Who doesn’t enjoy exploring the night street food market when traveling in Asia? We visited two of the famous night markets in Taipei and share our top tips so you can plan a seamless night of strategic foodie indulgence!
Taiwan’s night markets aren’t only about food, you will also find many stalls offering various games to entertain adults and children alike. We saw whole shops full of claw machines, your usual arcade-style games, and lots of games we couldn’t figure out the rules of. It’s fun to watch people play as you snack on your latest find.
Where to go, what to eat, and how much the food costs
Which nightmarkets to go to in Taipei
Starting in Taiwan’s capital city, Taipei, we explore the two most famous night markets; ‘Raohe’ and ‘Shilin’ night markets. Among Taipei’s most popular tourist attractions are the Raohe Night Market in Songshan and the Shilin Night Market near Jiantian MRT station. Both are popular with locals and tourists, and we would highly recommend you visit both if you have the time because there is much to explore and enjoy! There are also many smaller pop-up street food markets in the neighbourhoods to check out too, so do take them time to check them out if you’re in the area.
What to eat
Taiwan is famous for its’ night market street-food from the famous Taiwanese Fried Chicken to the Black Pepper Buns and Sweet Potato Balls, you are in for a culinary treat as you slowly meander through the busy street and stop for street snacks along the way.
You should expect to find seafood, buns, fried snacks, sweet desserts, braised meats and offal, scallion pancakes, noodle soups, dumplings, and freshly made fruit juices. There truly are far too many options to list here but we found this guide a useful resource.
Our top tip is to take a walk around the market and check out what is on offer first as the stalls can change each night and there are often new foods that entice your tastebuds along the way.
Modern Taiwanese culture blends Chinese, Austronesian, Japanese, and Western influences and most of the hawker stalls are run as independent family businesses. This means no one stall’s food will be the same as the next!
How much food costs
The street food vendors generally only accept cash, so bring plenty with you. The food at night markets generally costs between NT10 to NT100 (25p – £2.50) per portion, so try to avoid bringing large notes. The transaction speed is very quick at the food stalls so try and have the correct change to hand when you’re ordering.
Taiwan night markets are free to enter and a good strategy is to arrive early before it gets super crowded. They are generally open from 5 to 11 pm. Be aware there is usually very little seating, so you eat as you walk or take your snacks away. Most menus are in Taiwanese, but some stalls do have English language translations. We used Google Translate, ordered food in English, pointed a lot, and never struggled to order what we wanted.
We spent two days in Taipei, visiting the two biggest night markets, and this is everything we ate!
1. Raohe Street Night Market in Taipei, Taiwan
Raohe is one of the city’s oldest night markets, it’s easily accessible by Taipei’s convenient and clean rail system. It’s one of the largest night markets, attracting locals and tourists alike, and offers a huge variety of grilled, fried, steamed, barbequed, braised, and sweet dishes.
How to get there: Take the MRT to Songshan Station. The night market entrance is next to the temple.
What we ate:
- Fuzhou Black Pepper Bun can be found at one of the first stalls as you enter the market by the main entrance. You won’t miss it as there is always a big queue. The buns are made throughout the night and baked in a tandoor in big batches. They are piping hot and you will burn your mouth because you will not be able to resist taking a bite of the fragrant spiced bun you finally hold in your hands!
- Taiwanese Fried Chicken Cutlet is juicy, crunchy, and addictive!
- Grilled Whole Squid looks impressive on the skewer, but thankfully they chop it into more manageable pieces for you. The squid is basted in a sauce throughout cooking giving it a slightly sweet but very umami flavour.
- Fried Octopus Tentacles Soft, chewy, and delicious!
- Sugar Cane Juice helped to wash down on the delicious snacks. Many different drink choices include freshly made fruit milks and bubble tea. It was Daryoush’s first time trying fresh sugar cane juice.
- Egg Waffles are found throughout the market. We opted for plain ones as we were already so full!
Where to eat your food:
If you want a break from the busy market, want to find somewhere quiet to eat your treats, or just need to walk off your meal to make space for even more tasty morsels, then head to the Rainbow Bridge over the Keelung River. There are many benches along the riverbank to sit and enjoy your food. It’s very peaceful and pretty. There is a ‘LOVE’ sculpture where couples put padlocks on to signify their unbreakable bond and a very well-maintained cycle path with families cycling in tandem enjoying the evening together.
After our leisurely stroll along the river, we headed back into the market for dessert. You can see from my face how much I enjoyed that! By then our stomachs had reached full capacity so we stopped for a foot massage and watched people play games at the various children’s games stalls on the strip.
2. Shilin Night Market
Shilin Night Market is one of the largest night markets in Taipei and covers a large area. You can walk and turn into the side alleys and discover a lot of different little shops open late into the night. It is also Taipei’s most touristy market, so some people may avoid it, but in my opinion it’s still well worth a visit!
How to get there: Take the MRT to Jiantan Station. Take exit 1 and cross the street to the left diagonally to enter the night market. Follow the crowds, you won’t go wrong!
What we ate:
- Lu Wei- braised meats and seafood in a secret sauce is usually one of the biggest stalls on the market and is hugely popular. They are also one of the few stalls with seating!
- Shrimp and Cheese ‘Takoyaki’ what is not to love? Burn your mouth goodness with a decent cheese pull guaranteed!
- Takoyaki because the original is still the best. Not a traditional Taiwanese snack, but I always get it when I see it.
- Crab sticks were not my favourite, unfortunately. It was a popular stall and you could choose your topping flavour, but for me, it tasted very processed.
- Stuffed Bubble Waffles novel and cute on a stick!
Top tips for your visit to any Taiwan Night Market
- Make sure you go hungry! We tried a lot less food at Shilin Night Market as we’d had a big lunch. Schoolboy error…
- Go on different days to the same night market, if you are spending more time in Taiwan. The stalls change, as do the food offers, so there is always something new to try!
- Take cash and plenty of small change. Most stalls do not take card payments. The food is very cheap and card payment commissions eat into small business’ profits.
Everyone has different tastes, some more adventurous than others, so the night markets are a great place to try different foods. The majority of the food is cooked in front of you, and piping hot, so we never worried about how safe the food is to eat. If you are more cautious, stick to deep-fried foods and avoid cold salad and food that has been sitting out for a while.
Hopefully, you now have a few ideas on what foods to try on your next visit. And if so, we’d love to hear what you’ve tried at the Taiwan Night Markets!