Luodong Township, Yilan County｜火車頭川味

202207012 After scouting the area with my car and finding parking difficult, I decided to bicycle fifteen minutes to the shop. I got there at 4:30, but the boss didn’t show up until almost 5. He is overworked and has no one to help him. 😥 I wanted to order 麻婆豆腐 (Mapo Tofu) and 咖哩牛肉炒麵 (wok fried curry beef noodles), but luckily he warned me to order just one or it’ll be too much food - he was right! The mapo tofu was enough for 2-3 people. It has the proper 四川花椒 (Szechuan peppercorns) for that addictive numbing effect. This place reminds me of small B rank eateries on the outskirts of towns in Japan or small hole in the wall restaurants that dot American college towns. You get full on comfort food at great prices! When you visit, please be patient, as the boss is taking takeout orders, preparing the food, and bussing the tables all on his own. I’ll be back to give more reports on the dishes, one at a time. 20220713 I was going to order the 咖哩牛肉炒麵, but the boss insisted that I try the 咖哩牛腩飯 (beef brisket curry over rice). The curry had a depth of flavor that you can’t get from Japanese packaged curry cubes and the beef was well~cooked and well seasoned. I also ordered the 菜脯蛋 (pickled radish omelette), which was standard, but delicious since it was piping hot.

Very delicious and a lot of portions

delicious. Even if the shop doesn't look much, the chef will prepare excellent dishes and is super friendly.