Lynda's Taiwan-logue

< Visited in Nov 2014 >

One of Xinshe 新社's local produce is mushroom, and Xiezhong Street 协中街 is undoubtedly the town's mushroom street, with plenty to offer in terms of mushroom-themed dining, products and sightseeing farms. If there is any shopping to be done, it has got to be on this vibrant stretch. 

A good 20-30 minutes drive from my accommodation (deeper into the mountain town), and an essential drive-through to fro planned sights, one lunch, one dinner, sightseeing and shopping were covered on this single street. Though I had done some prior research, I would deem it safe to decide spontaneously where to eat. UNLESS you have a big group in tow or are here during weekends/flower fest season, in which case, you should try to make a reservation where possible. As I was here during peak season, I basically had a reservation for dinner, while leaving it flexible for lunch. 

▼ Zhenhua 震桦 was a spontaneous choice for lunch (or more accurately, light bite). (Note: as of Aug 2020, the establishment has ceased serving F&B, retaining only its retail - do follow their FB for changes to their mode of operation.)    

A wide array of mushroom products on ground floor greets patrons, quite a stunning sight if you are a fan of shrooms. 

Dining was on the second floor. (Local) tour groups and large families are a common sight, considering domestic travel is rather vibrant. Fortunately, turnover was pretty fast and it is typically easier to get a table for just two persons. I don't have the restaurant's menu to share (but found it online), essentially hotpot, set meals for groups and ala carte dishes - nothing short of what is expected in similar establishments. We were not particularly hungry (given the entire day out and about, sightseeing and eating at short intervals), thus we went with a few dishes and no staple.   

▼ Complimentary black fungus beverage 黑木耳饮 and pickled abalone mushroom 杏鲍菇 - served to the table after you place your order. The latter was refillable and we liked it enough to request for one more serving. Unfortunately they did not sell this item in their retail store, though we found it at another establishment.    

▼ Soy sauce chicken 油鸡 (NT$260 - small) - a dish served cold but does not affect the tenderness of the meat. 

▼ We had two fried shroom dishes - one abalone mushroom and one assorted. Perhaps one too many considering the complimentary shroom appetiser served after we placed our order, but still tasty. 

▼ Ah Liang Mushroom Farm 阿亮香菇园 was a pit-stop recommended by our driver, who seemed to be a regular here and familiar enough to give us an unofficial guided tour of the shroom farm. Turned out to be a good recommendation as the farm was fairly extensive for a nice stroll, giving insights on one of our favourite foods, and we found the delicious abalone mushroom pickle on sale here. (Do excuse the less than desirable image quality.)

▲ Our driver cum unofficial tour guide.

▼ Another activity available is shroom picking - starting from NT$100, and NT$1200 for lingzhi/reishi mushroom 灵芝, for about 600g. (If I remember right, the local denomination used is 台斤.) Saw quite a number of visitors in action.  

▼ Rounding back to mushroom street after the day's activities, dinner was at Master of Mushroom 菇神 before driving back to our lodging. 

▼ We had arrived early for our reservation, so there was time to comb the retail shelves. Mushroom lovers (like me) can really go crazy over how the locals get creative with this produce and depart the mountain town with enough omiyage. Do cater sufficient time for checking out this street.   

▼ Imagine beef/pork jerky or a tougher version of pork floss, but made from shrooms. 

▼ Just like our lunch venue, retail occupies ground floor and dining is on the second, where we were guided to our (private feeling) corner table. Business looked brisk as most tables were occupied, and deservedly so as the dining environment is comfy and clean, with fast and polite service.  

▼ Considering we are in the mountains and temperature falls significantly after sunset, there is no better time to enjoy hotpot! Looking at the number of hotpot items on their menu, this looks like their specialty, in addition to some side dishes and an extensive beverage list.   

▼ We chose a nourishing shrooms soup base 百菇养身锅, which came with our choice of pork, lots of (more) mushrooms and greens, and appetisers. For NT$740, this definitely feeds two very well.   

▼ We caved in to gluttony and ordered an extra serving of Matsusaka pork 松阪猪 (NT$280) ... 

▼ ... dried radish omelette 菜埔蛋 (NT$160) ... 

▼ ... and a jug of ume roselle tea (NT$220). 

▼ (Another) complimentary black fungus beverage 黑木耳饮 to wrap up our hearty dinner that set us back by NT$1376, rather worth it for the portion and quality.