A must-visit yakiniku specialty spot for meat lovers—huge portions and tender meat

Text & Photos /Ahmon

These past few days, my friend said they wanted to celebrate my birthday, so they took me out for a big meal. This time, we chose to dine at Kyuu-nichi Miso Yakiniku N<专卖店用餐， 离科博馆也蛮近的， 距离有乐町居食屋也不远，没想到科博馆附近这么多日式料理餐厅阿。

The place looks small from the outside, and the sign isn’t very eye-catching—I almost rode right past it. At first glance, it doesn’t look like your typical bustling eatery, but wow, the interior is lively and almost completely packed. Eh—today’s a weekday, Monday, so how come business is still this good? Could it be a hidden gem of a restaurant? Although the name suggests miso yakiniku N

As soon as we opened the wooden door, we found the place buzzing with energy, nearly full to capacity. Ugh—today’s a regular weekday Monday, how can the business be this thriving? Could it be some kind of secret gourmet spot? Even though the shop is called miso yakiniku N<专卖店，但店内的灯光和装潢让我觉得应该比较偏向居酒屋，那种气氛还蛮不错的，只是真的有点吵杂，V纭＜/p>

Business was so good that the owner was busy settling customers’ bills. Only after finishing that did he come over to take our order and give us an introduction. I heard this place has been featured on a food TV show, but I’ve never seen it—lately, I’ve been traveling out of town and have become a bit unfamiliar with Taichung.

On the counter, there are small yellow jars filled with imported Japanese rice crackers. The owner said we could help ourselves—they’re pretty tasty, haha.

Give it a knock to ward off bad luck. There’s this thing on the table too—we studied it for a while. It might also be from Japan. It involves using an iron piece to knock on a stone. We were careful not to make too much noise and disturb other tables, but I’m not sure if it actually warded off any bad luck.

Another noteworthy detail is that the tables and chairs in the restaurant are all made of solid wood, so they’re super heavy. Moving them even slightly takes quite a bit of effort, but they’re quite comfortable and sturdy to sit on.

There are some signs hanging on the walls with dish names written on them—probably the restaurant’s signature dishes—but since there are no prices listed, you still have to check the menu to order.

Chilled barley tea is available unlimited in the restaurant, though the tea flavor is a bit light.

N<饭套餐、面食、炒青菜。有电视标志的是有上过节目介绍的样子，餐点价格$300内，还在可以接受的价位，不然可能就要被留下来到厨房洗碗了。

Grilled items. Most are seafood, and the prices are a bit higher, which made us hesitate about adding more. Some dish names sounded really unique, so we wanted to try them.

Drinks & alcohol

Burdock strips and seaweed sprouts. Since I ordered a set meal, it came with two side dishes and a dessert. The sides were seaweed sprouts and burdock strips. The seaweed sprouts were crispy and quite tasty, but the burdock strips weren’t sweet enough for my liking.

Kyuu-nichi Steak N< $250。看到菜名上有电视的标志就点了，果然也没有让我失望，好大的一份牛排阿，一个人吃的话很过瘾，如果觉得这肉还太少，那还有进阶版的大牛排N<饭，但就没有附小菜和甜点噜，所以应该是点这个比较划算，底下的白饭有淋上特制的酱汁，吃起来会带点咸香，有点像是在吃猪油拌饭的感觉，上方的牛排则有洒上些许黑胡椒提味，另外还有姜片、蒜头可以搭配牛肉吃。

The steak’s cross-section is cut very neatly—you can see the tender, pink beef. It’s probably cooked to medium rare, about 5–7 minutes, with a thickness of around one centimeter. The texture is firm yet soft and tender, and it retains its juiciness. It doesn’t taste dry or tough. Paired with rice and garlic, it’s really delicious. No wonder almost every table orders this—it makes sense why it was featured on a TV show. This is a must-order dish. Meat lovers definitely shouldn’t miss it.

Miso-grilled Pork N<饭$180。朋友点的，跟原先想像的也不一样，这碗的猪肉也是非常大块和厚，跟本可以算是猪排了吧，抹上味增酱烧烤后，再洒上白芝麻，吃起来味道也不错，带点味增的咸味，好吃，但白饭分量似乎比牛排N<的少。

Tokyo Mentaiko Cheese Toast $90. This was also featured on the show. It looks a bit like a thin-crust pizza—my impression is that it’s about 6–8 inches in size. The crust is baked very crispy and thin, topped with lots of cheese and parsley. It’s quite fragrant.

It’s also stretchy. The flavor is rich and savory, but I couldn’t really taste the mentaiko. Eating a whole portion by yourself might feel a bit heavy, so it’s recommended to share or eat it with rice.

Beef-wrapped Shrimp Skewer $80/skewer. When I first saw this dish name on the menu, I didn’t understand what it was. After asking the server, I found it quite novel and decided to try one skewer. At $80 per skewer, it’s really a bit pricey. The grilled shrimp is shelled in the middle, then wrapped with beef bacon and sesame seeds before being grilled again, turning it into a beef-wrapped shrimp skewer. When eating, you first cut off the shrimp head, then remove the tail, and eat the middle section of the shrimp meat directly. The richly marbled beef bacon and the fresh, springy shrimp meat create a wonderfully unique combination of textures. It’s delicious, but I could only order one skewer this time—otherwise, my wallet would’ve taken a huge hit XD

Dessert. We ordered the Kyuu-nichi Steak N<饭才有的，听说是明治的冰淇淋，带点苦甜的巧克力冰淇淋，替这顿生日大餐画下一个完美的句点。

We came to eat a bit later, so by the time we finished, there were almost no other customers left in the restaurant.

Overall, it was surprisingly delicious, which explains why the business is so good. The steak N<的分量也挺大的，CP值高，适合爱吃肉的朋友，出餐速度快，服务算好的。不过串烧类的价格有点小贵，所以只能列入偶尔造访的店家哩，太常吃会破产XD，推荐这间给大家，以是个人浅见，仅供参考。

Restaurant Name: Kyuu-nichi Miso Yakiniku N<专门店
Phone: 04-22032499
Address: No. 36, Bokuan Road, North District, Taichung City
Price: $80 and up
Dining Date: July 2014

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