The main chefs of United Mix, James Chen (陳智建) and Davin Yeh (葉家銘), split from that Shihta mainstay of Western food, Grandma Nitti's, over two years ago, ostensibly, to outdo their former employer with their own restaurant.
The ambition is a noble one and Grandma Nitti's needs all the competition it can get, if you believe in free market theory, that is, but they find themselves pretty much inhabiting the same gastronomical plane as Nitti's, Friday's, Swensen's and Chili's.
Because they mostly share the same menus, the differences between these restaurants are in the minor details. Where United Mix comes out on top is in the coziness and outdoor seating categories. Its quesadillas (NT$230) also give those at Chili's a good run for their money.
PHOTO: MAX WOODWORTH, TAIPEI TIMES
The menu at United Mix boldly proclaims to offer "the best Western meals in town." This turns out to be slight hyperbole, however, because nothing here is going to blow you out of your seat, at least not during your meal.
Staying on this side of reality, there are several respectable options to choose from on the menu. The chicken parmesan (NT$380), for example, is flavorful and James is adept at making sure the cheese is melted to just the right texture. There are also a number of meal-sized salads for NT$170 to which one can add a chicken breast for an additional NT$50. At the lower end of the price scale is the bacon cheeseburger (NT$180). One of the surprises on the menu is the lasagna, priced at a low NT$220.
The specialties of the house are in Mexican food and United Mix deserves credit for its hard-hitting homemade salsa and, as mentioned above, its quesadillas. Other items on the Mexican list include fajitas, burritos and wraps, which are actually Californian innovations of the burrito. The wraps come so loaded with greens that the chicken or beef hidden inside are hardly detectable, but with their homemade guacamole are nonetheless quite tasty.
Though a bit pricey at NT$170, United Mix offers seven different herbal teas, and also has a range of coffees that compares with Starbucks as well as Mountain Dew and Cherry Coke for NT$80.
Selecting carefully from the menu and sitting at one of the three covered tables outside or at the large bay windows will make for a pleasant, if not especially memorable, meal. What's more, dinner can be followed up by going downstairs to Couches, possibly the most stylish and laid-back bar in town.
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