RyuGin Wows
I’ve been following the food scene in Taipei quite carefully this past year and have been intrigued by the local specialties and the seasonal produce only found on the island.
Vastly different from the frantic, ever evolving food scene in Hong Kong, Taipei offers up a far more comfortable pace around their love of food. The pace of Taipei in general is a world apart from its brash sister across the water. Taipei is a food-lovers paradise but one that bubbles away confidently and without the need to shout for attention.
My very first fine-dining experience in Taipei is one that was literally off the charts. I have never had the opportunity to dine at one of Tokyo’s top kaiseki restaurants, Nihonryori RyuGin, and upon researching Taipei I found an abundance of raves on its sister restaurant in Taipei’s Zhongshan district.
Entrance
Table Setting
What interested me the most was the attention to detail given to the use of singularly unique Taiwanese ingredients in the dishes, whilst maintaining the Japanese philosophy and standard of the original restaurant. This would be my chance to enjoy the finest of local ingredients prepared and cooked by one of the country’s finest chefs.
Chef de cuisine Ryohei Hieda embodies the philosophy of founder Chef Seiji Yamamoto, always personally on the pulse with local fishermen and farmers in the quest for the best ingredients from Taiwan’s distinct four seasons.
Presented as traditional kaiseki, the full 13 course menu at Shoun RyuGin is a symphony of refinement, technique and flavour. Presented with a map of Taiwan on the reverse of the menu, each numbered dish is linked to a certain region, marked on the map. A lovely touch as you progress through the beautifully structured meal.
I could wax lyrical forever, but I believe the best way to get an understanding and a sense of the precision and detail of such exquisite dishes is to see the parade, as it happened for me. Here then, is the Winter (coming into Spring) kaiseki of 2020, at Taipei’s best restaurant, Shoun RyuGin.
The menu offers a premium wine and sake pairing, one of the best I have recently enjoyed. Selections from boutique producers accompanied each dish to perfection.
With two Michelin stars and sitting at number 31 on Asia’s 50 Best Restaurant listing in 2019, Shoun RyuGin is world class and undoubtedly the very finest restaurant to experience Taiwan’s bounty of unparalleled quality. This is a restaurant well worth making a special trip for. Don’t miss it.
Shoun RyuGin
10491, Taipei City,
Zhongshan District,
Lequn 3rd Road, 301