On our holiday in Taiwan last year, we arranged to have a degustation style dinner at a place called Da Shan Wu Jia, located in Xindian county in suburban Taipei (GPS coordinates 24.951303,121.574811). I'd first read about it here and filed it away under "places to eat during holidays".
We made a booking by calling ahead before our holiday began, anxious not to miss the experience. Da Shan Wu Jia (literally "priceless big mountain") is a fairly small restaurant with only 6 large tables. We had no problems squeezing our group of 13 into one of these tables. The 10 course meal was very reasonably priced at NT$1100 and is partly based on seasonal ingredients but there are some items which are basically constant.
We turned up at the restaurant after catching a train to Xindian from Taipei Central, and then a taxi. Some of our group took a taxi from Taipei directly and despite it being rush hour, managed to get there just ahead of us. The taxi ride only takes 40 minutes or so and costs not much more than the train fare plus the cost of the local taxi.
The decor is clearly Japanese inspired (with tatami mats, lanterns and dark wood) but thankfully had proper tables and (bench) seats. It was a pity we arrived a bit late in the day as the restaurant is set in a stunning mountain forest backdrop with a beautifully maintained garden as well. (Tip: turn up early to be able to enjoy the scenery before dinner). The restaurant was only about a quarter full, which we guessed was due to it being a weekday.
The first item was a red wine jelly - very nice!
Followed by tofu topped with pine nuts, a berry and a bit of wasabi.
Next a scallop based soup.
Sashimi on a salad bed.
Couldn't recall what this was but it was great!
Another soup.
Grilled prawns.
Mushroom Rice
Another soup with a water lily on top. It was fascinating to watch the dried lily magically unfolding in the soup !
And finally, dessert.
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