After lunch at Lao Shandong Homemade Noodles we decided to slowly make our way back to the hotel for a break before heading out in the evening.
But first, we would stop at one of the hundred of tea/boba shops for some light refreshment.
We ended up making 2-4 "tea stops" everyday….these places are so inexpensive….our drinks would usually be 30-35NT$ – think $1 -$1.15! We stopped at so may places that I just couldn't keep up with documenting them.
We made several stops on the way back.
This one is the Taiwan Provincial City God Temple.
This temple is dedicated to the "City God", Chénghuángshén (城隍神).
This was quite a busy and colorful temple. This page has more info if you're interested.
There was one last stop for us. A few blocks away was a large and pleasant park, where the National Museum resides. On this day, there was a group of students looking to take what seemed to be school yearbook photos?
The park was lush, green, and quite pleasant, especially with temps hitting the 80's with the equivalent humidity.
It was fun watching folks enjoying their lunches; or in the case of this pooch trying to get a squirrel to play with it.
This park was established in 1908 by the Japanese; the first European style park in Taiwan. It was then renamed Taipei New Park when the KMT took over. The current name is in recognition of what is called the 2-28 Incident. Which is detailed on this sign (click to enlarge)
Event which led to Taiwan being under Martial Law for 38 years.
Hard to imagine all of this taking place in such a peaceful green area.
We got back to our room and took a nice nap in airconditioned luxury.
For dinner, well, we thought it would be a nice night to finally go to a night market. After doing a good amount of research, we decided on Ningxia Night Market. I know many folks recommend Shilin Night Market, but after doing some reading, it seemed that night market has many more tourists. We'd have our choice validated by several cab drivers during our stay. The best quote was "Shilin is the place where tourist and young people go to spend money on things they don't need. Ningxia has better food and less crowds."
We decided to walk the mile and half to and from the market.
When we arrived, except for a couple of stands, things weren't too busy. Things would start picking up a few minutes later.
Ningxia Market stretches along a single street, lining both sides of the avenue. There are also restaurants on the street as well with any choices.
We decided to walk the length of the market before making our choices.
My first choice was a Scallion Pancake with Salted Egg Yolk.
This was crisp, fairly light, the eggy flavor coming thru quite distinctly.
Of course, once the Missus saw…well, more liked smelled the "fragrances" from this booth Her mind was made up.
The chou doufu was still being fried up, so we were guided to the table behind the booth.
Soon enough, the Missus's stinky tofu was delivered. Man, the smell was quite potent, though nothing like what we had in China.
And in terms of chou doufu, this was "all bark and no bite". It was crisp and smelled the part, but was very mild in flavor. I guess the Missus's rule for me still goes "if you can eat it; it isn't stinky enough!"
As we walked back down the street we saw this stand.
These looked good so we ordered some. After ordering, the mushrooms were refried to heat and crisp up.
Crisp and earthy enoki and two types of oyster mushrooms.
We'd enjoyed the vibe at the Ningxi Night Market, though I think the Missus had gotten Her share of fried food and really wouldn't order much for the rest of the trip!
We also enjoyed the walk back which took us thru some other neighborhoods in the Datong where places seemed open a lot later than where we were staying. There seems to be more younger people and boutiques and other shops the Missus enjoyed.
I was kind of bushed when we got back to the hotel. I guess I was a bit our of shape and not used to putting in the mileage like we do in, say Paris?
Obviously, I slept well.
Thanks for stopping by!
This was fine, the beef tender if a bit on the salty side. The guacamole is the "MVP" here as it helps to temper and balance the flavors. The tortillas are standard issue, brittle, and not especially strong in terms of maize flavor. This is a very hipster type of item. The salsa verde has decent heat and acidity.
One of five city gates in the city, it is the only one of the gates that still maintains its Qing-era appearance. 
Man, the beef was so tender and beefy! The knife cut noodles were a bit thick for my taste, but the texture was very nice, good pull, not doughy or overly chewy. The broth was light on the beefiness and edged on being too sweet. We would have liked a bit more tangy-tomato flavor as well. Still this was quite enjoyable.
The Mister and I returned the other day and were going to order from the regular menu, but the All Day Special Menu, which was All You Can Eat for $27 per person would cost about the same. We decided it would be fun to cook our own and eat all we could. 
The complimentary banchan (pickled 'sides)were brought out along with the sauces (and salad and rice we ordered from the menu). Everything is replenished when you ask.
First up-thin brisket, beef bulgogi and chicken BBQ.
You are given tongs and scissors to help cook and cut your meats. The bulgogi and BBQ sauces carmelized on the grill and gave some flavor to the brisket.
The 'corn cheese' is an excellent side to share. 
For our second round, we chose thin beef belly and thin pork belly…so we could compare. 
A clean grill had been brought out, so there was no flavor imparted from the bulgogi and BBQ sauces and we instead ate the meat with the pickled sides (the kim chee is excellent) and rice on top of salad: a completely different second meal.
Greek sounded good for lunch, too.
There's a menu above the cash register and on the wall to the right. Order and pay and your food is brought out in disposable/"To Go" containers.
The walls from the former restaurant are still here; the furniture is new.
Lentil soup with pita ($4.50) was an excellent Mediterranean version. Cumin and turmeric flavors were primary and the broth not too thick with lentils or potato or carrot as other versions, but very deep with flavor. I did not taste onion and salt/pepper were not needed. 
A side of four pieces of falafel ($2.50) was a good choice. The thin, crisp edges were perfect, leaving the inside fluffy. The side of tzatziki sauce was refreshing with its yogurt and garlic base.
Greek Mix Plate ($14.99). 1/2 chicken shawarma, 1/2 lamb gyro on top of yellow rice and pita along with a good sized side salad (served with a herb-infused vinegar dressing) was quite a lot of food to share. The shawarma was not shaved, but instead chopped and grilled. It had great flavor. Indeed, it was lamb gyro and shaved, leaving each piece with a crisp side. The rice, pita and salad made this a good size meal, enough to share. 
Lemon and mint lemonade ($2.99) was excellent- fresh lemon juice, not too much sugar and dried mint gave this beverage two 'thumbs up' from us. We'll be back to try more of the menu.
The stamped floor with animal footprints remains.
It was basically standard breakfast fare when we arrived, so we just had some coffee, tea, and water.
The well-established (since 1955) pizza parlor, serving Italian food as well as cocktails is open for lunch in nearby Lemon Grove. 
A bowl of the house made 
A large (for two) antipasto salad ($9.95) was shared for an appetizer. Plenty of mortadella, salami and provolone along with pickled vegetables and parmesan.
The Italian Salad Bowl ($7.95) is always a good shareable 'appetizer' for us. Don't be fooled by the camera angle- that is a very large, deep bowl (it's the same bowl used for the 'double bowl soup'). Lettuce, tomato, mozzarella, olives, pepperocinis and all of that pepperoni could make a nice low carb meal. But we've been ordering large pizzas lately.
A large sausage-pepperoni pizza ($20.45) is one choice. Neither of us wants too many ingredients to take away from the beautifully flavored dough.
The large sausage-mushroom pizza ($19.25). More of a favorite. You can see the thin crust.
The 'Bar' area is a bit closed off from the rest of the dining area.