Taipei’s “Ningxia Night Market” Cheat Sheet – A Dazzling Array of Delicacies

Text & Photos /Mimi Han

Hehehe~ Taiwanese people just love night markets!! This time, due to work, Mimi stayed overnight near Shuanglian Station and, of course, couldn’t miss the “Ningxia Night Market,” which is packed with tons of delicious food!!

The night market area was packed with densely crowded shoppers. Sister Mimi had Korean cheese fried chicken and flame dice beef right at the entrance, bought taro buns and lemon grass jelly in the middle, as well as oyster omelets by the roundabout, among many other treats—with many stalls having long lines. You can truly feel the endless charm of the food at “Ningxia Night Market.”

Even better, the location is super convenient. Starting from Taipei Main Station, just take one stop and walk five minutes to get there. And although there are quite a few tourists, it’s not as overwhelming as Shilin. Plus, the prices are reasonable. Overall, it’s a very pleasant experience—come enjoy the snacks at “Ningxia Night Market”!

“Ningxia Night Market” is mainly located along Ningxia Road in Taipei’s Datong District, next to Penglai Elementary School and Shuanglian Market. Originally a local spot for food, it has gained significant tourism fame over time, attracting more visitors. Many vendors have even gone international, greeting foreigners in English!!

We entered from Minsheng West Road and only saw the sign then realized that “Ningxia Night Market” isn’t just international—it’s actually Taipei’s first eco-friendly tourist night market too~

As soon as we stepped into Ningxia Night Market, several stalls up front already had long lines. Especially this one for flame dice beef—it seems pretty famous in the “Ningxia Night Market.” I remember hearing people on the way from the hotel talking about coming here to buy some. Since it’s right at the entrance, of course, we had to grab one too, Up!!

Especially seeing the boss directly using a blowtorch to sear the beef—the exaggerated moves were really fun and super eye-catching!!

The bright red stall is quite eye-catching, with premium Angus beef steaks displayed on the grill. The boss said they’re all directly imported from the U.S., offering high quality at low prices—a great cost-performance ratio. He also mentioned how he was once shocked to find malicious online claims saying the beef was mixed, so now he even displays proof of U.S. import right at the stall to reassure everyone. Flame dice beef is definitely not mixed beef—it’s high-quality, great beef~

Sssss~ The boss directly uses the blowtorch to sear the dice beef, and the whole area around the stall is filled with the tempting aroma of grilled beef.

Sister once heard from a chef at a Japanese restaurant that using a blowtorch locks in the beef juices with instant high heat and makes it easier to control the level of caramelization on the surface. Also, the speed is a key factor. Plus, watching the searing process is pretty thrilling.

You can choose your favorite seasonings, like rose mineral salt, black pepper, Italian herbs, Xinjiang cumin, spicy, Japanese teriyaki, etc. But my favorite is still just a simple sprinkle of rose salt—it tastes amazing!!

Hehe, got my hands on the Ningxia Night Market specialty “Flame Dice Beef”! Each piece of beef feels pretty thick, probably seared to about 5–70% doneness. When you bite into it, it’s juicy and hearty—not a tough cut—and the aroma is incredible~

Next to the flame beef is this stall selling [Korean Cheese Fried Chicken], which also looks pretty awesome. The best part? There’s a huge crowd in front of the stall—intuition says it’s gotta be amazing. Watching others get their orders, the fried chicken is super stringy—it’s basically an evil-nightmarket-level dish.

I watched the boss’s process for a bit. It seems like he first fries the chicken, then stir-fries it with Korean sauce and Korean rice cakes, sprinkles cheese strips on top, and finally uses a blowtorch to melt the cheese into the chicken and rice cakes. It’s quite a labor-intensive process!!

The basic red sauce chicken is 100 NT$, and turning it into cheese fried chicken is just 20 NT$ more. Mimi may not be a hardcore cheese lover, but she’s still a little one~ Boss, give me one please~

YA~ Got my Korean cheese fried chicken. It probably took about 20 minutes to wait this time!! But since KAI also went next door to order the flame dice beef, the wait wasn’t too bad.

The chicken is pretty good quality—when you bite into it, there’s that juicy “chew-chew” texture. The Korean spicy sauce on the outside is sweet and spicy, not bad at all, plus the hot melted stretchy cheese makes you keep shoving more into your mouth. But since it’s a bold-flavored Korean dish, pairing it with a refreshing drink is highly recommended. Luckily, I just bought a sugar-free green tea from 50岚 on the way here.

Across from it, there’s another stall selling “Hokkaido Grilled Squid,” which is quite different from the usual night market squid—it actually comes in seven flavors like cheese, lemon, seaweed, sansho pepper, and mustard.

The grilled squid also looks pretty impressive. At a night market, you gotta try the traditional taste of grilled squid paired with innovative flavors. Too bad there was a line—I’ll have to come back and try it next time~

Just finished the Korean cheese fried chicken, and then I spotted this 70-year-old traditional grass jelly shop. So of course, I had to get one, Up!! One cup for 25 NT$, and after drinking it down, the refreshing taste really cuts through the greasiness~

KAI opted for a juice shop and ordered a fresh papaya milk. Hmm~ Honestly, Tainan’s Xiaolin Papaya Milk is still better, but what I did like is that although Ningxia Night Market gets lots of tourists, the prices aren’t outrageously marked up!!

Sure, Tainan’s weekend Garden Night Market is even crazier, but Ningxia Night Market’s crowd is also pretty impressive. And as you walk along, you hear several different languages—it’s truly an international night market!!

There are things like homemade braised snacks, stir-fried rice noodles, braised chicken feet, Dongshan duck heads, salad boats, oyster omelets, etc. Every stall is bustling, and everything seems delicious. Even on a weekday, there are still long lines—it seems completely conquering Ningxia Night Market will take several rounds of eating.

Finally, I spotted this stall selling bursting taro balls called “Yubao Yu.” The shop promotes using carefully selected Dajia taro. Sister has loved taro balls since childhood—whenever there’s a banquet in the village, she’d always sneak a few extra home. Seeing it makes her want to buy it!!

I went straight for the combo flavor, which includes both “Yubao Yu” and “Bursting Taro.” Inside the Yubao Yu, they use milk and taro blended into the filling—you bite into it and it’s full of taro aroma.

And the bursting taro has a salted egg yolk filling like a Hong Kong-style lava bun—when you bite into it, it’s savory and fragrant, with that lovely sandy texture inside. I love it!! It’s like a taro ball version of a Hong Kong-style lava bun!! Both flavors are more special than the usual hollow or red bean-filled taro balls.

Overall, "Ningxia Night Market" may not be very large in area, but the density of food stalls is quite high, with several that look really great. This time I tried the "Korean-style cheese fried chicken"—the chicken was juicy, and the sauce was spicy, sweet, and savory, offering a high "guilt factor" Korean dish at an affordable price. The "Flame-Seared Dice Beef" is probably already a popular item here, using thick American Angus black beef, where the instant high heat helps retain much of the beef's natural sweetness and juiciness. It's bursting with aroma and flavor, and the live grilling spectacle is also very appealing to watch.

 The 70-year-old "Traditional Aiyu Dessert" is cool and refreshing, perfect for cutting through the richness of other foods. The burst-in-your-mouth taro from "Taro Bun Taro" was surprisingly delightful—just be careful not to burn your lips when you bite into it. Just a quick share here; I need to get back to the hotel to keep writing my articles now～

Taipei Attractions
Ningxia Night Market (Ningxia Tourist Night Market)
Address: Ningxia Road, Datong District, Taipei City
Business Hours: 15:00–00:00
Transportation: Accessible via Taipei Metro stations Shuanglian or Zhongshan, about a 5–10 minute walk.

Mimi Han
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