Tag: sweets

January 11, 2022 All, Cafe/Dessert Post a Comment

Japanese Shaved Ice in Taipei 九州純冰おいしい氷屋

One fine evening, a bored human being was browsing Google Maps for shaved ice places and happened upon 九州純冰おいしい氷屋 (Oishii Koori), a cafe & shaved ice shop franchise from Fukuoka, Japan. She couldn’t make out the first half of the name, but she knows that the second half translates to “delicious ice shop.” As a lover of desserts, especially ice dessert products, she knew she had to try Oishii Koori’s delicious shaved ice!  Also, some of the reviews on google maps claimed that the ice is imported from Japan, which only fortified her desire to try one of the best japanese shaved ice in Taipei!

Located in a cozy alleyway, Oishii Koori is unassuming at first, so it might be easy to walk past. There was a 10% discount for take-out orders, which was nice, and of course I opted for take-out, so I didn’t have to wait for it to be prepared. Upon entrance, the hostess immediately greeted me in Japanese. Getting my order only took 5 minutes, and I was given a 30NTD off voucher for my next purchase.

The Best Japanese Shaved Ice in Taipei

Matcha Mascarpone Kakigori(shaved ice) is unlike any other shaved ice you’ve ever had. The devil is in the details. It looks like a matcha shaved ice topped with whipped cream, but wait till you dig your spoon in! Below the whipped cream is a layer of fluffy red bean mixed with cream. As you dig further down, there is a pleasant surprise: a condensed milk cream! Last but not least, the quality of the matcha is superb. It is a beautiful vibrant green color(not greenish brown), and is not overly sweet. This is definitely one of the best shaved ice I’ve ever tried!

matcha shaved ice
matcha shaved ice w/ whipped cream on top
scoop of matcha shaved ice
the scoop is so fluffy!~
matcha milk mountain
The layer underneath the whipped cream is red beans! & the layer beneath the snow is sweet condensed milk!!

 

Locally-Sourced & Homemade Milk Kakigori is next up. The texture was light, and soft. It was a little bit too sweet for my taste. For people who don’t like overly complex things, this milk mountain is simple and perfect.

milk mountain
a beautiful fresh milk mountain
milk mountain shaved ice
looks like what polar bears eat!
milk mountain
more beautiful views of the milk mountain
milk mountain
yours truly; in all its glory

Wild Berry Vanilla Ice Cream Sundae Parfait(to-go)

wild berry parfait
hmmm… portion looks small
wild berry parfait (top)
ooo… the top view is magnificent!

Matcha Milk Kakigori w/ Dango and Adzuki Red Beans (to-go)

matcha milk shaved ice
matcha milk shaved ice(not the mascarpone one). The dango was delicious.

As you can see, the portions for to-go orders are not a lot compared to that of when dining in. That is also reflected in the price as well. The to-go orders were wrapped in aluminum to help maintain the cold temperature. The wild berry parfait was full of fresh ingredients and the vanilla ice cream was creamy and not icy. The matcha milk shaved ice was not too compact, and had good fluffiness and texture. I enjoyed the chewiness and QQ of the dango. The red bean paste seems to be homemade and was the perfect sweetness.

Address: No. 20號, Lane 18, Nanjing W Rd, Datong District, Taipei City, Taiwan 103
Click here for a list of the best desserts in Taipei!
September 25, 2021 All, Cafe/Dessert Post a Comment

The Best Desserts in Taipei

grass jelly shaved ice

Oh Taiwan…a paradise for foodies, where night markets and tasty foods abound. Taiwanese people really love food, and desserts are no exception. For example, there are dozens, if not hundreds, of different ways chicken is prepared, cooked, and seasoned. The same love can be extended to desserts as well. Taipei has so many shaved ice shops, patisseries, bakeries, and more. Any shop can sell shaved ice, but each shop has its own differentiating factors for preparing and creating the shaved ice. Having tried a lot of desserts—some good, some half-assed, and some plain bad—I decided to make a compilation of some of what I thought are the best desserts in Taipei.

Here is a list of some of the best desserts you can find in Taipei:

  1. Tzubi Coffee – grape chiffon cake – grape was a bit underripe, but the cream and chiffon cake layers were perfect. Both were light, airy, and not dense. 
  2. Melon Coffee – hojicha chiffon cake
  3. Smoothie House – Da-An – Mango Shaved Ice – Right around the corner from the Dongmen Station. The mango shaved ice is refreshing, has fresh mangos, mango sorbet, and full of mango.
  4. Lady M – Regent Taipei – Mille Crepe Cakes. Although Lady M crepe cakes are known to be pricy for a slice, these crepe cakes are such an intensive labor of love that you really get your money’s worth. There are a lot of other stores that have tried re-creating crepe cakes but none will ever come as close to the crepe cakes of Lady M because it’s technical, and it’s not easy to get the heavy cream flavors and texture right, yet Lady M successfully overcomes those obstacles. Their renown is well-deserved.
  5. Uzna Omom – Miramar – delicious hot cakes! Tall and proud, these hot cakes will comfort you like the hug of a loved one. It will be dry without the syrup, so make sure you take care to use the syrup that is provided!
  6. Mountain Kids Chill & Relax – cinnamon rolls & cheese cake(maybe vegan). What I really like about this cafe is that the staff heats up the cinnamon roll for you(so you don’t have a stale and cold cinnamon roll), and that there isn’t excess sugar glaze on the rolls.
  7. Harrit’s Donuts – fluffy & chewy donuts w/o the greasiness. The best donuts in Taipei.
  8. Capatina – Shilin – tasty fruit sorbet
  9. Tokyo Cheese – Xinyi District – creamy cheese soft serve with a slice of cheese cake and namesake biscuit.
  10. Tangyuan – Tonghua St Night Market – Tang Yuan (Glutinous rice balls, like mochi) served on a bed of shaved ice that you can flavor with lemon or osmanthus syrup. This is a very unique combination that somehow works!
  11. 台灣手作水果冰淇淋 Ice Cream/Gelato Stall – Tonghua St Night Market – generous portions,  generous samples, natural ingredients, high CP
  12. Nice Cream – creamy coconut milk ice cream with barely, if any, the taste of coconut meat (vegan)
  13. Pablo Cheese Tart – yummy cream cheese tarts
  14. On the Road – The best gelato in Taipei. Literally, the best.
  15. Lady Chef – homemade French custard ice cream
  16. Soypresso – creamy soy milk soft serve ice cream (vegan)
  17. Yu’s Almond Milk – almond milk shaved ice, almond milk ice cream with almond bits
  18. Maccanti – Italian owned gelato shop. This shop has lots of Italian flavors such as, sicilian casato, and stracciatella.
  19. Beard Papa Cream Puffs – light and airy outer shell, with rich, light and fluffy cream. There are seasonal flavors every month.
  20. Meet Fresh – Taiwanese chain full of delicious taiwanese shaved ice toppings such as, herbal grass jelly, taro balls, red bean, & more. Meet Fresh is known to use fresh and high quality ingredients.
  21. 108 Matcha Saro – Near Tianmu – delicious matcha wheel cakes!
  22. 緣味古早味現烤蛋糕 – Tamsui – Castella Cake Block. There is nothing like a gigantic and jiggly cake fresh out of the oven. The cake is cut into the whopping size of a text book and is only 80-100 NT depending on whether you want the original or with cheese slices cake.
  23. Tim Ho Wan – Mango Pomelo & Sago
  24. Eastern Ice Store – shaved ice with traditional toppings
  25. Japan Rail Cafe – JRC is known for 7 levels of matcha gelato. The texture of the gelato is smooth and creamy, and the matcha flavor is rich.
  26. Smoothie House – the best mango shaved ice in Taipei. Read more about it here!
  27. & more! Updated on a rolling basis.
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