Dinner at Fenqihu Railway Town - 奮起湖樂樂花園餐飲

Empty street with the sun making its slow descent at about 5.30pm, an early dinner sounded attractive since there's nothing else we could do and I am not going to explore nature in the dark.

I have penciled in an eatery, Fang Mei Tingyuan Restaurant, rated 4.8 on Google Maps but it was closed that day! Hence, given the limited options and convenience, we decided to make do with its next door neighbour, 奮起湖樂樂花園餐飲. 

Welcome by a very friendly auntie, we were told to take out pick from the empty tables! It was alfresco seating; not such a big deal given the cool temperature! 

Overlooking the rolling hills at a vantage point, it was truly beautiful without having to deal with the over tourism as in the case for most tourist destinations. Sometimes, we just need a quiet place to relax, and too many humans spoilt that atmosphere.

Ali Mountain Oolong Tea - a cup of hot beverage would always be nice in such nice weather! What I didn't expect was its utter bitterness that made me feel that I am having a liquid elixir guaranteed to prolong my longevity. 

Tea Leaves Egg - a true egg lover would have eggs if they see it on the menu! While this was said to contain tea leaves, there's no hint of the signature tea flavor, although both Alex and I admitted it was a darn tasty omelette! 

Not overly oil, dense with eggs, with dashes of pepper that elevated the flavour! Interestingly, the taste of tea kicked in only when the omelette cooled! p.s. I prefer it hot! 

Wasabi Chicken Soup - I absolutely wouldn't resist soup when the weather is cold and this proved to be warm and refreshing for the tummy, with a plain yet sweet after flavor that I thought came from cabbage; addictive enough for us to clean up the entire bowl! Chicken meat was tough though, and no, no wasabi discerned from any sip. 

Bitter Tea Oil Chicken - most expensive dish, and also the signature dish for the eatery. Costing about S$20, it was a large plate(only one available size) of chicken that I doubt Alex and I could finish. 

See the above deep fried piece that I was holding? That's deep fried ginger that was so crispy; you can indulge them like chips, without having to waste energy to chew through! Taste wise, ther spiciness was countered with bitterness from the bitter tea oil. 

How would you think the meat fare? It was tough like the chicken soup and didn't seem to have much batter. Meat tasted bitter even though still manageable for someone who dislike bitter stuff, and it helped that the ginger totally overwhelmed the bitterness, and in fact made the meat palatable! 

=====

Address

No 6077, Fenqihu, 

Zhuqi Township, Chiayi County,

Taiwan

Map

As above.

Menu

As above in Chinese and English

Pricing

Ali Mountain Oolong Tea - NT$60

Tea Leaves Egg - NT$130

Wasabi Chicken Soup - NT$150

Bitter Tea Oil Chicken - NT$500

Click HERE for 11 Days, 10 Nights Taiwan Trip: Summarised Itinerary for Chiayi Alishan (嘉义阿里山) - Kaohsiung (高雄) - Tainan (台南) - Taichung (臺中)