A new pizza place just opened up in my neighborhood. It's called Mr. Pizza. Today was the grand opening. It touts itself as a wood fired pizza place. So after a leisurely day of more rock climbing, Yuki and I headed over to check it out. Fortunately, we headed there super early, because there was a 4 hour wait for the pizza. We ordered at 4 pm and they said it would be ready by 8 pm. By the time 8 pm rolled around, we were both pretty hungry. The pizzas are indeed wood fired as can be seen by the stacks of wood kindles piled outside. The stove is a bit crudely constructed though. mostly of brick and spare parts it seems. But the oven bed did seem like it was made of one piece of large ceramic. The interior lacked design and looked like it was haphazardly put together at the last moment. Which could be the case, since they are newly opened and perhaps wanted to make the due date. What's important is the pizza pie. At $160 a pie, it is a bit expensive. Although Yuki and I shared one, one was not enough. I can see myself easily finishing one whole pie myself (approx. 10 inches). The taste, wasn't that bad. Pretty darn good I must say. Yuki says it's the best she's had outside of Aunt Su's.
But there's still two negatives I'd like to get out there. First off, there's no parmesan cheese! Hot pepper, salt and pepper. Salt and pepper!? WTF? Secondly, I hate thin crust. Granted it wasn't as thin and crappy as Bollywood Pizza, but it's still a thin flavorless toasted flatbread-like crust. I don't get it. Do the Taiwanese prefer it like that or has no one taught them how to make decent pizza bread. I'm undecided on this place. Super convienant, wood fired, tasty toppings versus overpriced flavorless flatbread.
Mr. Pizza
145號, 明德路, Beitou District Taipei City, Taiwan 112
This is actually dinner from last night. But I thought it was appropriate to separate them out. My parents and relatives, which are visiting over the holidays, decided to bring me along for dinner to a local restaurant. It's somewhere in Tianmu. Since we took a bus and I didn't pay much attention, I'm unable to reproduce the exact location. Sad since the food turned out to be quite excellent. Of the two most notable, was the duck blood hot pot and the silver thread buns. Both I think are of Beijing origin and may also be of relation to Hakka cuisine. I'm a fan of duck blood. Looks and sounds disgusting, but it really doesn't have any strong taste. It there is any taste, it's only a very mild irony taste. The texture has the consistency of hard jello. It's not meant to be eaten alone, but dependently with a soup or a supplementary part of a larger dish. Much like the hot pot you see in the picture. This hot pot though is pretty thick to be called a soup. And that thick soupy gravy really goes well with that duck blood and white rice.
Next is the silver thread buns 銀絲卷 (yinsijuan). Delicious! A crispy buttery skin on the outside with extremely soft and fluffy white bread inside. Steamed silver thread buns are named because of the unique noodle-like threads inside the buns. I hear the process is also equally unique, in that you steam it first then deep-fry it later. Silver thread buns can be served with peanut powder or stir-fried pork with preserved vegetables, but I love it just the way it is. I pick it apart thread by thread, then eat the crispy skin (the best part) for last. Yum!
