First Michelin Bib Gourmand list for Taipei highlights local delicacies, street food

2018/03/08

The Bib Gourmand list for the inaugural Michelin Guide Taipei was unveiled March 6, spotlighting 36 eateries serving dishes ranging from local culinary delicacies to celebrated street food classics.
 
 According to the guide, the Bib Gourmand distinction is awarded to notable establishments offering quality meals for less than 36 euros (US$44.70). Street food was front and center in the selections, with 10 of the 36 restaurants located at Taipei night markets such as Ningxia, Raohe and Shilin.
 
 Featured street food eateries offer such Taiwan snacks as deep-fried taro balls, herbal pork rib soup, pepper buns, sesame oil chicken noodle soup as well as stinky tofu, a signature treat renowned for its distinctive aroma. Beef noodle soup, often acclaimed as Taiwan’s national dish, also made a big splash. Eight restaurants serving varying forms of the rich, meaty mainstay received the honor.
 
“Our inspectors have discovered the diversity and quality of Taiwanese cuisine, with great local gourmet offerings, including beef noodles, pork knuckles, squid balls, all at very attractive prices,” Michelin Guide International Director Michael Ellis said.
 
 Also on the list were branches of two Taiwan chains: the Xinyi store of internationally renowned xiaolongbao, or soup dumpling, restaurant Din Tai Fung and the Songshan outlet of Jiangzhe-style Dian Shui Lou.
 
 In addition to establishments serving traditional Taiwan fare influenced by Hunan, Zhejiang, Shanghainese and Sichuan flavors, Cantonese, Indian, Japanese and Pekingese restaurants also made the grade, reflecting the nation’s status as a melting pot of culinary cultures.
 
 The Bib Gourmand selection was announced ahead of the highly anticipated March 18 release of the Michelin Guide Taipei. The full publication will award notable establishments one to three stars in recognition of “a very good restaurant in its category,” “excellent cooking, worth a detour” and “exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey,” in that order.

Source: Taiwan Today (https://taiwantoday.tw/news.php?unit=18&post=130535)