[台北市] - 功夫蘭州手拉麵 - How good is their kung fu?

Haiiiiiii YA!

No it is not Bruce Lee. Suddenly Beef Noodles 牛肉麵 is associated with Kung Fu.
To many non Chinese, Kung Fu sounds like some serious martial artist who kicks people's asses.

But from a Chinese context, 功夫 refers to a lot of hard work put in, attention to detail, labor intensive, perhaps doing a lot for a better result. Sometimes it is just a buzz.

Upstairs from Taipei Main Station (train / MRT) is "Breeze Center" 微風臺北車站. Lots of food courts and restaurants, like this one. Perfect if you are not terribly hungry, or just want a convenient bite downtown (nothing spectacular, but nothing bad).

The main focus here is the visual and sound of noodle master thwacking the dough and pulling noodles by hand, Lanzhou style. In a way it is their way of bringing the Chinese art of hand pulled noodles, and applying it to Taiwan style beef noodle soup.

Some say that this shop, while has won past award in Taipei Beef Noodle Festival, somewhat misses the mark on the broth or beef. So depending on your focus and on what is more important, the noodle may be interesting, but the other elements could be potentially lacking.

This shop is definitely catering towards visitors, who might be shocked and awed by the chef action.

The most interesting looking item here? Could be the clear broth oxtail noodle. 清燉牛尾拉麵 .

Enjoy a couple of pictures of oxtail noodle porn.

Goji berry, daikon, green veg, and oxtail. Might be a slightly more enjoyable experience that Ramen Nakamura in Hawaii (oxtail ramen)...

So if you try it, let me know how it tastes.


功夫蘭州拉麵 Kung Fu Lanzhou Noodles
地址: 台北市中正區北平西路3號2F(微風台北車站) Zhongchen District, Beiping S. Rd #3, 2F
(Breeze Center, upstairs from Taipei Main Station)
Tel: 02-2388-2298

[台北] - 老外一品牛肉麵 - Foreigner's Beef Noodles - Fusion Done Right

In Tokyo, there is a New York expat named Ivan Orkin who opened up his own ramen restaurant (Ivan Ramen) to great instant success, fame, and worldwide recognition. A foreigner who against the odds, entered a field of fierce competition where you had better be good, no...excellent, in order to get to the top.

There is a similar success story, all but shunned from international media, in Taipei, Taiwan. Many foreigners settle down in Taiwan, bring their food and culture with them, and have their own success stories. You see people from the Middle East, India, Pakistan who open up their own eateries and food stalls. You find Turkish ice cream at night markets, and of course the grilled lamb wraps (where the wrap skins are hand tossed and grilled to order). But for someone who came from Iran, entered the field of beef noodles/beef noodle soup, or niu rou mian 牛肉麵, and came out with a very successful product, business, and loyal fan following, is rare and unheard of.

The Ivan Orkin of Taipei in the beef noodle world is a man named Davod (= David) Bagherzadeh. He speaks fluent Mandarin (I'm sure way way way way way better than mine) too.

The clear stew noodle broth is made with beef knee bones and is simmered for upwards of 4 days.

The signature red stew broth contains tomato, various spices, and a secret blend of Persian herbs that brings out the needed spicy kick and fragrance. Many Taiwanese who studied abroad (e.g. New York) and have had a range of Middle Eastern/Mediterranean street food, then come back to Taipei and eat at 老外一品牛肉麵 will find many familiar flavors in this bowl.

Definitely a must try.

老外一品牛肉麵 Foreigner's Beef Noodles
Website: http://persian-gulf.web66.com.tw/web/Home
台北市中山區吉林路403號1F (Taipei City, Zhongshan District, Jihlin Road #403, 1/F)