Chef Hung Taiwan Beef Noodle – Award-Winning Beef Noodles

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hef Hung Taiwan Beef Noodle (洪師父牛肉麵) has been an award-winner at the Taipei International Beef Noodle Festival for four years. Founder Hung Chinlung (洪金龍) is popularly known as the “King of Taipei Beef-Noodle Cuisine.” In 2013 he opened a stylish flagship outlet in Neihu District, with all his prize-winning beef noodle dishes on the menu.

The “Three Treasures Beef Noodles” (牛三寶麵), runner-up in the 2006 Best Noodles in Traditional Soup category, has soft, tender shin and chewy tendon and tripe. The “Take Charge Beef Noodles” (獨當一麵), winner of the Best Noodles in the Braised category in 2007, features short-rib meat and a unique flavor. The “Clear Soup Stewed Beef Noodles” (清燉五花牛腩麵), winner of the 2007 Best Noodles in Clear Soup, has specially selected brisket and many types of vegetable; simmered over low heat, with barbecued short-rib meat slices on top, creating an outstanding taste experience. The “Healthy Red Yeast and Tomato Beef Noodles” (養生紅麴番茄麵), winner of the Most Creative Noodles section in 2008, is a healthy and nutritious dish featuring a broth made with naturally fermented red yeast, roselle, dried plum, hawthorn, licorice root, and dried citrus peel. The 2010 Best Noodles in Traditional Soup champion, “I Am the Best” (唯吾獨尊), features slices of beef shank, tripe and short rib, plus veal knee. This dish is time-consuming to make, and must be ordered in advance.

Noodle Cuisine – Beef Noodles With Red Wine

Noodle Cuisine (天下三絕麵食館), offers surprises in both the restaurant’s decor and its noodle dishes. Owner Wu Zanhao (吳贊浩), who loves good cooking and loves to cook, was originally a decorator. In 2011, he participated in the Taipei International Beef Noodle Festival (臺北國際牛肉麵節), placing 8th in the Creative category; the idea of opening his own restaurant developed soon thereafter. Dipping into his savings, he meticulously crafted a stylish dining space, choosing the Chinese name Tianxia Sanjue (天下三絕), which means, “three supremes in the world”: the freshest ingredients, the simplest cooking methods, and a dedication to culinary craftsmanship. The resulting beef-noodle dishes are delicious. “Three supremes” are also essential to the savory, hearty Noodle Cuisine broth – tomato, onion, and beef bones.

The signature dish here, called World-Class Selections Beef Noodles Soup (天下三絕牛肉麵), has three cuts of beef: tendon, shank and tail. The noodles and three different meats, provide a medley of tastes and textures. Bringing a taste of French cuisine to Taiwanese beef noodles, Wu specially recommends the Beef with Red Wine Combo (牛肉紅酒套餐): noodles with a combination of tendon and lean meat, served with a glass of red wine. This unique culinary pas de deux has become a favorite.

Niu Yi Guan – One Noodle Dish, Six Options

Niu Yi Guan (牛易館) offers both braised and clear-broth noodle dishes. Both are made with large beef bones, beef, onion, ginger, garlic, and a special house sauce, and preserve the freshness of the ingredients. Owner Xu Shengxiong (許勝雄), a retired public servant, says that unlike the average noodle shop (where the owner decides the flavors) Niu Yi Guan lets customers choose their own tastes with its most unique draw, the create-it-yourself Yi Mian Liu Chi (一麵六吃), literally “One Noodle Dish, Six Options.”

Customers ordering the One Noodle Six Options receive a portion of “Tai Chi Beef Noodles”(太極牛肉麵) in a “Tai Chi Bowl” (太極碗), which has an yin-yang divider that allows them to create two separate noodles dishes. At the food bar they can then choose either the mala (麻辣; “numbing and spicy”) sauce or curry sauce to make one of four options–mala noodles in soup, dry mala noodles, curry noodles in soup, or dry curry noodles. Alternatively, order a single serving of noodles in either braised or clear soup, adding sauce from the food bar to taste. This is a compulsory experience for all those with a taste for novelty.

Foreigner’s Beef Noodles – Unique, Spicy Fragrances

The name clearly announces that Foreigner’s Beef Noodles (老外一品牛肉麵) is not run by a Taiwanese. The foreigner in question is Davod Bagherzadeh from Iran, who fell in love with Taiwan when he came here as a FIT traveler some 10 years ago. Sampling all of Taiwan’s food delicacies, he fell in love with the wonderful taste of beef noodles. Davod married a local woman, dedicated himself to studying beef noodles and crafting his own creative flavors, and opened his own restaurant on Jilin Road (吉林路). The most prominent feature is the mix of 12 spices (flown in from Iran) used in the braised soup, adding a very distinctive flavor. Davod’s beef n oodles took third place in the Braised Soup category in 2009, in 2010 the shop was declared one of Taiwan’s “10 Best Shops,” and in 2011 he won awards in the Braised and Creative Noodles categories.

Many curious customers have asked Davod how he makes his soup stock, so he has posted a concise explanation on a wall so diners can understand in a glance. His clear stock, made with the finest Taiwanese beef and large beef bones, is simmered for 4 days until it has a milky-white color. He filters out all oil that floats to the top. For his braised beef noodles, the best imported shank accompanies a stock made with large beef bones, to which he adds Persian spices (imported by air), creating a dish with a rich, multi-layered texture.

2014 Taipei International Beef Noodle Festival – A Feast of Fine Foods in Taipei

This year’s Taipei International Beef Noodle Festival, organized by the Taipei City Government, will be the 10th edition. This culinary celebration has gained an international reputation, and beef noodles have become one of the city’s main attractions.

The theme for this year’s event, which is running from September 1st to October 15th, is “Feast of Fine Foods in Taipei” (十全食美 in Taipei). The program’s highlight, entitled the “Feast of Fine Foods in Taipei Carnival,” will be staged at the EXPO Dome in Taipei Expo Park (花博公園爭艷館) on October 11th and 12th. Among this year’s attractions are a “Decade of Achievements Exhibition,” “Beef Noodle Street,” and “Taipei Fine Foods Street,” and there will also be special zones such as the “Stage Performance Area,” “Hot Deals Area,” “Arts and Culture Area,” “Fine Food Area,” and “Competition Area,” among others. The chef competition finals will also be staged during this period.

The preliminary rounds of the chef competitions are being held in the latter part of September. There are three categories: Braised, Clear, and Creative. The 10 preliminary-round winners in each category can participate in the finals from October 11th to 12th, showing off their beef-noodle skills live during the carnival, when the winners, second-place positions, runners-up, and honorable mentions will be decided. New additions to the Competition Area this year are a “Saluting Senior Citizens–Fun Dream Contest” and “International Chefs Invitational Competition”.

As an extra draw for local and foreign beef-noodle aficionados, this year a hundred major shops from around Taiwan have been invited to participate in a special “Check In, Receive Fine Food” event to be staged during the carnival period, from October 1st through October 15th. These premium-grade beef-noodle vendors will be offering beef-noodle lovers great promotions.

Creative Beef Noodles Shops

Chef Hung Taiwan Beef Noodle

洪師父牛肉麵

Add: 80, Ruihu St. (瑞湖街80號)

Tel: (02)8751-1700

Noodle Cuisine 天下三絕麵食館

Add: 3, Ln. 27, Sec. 4, Ren’ai Rd. (仁愛路4段27巷3號)

Tel: (02)2741-6299

Niu Yi Guan 牛易館

Add: 30, Siping St. (四平街30號)

Tel: (02)2523-8732

Foreigner’s Beef Noodles 老外一品牛肉麵

Add: 403, Jilin Rd. (吉林路403號)

Tel: (02)2585-3303

2014 Taipei International Beef Noodle Festival

2014 臺北國際牛肉麵節

Time: Until 10/15

Venue: EXPO Dome, Taipei Expo Park; 1, Yumen St.

(花博公園爭艷館; 玉門街1號)

Tel:1999 (02-2720-8889 outside Taipei City); ext. 6503

Website: www.2014tbnf.com