A casual snack walk in Taipei’s Zhongzheng District: Simple oil rice and black sugar shaved ice!

Text and photos by /San Gao Sir

The weather in northern Taiwan changed rapidly this October. It was still quite hot at the beginning of the month, but suddenly turned cool by mid-month. While it was still warm, I had my last bowl of shaved ice — Jianzhong Black Sugar — for the second time. The day before, I took friends to drink atTonjiin Tōtōng. After dinner, we said goodbye. The next day, I slept until noon and didn’t feel particularly hungry, so I wandered over to the area near Nanmen Market to grab some snacks.

I had actually planned to revisit Huanglongzhuang on Gulou Street for their xiaolongbao and chicken soup, but I wasn’t that hungry and figured I probably wouldn’t be able to order much else. The untried Gulou Youfan (oily rice) from the shop next door caught my eye — it seemed like a fairly clean little place. I ordered oily rice, dry wontons, and pork rib soup. The grains of oily rice were a bit too soft for my taste, and the flavor was rather plain — in other words, it didn’t have much of its own distinctive character.

The dry wontons were served with sesame sauce, which turned out to be an unexpectedly good pairing. The wontons were springy and smooth, with a solid meat filling. All in all, not bad.

The pork rib soup came with garlic-flavored oil paste. It was okay to eat, but not outstanding. Good pork rib meat should come with tender connective tissue, some fat, and even a bit of cartilage for a richer texture and flavor.

Nearby, Jianzhong Black Sugar Shaved Ice was still doing decent business in early October, though not as bustling as during the peak of summer. I’m especially fond of the sweet aroma of black sugar, but I’d been eating mango shaved ice all summer. Finally, I got to enjoy a bowl of black sugar ice. I was afraid of eating too much, so I didn’t order the black sugar powder. … It’s not something I come across often. I had it all to myself, savoring the rich black sugar flavor.

Gulou Oily Rice
Address: No. 45, Gulou Street, Zhongzheng District, Taipei City
Business Hours: 8:00 AM – 8:00 PM

Jianzhong Black Sugar Shaved Ice
Address: No. 35, Quanzhou Street, Zhongzheng District, Taipei City
Business Hours: 11:00 AM – 7:30 PM

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