Taichung’s High-Value Affordable Japanese Cuisine: Seafood N< Rice Piled to the Brim

Text & Photos /Ah Mon

It was really hot recently, so I didn’t have much of an appetite. I figured I’d try some Japanese food—N<饭、寿司之类的冷食，应该会比较开胃，在网络上搜寻半天后就找到了这间信兵卫手作N<饭寿司，似乎是N<饭和寿司的专卖店，平价也都说便宜和好吃，就找了一天拉朋友一起来吃看看了。信兵卫在成功路上，但成功路是单行道，所以如果是从台中火车站方向过去的话就是逆向，需要绕一圈转回到成功路喔。一开始没注意到是单行道，所以只号绕一大圈才到达餐厅，餐厅门口有一个渔夫抓鱼的大海报，还蛮好找的。

But the restaurant entrance isn’t on Chenggong Road side—it’s actually on the small alleyway next to it. That’s the real main entrance. Isn’t that interesting?

There’s a small blackboard at the entrance showing the business hours: lunch is from 11 AM to 2 PM, and dinner is from 5 PM to 10 PM. They’re closed in the afternoon.

Something unusual—I noticed multiple metal buckets being used as tables outside. I think that’s something you’d only see at Korean fried chicken shops. How quirky. But I guess most people would still choose to sit inside with the air conditioning, haha.

Once inside the restaurant, you can see the counter seating. The space is rectangular, and aside from the kitchen area, there isn’t much room left, so almost all the seats are counter-style. The decor has a nostalgic, retro vibe, and the atmosphere is quite nice.

The menu is written on a blackboard with chalk, reminiscent of a Japanese canteen.

Inside the counter fridge, there are fresh daily seafood ingredients—the colors look really fresh.

I was so happy when I saw this soda. I loved drinking it when I was in Japan, and I was surprised to find that Shinbei actually stocks it. It’s a fruit-flavored sparkling drink, made by mixing local specialty fruits with soda. The juice content is pretty high, and I really liked the Nagano apple and Shizuoka melon flavors.

They also have these small cans of Japanese soda, but I didn’t enjoy those as much. I think the ones with added fruit flavor taste better, so I’d recommend going with the one above.

After asking how many of us there were, the server led us to a corner seat a bit away from the other customers—great for a bit more privacy while chatting, haha.

Now let’s take a look at the menu. Shinbei’s specialty is affordable N<饭和寿司，来看看有哪些好料的吧。这本菜单只有品项和部分图片可以参考，要看价格的话就要拿另外一张价位表才知道。

N<饭(生)

N<饭 (熟)

N<饭有分成冷食和热时两种，兼顾了不吃生食类的顾客，所以不敢吃生鱼片的客人也有熟时N<饭可以选喔。

Sushi

Salad, hand rolls

After browsing the menu, we just marked our choices on this small slip of paper and handed it to the server. Payment is after the meal. Prices are around 150–300 NT, which is pretty reasonable. You can also upgrade to an A or B set meal. Since it was our first time here and we weren’t sure about the quality, we ended up ordering a sweet shrimp and scallop N<饭，升级B套餐，另外再点了一份甜虾干贝N<，就先点这两样吃看看再说XD。

B Set – Salad
A refreshing salad made with a variety of fresh vegetables, Japanese-style dressing, and bonito flakes. Perfect for summer, and it’s nutritionally balanced too, haha.

B Set – Chawanmushi (Steamed Egg Custard)
My friend was super hungry, so she started digging into the chawanmushi as soon as it arrived. By the time I noticed, there was less than half left. According to her, it was pretty tasty, and there were some ingredients at the bottom too.

B Set – Miso Clam Soup
This is the soup that comes with the upgraded B set. The A set has miso fish soup, but the B set version includes clams too, making it feel even more worth it. The fish part didn’t seem to be the same type each time—I remember having salmon and some kind of white fish. The clams were plump and juicy, and the saltiness was just right for Taiwanese tastes—not overly salty.

Sweet Shrimp & Scallop N<$300
I had originally wanted to order the Angel Red Shrimp N<，价格只再多$30元而已，但想想干贝还是比较爱，所以后来就选了甜虾干贝N<，这当甜虾干贝N<送上桌的时候，真的震惊了我们，这N<饭也太丰盛了吧，将醋饭盖的都看不见，海鲜只能用满出来来形容，除了原本就该有的甜虾和干贝外，还有鲑鱼卵、龙虾沙拉、蟹肉丝、虾卵、玉子烧等，感觉非常的高CP值阿，果然点对了!强烈推荐必点。

with ikura (salmon roe), lobster salad, and tamagoyaki (rolled omelet).
These probably count as side dishes, but they made the meal feel even more worthwhile and exciting. The mountain of orange ikura was both delightful and frustrating—you love the texture of each individual roe, but it’s gone in just a couple of bites, leaving you wanting more. The lobster salad was packed with ingredients and had a layered texture. The tamagoyaki was mini and cute, with an appealing shape, though the taste was more average.

Salmon Roe
When I first ordered the sweet shrimp & scallop N<的时候，就没有想过还会有鲑鱼卵，所以看到有鲑鱼卵真的觉的是赚到了，当鲑鱼卵入口后在嘴中爆裂的口感，就是爽阿。

Raw scallops
Two raw scallops were sliced into four pieces each. They were sweet, tender, and delicious—absolutely yummy!!

Sweet shrimp
A bowl of N<饭内有5只，有将虾头保留，但虾壳部分都已经很贴心的去壳哩，只要用筷子夹起，就可以直接将虾身入口，吃起来味道很鲜美，甜味也很明显，很好吃，大推。

Premium Grilled Sushi $280 (6 pieces)
Because my friend ordered N<饭的关系，所以我就点寿司来吃看看哩，这份是特极炙寿司，也是寿司类中价格第2高的XD，朋友还说我真大手笔orz。服务生送上桌的时候会用一个木制托盘端盛，感觉就很和风，木盘上有天使红虾+蟹膏、花枝+虾卵、星鳗+鱼子酱、炙烧鲑鱼洋葱、炙烧干贝、炙虾头等6种，另外还有一小块烙上信兵卫字样的玉子烧。严格来说我觉得这应该算是5贯而已，虾头握寿司额外算成一贯，感觉有一点.....。

Tenshinhan (red shrimp) + crab roe Nigiri
The most satisfying piece in the whole sushi set for me was this one. It featured an oversized Tenshinhan red shrimp topped with crab roe and chopped scallions—it looked extremely vibrant and tempting. However, this one wasn’t grilled; it was served completely raw. I’m not sure why it’s considered grilled sushi? Also, while taking pictures, the vinegar rice seemed a bit off. When we picked up the sushi with chopsticks, the rice actually fell apart =_=, which really surprised us. A few other nigiri pieces had the same issue—it felt like the sushi wasn’t formed well. A bit of a shame, really. The red shrimp itself was incredibly sweet, and paired with the rich crab roe, it was absolutely fantastic. Too bad the rice didn’t hold up. The shrimp head nigiri was also rather average.

Grilled squid + fish roe Nigiri
The chewy squid paired with individual fish roe added more texture to the bite. Aside from the rice, this grilled squid piece was quite tasty.

Star eel + caviar
This was a very luxurious combination—tender star eel paired with richly aromatic caviar. It was truly the pinnacle of indulgence.

Grilled onion salmon Nigiri
The sushi I was most looking forward to—the salmon was topped with plenty of sweet, juicy onion slices and a touch of mayonnaise. But after eating it, I felt a bit let down. The salmon didn’t have as fragrant a flavor as expected, and the overall taste was just so-so.

Grilled scallop Nigiri
One Nigiri piece contained two grilled scallops, but these scallops were somewhat different from what I’d imagined, and also different from what my friend...<饭用的不同，感觉比较小颗，吃起来觉得就比较一般，也有点小失望就是了。

We finished eating around 2 PM, so we quickly settled the bill and left. After exiting the restaurant, we noticed writing on the window glass that said "grilled salmon"...<$240，下次来就吃这个好了XD。

Overall
After trying both dishes today, I feel the seafood ingredients at this place are quite good. But I’d recommend going for the seafood...<饭类，寿司的醋饭部分觉得可能还有需要再加强，喜欢吃海鲜N<饭和日本料理的朋友，这间信兵卫是很不错的选择唷，以上是个人浅见，仅供参考。

Shinbei Handmade N<饭寿司
Phone: 0987292354
Address: No. 478, Chenggong Road, North District, Taichung City
Price: $150 and up

"阿monTraveling around Taiwan – food, travel, photography, outdoor shoots
Walking around with a camera – snapping shots casually – capturing unexpected moods"