Gourmet Theatre (劇院軒) in the National Theater (國家戲劇院) is one of the few western-style buffets in Taipei where the ambience is hushed and there is only one person in line at the carving station.
The dining area is shaped like a golf club. At the club head, there are tables tucked out of sight to passersby. The staff end is a row of scallop-shaped seating that abuts the hallway between Door 1 and the ticketing lobby, so that pedestrians can look in.
From the outside looking in, this is a high-rent restaurant with very limited passing trade and it’s hard to imagine that Gourmet Theatre would offer up anything delectable. But I was surprised to find that it offers a good and even great menu, with a lot of fresh seafood.
Photo: Enru lin
The cold food line is stocked with mussels, squid, shrimp and a good grade of mouth-melty tuna sashimi, plus miniature bowls of sushi rice topped with sushi and garnishes.
There are also big plates with slabs of mushroom pie and pork terrine, meant to be toppings for a warm salad or smeared on a toasted roll. The terrine looks very constructed, little continents of streaky bacon and pork belly floating on meat jelly. On hot bread, the edges of the terrine melt into a creamy paste with a musky liver-like flavor while the center stays crunchy and firm.
The hot food line offers mainly western-style cuisine. It’s a modest selection of about a dozen items, but they are consistently good.
Photo: Enru lin
There are the typical foods you would find at any western-style buffet: fresh fish, carved roast beef and steamed pork knuckle, served boneless with spiced sausages and a piquant, freshly-made sauerkraut. Rosy pink and soft as a toothsome lover, this dish is elaborate enough to be served as a main course a la carte.
There are a few more unusual offerings, like bread pudding and stacked tubs of sweet potato dusted with cheese, which smell wonderful when you lift the buffet server.
Also in the hot food line, there are two make-it-yourself Taiwanese dishes, the basic minced pork over rice and a nice danzimian (擔仔麵) noodle. Either can be dressed up with unlimited peeled prawns, oysters and other ingredients that have been laid out on ice. You can cook them up yourself, or set all the ingredients on a plate and ask a server to prepare them for you.
Photo: Enru lin
But the real highlight of the hot bar is the endless supply of crabs, currently “ox-hoof crabs” (牛蹄螃蟹) — a sweet variety found in the waters of Guishan Island (龜山島) in Yilan. These are she-crabs in season, most packed with a buttery roe. Their shells are thin and easy to crack and yield a delicate mellow meat.
If you’re looking for something light, there is a little fruit bar on one end and a vegetable bar on the other, stocked with salad fixings and greens cooked with a bit of oil. As with its neighboring stations, you can count the number of dishes here on one hand and try them all in a single round.
Gourmet Theatre is not the most adventurous buffet, but it serves all the basics, perfectly cooked, in an uncongested environment that’s rare for a good buffet in downtown Taipei. And for money’s value, there are even fewer places that can measure up. Until the end of the year, dining is 15 percent off with a ticket stub to any National Theater and Concert Hall program. Discount is good for up to 10 guests and ends up about NT$100 per person for dinner on the weekend.
Photo: Enru lin
Gourmet Theatre 劇院軒
Address: National Theater (國家戲劇院), 21-1 Zhongshan S Rd, Taipei City (台北市中山南路21-1號)
Telephone: (02) 3393-9895
Photo: Enru lin
Open: 11:30am to 8:30pm
Average meal: Lunch is NT$530 on weekdays and NT$580 on weekends; afternoon tea is a la carte on weekdays and NT$420 on weekends; dinner is NT$630 on weekdays and NT$680 on weekends
Details: Credit cards accepted; 10 percent service charge
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