Xiaoxi Street

Xiaoxi Street District (小西街) used to be a traffic hub in Changhua City. Because Xiaoxi Street was near train station, many hotels were located nearby. Today, prosperity is no more, but some old hotels, old stores and old cuisine shops remain.

Xiaoxi Street was the main road connecting Western Gate and Northern Gate of Changhua in Qing Dynasty. Passing through Western Gate, one was able reach Lukang. Passing through Northern Gate, one was able to reach Fengyuan. Nowadays, local people try to preserve the old houses and their childhood memory, they renovate this district on their own.

Hongye Grand Hotel (紅葉大旅社) is the oldest hotel in Changhua City. It was completed in the same year as completion year of Baguashan Great Buddha Statue. Now, the hotel is run by second generation. Besides being a hotel, it is also a folk toy house that allows visitors to look around. Along the lane in front of Hongye Grand Hotel, visitors may see elaborate decorations on every house, such as bonsai and wind wheel.

Besides architectures, there are many traditional local cuisines in Xiaoxi Street District. Taiwanese meatball (肉圓)* is one of the most important cuisines in Changhua. There are three old Taiwanese meatball shops here, and each favor is different and nice. Moreover, tofu pudding (豆花), green mung bean sweet soup (綠豆湯), and much more are waiting for you to try.

* Taiwanese Meatball is different than regular meatballs, more like a large dumpling. Taiwanese meatball is served after being deep fried to give them a “skin” or gently poached in oil to heat them without drying them out. Translucent dough filled with pork meatball with mushrooms, bamboo, and other ingredients compose a 6-8 cm diameter disk-shaped Taiwanese snack food served with sweet and savory sauce.