Taipei 101 had the distinction of being the world’s tallest building until it was bested by the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. It was quite an imposing tower when we got there, throngs of tourists were also there with their tour guides gathering them at the entrance.
Since it was close to lunch time when we arrived, we immediately sought out food. We ended up in the food court at the Basement 1. It was quite an extensive array of food stalls with offerings from a lot of cuisines.
I finally settled on braised beef noodles from the stall above. I added two side dishes to my noodle dish, beancurd with century egg and a bowl of vegetables. I like the noodles, they were chewy and had a nice al dente bite. The beancurd on the other hand was ok but I liked the one from Lugang much better.
A fair bit of warning, if you want water or sodas with your meals, its off to the grocery you go, there no stall in the food court that sells them. Good thing there’s always a supermarket, grocery, or convenience store there. The stalls selling drinks only sell juices, tea and sometimes there’s a milk tea one.
Coco caught our fancy. Since its dessert and I saw a Banana Milk Tea and was instantly draw to that. Irene settled on Fresh milk tea with tapioca. I was disappointed with my milk tea, the banana taste was very fake. I had a sip of Irene’s drink and like it a lot, I wished I had ordered that. Coco’s serves their milk tea in white cups, unlike the translucent cups most milk tea places use, a little different but the print depicting the Taipei 101 building is a nice touch.
Lauren saw this contraption making Japanese desserts at one of the bigger stalls there, just across from Coco. She was entranced by the machine and after having a taste, proceeded to buy a box for 100 NT (P150). The desserts are hollow bread man shaped with a little custard inside. The stall also has lots of traditional Japanese desserts available with trials for the unsure.
On our way out of the foodcourt, I spotted a stall selling Masachi (glutinous rice balls) which Irene really likes. Since we were quite full already, we decided to just get an order to share between me, Irene, and G.These are not the usual small masachi balls that you can just pop in your mouth. They are quite big and very very chewy, covered in fine peanut powder that gives it a nice roasted taste. Very very good, must not miss this when you visit.
We were supposed to go up to the observation floor to look at the lights all around Taipei light up, but we gave up waiting. The mall is geared toward the high end with shops and brands reflecting this. Maybe on our next trip to Taipei, we’ll get to go up the observation deck.
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There are a lot of food/restaurant choices in Taipei 101. I agree that the mall is leaning towards the high end shops. Did you get to see the restaurants in the upper level? They were really nice. I got to eat at this shabu-shabu/sukiyaki place called Mihan. Their beef was really good. And i loved their milk pudding. :) How was Coco overall? I’ve been hearing good stuff about it but last time I was in Taipei 101, they weren’t there yet. :o
And yes, the line to observatory deck is ALWAYS long. I passed on it too.
@chief,
Overall we liked but but felt Sharetea was better for me.
I saw some of the restos, one of them beside the bookstore. Forgot the name already.
Did not manage to visit the food court at the basement. This gives a good idea of all the nice food that is available! For beancurd, the one at Xinbeitou is nice too. ^^