Taitung's famously thick rice noodles and luscious sugar-apples awaited as our aged diesel carriage rumbled through the sparsely populated eastern coast of Taiwan, on Day 6 of our round-island journey by train.
Outside our train window was some of the most spectacular sceneries of Taiwan, the deep turquoise of the Pacific and its deceivingly gentle waves crashing upon endless sandy beaches. The dense groves of lush palm trees could be mistaken for Hawaii, or perhaps Okinawa, except neither boasts a comprehensive round-island rail network like Taiwan.
Our train was heading deep into the ancestral lands of the Taiwanese Aboriginals, to the former capital of the once-powerful Beinan Kingdom, its mini Stonehenge still standing within arrowshot of the new Taitung Station. South of the station is a new thoroughfare named after tribal hero Mahengheng -- who strategically sided with Japanese Imperials against Qing Dynasty China -- which would have been unthinkable just a generation ago. This is now the proud epicentre of Taiwan's indigenous culture, in case anyone hasn't noticed.
We started our morning at tropical Kenting and arrived at dinnertime at Hualien, a long day's travel up two-thirds of the island in preparation of our entrance into Taroko National Park the next day. The fertile land we passed through was the undisputed fruit basket of Taiwan, as pronounced by these wax apple shaped chairs at Fangliao Station.
Along the way I finally encountered Old Taiwan's famous pastime, the addictively messy (and now known to be carcinogenic) betel nuts in its raw form, bundled into a large bag at a street side wholesale stall. Of course I had no idea what those green, acorn-sized nuts were, until the female owner and her shirtless labourer educated us.
Bu Yao Chi. "Don't eat," said the shirtless dude, Kan Wo! "Look at me!" and flashed one of the most horrifying smiles I had ever seen, a mouthful of acid-stained, purplish red teeth and gums of which he was clearly not embarrassed. The owner even asked whether we wanted to take a picture of the man's teeth, to which I politely declined as I didn't want any nightmares.
We arrived at Taitung after a two hour train ride and, like most first-time visitors, headed straight downtown in search of its renowned contribution to Taiwanese gastronomy.
Restaurant Review: RONGSHUXIA RICE NOODLES (Taitung) (Location Map)
We had no idea how incredibly famous this place was until I asked a random person, several blocks away, for directions to Datong Road ... and she immediately asked whether we're going for some Mitaimu, or rice noodles in her local dialect. Apparently this was every local's recommendation, for breakfast or for lunch.
A 60-year-old institution situated at the heart of Taitung, legendary Rongshuxia grew from a shanty street cart into a celebrated landmark for locals and visitors alike, churning out regional favorites for its masses of followers on this typical weekday. Ordering was tricky as my wife had to wait for the next empty table while I joined the long queue at the food counter, still unable to report our future table number. But that's the authentic local experience and, surprisingly for this relatively remote city, I was not the only foreigner in the queue!
While our rice noodles were being prepped, cold appetizers and entrees were self-served from a display case next to the cashier. This was our first encounter with these crispy winged beans as part of our appetizer of stir-fried vegetables in a vinaigrette of sesame oil and dark vinegar.
Curiosity was a definite factor when I picked up this dish of marinated pork slices and gelatinous skin, popular among local women for alleged cosmetic benefits. While flavor was slightly lacking, the texture of the pork skin was sublime as little residual fat remained in the delightfully dense skin, served cold here to maximize its chewiness.
At last, the signature dish of Taitung City.
Similar in appearance and slightly thicker than Southern China's Laifen, our Mitaimu noodles were round, perfectly al dente and served in a soup base of Katsuobushi shavings, influenced by decades of Japanese colonization when Eastern Taiwan was established as a large-scale base for bonito fishing and processing. Topped with minced pork, fresh chives and a housemade chili sauce with serious kicks, its popularity as a breakfast staple is easily understandable.
Bill for Two Persons
| Mitaimu Rice Noodles | TWD 50 |
| Pork Slices and Skin | TWD 100 |
| Stir-fried Vegetables in Vinaigrette | TWD 90 |
| Milk Tea with Milk from Chulu Ranch | TWD 35 |
| TOTAL | TWD 275 (CAD$12.0) |
The famous rice noodles was nice, but my favorite delicacy in Taitung was something even cheaper and widely available as a locally-grown produce.
Behold my new favorite fruit after visiting Taitung, the soft, succulent and amazingly sweet flesh of the sugar-apple. Previously we had bought these for about TWD100 in Taipei and TWD70 in Kenting, but here in Taitung we chanced upon a farmer-direct stand selling them for TWD30 each, or TWD50 (CAD$2) for two! Too bad I live in Canada where I have to pay ten times the price.
One of the sugar apples didn't even make it to the train station before being peeled and scooped out according to the method we learned from the vendor. At the station we rejoined our heavy suitcases and hopped on the next express train towards Hualien, the site of our 5th night market visit in 6 days.
IF YOU GO
Taitung is 3.5 hours from Taipei via express trains, and serves as a nice stopover between Kenting and Hualien if you're on a round-island trip like us. The train station has an attended luggage room (instead of coin lockers) for storing heavy luggages, and is connected to the city centre by local buses (e.g. Dingdong Bus #8172 or Puyuma Bus) mostly timed to express train arrivals.
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