I went to give it the old college try, despite being years removed from actual college. They brought out a large picture book menu for the non-​Chinese-​speakers, and let me peruse the normal menu before I just ended up ordering for the entire table, which my roommates were fine with. Very trusting people, heh.
We decided to go big, as the menu was pretty extensive, and I wanted to try a lot of the dishes that reminded me of my grandma’s cooking and/​or being in the night markets in Taiwan. We went with the wontons in chili oil, fried oyster pancake, pork chop over rice, beef noodle soup, salt and pepper chicken, shredded pork with rice cakes, and for my roommate who had to have it, hot and sour soup. Ha. The wontons were decently flavorful, although not very meaty. The fried oyster pancake was huge, and served with sweet chili sauce, which gave it a nice flavor. The pork chop over rice was bomb, replete with pickled mustard greens, a small dose of ground pork and bok choy, all over fluffy white rice. The beef noodle soup came with a healthy amount of beef, a huge helping of noodles, and again, pickled mustard greens. As a result, the pickled greens made the soup a bit more sour than I was used to, but still delicious, and better than most I’ve had in Chinatown. The salt and pepper chicken (kinda like popcorn chicken) had that great white pepper flavor that you don’t really get anywhere else except with Taiwanese fried chicken. I also liked that they used dark meat, and not just white meat, for a more flavorful bite, yet not too fatty. The shredded pork with rice cakes came with a lot of bean sprouts, peas, and even some shrimp, which gave it a nice variety of textures and flavors. And that hot and sour soup. I didn’t even try any, but I was told it was «fine.» Ha.
Service is pretty quick and efficient, but don’t expect to chat it up with the waitstaff. They’re definitely not schmoozers by any means, especially if you don’t speak the language (what place in Chinatown is?), but that’s okay because the food was great, it came out fast, and they were very attentive with the water and drink refills. The tables already come equipped with chopsticks, soy sauce, soup spoons, napkins, the laminated menus, and good olé’ sriracha, so it makes the waitstaff’s job a lot easier, which is totally fine.
Every dish is about $ 5 – 6 or less, and it’ll really fill you up, even just on its own. Even though we managed to finish most of it, we were definitely struggling at the end. We could have boxed things up, but we only had a few slices of the pancake left and were going elsewhere and didn’t want to carry the box around with us. The check for all those dishes came out to $ 14 per person for 3 people, including tax and a 20% tip, which is amazing in this day and age. The value really just is outstanding, and not just by New York City standards, but really anywhere. That’s why I’m inclined to give 5 stars, because even though the service isn’t absolutely perfect, the value aspect is something you can’t beat. I didn’t try any of the shaved ice, but one of these days, I’ll be back to try that, as well as try the many other dishes I missed. Oh, you better believe I’ll be back. Cash only.

A very cheap and filling meal but taste-​wise, it was just so-​so. So I came here to pick up the Pork chop over rice (#1 on the menu) for dinner at work and at $ 5.25 for a big bowl of rice with sour vegetables, minced meat and a pork chop, it was a pretty good deal! The place does seem kind of run down, as do most of the other restaurants located on Doyers street but the tables seemed clean. Service was alright. Since it’s a Taiwanese restaurant, I was kind of worried that I wouldn’t know how to order but thankfully they speak Cantonese as well.
I thought the Pork chop over rice tasted average. The pork chop tasted great, wasn’t too chewy/​dry, and even had a couple of fatty pieces that tasted great. The main problem I had was with the sour vegetables. While they did taste good when mixed with the rice, there were a few pieces left over after I finished the rice and when I ate them by themselves, it tasted like I was eating salt tablets (yuck!). The minced meat sauce tasted alright when mixed with the rice; not too salty but the pieces were a little dry.
Overall, I thought this place was alright, nothing outstanding. It’s a great place to grab a filling meal that won’t break your wallet. The pork chop was tasty but just make sure to adequately mix the sour vegetables and minced meat sauce with the rice so that you don’t get extreme flavors!
PS. Way better than May Wah Fast Food in my opinion.

This review is specific for the so-​called Taiwanese shaved Ice. As a Taiwanese pregnant woman, I was craving a Taiwanese 刈冰 shaved ice so I came here during a 90 °F day. The restaurant was nearly empty at 6pm. I ordered 3 toppings: 粉圓 tapioca, 仙草grass jelly & 愛玉 yellow grass jelly (translate?) for my shaved ice. The woman gave me corn «玉米» instead of yellow jelly. When I politely corrected her she appeared offended. No apologies, just removed corn & put what I ordered.
They got the ice WRONG it was so disappointing I had to laugh. syrup sitting at the bottom turning ice into frozen chunks of ice, while the toppings were unsweetened & barely tolerable.
The bill cane out $ 3.50. I gave her a $ 10, and I got $ 5.50 change. REALLY??? What kind of Taiwanese can’t do their math??? You just charged me $ 1 for a scathing review.
I will take the train to Flushing next time when I crave Taiwanese shaved ice.

The chicken leg over rice is the BEST. The chicken leg is crispy, moist, flavorful and freshly made. It doesn’t have that iron smell unlike other restaurants. It is a must eat. The pickled veggies mixed with the minced meat underneath the chicken leg is very appetizing. The rice is served fresh and hot straight from the rice cooker. The layering begins with a good amount of rice at the based of the bowl, followed by the pickled veggies with minced meat on top of the rice, and finally the chicken leg on the very top. It is worth the price, the meal, and the taste.
I always got it to go. The service is friendly, if you’re confused, don’t worry, the lady behind the counter will answer your questions. The service is quick, the food is great, and the price is good.

Ughhh so cheap. So delicious. So Taiwanese. The Taiwanese in me loves this place so much. Hell, all of me loves this place so much. Service is what you would expect from a typical Chinatown establishment. At times you’ll also end up sitting at the big round tables with other parties, sometimes service is a bit slow /​forgetful. If you can get past that, everything else is perfection.
Their fried chicken legs are a must try here. Brings me back to the chicken legs I had in my elementary school lunch boxes back in Taiwan. It really does. The meat is juicy and tender, with the skin crisped and seasoned to a perfection. Please, even though this place is called Taiwan Pork Chop House, get the frickin chicken.
My normal go-​tos are the chicken leg noodle soup and the chicken leg rice dish. I can’t say I’ve explored the menu much further beyond this, but my reasoning is that if this place were known for it’s beef noodle soup (a signature dish in Taiwan), then it would be called Taiwan Beef Noodle Soup House instead. I’ll happily stick with the quality Taiwanese lunch box food that I know they have.
The bowl of noodles that you get when you order the noodle soup is very sizable. The noodles themselves are extremely chewy and fresh. Simple, yet delicious. The rice dish is good too, with very Taiwanese pickled veggies on the rice. Both dishes delicious and under $ 10. What a steal!

Taiwan Pork Chop House is the answer to the serious lack of Taiwanese food in Manhattan. And no, the guabao (pork belly bun) restaurants or bubble tea shops doesn’t count.
At this restaurant, you have your full package of Taiwanese fare from classics apps like oyster pancakes and salt-​pepper chicken to the stomach-​fillers like beef noodle soup and minced-​pork rice.
My second visit gave me a better idea on the quality of their food and it left me unimpressed once again.
Taiwanese Marinated Duck 台式滷鴨 ($ 5.50) — About a quarter of a duck. The marinate was water-​down so it didn’t penetrate the meat. Bland flavor. (⁶⁄₁₀)
Savory Pan Fried Oyster Cake 香香蠔仔煎 ($ 6.00) — Dryer and harder than the traditional oyster omelette. Good in its own ways and plenty to eat. (⁷⁄₁₀)
Salt Pepper Chicken 鹽酥雞 ($ 4.25) — Good but was starting to stale and lose its crispiness. Also the flavor is not as addictive as other places. Something was a little off (⁶⁄₁₀)
Pork & Vegetable Wonton with Spicy Oil 紅油菜肉馄饨 ($ 6.00) — Lacking the strong garlicky sweet essence in the oil. Also it was barely a mild on the spicy scale but the wontons itself was quite good. There was 7 pieces. (⁷⁄₁₀)
Marinated Seaweed & Dried Bean Curd 海帶豆幹雙拼 ($ 6.00) — Decent dish but hard to mess up when these things are premade (⁷⁄₁₀)
Beef Stew Noodle Soup 酸菜紅燒牛肉麵 ($ 5.75) — This dish decides if the Taiwanese restaurant is good or not. It’s their national food and restaurants live or die by it. Unfortunately, the version here couldn’t make up for the other dishes and it was just as disappointing. The noodles were scrunched up like it was tightly packed in a frozen package. Also the texture was kind of gross. (⁵⁄₁₀)
There are a lot of trade offs here. The restaurant is dirty and unwelcoming but the food is cheap… very cheap. The dishes here are not as authentic but finding a Taiwanese restaurant in Manhattan is difficult. I don’t think it’s a lack of demand issue but a weak presence of a Taiwanese community. The stronger presence is in Flushing where all the powerhouses of Taiwanese cuisine reside.