Nanhua Dalu Noodle

Nanhua Dalu Noodles has a huge reputation in Hualien, having already been doing business for over 50 years. Needless to say, this place is always packed full of hungry diners, and, although the outside does not look like much, the inside will strike you as a busy hub of fragrant smells and the sounds of chatter and chopsticks tapping on bowls.

You can’t miss the side dishes here. Fried tofu with fish (小魚豆乾), tofu with milennium egg (皮蛋豆腐) and fern salad (涼拌過貓菜) are all very popular among customers. Best of all, the servings are very generous, especially the fern salad, which is one of Hualien’s regional specialties. Although it can sometimes be a little sticky in your mouth, it is worth a try while visiting. But it’s not even the side dishes that get people really excited. Instead, it’s the crispy and brittle fried noodles (煎麵), of which there are flavors like pork and beef. What makes it so special is that it is cooked in an iron furnace, giving it a flavor that can’t be found elsewhere. Again, unless you are a particularly big eater, this can be happily shared between two.

Bear in mind that Nanhua Dalu Noodles is not the sort of place you will find English menus. However, it is well worth a visit, as it is Taiwanese food that has been tried and tested for over half a century.