青島飯糰 — Restaurant in Zhongzheng District

April 2024 I want to mention that I only understand English and I got taken here by my Chinese-speaking relatives. We had just arrived from the airport and were looking for a place to eat that was open at 7am. This is a food stand located near exit M8 of the Taipei Main Station, next to the police station. They make fan tuan 飯糰, which is basically rolls of rice filled with a fried dough stick and various fillings. A very popular breakfast item.

It looks like all the toppings and stuff are pre-made somewhere else, and they make the fan tuans on site. Likely they stay open until they run out of ingredients. This place is very popular and there was a constant line while we were there. They are very quick to make your order, less than a minute for each roll. They do have some rolls that are premade that you can order too. But most of the fan tuans are made to order.

They have a menu with preset combinations. You can order a custom one with whatever fillings you want, but it will probably cost more. They offer vegetarian options. They also offer soy milk and black tea.

They only take cash, which is expected. I am unsure if they speak English. They are very quick, brisk, and business-like. Very typical food stall vendors.

The fan tuans are very delicious with a good amount of fillings for the price. The fried dough sticks are crispy and not too oily. Note that the rice may stick to the plastic bag.

All in all, very delicious for a good price. May come again if we're...

A small 飯糰(fantuan) vendor close to Taipei Main Station, known for its 紫飯(zifan - purple rice). Basically a savory burrito wrapped by rice!

Translation of menu (rousong = "pork floss"): original flavor (yuanwei rousong) - 30 green onion egg (congdan rousong) - 35 soy egg - hard-boiled egg marinated in soy sauce (ludan rousong) - 35 nori green onion egg (haitai congdan rousong) - 40 bonito flakes with egg (chaiyu dan rousong) - 40 bonito flakes (chaiyu rousong) - 35 everything (zonghe rousong) - 45 tuna egg (weiyu egg rousong) - 45 tuna (weiyu rousong) - 40

You can probably ask to take out ingredients, since they're made and wrapped on the spot. Within half a minute, the man who took my order had tossed together and wrapped my fantuan! I think they also have cups of tea and soy milk that you can purchase.

I got the 綜合肉鬆飯糰 (zonghe rousong fantuan - everything fantuan for NT$45) with purple rice: bonito flakes, tuna, crispy youtiao, pork floss, a layer of scrambled egg with green onion, pickled mustard greens. I like that the size of the fantuan isn't too large (a quick mid-sized breakfast), and how warm it is when it's freshly made. Holding it in my hands is really comforting. The purple rice is comparatively less sticky and more firm - I quite like it! The fresh youtiao has a wonderful crispness, balancing out the chew of the rice. Love the combination of flavors - not overwhelmingly salty, just...

A testament to Taiwanese zest for food - even a tiny, breakfast rice ball (it's like a burrito, wrapped in rice instead of tortilla wraps) stand receives media / TV food show coverage! So, if you ever wonder why there's a long line at this tiny stand - it is because QingDao is highly recommended by local food bloggers!

At less than NT40/rice ball, this is really a steal. Choose "white rice" wrap for softer texture, or choose the long-grain "purple rice" for a more chewy texture. You can choose from a large variety of fillings: pork meat floss, tuna, egg, marinated eggs - or be adventurous and just grab a...