MOST of the old streets in Taiwan have been built along temples. These streets are filled with history as well as the traditional cuisine of the locality. These local gourmet foods attract many international travelers because when they enjoy these delicious treats as they walk along old streets, they can, at the same time, savor the traditional culture of Taiwan.
The old street of Jiufen is very popular and known to have the biggest crowds among the old streets in Taiwan. This place combines the beauty of the northeastern coast of Taiwan, its gourmet food, and mine culture. Jiufen is considered to be a highly popular tourist attraction, especially after the filming of the movie "A City of Sadness,”. The old street which was once in decline, known for its mining area, and history of gold rush, have been revived, as well as the place’s traditional cuisine. Among the traditional old-time local favorites are the Jiufen taro-ball and grass rice-cake; while dim-sum restaurants, tea houses, and hostels are considered newly-grown businesses found along the streets. Some of the must-eat specialties when visiting Jiufen are Alan's grass rice-cake, Aying's liquor-dreg meat-ball, grandma's fish-custard, and others located in front of the post-office.
When it comes to Daxi Old Street, there is no doubt that Baroque architecture is closely associated with the place, not to mention dried bean-curd. The old streets showcase Baroque style as well as traditional decorative patterns of the Southern Fujian Province which gives Daxi its unique character. One must visit Hoping Street, which is always bustling with crowds. Along the old street, dried bean curd, malt peanut-candy, salty rice pudding, and tofu pudding are considered the must-eat old time delights. A recent popular hit is tofu cheese in Japanese style. Of course, when visitors come to Daxi, they have to pay a visit to the scenic spots of the locality as well.
Nanzhuang old street of Miaoli is considered as one of the most distinctive streets among all of Taiwan’s old streets. All of the restaurants here have launched a variety of foods that make people find irresistible such as the large-intestine fried with ginger in Hakka style. Visit the Hakka noodle restaurant that serves great Hakka dishes which guests truly love. Actually, the old street of Nanzhuang is also known as Guihua (osmanthus) Lane. Its desserts complemented by the sweet-scented osmanthus are worth trying out. For example, there are the sweet-scented osmanthus fermented glutinous rice and sweet-scented osmanthus dumplings which a deliciously unique taste. At the township, one will easily find the 50-year-old shop called "Mother-in-law's Dried Bean Curd" that makes various well-known snacks. The store uses its own unique sauce and the dried bean curd is prepared and seasoned well, making it delicious and chewy. You can find a variety of Hakka rice dish flavors which are always delightfully chewy. Hence, when visitors come to Nanzhuang old street, these special gourmet foods are special gifts that one can never miss to take home.
Old Street of Beigang is located at Zhongshan Road of Beigang Township, Yunlin County which surrounds Beigang Chao Tian Temple. This spot is most well-known for their thin-noodle paste, duck rice, fried rice-cake, beef soup, and potato glutinous oil rice. Beigang duck rice and glutinous oil rice are very popular treats for both the young and old. There is also the thin-noodle paste that is unique to Beigang people. The thin-noodle paste is prepared to become so soft and rotten before an egg yolk is placed into it. It is considered a very popular breakfast for locals. Rixing bride-cake, peanut oil, and sesame oil found in front of Chao Tian Temple are the must-buy gifts for visitors. In addition, the unique peanut spicy sauce of Beigang is loved by many because the wonderful sauce goes well with many dishes; whether mixed or used as a dip for noodles, or used to season meat dumpling, or as blend seasoning.
Although the old street of Lukang refers to Yaolin Street, gourmet foods are mainly found at stores along the thoroughfare of market street to the temple. From Tian Hou Temple along Zhongshan Road (formerly known as Tian Street) to Long Shan Temple, there are various kinds of traditional snacks along the way, including crystal dumplings, meatballs, and Longshan meat dumplings which you can find all the way to First Market. The Azhen meat-bun and Old Dragon (Liao Long) meat bun also draws many buyers. The thin-noodle paste of Lukang is mainly made of red thin-noodle mixed with meat and dried shrimp. The Longshan thin-noodle paste located at the entrance of the First Market is also quite popular. For the souvenirs and gifts, green-bean cake, one-mouth wafer, deep-fried lard rice-cake, and beef-tongue cracker are popular picks which you can find at Chao He Confectionary and Yu-zhen-zhai.
When visitors tour around Lugang, they can also take a ride on an antique tricycle to enjoy seeing the streets which are filled with history and rich in old culture and tradition.
For more information, please refer to the official website of Tourism Bureau http://taiwan.net.ph/ or https://eng.taiwan.net.tw/. (PR)