The Doors
3, Alley 82, Lane 2, Wuchang Street, Sec. 2(武昌街二段82巷2弄3號), tel: (02) 2361-4321.
Open 12pm to 10:30pm. Average meal: NT$300. No English menu, credit cards not accepted.
With so many teahouses, cafes and eateries in such a small area, each shop needs to find something different that will attract customers and make them remember the place. Hence the number of theme bars and restaurants in Hsimenting.
This little place, tucked away in a small alley is basically what one would expect from a cafe devoted to Jim Morrison, strawberry-banana milkshakes, soul music and jazz.
The food is reasonably tasty and covers the gamut from burgers and sandwiches to standard Chinese fare, such as chicken or beef with rice.
A bacon melt will set you back NT$160 and is served with its crust intact, though the bread is slightly sweet. The triple-deck toasted sandwich has a fair amount of bacon and enough substance to satisfy. It also comes with a portion of hearty fries, though unfortunately the fries were, on this occasion, smothered in an overabundance of tomato sauce, which rather spoiled the experience of finding rich potato.
Shu Chong-wen (許瓊文) and Jien Ming-chi (簡銘岐), who are the boy/girlfriend owners of The Doors, opened the restaurant a year and a half ago and make an effort to make their clients feel comfortable.
The drink menu is in both Chinese and English, but the meals are listed only in Chinese because "I couldn't spell the words properly," Shu said. Fried chicken is NT$90, the beef and vegetable main dish is NT$250 and should satisfy most appetites.
The main attraction, however, is the seafood noodles with grilled cheese, a homemade recipe that is unique to Doors and comes with coffee or juice and fries. The special Irish coffee is worth taking as an after dinner treat.
Downstairs is another dining area, which is decorated in an eclectic style, with framed pictures taken from 1950s US magazines, nightshades made of colanders (for draining and straining vegetables) and props that have a survival theme like lifebelts and pump-driven fog horns.
Green Curry (綠色咖哩)
1F,1 Alley 82, Lane 3 Wuchang Street, Sec., 2 (武昌街二段82巷3弄1號1樓), tel: (02)2389-8609.
Open from 11:30am to 9:30pm. Average meal: NT$250. No English menu, credit cards no accepted.
Tiny and popular, comfortable and slightly offbeat, Green Curry is an oasis for the shopper in need of refreshment. If this restaurant were a film it would be Bagdhad Cafe, or Fried Green Tomatoes.
There is only space for 16 people and though the restaurant can be hard to find, the search is worth it. The decor is understated, with a tiny two-table veranda that overlooks the street. It's a great spot to watch people drift by and is framed by hanging potted plants, which provide shade and afford a certain privacy.
The service is pleasant and helpful, but the best feature about the place is its food. The family-run restaurant is headed by the mother, an emigre from India who has brought an authenticity to the cooking which is hard to find in many other curry restaurants in Taipei, where the use of soy oil and common herbs in virtually everything fails to give the taste buds the fresh, novel or delicious feeling that one gets here.
Green Curry imports a lot of the spices used in the dishes from India.
Recommended is the lamb curry, which is well stewed and steeped in juices to make it tender and flavorful. It comes with rice and is garnished with cucumber, tomato, onions, smoked tofu and a delicious green sauce
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