PrintBurgers in Taiwan: A Comedy of Errors
Note: When Serious Eats reader Lee Anne Shaffer recently took a trip to Taipei, Taiwan, to visit family, she did a bit of burger scouting in hopes of finding something worth reporting on AHT. Alas, while Taipei is known for being a gastronomic wonderland, it's probably best to avoid the burgers. Today, Lee Anne recaps her "Tragic Taiwanese Hamburger Tour."
[Photographs: Lee Anne Shaffer]
Leave them on the plane—your dissertation on the integrity of the unadorned burger; your valiant, passionately-spun argument in support of the smashed patty; those blueprints which painstakingly depict the quintessential slider; that lyrical ballad in three parts extolling the glorious golden chuck proportion: 87/13. They have no place here, where natives escort their hottest dates to McDonald's and any grain conglomerate can pass for a bun.
Taiwan is similar to the rest of Asia in that it isn't known for its burgers. Pick up any decent guidebook to Taipei and you'll be directed instead to try Taiwanese street food: flaky scallion pancakes fresh off the griddle, oil-flecked bowls of beef broth ramen, vermicelli studded plumply with deliquescent oysters, pork-filled soup dumplings encased in exquisitely tender skin. In fact, several weeks ago I was in the process of reacquainting myself with these particular pleasures when, amid the human swarm of Taipei's Shiling Night Market, I stumbled upon a graphically colorful, sesame-flecked three-foot hamburger.
The three-foot hamburger was actually advertising the availability of a 3-inch "mini-burger." Curiosity reared its familiar head, and thus commenced the following Brief, Tragic Taiwanese Hamburger Tour.
3-Inch Mini-Burgers
Initially the 3-inch Mini-Burger seemed promising: requisite line of hyped marketgoers that identifies the more popular food stands; sparkling display case in which mini-burgers bask under spotlights; Einstein's hearty approval. He's saying: "tasty research seems like eating hamberger [sic], some people like to eat big one, I like to eat 3 inches." And indeed, what's not to like when 3 inches of "Bun + mayo + fresh chicken + lettuce + magical seasoning" come to only 136 calories?
Out of several flavors, which included Japanese Mustard, Xinjiang Cumin, and Greek Spice, I chose what was apparently the most popular: Mexican Pepper. Perhaps I should've known better; snazzy marketing gimmicks, after all, do not a burger make. And the mini-burger was only offered with chicken; nobody would confuse this with a real American hamburger except Asian schoolchildren whose burger exposure is limited to "I'm Lovin' It" commercials.
As it was, the mini-burger was an utter disappointment. At least 85% of its composition was the unnaturally yellow sponge bun, unremarkable in texture, and the diminutive chunk of processed chicken was accompanied by one doll-sized sliver of lettuce. Mayo and "magical seasoning" (MSG) made the three bites palatable, but the overall experience was less than satisfying. Luckily for the burger stand, Shiling's ever-shifting consumer masses are suckers for novelty, and the winning combination of weird, Western, and white-guy-endorsement should attract enough fresh meat to keep them in business for a while yet.
MOS Burger
Previously, I had noticed a MOS Burger in the neighborhood but took little interest. After getting my feet wet with one failed burger reinterpretation, however, it seemed right to give the Asian burger another try at a more reputable establishment. MOS Burger is a Japanese chain which has done considerably well for itself: it is presently the largest fast-food franchise in Japan after McDonald's and has served as a trailblazer in catering to Asian palates. In 1987 MOS introduced the Rice Burger, which substitutes structurally questionable rice and millet patties for the usual wheat bun; teriyaki, wasabi, and octopus options soon followed. A recent partnership with another Asian fast-food mogul, Mister Donut, gave rise to the "Donut Burger," which wasn't available at this particular branch.
I settled for the regular MOS Hamburger, looking for a taste of the familiar and expecting something akin to the unembellished McDonald's standby. Alas, the patty was thin and tasted not dissimilar to a frozen meat byproduct I once sampled at Costco. Accompaniments were a thick tomato-mayonnaise goop involving minced sautéed onion, some kind of lettuce slaw and an enormous slice of raw tomato. None did much to liven things up; the burger was too sweet and tomato-heavy for my taste. I would probably have done better to try one of the wackier MOS burger derivatives.
Mary's Hamburger
Disheartened, I decided to visit a local landmark called Mary's Hamburger, which I recalled visiting once as a child. As proudly stated on its exterior, Mary's opened shop in 1979: a boast less impressive in the eighties but nowadays enough to merit street cred. Back in that day, as the story goes, American G.I.s shared their burger-making knowledge with the restaurant's founder. Since then several dozen classic American diner options have been added to the menu, and thanks to its proximity to Taipei American School, Mary's attracts a steady stream of expats and edgy Taiwanese youth eager to renounce tradition. I had high hopes for this burger.
The bun, to be fair, was surprisingly pleasurable—obviously toasted on the grill with a generous amount of butter, soft and yielding like a potato roll. The beef patty, unfortunately, was overdone and flattened to the point where no significant amount of juice could be retained. A handful of pale iceberg and several rounds of raw onion served as garnish. Verdict: acceptable for an overseas mess hall, but unlikely to transport a homesick G.I. into blissful reverie.
There are apparently several halfway-decent hamburger joints in Taipei, which have received mixed reviews online from A Hungry Girl's Guide to Taipei and Taiwanfun.com. If you're an American eater in Taiwan and desperate for something that tastes like home, Evan's Burger, California Grill, or The Diner could be worth a try. Or maybe not. Admit stooping to visit a McDonald's while abroad and you might attract the derision of certain seasoned travelers, but in Taipei, those reliable golden arches may be your best bet.
Related
One of the Best Burgers I've Had in Asia at Hanoi's My Burger Mỹ
Dear AHT: Octopus Burger from Mos Burger in Taiwan
Snapshots from South Korea: Burgers from Lotteria
Rounding Up the 'Goddamn Awful Burgers' of Taipei
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13 Comments:
I love Einstein's endorsement of the 3" burger :P
I've heard great things about Mos...you oughtta try the rice burger.
Too bad about Mary's too...that bun does look really good to me...maybe get like a 5 patty burger?
Eating The Road at 10:27AM on 11/05/09
Oh wow, those look nasty!
Burger365 at 10:30AM on 11/05/09
oh noooo! that's too bad.
i'm making the trip over new years, but admittedly am mostly excited about the street carts and bakeries and bottarga. it's what tastes like home to me.
okcheddar at 12:00PM on 11/05/09
Geesch, why doesn't someone open a real burger joint there? You'd be very successful if this is your competiton.
jkdrummer at 12:24PM on 11/05/09
McD may be less than reputable in the burger eating community here, but in Taiwan, it's actually very acceptable. Prices last time I went (which is quite a few years ago now) were pretty good.
I only went because some friends with me really like McD. Otherwise, I stick with the local food.
@jkdrummer: Asian perception of what a burger is probably makes these places successful even if they don't seem like good burgers to our palates. A real burger place may end up being popular with Western tourists, but not necessarily successful. Still, probably worth a try. Or maybe it has already been tried.
wunami at 1:51PM on 11/05/09
aiya you got such a high expectation that's why you got hurt. ouch. seriously, those "breakfast burgers" you got at Mary's Hamburger could be so many of people's childhood memory about Taiwan - they were tasty in that sense. Also, a big population in Taiwan does not even eat beef so yeah, don't expect too much when looking to eat good burgers there.
jczhadan at 2:01PM on 11/05/09
Disclaimer - My parents were born in Taiwan, and though I was born/raised in Chicago and currently live in NYC, I've been back to Taiwan more than a dozen times.
I'm probably just being prideful, but it was a bit disappointing that an AHT post would focus on finding American-style (too broad a category, I know) burgers in Taiwan. My first thought was, "wow, you went to Taiwan and wasted three meals!" Frankly I bet you were spot-on about the burger reviewed at MOS; I wouldn't know though, because ordering that at MOS is like ordering thin crust at Lou Malnati's in Chicago - more Serious Fail than Serious Eats.
In defense of MOS Burger - from experience, not just info taken from Wikipedia - the rice bun is seared and crisped on the outside, creating a flavor profile similar to the prized "burnt rice" Bi Bim Bap fanatics love. It's far from "structurally questionable" once you try it, and is much better than dreaded Brioche buns at sopping up the delicious juices and sauces. We're all probably more used to the feeling of dry bread on our hands rather than rice, but the textural interplay is totally worth it. But heck, if you do find something even remotely resembling In-and-Out or Shake Shack in Taiwan, that would truly be worth reporting!
Your photography is gorgeous, your writing is enjoyable, and I'd love to see more about your more unique food experiences. I'm so envious of your travels! After all, my favorite thing about SE/AHT is that it brings me all the flavors and joys of different food/burger traditions around the world.
haappyhed at 4:22PM on 11/05/09
Okay I see the point of your review but you went into this with one fatal flaw: expecting to find "American-styled" burgers in Taipei. I haven't been to Mary's Hamburger or 3-Inch Mini Burgers so I can't speak on behalf of them. However, as for your MOS Burger experience, you completely got it wrong. People enjoy MOS Burger because of their Asian-styled burgers (the rice bun is quite amazing by the way) and not to eat anything remotely "American". What you ordered was essentially something no one goes there to eat, it's close to blasphemy. It's unreasonable to travel to a foreign country and expect to find what YOU know as a burger and call it a "comedy of errors" because it is different than what you have learned to be a hamburger, when in fact they aren't even trying to make "American" styled burgers.
kkyoung at 8:36PM on 11/05/09
@Eating The Road: I did end up trying a MOS shogayaki rice burger; China Airlines served them for breakfast during my flight back to the U.S. (see photo above) I decided against commenting on the burger itself, though, since after having been refrigerated and reheated as airplane food it was clearly not up to normal MOS standards. Like you, I've also heard many great things about MOS burgers - the next time I find myself in Asia, I'd be happy to write off my two experiences as unusual and give MOS another try.
@haappyhed: Thanks! My relationship with Taiwan is similar to yours - my mother was born in Taiwan and I spent many a childhood summer, as well as part of elementary school, in Taipei. As a rule, whenever I return for a visit, every square micrometer of stomach space is reserved for my grandparents' home cooking, tropical fruit, and Taiwanese street food... so this tour was a marked departure from my norm, instigated primarily by my encounter with those absurd mini-burgers.
I wish I'd known better than to try MOS' regular hamburger - from the sound of it, almost anything else on the menu would have been more satisfying - but at the time I intentionally ordered what an uninformed, displaced American might when searching for a hamburger that tastes like home. Given my preference for traditional Taiwanese food, my recent two-week visit was far too brief to accommodate a truly exhaustive burger roundup (I'm not a food writer and this trip was personal in nature), but in the future it might be interesting to seek out distinctively Asian re-conceptions of the burger.
@kkyoung: You're right, it's often foolish to expect familiar food to be prepared authentically in a foreign country. I was raised on homestyle Chinese cooking and if I went into a Panda Express here in the U.S. expecting similar, my soul would probably die a little.
Reasonable or no, for the purposes of this review I deliberately assumed the mindset of a homesick American looking for a regular burger. People who order Asian-style burgers expect to taste something interesting and unfamiliar, but a customer who orders a hamburger probably just wants a hamburger. Whereas the 3-inch mini-burgers don't pretend to be traditional and MOS rice burgers are a deliberate and successful departure from the norm, I'm pretty sure Mary's does attempt to make an "American" style burger, and when MOS offers an apparently standard "Hamburger" alongside its more imaginative entrées, I think it's fair to examine it according to Western standards.
I'll know better next time, though. ;)
Lee Anne Shaffer at 3:02PM on 11/06/09
Off topic slightly: After reading this fine review, the thought struck me - Do folks from other countries come here review our take on their food and then blog about it back home? It would be interesting to read what Mexicans or Italians for example, blog back home about the way their foods are served here, instead of the usual bickering amongst the local experts about what qualifies as authentic "insert your cuisine here".
Just a thought.
Great article by the way!
RossS at 11:21AM on 11/07/09
I've tried MOS on a number of occasions throughout Thailand recently - yes, great rolls, even the light rice-bun style which should be glutenous, wasn't - it was light and beautifully bouncy. Unfortunately the burgers have been bland, mealy and completely unremarkable - especially given the more-elevated price (vs McD, for instance). Frankly, it's dumb to focus on burgers in a land so rich with good food; I can wait until I hit the US.
JimInHolland at 4:35PM on 11/08/09
@RossS: Thanks! While writing this article I mused over the same question... and then realized that popular Americanized interpretations of foreign cuisine are often so off the mark that blogging about them - giving them any additional thought, really - would just be depressing. I know a good number of Chinese graduate students who don't ever eat out in the US; they prefer to cook traditional meals for themselves at home.
@JimInHolland: It's dumb, but sometimes those inane cravings hit one uninvited and with bizarre force. In my experience, it takes at least a couple months of living in a foreign country. Awhile ago I spent a year studying in China and although I love Chinese food and have a fairly adventurous palate, by the second semester I was desperate, seriously desperate, for American supermarket-style white sheet cake. You know, those two humdrum layers of yellow sponge, sandwiching bland vanilla custard and sagging under an inch of the kind of sickeningly sweet buttercream icing that crusts over slightly after sitting on the bakery counter for a day. I would've killed for a slice.
Anyway, your assessment of the MOS burger beef patty is spot on. Their Asian fillings are probably tastier - teriyaki chicken, yakiniku, unagi and the like.
Lee Anne Shaffer at 1:43PM on 11/09/09
I like this! More foreign burger reviews please. I bet they've cooked up some strange, mystifying combos in Japan for example... (hint, hint)
yakuzablitz at 7:32PM on 11/19/09