Modern Toilet Restaurant, Taiwan: Drinking in Urinals

My friend from UP Los Banos (circa 2005) once told me that one of her dream dates is to have a candlelit dinner in the toilet. Who would've thought that her absurd idea will become a successful humorous business spin by 2006?! Read further.

One of the most popular things to do in Taiwan −a land where ingenuity's taken to different levels − is to dine in a themed restaurant. This, in fact, has become a part of most tourists' itinerary. You can choose among the many themed restaurants which are the following:
(1) Hello Kitty Kitchen and Dining
(2) Barbie Cafe - the first Barbie restaurant in the world. This is located near Hello Kitty Kitchen and Dining, so you may want to check both out when you're in the area. 
(3) Airbus A380 Restaurant - no turbulence dining in this airplane-themed restaurant ;p  
(4) Ninja Restaurant 
(5) DS Music Restaurant - hospital-themed restaurant. *Yes, i know! I don't know either, such a misnomer, eh?! ;p* 
I've heard they changed this to a Ninja Restaurant (see #4). Not 100% sure about this, though.    
(6) Deja vu Restaurant - magic-themed restaurant
(7) Jail - with reminiscences of the Nazis 
Gawd, I don't want to be reminded of the Holocaust. I am no way going here. boohoo 
But the most popular among all is...
(8) The toilet-themed restaurant known as Modern Toilet. 
**Note: (a) Most, if not all, themed restaurants have a minimum amount of order per person. You may want to ask about this especially if you're on a budget.
(b) Some of the abovementioned restaurants may be closed now. As well, there may be new themed restaurants.

Modern Toilet's novel concept has drawn people's attention. It has been featured everywhere in different platforms and has several chains now across Asia.  

We went to Modern Toilet's branch in Shilin. We were eyeing to go to their most popular store in Ximending, but we were always too famished leaving us to go to the nearest appealing, packed restaurant. *le sigh* I strongly suggest, though, that you go to Modern Toilet in Ximending since the place seems way prettier and bigger and its building has this huge toilet mounted on its wall.  

I knew we reached Modern Toilet when I saw this poop sign. ;p

Way up the restaurant

The interior in this branch is poorly decorated. Look at those wooden floors and partial tiled walls. Meh. 

On the contrary, the floors and walls are beautifully tiled in Modern Toilet Ximending. 

Modern Toilet Ximending is composed of 2-3 floors. Here in Shilin, it's just one floor and that's about it (see photo #4. That's the entire floor area). 

Modern Toilet goods available for purchase

And if you ask me about the food? Not impressive. You are merely paying for the fun experience and instagram-worthy moments. ;) 

● Ximending Store, Taipei

2F., No.7, Lane 50, Sining S. Rd., Wanhua District, Taipei City
AGAIN, I RECOMMEND THAT YOU GO HERE! ;p

Business Hours: (Last order by 9:00PM)

Weekdays: 11:30 AM – 10:00 PM

Holidays:　11:30 AM – 10:00 PM

TEL: 02-2311-8822

● Shilin Store, Taipei

No.184, Wunlin Rd., Shihlin District, Taipei City

Business Hours: (Last order by 9:00PM)

Weekdays: 11:30 AM – 10:00 PM

Holidays:　11:30 AM – 10:30 PM

TEL: 02-8861-4384

● Yijhong Store, Taichung

2F., No.101, Yijhong St., North District, Taichung City

Business Hours: (Last order by 9:00PM)

11:00 AM – 10:00 PM

TEL: 04-2223-2870

See all their locations in this LINK.

Taipei Trip: March 28 - April 1, 2013

About Modern Toilet: http://www.moderntoilet.com.tw/en/about.asp

Related Posts:

✿ Fun Taiwan: My Introduction to Taiwan and about our 1st day in Ximending ✿

- about Ximending, Ximending Night Market, Beauty Hotels Taipei's Hotel B6, Red House Theater, Mala Yuanyang Hotpot, pineapple cake for pasalubong, Shinjuku Plaza, and Taipei 101.

✿ Fun Taiwan: IKEA ✿

✿ Din Tai Fung's Xiao Long Bao ✿

✿ Hotel in Shilin: Starbeauty Resort Hotel ✿
✿ Shilin Night Market ✿
✿ Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall ✿

Tweet

Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall -Taipei, Taiwan

As with every trip we go to, we always make it a point to go to landmark (historical) places or watch a play to learn about the country's history and culture. To enumerate a few, we went to temples, visited Jim Thompson's house, and we also watched the A.MA.ZING Siam Niramit when we were in Bangkok, Thailand which is worth every penny. We also saw the highly-acclaimed Water Puppet Show when we were in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. In Singapore, we saw Songs of the Sea. Having a penchant for such, I actually felt bad when Nanta Show was removed from my itinerary when I was in Seoul, South Korea. Oh well. #unnecessaryremarks #needtoletthatoutthough #goodvibesonly ;'p 

In Taiwan, aside from Taipei 101, we also went to a famous landmark and monument which is the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall. This was built 5 years after the death of (the controversial leader) Chiang Kai-shek who ruled the Republic of China for 47 long years (1928-1975). A rule which involved martial law. Hence, he has both admirers and detractors.  

The 250,000 square meter "Liberty Square" where the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall is also houses the National Theater and the National Concert Hall which are an identical performing arts venue.

Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall's huge gate behind us.

The National Concert Hall... or is this The National Theater. I am not sure, hrhr.

89 steps that lead to the main entrance. 89 represents Chiang Kai-shek's age at the time of his death. 

The obligatory family photo

Chiang Kai-shek

Ceiling above the statue

I felt like an Emperor standing here. No wonder emperors and leaders that I see in Asian dramas, lol, choose to stand at higher posts. It's like the world is yours. Everything and everyone below looks so tiny. It was as if no one can stop you.

#sharelang

As you can see, that's the massive gate to Liberty Square in front and the identical building on its left and right −the National Theater and the National Concert Hall.

Is Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall a must see when in Taipei, Taiwan, you ask? I'd say... DEFINITELY YES! :-) Aside from being a historical landmark, it's super beautiful, picturesque, and relaxing here.

We rode the MRT again after our Chiang Kai-chek Memorial Hall visit.
Had a quick grub at this pizzeria we passed by while walking. i Pizza Wood Fired Pizza is the best!! We also had gelato. Haay, love going to places... to eat. :-p
i Pizza / iPizza Wood Fired Pizza is located at Shilin District, Chungshan N. Rd. Section 5, Lane 505.

Location	Just off MRT Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall Station
Operating Hours	Open Daily. Admission is free. 9:00 AM - 6:00 PM

Related Posts:

✿ Fun Taiwan: My Introduction to Taiwan and about our 1st day in Ximending ✿

- about Ximending, Ximending Night Market, Beauty Hotels Taipei's Hotel B6, Red House Theater, Mala Yuanyang Hotpot, pineapple cake for pasalubong, Shinjuku Plaza, and Taipei 101.

✿ Fun Taiwan: IKEA ✿

✿ Din Tai Fung's Xiao Long Bao ✿

✿ Hotel in Shilin: Starbeauty Resort Hotel ✿
✿ Shilin Night Market ✿
✿ Modern Toilet Restaurant ✿

Tweet

Din Tai Fung's Xiao Long Bao

We just ate a bit at IKEA (read post HERE) because we were saving our appetite for Din Tai Fung.

We had lunch in the original branch of Din Tai Fung to taste their world famous xiao long bao *slash* steamed pork dumplings *slash* soup dumplings. It is referred to as a soup dumpling because, yes, it is a dumpling with broth inside.

Technically, Din Tai Fung's xiaolongbao is a staple of Shanghainese cuisine, and not Taiwanese. Majority of the food that they actually serve are from Southern Mainland China. In the end, though, this does not matter. Din Tai Fung is proud to be born-and-bred in Taiwan and its rags-to-riches story all happened in Taiwan. source 

Din Tai Fung was among the Top 10 Gourmet Restaurants in the World in a 1993 article published by The New York Times —the only Chinese-run restaurant included in the list. It is also a Michelin starred restaurant. It is the only Taiwanese restaurant who has won a Michelin Star. #saymo 

This authentic Taiwanese restaurant has branches in other countries as well including Singapore (18 asdfghjkl branches in Singapore), Thailand, Australia (4 branches), China (22 branches), Hong Kong (3 branches), Indonesia (12 branches), Japan (13 branches), Malaysia (4 branches), South Korea (6 branches), and USA (5 branches). 

Picture with ma while waiting. Din Tai Fung's xiao long bao character right there! Cutie!

The many people of different nationalities waiting.
Their original branch in Xinyi is always the busiest.
I think we waited for approximately 30 minutes before our number was called.
The queue was really long, but it's worth the wait just because. *read on*

First thing to do when you get there is to reserve a table thru the wired-up waitresses outside the restaurant.
The waitress will then give you an order sheet. You place your order while waiting. Thank God!

Outside Din Tai Fung. Do you see Taipei 101? ;-)

First thing you'll see upon entrance: Din Tai Fung's open kitchen.
photo source

3 floors... ata. I forgot. ;-p
photo source

How to Eat a XiaoLongBao

I have no photo of the sauce with ginger slices.

Trivia: 
Din Tai Fung's xiao long bao's dough is folded 18 folds —no more, no less.

We had:
Spicy Pickled Cucumber
Stir-Fried Spinach with Bean Curd sheets
Pork xiao long bao (the original. their bestseller) 
Truffle and pork xiao long bao -my FAVORITE! I suggest you order this too! 
Anything with truffle oil is really, really good! Lagyan mo ng truffle oil ang egg, oh my golly wow, sobrang sasarap na! ;p
Vegetarian Mushroom Buns
Vegetable and Ground Pork Wanton Noodle Soup
They say their Crispy Golden Prawn Cake is good too.

Verdict:

I loved their truffle and pork xiao long bao. I have only tried Lugang Cafe's xiao long bao and I'd choose Din Tai Fung's xiao long bao in a heartbeat.
The food, generally, did not sweep me off my feet, though. After we ate parang "oh, ok, at least we finally tried Din Tai Fung's food".

I'd still give my "best restaurant we've eaten to during our stay in Taiwan" award to Mala Yuanyang Hotpot (see post HERE).

As if my remarks are highly valued and regarded. LOL.

Dining at Din Tai Fung meant for me as though I had a taste of Taiwan. 
So, whatever faults and overrated remarks it may have, Din Tai Fung still remains an icon in & of Taiwan. 

Location	No. 194, Sec. 2, Xinyi Road, Taipei City
Operating Hours	Mon - Fri	:	10:00 am - 9:00 pm
	Sat & Holidays	:	9:00 am - 9:00 pm
Website	http://www.dintaifung.com.tw/en/

Din Tai Fung is in Taipei 101 as well. Visit their website to know the location of its other 7 branches in Taiwan. 

Taipei Trip: March 28 - April 1, 2013

Related Posts:

✿ Fun Taiwan: My Introduction to Taiwan and about our 1st day in Ximending ✿

- about Ximending, Ximending Night Market, Beauty Hotels Taipei's Hotel B6, Red House Theater, Mala Yuanyang Hotpot, pineapple cake for pasalubong, Shinjuku Plaza, and Taipei 101.

✿ Fun Taiwan: IKEA ✿

✿ Hotel in Shilin: Starbeauty Resort Hotel ✿
✿ Shilin Night Market ✿
✿ Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall ✿
✿ Modern Toilet Restaurant ✿

Tweet

Coron, baby, Palawan

Who doesn't want to go to places? Scratch that, who doesn't want to visit NEW places and have that YEARNED for breath of fresh air! No one! N O  O N E! Weeks ago, together with two awesome girl friends, we had a swell time at Coron, Palawan for four days! *100 watt smile* 

I feel like I am a transformed being -someone carefree, energetic, and up to any (thinks twice) adventure -every time I walk in awe and get lost and giddy in foreign and unfamiliar street; this is one constant thing that travelling does to me which I find really healthy.

We arrived in primitive Busuanga airport past 4 in the afternoon. Let me take you to all the places we went to thru photos (warning: photo heavy) and captions and more rather informative blahs.

DAY 1: 

From the airport, we were fetched by a van to Darayonan where we lodged.
Darayonan has a pool!!! One of the cleanest swimming pool I swam in! Swimming in a pool never felt that good!! The water is clean and has the right temperature. It was neither hot nor cold! #notOA

5:30-6:30 PM: We were supposed to have a trek to Mount Tapyas, but we decided to couch our lazy bums.

We went to Maquinit Hot Springs right ahead instead (ahhh, very rejuvenating!!! Must visit!). The road going to the place is dark and scary as there are no lamp posts along the way. Any bad soul can harm and can kill you along the way without anyone knowing. You can scream all you want and try to get some help but to no avail, we had that sort of feeling and conversations while riding the tricycle. Good thing there are no NPAs and Coron is inhabited by good people only. According to a local, they hold a record of 0% crime rate. #howtrue

The water tasted salty and I thought that they use saline system. It was something unusual and I really thought that the salt was artificially induced to sanitize the water. But according to research, it is the only salt water hot spring in the Philippines. Ok. So, that explains why. Get ready to plunge in 40 degrees Celsius water.
Entrance fee: 150php for adults

After that, we had dinner at Kawayanan Grill. Do yourselves a favor, do not consider eating here. There are way way better choices (read further below).
The food was actually ok. I ordered sisig and I liked it. Nothing special, but again, I honestly liked it and finished a whole sizzling plate and would recommend their sisig. The thing is they have small servings and they are overpriced. So, no, thank you. 

[Just click on the link to see the photos. I didn't upload and show em to you here since the photos are dark and grainy.]

DAY 2:
We spent two or even three hours sailing and in the middle of our boat ride, we stopped (not once but twice!!!) due to some boat problems and it even drizzled! @%^%$#@!@#$%! Thank God the rain didn't pour or else it will be scarier.

Complementary hotel breakfast every morning!

Basically how each day in Coron started.

As usual, last birds to arrive.

Scaredy cats!
We were the only ones in the group who put our lifevests on, see.

First stop was Banana Island Resort where we had lunch. The beach/shore was stony. Bleech.
Entrance / environmental fee: 100php

CRABSSSSS!

Then, we went to Malcapuya Island. The water's soooo pristine and clean, and the sand is fine! We had a parcel of  the beach for ourselves. Some opted to go snorkeling; we stayed.
Entrance / environmental fee: 200php

We had dinner at Bistro Coron. I enjoyed my meal!! Herbed slices of meat with rice + extra rice! Most customers shared and finished a pizza and a pasta and looked really tempting! We were actually reminded of the food in Bonito's in Los Banos, Laguna.

DAY 3:
This is our most jam-packed day. We went to five tourist attractions. Unlike day 2, we had shorter boat rides and the weather was oh-so-perfect for the beach. Mr. Sun was smiling at us!

We fed fishes at Siete Pecados Marine Park. You stop (in the middle of the vast sea) at Siete Pecados to snorkel and marvel at what lies beneath. And there we were just swimming and pulled by kuya bangkero/guide around. ;P

Oha, lifevest + lifebuoy + kuya maneuvering us!!

Nothing spectacular. Not so much variety.

We went to Kayangan Lake next. It is dubbed as one of the cleanest lake in the Philippines. And wow, we passed through cluster of islands before we arrived at the jump-off point. It was breathtaking!! From there, we climbed up and down (300 steps, if my memory serves me right) huge slabs of stones.
Entrance / environmental fee: 200php

We stopped by a summit and marveled at the view.

There were small small fishes swimming around near the platform.

We also swam through a small cave. It was majestic!!! It was like there were blue lights below! I was a bit scared (closeted scarred) but it was really majestic inside! Look up and you'll see small amount of sunlight passing through walls of jagged limestones nearly rubbing each other. We were reminded of James Franco <33 127 hours.

We had lunch at Smith's Point Beach after. It is just a small paradise but it was our most serene beach stop. The sand was really really fine like powder, crushed polvoron fine!! The sand is not composed of crushed shells and really tiny stones like most white sand beaches we already consider remarkable, rather, its sand evenly disperses in water! AMAZINGGG! Finest one I've ever been too, thus far!

After few good minutes of having awesome swimming time at Smith's, off we went to Skeleton Wreck where a sunken Japanese ship can be seen. They say you can see it just by snorkeling, meaning, it is not that deep. We were actually wondering how a ship (ships are huge, right) sunk there when we have a vivid view, while at the boat, of the life below. Instead of snorkeling, we fed fishes. We were adventurous like that, lelz! There were more variety of fishes here compared to Siete Pecados Marine Park.

See those big floating balls there? Below that mark is the ship.

Them snorkeling around

While we opted to stay dry under the sun and just fed fishes.

See, there are more various pretty fishes here than in Siete Pecados Marine Park.

Last in our itenerary was Twin Lagoons. It was low tide when we visited, and so we passed underneath a cave with pointy edges that can cut your skin, so you better be careful. The water here is really really strange! One moment the water is cold, and the next it is warm! I am not kidding! Just few tiny, really few tiny moves and paddles and the water temperature changes. Awesome, at the same time, pretty strange. They say it is because of the current. You must visit it and experience for yourself!!

Entrance fee: 100php per lagoon. Yes, they're twin but you have to pay separately. We just went to one lagoon.

Drop off point

Passed through that small opening down there to get to the lagoon!
all photos of Twin Lagoon from Google images


We had dinner at Manneken Pis and bam, best dinner in Coron!!!!!! It is where I tasted the best bread in the entire world!!! I am not a bread person. I am actually a rice over bread (sandwiches, burgers) person, but I can be a convert if only I get to have their loaf every single freakin' day!!! Its slices are bigger than the typical pan available in the groceries. The size got me overwhelmed, but when I took a bite with my bacon and egg, @#$%^&*(*&^%$#, there was heaven in my mouth!!!!!!! Every munch was heaven in my mouth, sex in my mouth, and what have you! I MISS MANNEKEN PIS! They can (must) put up a branch in the city and I am damn sure that they will have lots of patrons *count me in*.

The place is nicely interiored and it's cozy inside. They have free wi-fi, some were actually bringing their laptops with them. The meals are really affordable albeit not compromising the quality and taste. Promise me you'll eat here when you visit Coron, Palawan!!

THE BEST!!! THE BEST!!! THE BEST!!!
Two sunny side ups, bacon strips, and the winner bread slices!!!

Lim's! She didn't finish this. Not sure if this one was good!

V's! Ahhh, their bread!! And you can tell with its taste that they use good ham! Affordable yet quality!

DAY 4:
Last day was allotted to scour the market and souvenir shops to buy pasalubong!
And well, pack our things up.

Last breakfast in Darayonan! Last brecky in Coron!

We had lunch at Coron Village Lodge

Yummehhh bulalo!

available @ Coron Village Lodge Souvenir shop

Mode of transportation there

Bought danggit in the public market.

Thank God there's Zagu in/near the public market to quench the heat!! It was soooo hot that day!

At the airport where terminal fee is just 20PHP!!! Dapat lang!:

Had latte while waiting for the plane

Bbye, Coron!!

In case you want to know, we availed of a package tour inclusive of hotel accommodation, 3 hotel breakfast (2nd till 4th day) and 2 lunch (2nd and 3rd day), and boat rentals and tours.
Environmental fee to all beaches and other tourist attractions, dinner, snorkel rental, and air fare (I think we got ours for 876 pesos each two-way already) are excluded from the package. 

We shelved out roughly 8,000 pesos each for this tour.  

WHEN: November 14-17, 2011
Yes, pretty late post! ;P
Some photos from Leemae (fish eye!!) and Vea

      

Tweet