Restaurant Review:-- Biandang (lunchbox), Taipei City

 Before very long in Taiwan, you'll probably be asked to do overtime. Out goes your social engagement, your home-cooked dinner, or glass-of-wine-with-movie-and-feet-up evening.

More pertinently, your boss will probably hint that the case is so pressing, you cannot even pop out of the office to grab some food. "Don't worry," (s)he'll say, "I'm getting bian-dang (便當; lunchboxes) for everyone." You say that you're vegetarian, but (s)he saw this coming: "Don't worry, they do vegetarian bian-dang."

So you're landed with a so-called vegetarian lunchbox produced by a meat-selling establishment. Even if you dare eat it, it's probably almost inedible and barely nourishing.

UNLESS of course, you are one step ahead of your boss, an whipping out a business card you say "That's ok, please pick me up a bian-dang from here."

One such place is ChongHui Vegetarain ( 崇慧素食; no English name) at 54 Anju Steet (安居街) near Liuzhangli MRT (Tel: 02-27398323).

In sells lunchboxes at midday and evenings, as well as hotpots in the evenings.
Diners can choose either white or "purple" rice, three side vegetables (out of more than a dozen -- NOMM had peas in pods, tofu and bamboo shoots), and a "main" dish of fake meat (NOMM had fish).

All choices are NT$50, and the restaurant will send to your office for orders of NT$500 or more.




Text and photos copyright Jiyue.Publications 2012