What's a better way to enjoy the summer than having a nice meal at the beach? With a beautiful summer breeze in the air and waterfront view, what more can you ask for? Papi Chulo is located just few minutes (by foot) away from Manly Wharf, and when you are done with your meal, you can go into the water for a swim.


Modern decor with open kitchen, ceiling fans, hanging lamps and timber flooring.
Stools that can be pulled out...
Waterfront view😎

Ranger's Valley wagyu F1 brisket (300g) $43

This brisket is probably one of the best briskets I have tried, the meat, especially the part with a bit of fat on the end, was super juicy and tender, and wasn't greasy at all. It was packed with smokiness. When dipped into the hot sauce it certainly added some spiciness. 

Cuttlefish, green goddess, watercress, bacon, croutons $23

I truly enjoyed this salad, it was light and refreshing. I'm usually a bit hesitant when it comes to ordering cuttlefish, squid or octopus that isn't deep fried, as sometimes they could have been sitting in the fridge for weeks or simply frozen ones that no longer have that al dente/crunchy texture. This grilled cuttlefish was exceptional, it was fresh and crunchy just the way I like it, I only wished there was more. The watercress added a nice nutty flavour and surprisingly the dill went really well with this dish. 

Food: 9/10
Service: 8/10
Atmosphere: 9/10

Hightlight:

• Brisket
• Cuttlefish

Lowlight:

• Too full at the end of our meal

Wesite: http://merivale.com.au/papichulo
Address: 22-23 Manly Wharf, Manly NSW 2095
Hours: Mon-Thurs: 12:00pm – 10:00pm
            Fri-Sat: 12:00pm – 10:30pm
            Sun: 12:00pm – 9:00pm
Phone: (02) 9240 3000 

This hidden underground restaurant can be easily missed if you don't pay attention when walking pass Angel Place in the CBD. It's our second time dining at Mercado, we liked the dim lighting and the casual menu and decided to pay this place another visit.

Front of the restaurant

Bar seating

Kitchen

Day 2 - Taipei

Octopus

Tiger Prawns

Flounder

Eel

Bread Crabs

Horsehair Crabs & Lobsters

Frozen Seafood

Ribbon Fish

Horsehair Crabs

Giant Avocados

X'mas Decorations

Super Long Eggplants

Japanese imported strawberries $60 per box 😱

Giant King Crabs

Otoro (Fatty Tuna Belly)

Several kinds of fresh oysters being served

Cooked Seafood

A Selection of Cooked Food

Sushi

Even though the fish market opens at 6am, the bars and restaurants only start opening from 9:30-11am and all close at midnight.

This place is definitely worth a visit if you enjoy fresh seafood or simply admire lively marine creatures.

Website: http://www.addiction.com.tw/
Address: No. 18, Alley 2, Lane 410, Minzu E Rd, Zhongshan District, Taipei City, Taiwan 104 (台北市民族東路410巷2弄18號 )
Hours: Monday-Sunday 6am-12am
Phone: +886 2 2508 1268

We decided to visit this memorial hall to touch up on a little bit of history.

Old Newspapers

Old Records

Old Rice Cooker

Sedan Chair

Replica of Chiang Kai-Shek's Office

Chiang Kai-Shek's Personal Car

Is this Micky's ancestor?

Website: http://www.cksmh.gov.tw/index.php?code=list&ids=486
Address: No. 21, Zhongshan S Rd, Zhongzheng District, Taipei City, Taiwan 100 (台北市中正區中山南路21號 )
Hours: 9am-6pm
Phone: +886 2 2343 1100 



For lunch we went to a place called 千里之外 (A thousand miles away) for some authentic Guilin rice noodles. We found this place after some extensive research and were really looking forward to trying it. 

The banner says this place has been on the news from several channels

The menu is on the wall, with a picture of Guilin

The shop owner, who is also the chef, is preparing our noodles. Chop chop!

Pork Noodles $3.50 (Left) & Beef Noodles $4 (Right)

We ordered a bowl of pork noodles and a bowl of beef noodles. Both kinds of meat were stewed in a soup mix made with up to 20 different kinds of Chinese herbal medicines and spices. Presumably the meat should have been full of flavour, however we found the flavour quite mild. There were also some pickled bamboo shoots, snake beans, peanuts and spring onions on the side. 

Food: 5/10
Service: self-help
Atmosphere: 3/10

Highlight: 

• Authentic experience of what a local restaurant is like

Lowlight:

• We've had more authentic Guilin noodles

Website: https://www.facebook.com/tpglx/
Address: No. 24, Lane 115, Section 2, Minsheng E Rd, Zhongshan District, Taipei City, Taiwan 104 (民生東路2段115巷24號104Taipei)
Hours: Mon-Sun: 10am-8pm
Phone: +886 2 2536 1822

Dessert time! Wellmore Patisserie (維摩法式甜點)

This cafe is newly opened with a spacious modern looking interior, plenty of seating and walls decorated with paintings. 
We were welcomed by the friendly staff who went through each cake with us. The cakes looked amazing!

Iron Goddess with Passionfruit (Left) $6.30 & Russian Onion Dome (Right) $6.30

We got the Iron goddess with passionfruit cake and the Russian onion dome cake. As tea lovers, we had to get the Iron goddess, which is a kind of oolong tea. The creamy tea mousse was well balanced with the passionfruit jelly that had a hint of sourness. To give additional texture, a bed of soft spongy ladyfinger was used as the base. The Russian onion dome cake was elegant and tasty. The cake was filled with creamy matcha mousse and pistachio dacquoise, glazed over with a layer osmanthus, sat on top of a crunchy tart base, and finished off with a light and airy meringue.

Food: 10/10
Service: 10/10
Atmosphere: 10/10

Highlight: 

• Both cakes were amazing
• Nice environment and friendly staff

Lowlight:

• We didn't get to try all their cakes!

Website: https://www.facebook.com/wellmore1204/
Address: No. 4, Alley 25, Lane 113, Section 3, Minsheng E Rd, Songshan District, Taipei City, Taiwan 105 (民生東路三段113巷25弄4號)
Hours: Fri-Wed: 12-8pm
            Thurs: Closed 
Phone: +886 2 2713 1028

Dinner Shintori Waterfall Japanese Cuisine (新都里懷石料理)

Shintori is a Japanese fine dinning restaurant that nests in a hidden underground spot. As you walk down the stairs to find the restaurant you are presented with this beautiful garden pond of koi fish. 

Both a la carte and degustation menus are available. We came here for dinner and got the a la carte menu. We forgot the prices, but they were expensive even compared to Sydney's fine dining restaurants.

Pan Seared Crab & White Fish

The crab was very fresh and so was the fish, the broth had a zingy refreshing taste to it.

Chawanmushi (Steamed Egg Custard)

The chawanmushi was as silky as tofu, a well executed dish.

Grilled Hokkaido Scallop

The scallop was massive in size, however it was overcooked. The meat was chewy and rubbery, very disappointing.

Chef's Sushi Selection

Matsutake Mushroom Soup

Matsutake mushroom is a highly prized mushroom in Japan. The soup was enjoyable, but we couldn't really taste the mushroom.

Seasonal Fruit

Mochi with soybean powder