Recommended by locals！ A 50-year-old Taichung delicacy served in a washbasin—super bold oden!

Text & photos byFeitianxuan

This “Old Oden Rice Cake Shop” in Dongshi often comes up in our chat group because one of our members loves to eat and another loves to shop... while the other two who hadn’t tried it yet would always drool at the stories. Finally... good things come to those who wait, so we came to pay homage too！ That day, our group’s plan was a one-day street food tour around Dongshi and Xinshe. We ate all day long, hitting seven stalls in total, and were almost sick by the time we got home...

By noon on the weekend, there was already a long line at the door. Judging by their attire, most seemed to be locals, with some even lining up to order without even taking off their helmets.

Only the boss and the boss’s wife (?) were bustling about in the shop. Local Teresa said this “Old Oden Rice Cake Shop” has now been passed down to the second generation, run by the two sons. Aside from the main branch on Disan Hengjie where we went that day, there’s another location right across from the Fengyuan Bus Station. She also mentioned that during the 921 earthquake, her sister’s only concern was whether this “Old Oden Rice Cake Shop” was okay.

Menu… The dishes are as shown above！ There are a total of 13 varieties, priced between NT$10 and NT$30. If you order one of everything, it’ll come to around NT$400.

Many people tend to complain about the environment of such snack shops, but since the prices are so low, whether it needs five-star decor is really a matter of personal preference. If you’re particularly fussy about the ambiance, you might want to try the branch across from Fengyuan Bus Station—it’s a bit nicer…

On the serving counter, there are only two items: oden and rice cakes. Takeout orders are packed in plastic bags.

Rice cake - NT$？？, not sure about the price per piece. The size is about the size of a palm. For women, one piece is probably enough to fill you up, but men might need to eat two.

We added chili and found the spiciness quite surprising—it’s the kind that makes you go “ouch” while eating. The rice cakes are first lightly fried at a low temperature and then crisped up at high heat, making the outer skin soft and chewy. The filling consists of meat chunks and bamboo shoots, giving it a texture closer to that of Fengyuan rice cakes. I personally thought it was okay, though opinions among my friends varied.

We each got one serving of the other oden ingredients, and the four adults and three kids shared them, which made everything taste even better. I loved the daikon and blood rice cake, little Cherry’s favorites were fish cake and kelp, and one of my friend’s kids was especially into meatballs and golden eggs.

The fried tofu and Fuzhou balls both had meat fillings inside, so they weren’t bland at all. The broth tasted sweet—like the natural sweetness of vegetables, not the overly fishy or MSG-heavy kind that relies too much on dried bonito flakes and seasoning.

When we left, the crowd had gotten even bigger.

Old Oden Rice Cake Shop
Address: No. 66, 5th Hengjie, Dongshi District, Taichung City
Phone: (04)2587-6413
Business hours: 11:30 AM–10:30 PM (Closed Tuesdays)

Feitianxuan
I casually document the food, fun, and emotions in my life" Blog, FB