What to eat when firefly watching in Dongshi? Must-visit large-portion snack shops for tourists

Text & Photos /Orange Dog Loves Candy

Stepping into the small town of Dongshi feels as simple and unpretentious as returning to my hometown of Xinhua in Tainan—no urban hustle or crowds. Most visitors come here this season to see the fireflies at Dongshi Forest, but today we’re here to fill our stomachs. Our destinations are a snack shop and a coffee shop. The H.C. Architecture Café has already been introduced in the previous article. This time, I want to introduce 【Qingmei Snack Shop】, located on the food street opposite Dongshi Elementary School. Though it’s already considered a must-visit spot for tourists, I’d never tried it before, so I was very curious. Visiting during a weekday lunch hour when it wasn’t crowded, the place was indeed completely empty.

Dongshi is close to mountainous areas, and most residents are Hakka, so you often hear shop assistants and customers chatting casually in the Hakka language. That said, there don’t seem to be many Hakka restaurants here. Instead, noodle and dumpling shops are particularly distinctive, with three or four such spots along this old, modest food street. Qingmei and Aunt Qiu’s seem to be more frequently recommended, and of course, there’s also Shengdong, another popular local eatery on the next street over. But today, there were only two of us—and just two stomachs and two mouths.

Yet we ended up choosing 【Qingmei Snack Shop】 for our first meal in Dongshi. The shop is small and old-fashioned, but the portions are anything but small. We’d always heard that Qingmei often has long lines, but when we arrived around 11:40 AM, there were no customers at all. However, by 12:15 PM, in less than ten minutes, the entire shop was suddenly packed. Business is really that good. So, it was easy to choose a seat freely—the seating area is toward the back, past the kitchen. Almost all the tables are large round ones for group meals. The menu inside doesn’t list prices, and because I was so hungry at first, I didn’t even think about that and just kept ordering.

There’s actually a wide variety of dishes. For someone starving, seeing that many options is almost terrifying—you want to try almost everything. In the end, we ordered three dishes, one bowl of noodles, one bowl of soup, and ten dumplings—until the auntie behind the counter insisted on stopping us XD. She kept emphasizing that their portions are definitely not small, so we should wait and see if we’re still hungry before ordering too much and wasting food. But since we didn’t know the prices, we couldn’t mark them in the review. All I know is the total came to NT$620.

【Kelp and Dried Tofu Platter】
Believe it or not, their marinated dried tofu is truly the signature dish that every table orders. I only found out later. Outsiders like us just ordered a mixed platter, but regular customers’ tables are practically piled high with marinated dried tofu. Their tofu is genuinely delicious—just scoop on a big spoonful of mashed garlic, mix in some chili sauce, and from afar it almost looks like cold noodles. The marinated aroma of the tofu is rich, the saltiness just right, and when combined with the sharpness of the garlic and the kick of the chili, it’s fantastic. Compared to that, the kelp in the same platter is pretty ordinary.

【Signature Dry Noodles │ Small Portion】
I think we might have missed the period when they served fried noodles, because about half the customers who came in specifically asked for fried noodles. But it’s no longer on the menu. When the dry noodles arrived, I was a bit taken aback and thought, “Uh… is this it?” Just a few blanched baby bok choy leaves on top of plain white noodles. But the auntie came over three times to tell us not to let it sit too long and to mix it quickly XD.

In the end, unable to wait any longer, I went ahead and mixed it myself (because we really took too long). The moment I stirred it, my mouth started watering. Turns out the sauce was hidden under the white noodles. As I mixed, the aroma of the braised sauce wafted out, and the hidden flavor of satay was quite distinct. The chewy white noodles were perfectly coated in the sauce, and adding a bit of chili made it even tastier. The portion was actually quite big, but I finished it in no time.

【Clam Soup │ Small Portion】
Here, the portion size is determined by the number of people—you won’t be served an overly huge portion that you can’t finish. But for two people, this small portion of clam soup was still pretty generous, with plenty of clams and great value.

It tasted refreshing, with the flavor of shredded ginger and a subtle umami. I even kept asking the auntie if they’d made a mistake with the portion.

【Stir-fried Bamboo Shoots │ Approx. Three-Person Portion】
The auntie recommended this dish, saying the bamboo shoots were in season, so we ordered it. It included streaky pork, dried shrimp, scallions, and garlic, all stir-fried together.

The bamboo shoots were sliced thick and crispy, with a sweet flavor. Combined with the oily richness of the pork belly, it was pretty tasty, though a bit greasy and heavily seasoned.

【Stir-fried Beef │ Approx. Three-to-Four-Person Portion】
Even at a stir-fry restaurant, you might not get this much beef. Each piece of beef was thick and large, stir-fried with garlic, chili, and water spinach. The flavor was also quite strong. Though the portion of beef was generous, the doneness wasn’t quite right—some pieces were tender, but others were quite tough and required extra chewing. Probably overcooked, which was a bit of a shame.

【Stir-fried Intestines │ Approx. Three-to-Four-Person Portion】
The plate was full of ginger-stir-fried intestines—a classic Hakka-style stir-fry. I could smell the tangy vinegar aroma from the neighboring table even before we ordered. We didn’t get this dish ourselves, but we snapped a photo from the next table. The plump intestines and tangy scent were mouthwatering.

【Handmade Dumplings │ Minimum Ten Pieces】
Dumplings are a common item sold at many local shops. Qingmei was the first place I tried them, so I have nothing else to compare with.

The dumplings surprisingly had a hint of ginger for added flavor—something similar to the dumplings my mom makes—and I quite liked that subtle ginger aroma. The dumplings were also fairly large in size, so the portion felt quite sufficient for me. I’ll try other shops next time.

The above does not include the stir-fried intestines with ginger. For two people, the total was about NT$620, and it was basically enough for three people. I’d always heard of the fame of 【Qingmei Snack Shop】, and finally visiting in person, I can say it lived up to the reputation. The stir-fried beef was the only letdown. I thought since no prices were listed, maybe we’d have to wash dishes to pay for the meal—but the bill turned out to be quite affordable. And I actually liked the flavors. It’s just that we ordered too few dishes because there weren’t many people. Seems like a definite second visit—with more people next time.

◎ Shop Introduction: [Qingmei Snack Shop, Dongshi Elementary School │ Dongshi District]
◎ Address: No. 27, Zhongsheng Lane, Fengshi Road, Dongshi District, Taichung City
◎ Phone: 04-25874532
◎Business hours: 11:00 AM – 1:30 PM & 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM
◎Consumption reminder: The store is closed on Monday and Sunday evenings. It is recommended to arrive early on holidays to avoid waiting in line.
 

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