Two days in Taichung: Exploring Taiwan’s West Coast!
Hey everyone! I’m back with a mini guide to one of my favorite cities in Taiwan - Taichung! Taichung is actually the first place that I visited when I came with my friend Tiffany for Chinese New Year break during our study abroad trip to NYU Shanghai in 2013. Wow, seven years ago - that was the first time I visited Taiwan, tasted Chun Shui Tang boba for the first time, and told myself I would eventually move here to consume as much as I possibly could. (No joke - I think we had CST at least 3-4x in that one week alone)
Taichung is located on the west coast of Taiwan, approximately one hour by high speed rail or two hours by regular train from Taipei. Most visitors tend to pass through on the way to Sun Moon Lake in Nantou County or to maybe visit Fengchia Nightmarket, but I think Taichung is worthy of a visit on its own. Let me explain why and what you can do here!
I visited Taichung on June 8th for a quick, solo getaway. I stayed at a convenient, affordable hostel that was located near a few attractions that I had bookmarked previously (read: close to the food, dessert and coffee shops). It was also within walking distance to the CMP Block Museum of Arts, National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, and National Museum of Natural Science / Botanical Garden. It offered breakfast too! Whoot whoot.
Breakfast at Stray Birds
How to get around without a car
A quick note about Taichung transportation - when I visited, it was entirely free to ride around buses within a 10 km (6.2 miles) distance. (After 10 km it’s only 10 NT or $0.33 USD) I swiped my EasyCard (悠遊卡) on and off at every bus I took and didn’t spend a single cent for the duration of the trip. Super convenient and buses arrive on time - sure, waiting time can be a hassle but without a car, this is definitely a doable option. I did read something about this fare structure possibly changing come 2021, so I will update this if this information changes. The Green Line MRT in Taichung is opening soon at the end of 2020 so a metro option will be definitely helpful as well.
Where to get caffeinated
Taichung West District
Workshop Tea Room & Foods (10 AM - 6 PM, closed Mondays)
Really cool spot for a variety of unique tea blends. I went for the warm scones and an Ocean Coffee Latte, which was a unique blend of milk, espresso and Blue Brew tea (sencha green tea, goji berries, lemon grass, pomegranate, cornflower blossoms, blue pea flower)
Food pricing from 200-300 NT ($7-10 USD)
Drink pricing from 110-180 NT ($4-6 USD)
Taichung West District
兆兆茶苑 Zhao Zhao Tea Garden (12 PM - 5 PM, closed Sundays)
Gorgeous loose-leaf tea spot with the most beautiful interior right next to the Audit Creative Village.
Tea pricing from 300 NT+ ($10 USD)
Taichung West District
The Factory Mojocoffee (8:30 AM - 6 PM)
Small space (2nd floor is their office and closed to the public) that seemed like more of a coworking space nestled in a quiet, residential community. Loved their menu design and the streets that surrounded the store.
Drinks from 120 NT ($4 USD)
Where to get a sugar high
Taichung West District
CJSJ (12 PM - 6:30 PM, closed Mondays) is a beautiful French patisserie space a block over from the Audit Creative Village with the most stunning display of sweets. Their prices run a bit higher due to the level of detail on each dessert - 80 NT ($2.66 USD) for a small bon bon and 150-200 NT+ ($5-8 USD) for the more intricate desserts) Check out the cute frog below.
Taichung Central District
Next on the list is a Taichung classic! I’ve been here 3-4x (every time I’ve visited Taichung) and it’s pretty much a tradition by now. Say hello to Miyahara Ice Cream 宮原眼科 (10 AM - 10 PM), a perfect all-in-one stop for your ice cream, boba, pineapple cakes, chocolate and gift needs. The historical, Harry Potter-esque building was once an eye hospital founded by Miyahara Takekuma back in 1927. It’s located right in the downtown district of Taichung, which was actually planned and developed by the Japanese based on the city of Kyoto. I absolutely love this place - from the insane variety of different ice cream flavors (tea flavored ice cream!!! my fave!), to the staff uniforms, to the beautiful packaging of literally everything in store… I can go on and on. Besides the chocolate flavors, I highly recommend trying the tieguanyin tea, osmanthus, rose & mint flavor, the oriental beauty tea, osmanthus, rose & mint flavor and the Alishan oolong, plum and honey flavor. They also had an incredible Kyoho grape flavor that tasted exactly like Concord grapes. OH man, I’m drooling. A single scoop is 90 NT ($3 USD) - 1 free topping, two scoops 160 NT ($5.30 USD) - 2 free toppings and three is 225 NT ($7.50 USD) - 3 free toppings + 20 NT ($.66 USD) for waffle cone. They also have a second floor ice cream parlor where you can sit down with a minimum spend requirement.
It’s worth nothing that Miyahara has a second location that used to be a credit union called Fourth Credit Union 台中市第四信用合作社 (10 AM - 10 PM, a few blocks from the original location), so there are bank-themed motifs throughout the store. (I love the small details - check out the price ticker menu board, the currency logos on the handles of the refrigerators and the glass safe box where they’re making fresh waffle bowls) This location is not as grandeur but it does have more seating without a minimum spend requirement, as well as a separate waffle bar.
Taichung North and West District
Wow, I loved this ice cream! It was a mini Taiwanese-style parfait with light roasted oolong tea ice cream and boba. Pretty much everything I love in one ice cream hehe. It was 90 NT ($3 USD) for this soft serve, flavors may vary / based on availability.
Where to visit
Alright, time for the sights and sounds of Taichung! (disclaimer: this is in no way a conclusive list but just a handful of selections that I enjoy)
Taichung West District
Audit Creative Village 審計368新創聚落 (11:30 AM - 8:30 PM)
A really cute space to walk around - filled with small, local shops and a handful of restaurants. Try the fresh cream puffs at LUHO Home of Puff, they even have cream puff helmets to try on hehe. The cream puffs were light, fluffy and delicious! 15 NT ($0.50 USD) for one classic or chocolate filling, 28 NT ($1 USD) for mango, strawberry or peanut.
Xitun District
Molecure Pharmacy 分子藥局 (10 AM - 9 PM)
Alright, a little bit of an unusual recommendation but my mom is a pharmacist and this might just be the coolest pharmacy I’ve ever seen. It’s a beautiful pharmacy/coffee shop/boutique/mini art gallery and a great multifunctional usage of retail space. The picture speaks for itself, check it out below!
Where to eat in Taichung
Let’s get down to business. It’s time to chow down after all. I’ll start with a really light, super casual market recommendation where you can get affordable eats and your groceries while you’re at it.
Taichung Central District
Taichung has a bunch of different numbered markets such as Second Market, Third Market and so forth. These are usually open in the mornings and often sell a variety of fresh food, fruit, veggies, clothing and so forth. I absolutely love these types of markets because you can really feel the heartbeat of the city here amongst the locals. This is usually where they shop for groceries and catch up with their neighbors. I checked out the Second Market (7 AM - 8 PM, closed Mondays) this time around, which was small but lively. I ordered my favorite vegetable side dish kabocha squash 南瓜, braised pork belly rice 控肉飯 and a side of water spinach 空心菜 - for the grand total of 90 NT or $3 USD.
Guys, I love hot pot. And I’m not ashamed. I’m here with two hot pot recommendations with completely different styles and flavors. The first is more for individuals and small groups while the second one is for larger parties. (Even though I unabashedly visited both by myself) #independentwoman
Taichung Central District
Fanghua Hot Pot Company 芳華火鍋公司 (11:30 AM - 2 PM, 5:30 - 9 PM/11 PM fri/sat, closed Mondays)
Really cute pots, sterile industrial-like decor, toilet paper rolls on the wall and popsicles? Lol.
I really should have gotten the mala spicy hot pot but instead I went for the sour cabbage and I have regrets. But I just had mala the night before so I was trying to reason with myself and to go for more “healthy” options so my stomach won’t hate me. But the mala looked a lot better, so if you go that would be my recommendation! I think this might be more of an instagram-like spot, but it was still a unique visit.
Price wise it was definitely reasonable, around 280 NT ($10 USD approx) for regular snowflake beef, a little bit cheaper for pork. It came with a drink and dessert, so I’d say CP value (price performance ratio) was pretty good (CP直很不錯).
On to my next recommendation. I LOVED this place even though I was kind of embarrassed to eat here by myself since it was a little bit more upscale and fancy. But worth it. It was delicious!
Taichung West District
Karuizawa 輕井澤 公益店 (reserve a table online) 11 AM - 1 AM
Okay, I say it was fancy because the decorations were super cool and mysterious and dark but to be honest - the price wasn’t that different vs. Fang Hua Hot Pot. It was surprisingly affordable despite the incredibly grand decorations and humongous building. I believe the price was actually the same - I spent about 250-300 NTD (about $10 USD) for this meal, no dessert but unlimited refill on the free drink if I remember correctly. Their menu is a lot more extensive with a huge variety of meats. The interior decoration reminded me of a nice hotel, and I loved the water fountain flowing through the middle of the restaurant. (sorry I couldn’t get a good non-creepy photo of this area since I wasn’t sitting here) CP直非常高 CP value is super high here hah!
Thus concludes my time in Taichung! Thanks for being patient with insane amount of photos that I included in this post. I did a lot of eating, walking and exploring on my own during these two days. I also visited a variety of museums, but unfortunately a lot of the exhibits were closed or under renovation so I didn’t include them in this list. I really enjoyed walking through the quiet streets of Taichung and have a few street photos that I’ll include at the end of this post. Definitely check out Taichung if you have the time, and take it slowly - the city can be best discovered by walking down the immaculately groomed sidewalks and taking time to stop and smell the flowers.
