Word of mouth spreads fast in this city. Why do I keep hearing about Pizza Bear? Well, these guys take “house-made” and “made with love” to a whole new level, and their Detroit-style square pizza pies, with a chewy sourdough base, cheesy crispy sides and creative flavor combinations, are well worth talking about.
Pizza Bear’s charm starts with owner Chris Foste, a midwestern US native who took his beer-brewing expertise from Illinois and Shanghai and applied it to sourdough starters and pepperoni fermentation here in Taipei. Bar the imported cheese and tomatoes, everything from the sausage to the ranch dressing is made in-house.
Better known as “Beard Bear” (鬍子熊), Foste’s branding centers a cute smiling teddy bear-like caricature of himself, and stepping into Pizza Bear, we feel that rush of hospitality and smiles; customer is king in this casual but comfortable Songshan District (松山) spot.
Photo: Hollie Younger
Pizza Bear serves thin-crust Chicago-style pizza and their classic deep-dish, square Detroit-style pizza. So, what’s the difference? New York pizza: think thin dough, huge triangles, sold by the slice. Chicago Pizza: deep-dish wheels of two-inch-thick dough and melty American cheese. Or is it? Foste says that Chicago deep-dish is actually more of a tourist gimmick or a celebration-only affair for locals. But, in his words, Illinois’ “daily pizza,” sold here, uses a thin, cracker crust, evolved from 1920s taverns that cut square slices to fit onto service napkins. And Detroit? Michigan’s offering features a thick, sourdough base that’s chewy in the center but with a crispy cheese crackling surrounding its rectangular periphery. Layers work in reverse: first toppings, then cheese, then the sauce — to keep the dough from getting soggy, but keeping your fingers delightfully messy.
After launching in New Taipei City’s Sindian District (新店) in 2022, Foste opened this second location in June and it’s been packed every weekend.
Although he has no formal training, he says, “I learned everything from my mammy.” Growing up in rural central Illinois, his mother’s straight-from-scratch, rustic farmhouse cooking stayed with him throughout his career.
Photo: Hollie Younger
The dough? A three-day labor of love, left to rise in individual pans. Pepperoni? Fermented in-house with a Taiwanese-fusion spice blend. Bacon? Three weeks of dry curing, incorporating local flavors inspired by Hakka salty pork belly.
As a craft beer lover, Foste brings the idea of a “flight” of beers to his 4 Square Pizza Flight, where diners can combine any four flavors to make a whole pie. Foste explains that as a chef, he’s always fighting flavor fatigue — and this is the cure.
First up, the bestseller pepperoni (NT$149) is divine. That thick, focaccia-like base is delightfully thick and chewy. The pepperoni discs curl upwards, fatty, spicy and sumptuous.
Photo: Hollie Younger
Next up, my favorite: Chicago sausage with white sauce (NT$149). Fun fact from Foste, Chicago is the only city where sausage is a more popular pizza topping than pepperoni. I understand why; the fennel-laden sausage patty levels out the sweetness of that creamy bechamel sauce with an absurd yet perfect helping of garlic.
The spicy chicken slice (NT$149) packs some heat; the sort that builds but doesn’t overpower. Studying the ingredients of his favorite hot sauce bottles stateside, Foste perfected his own fiery, buffalo-inspired take with hints of pineapple for sweetness.
And finally, the one everyone comes to try, the beef noodle slice (NT$149). This really boggles the mind, recreating the exact Taiwanese flavor profile of cinnamon, star anise and slow-cooked meat. The pizza sauce is reduced broth, topped with tender shredded beef and crispy ramen noodles. To replicate the pickled greens of the original, Foste uses Italian pickled vegetables, Giardiniera, to add that same vinegary, crunchy reprise. This is a must-try, but personally, I’m running back for that Chicago sausage and pepperoni.
Pizza Bear offers fantastic lunch deals, keeping them busy even on a weekday afternoon, with combos of a slice, a chewy cookie and his own-recipe cream soda. But evenings? The place is bumping, offering locally brewed craft beer and highball cocktails. Watch out for the Thursday chef’s special and upcoming happy hour deals.
Foste said it himself, “What kind of pizza restaurant takes reservations?” Well, one that’s homely, truly unique for Taipei and serving pies you’ll dream of, long after the food coma.
In the March 9 edition of the Taipei Times a piece by Ninon Godefroy ran with the headine “The quiet, gentle rhythm of Taiwan.” It started with the line “Taiwan is a small, humble place. There is no Eiffel Tower, no pyramids — no singular attraction that draws the world’s attention.” I laughed out loud at that. This was out of no disrespect for the author or the piece, which made some interesting analogies and good points about how both Din Tai Fung’s and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s (TSMC, 台積電) meticulous attention to detail and quality are not quite up to
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) hatched a bold plan to charge forward and seize the initiative when he held a protest in front of the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office. Though risky, because illegal, its success would help tackle at least six problems facing both himself and the KMT. What he did not see coming was Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (將萬安) tripping him up out of the gate. In spite of Chu being the most consequential and successful KMT chairman since the early 2010s — arguably saving the party from financial ruin and restoring its electoral viability —
It is one of the more remarkable facts of Taiwan history that it was never occupied or claimed by any of the numerous kingdoms of southern China — Han or otherwise — that lay just across the water from it. None of their brilliant ministers ever discovered that Taiwan was a “core interest” of the state whose annexation was “inevitable.” As Paul Kua notes in an excellent monograph laying out how the Portuguese gave Taiwan the name “Formosa,” the first Europeans to express an interest in occupying Taiwan were the Spanish. Tonio Andrade in his seminal work, How Taiwan Became Chinese,
Toward the outside edge of Taichung City, in Wufeng District (霧峰去), sits a sprawling collection of single-story buildings with tiled roofs belonging to the Wufeng Lin (霧峰林家) family, who rose to prominence through success in military, commercial, and artistic endeavors in the 19th century. Most of these buildings have brick walls and tiled roofs in the traditional reddish-brown color, but in the middle is one incongruous property with bright white walls and a black tiled roof: Yipu Garden (頤圃). Purists may scoff at the Japanese-style exterior and its radical departure from the Fujianese architectural style of the surrounding buildings. However, the property
RSS