Yongkang Street (永康街, here) is one of the most popular food streets in Taipei. Its claims to fame include the original branch of Din Tai Fung and the supposed birthplace of mango shaved ice. There’s even a Taiwanese restaurant in New York City named after Yong Kang Street!
The street is just a few blocks west of Da’an Park, Taipei’s largest park. It stretches south from Dongmen MRT, with numerous excellent restaurants and a few souvenir shops. It eventually leads to a beautiful neighborhood of restored Japanese-era houses with some of the best traditional teahouses in Taipei and a diverse religious community.
Yongkang Street is a big hit among visitors. On a typical afternoon, the sidewalks will be clogged with them.
Yongkang Street Quick Visiting Tips
- Is Yongkang Street worth visiting? Yongkang Street is really just a normal street in Taipei that happens to have quite a few restaurants and a couple souvenir shops. Come for a meal, for don’t expect much more than that.
- Most restaurants are open for lunch and dinner. Don’t come in the morning or at night.
- For repeat access to the street, consider staying nearby. I had a great stay at Dongmen 3 Hostel (see on Booking / Agoda) and also highly recommend Dandy Hotel (see on Booking / Agoda), which overlooks Da’an Park.
Top-Five Musts on Yongkang Street
For a quick visit, here are my top-five absolute must-dos (and must-eats!) on Yongkang Street. I’ll describe each of these, and many others, in more detail below.
- Tian Jin Onion Pancake: Insanely tasty green onion cakes
- Lai Hao: Awesome Taiwanese souvenirs shop
- Yongkang Beef Noodles: One of the best in the city
- Smoothie House: Iconic shaved ice desserts
- Jing Sheng Yu Tea Shop: For Taiwanese tea tasting
How to Get to Yongkang Street
Getting to Yongkang Street is a breeze. From Dongmen MRT station on the red or orange line, take exit 5. You can’t miss the MRT exit, as the walls of it are emblazoned with advertisements for heaping mounds of mango shaved ice.
From the exit, walk straight along Xinyi Road (in the direction of Taipei 101) for 20 meters. The first lane on the right is Yongkang Street. My self-guided food tour of Yongkang Street below will start here, with a few dining options on either side of Xinyi Road before you actually enter Yongkang Street.
Pro Tip: There isn’t much on Yongkang Street for breakfast. Instead, try these famous breakfast shops elsewhere in Taipei.
A Foodie Tour of Yongkang Street
Now I’m going to introduce ALL THE YUMMY THINGS on (and around) Yongkang Street, for serious foodie visitors. There will be more than you can try on a single visit, so pick and choose, or plan to make return visits.
Before you veer down Yongkang Street from the MRT exit on Xinyi Road, there are a few noteworthy dining options on either side of Xinyi Road itself (see the pins at the top of the above map).
Din Tai Fung Xinyi (鼎泰豐信義店, here) is the original branch of Taiwan’s most famous restaurant. The restaurant is famous for its xiaolongbao (soup dumplings), each perfectly prepared on site with exactly 18 folds.
The branch has received a Michelin Bib Gourmand award in the past, while a Hong Kong location of Din Tai Fung has even received a Michelin star (impressive considering the restaurant’s affordability, as far as Michelin restaurants go!)
The chain is now found in several countries in the world, but the Xinyi branch, just a few steps past the entrance to Yongkang Street, is the first one. It’s actually smaller than it used to be and only offers take-out now.
The newer Xinsheng branch (鼎泰豐新生店, here) across Xinyi Road and two blocks east) is much larger and has lots of seating.
Besides Din Tai Fung, you can find a few other excellent Chinese restaurants in the area.
You may also want to read my similar self-guided food tours of Taipei’s Burma Street, Shengkeng stinky tofu village, Addiction Aquatic seafood market, and my Ximending dining guide!
Toasteria Café Yongkang (吐司利亞), at the entrance to the lane just east of Yongkang Street, is the largest and coziest branch of one of the best Western restaurants in Taipei.
Originally focusing mainly on toasted paninis, the menu has expanded to include various Mediterranean and Middle Eastern dishes, plus a decent range of cocktails and sangria. There are multiple floors of seating with a very cozy interior.
Xiaonanmen Traditional Bean Curd (小南門傳統豆花東門店, here) is another chain restaurant. This is a go-to spot for douhua (dessert tofu) and other traditional Taiwanese savoury dishes like braised pork rice (滷肉飯 or luroufan) and sticky rice pudding (筒仔米糕 or tongzai migao).
It’s directly across Xinyi Road from the main entrance to Yongkang Street.
Entering Yongkang Street, as you walk south, the first shop on your right will be Sunmerry Dongmen Shop (聖瑪莉東門店), a bakery with an attached shop selling Taiwanese souvenir snacks like pineapple cakes (see how these compare to other brands in my Taiwan pineapple cakes comparison test).
Hang a left on the first lane to find Chocoholic (here), which does desserts, drinks, and even savory meals all made with chocolate as an ingredient.
If you’re in the area at night and looking for an American-style craft brewery with welcoming staff, Zhang Men Brewing (掌門精釀, here) is one of the best craft beer bars in Taipei. It’s just a few steps to the right off Yongkang Street, down Lane 4.
This is one of the only reasons you might visit Yongkang Street later in the evening.
Tian Jin Onion Pancake (天津蔥抓餅, here) – if I only ate a single thing on Yongkang Street, it would be a green onion pancake (蔥抓餅 or cong zhua bing) from this stall, but I’m biased because it’s one of my favorite foods in the world.
While these things are pretty much always good no matter where you get them, this stall has definitely obtained “famous” status and has been pushed HEAVILY by influenced types in recent years, so you should expect a long line of tourists here.
The stall opens officially at 9 AM, but I’ve been served as early as 8:00, while the lady boss is setting up. It’s at the front of a popular Vietnamese restaurant called Thanh Ky (誠記越南麵食館).
The options on the menu are original (原味), with egg (加雞蛋), with egg and Asian basil (九層塔加蛋), with ham and egg (火腿加蛋), with cheese and egg (起司加蛋), everything (總匯), corn (玉米), and corn with cheese (玉米起司蛋). I personally recommend asking for a customized egg, basil, and cheese (九層塔加蛋加起司). You’ll thank me later.
You’ll also have to indicate whether you want spicy sauce.
Yongkang Park, a little further down the street (we’ll get to it below), is the perfect spot to enjoy your green onion pancake, with trash cans and free public washrooms for washing your hands if needed.
After Tian Yin, turn right down lane 6 to find Lai Hao (來好, here), one of the best places to buy souvenirs in Taipei. The two-floor shop is chock full of cute souvenirs, ranging from postcards and teas to traditional handbags and decorations.
Note that Lai Hao has two other locations – one near Taipei Main Station and one in Ximending, but the Yong Kang location is the best.
Just past it is Dongmen Dumplings (東門餃子館, here), a popular dumpling, pot sticker, and hot and sour soup shop, but most tourists will bypass it in favor of the next entry.
One block further down Lane 6 from Lai Hao souvenir shop is the extremely famous Yongkang Beef Noodles (永康牛肉麵, here). Some say this is one of the best beef noodle shops in Taipei, but opinions on this will vary wildly.
Of the beef noodles shop I shortlisted for my article, it is definitely the one that attracts the most tourists. When I last visited, there was a long line of people outside, mostly Asian (but non-Taiwanese) visitors. But the beef noodles still legit, not to mention several other tasty items on the menu!
After Yong Kang Beef Noodles, head back to Yong Kang Street for dessert.
Yongkang Street used to have several dessert shops specializing in mango shaved ice, and the street was especially known for it. However, some of them closed during COVID and there are only a couple left today.
Smoothie House (思慕昔本館, here) now stands out as the most famous one, especially since they’ve put up massive ads lining the walls of Dongmen MRT Exit 6, displaying their range of mountain-sized shaved ice desserts.
You can even pre-order your Smoothie House dessert here.
Personally, I still recommend the original classic, Mango Snowflake Ice with Sorbet (芒果). “Snowflake Ice” refers to xue hua bing (雪花冰), a delicious sorbet-like base made of multiple thin layers of shavings from flavored ice.
The mound is then topped with real mango chunks, mango ice cream, mango syrup, and sweetened condensed milk. It’s TWD 250 for one, which is easily shared among 3-4 people (don’t try to tackle one on your own!)
Smoothie House has other variations of the mango dessert that come with various QQ (chewy) balls, as well as strawberry raspberry, matcha, oolong tea, and tiramisu versions. It sometimes opens several hours later than indicated on GoogleMaps, especially in first few days of the week or on rainy days.
Tucked into an alcove right behind Smoothie House, Taro King (芋頭大王, here) offers a similar (but not quite as large and over-the-top) range of ice desserts and has been running since 1976. Their Mango Sorbet Snowflake Ice is a little simpler and cheaper (TWD 190) than the one at Smoothie House (actually, I prefer it), but you’ll still need at least 2-3 people to finish one.
Besides the snowflake ice desserts, Taro King also has a full menu of more traditional Taiwanese desserts like seasame tangyuan (芝麻湯圓), red bean soup 紅豆湯, baked mochi (紅燒麻糬), and ginger douhua (薑豆花).
Across the street from the two dessert shops, Yongkang Street Xiaolongbao (永康街小籠包, here) is a narrow, hole-in-the-wall stall offering delicious soup dumplings. It has been running for over 40 years. Watch for the steaming baskets.
Just at the start of Yongkang Park (see below), turn right down Lane 8 to find Jing Sheng Yu Tea Shop (京盛宇, here), one of the best places to buy tea in Taipei. The owners are very friendly and helpful.
There you can get free samples and learn about Taiwan’s various teas. You can enjoy a pot of tea on the spot or buy some of their cute tea boxes to take home.
Yongkang Park (永康公園) is a small triangular park running along Yongkang Street. With several benches and other places to sit, it is ideally situated for enjoying your take-away treats.
There are also trash bins and a bathroom. Also note the Chiang Kai-shek head statue, once present at every park in the country.
Fucheng Tainan Restaurant (府城台南美食, here) right at the start of the park specializes in, as the name suggests, food from Tainan in Southern Taiwan. It’s cheap, authentic, and understandably popular among locals.
Down lane 10 from the park, Rakumenya YongKang Restaurant (樂麵屋永康店, here) is the best spot for Japanese-style ramen on Yongkang Street.
You order your ramen on an iPad (besides the dish itself, you’ll need to choose the noodle thickness, how cooked you want the noodles, and soup intensity. I really liked the fried shrimp wontons that my choice was topped with.
A few doors down from the ramen shop, Yong Kang Sliced Noodles (永康刀削麵, here) makes their own sliced noodles (刀削麵 or dao xiao mian) in house. They are the perfect level of chewiness, and can be ordered in a variety of soups or sauces, including beef soup, tomato beef soup, hot and sour soup, and with sesame sauce (麻醬麵). The latter option is vegetarian/vegan.
Sin Yuan Teahouse (沁園茶莊, here) on Yongkang Street across from Yongkang Park is a high-end teashop selling tealeaves and some gorgeous teaware. There are cheaper places to buy tea in Taiwan, but you can expect nothing but high quality and service here.
Also facing the park, Yi Pin Ramen and Sliced Noodles (台灣一品 拉麵與刀削麵, here) is another sliced noodles shop, while Lu Sang Restaurant (呂桑食堂, here) is popular among locals, serving traditional Taiwanese fare.
At the southern end of the park, if you hang a right on Lane 14 and walk two blocks, you can spot Taipei Taiwan Temple (here) a Mormon Temple, but one of the more unique temples in Taipei.
Around here, there’s also an excellent little sushi shop that I recommend called Yóu Sushi (游壽司麗水店, here). It’s omakase-style, which means there chef will decide on a set menu each day.
Continuing south along Yongkang Street past the park, you’ll reach Hao Kung Chin Chi Yuan (好公道金雞園, here). Like Din Tai Fung but far lesser known, this shop is also Michelin-approved and specializes at xiaolongbao and other dim sum dishes.
You could consider this a cheaper and more down-to-earth alternative to Din Tai Fung, but their xiaolongbao aren’t quite as good. According to one reader of this article, they also have some of the best fried chicken in Taipei.
When I first arrived in Taiwan in 2008, Lonely Planet Taiwan listed James Kitchen (大隱酒食) as one of the best Taiwanese restaurants in Taipei, and that still holds today.
There it still stands, with its atmospheric old-time interior, and serving up classic items like century eggs, bamboo, stuffed tofu skin, deep fried oysters, clams with loofah, and braised pork rice. There are also several sakes on offer.
Another great local noodle restaurant in the area is Hanji Tiger Noodle (韓記老虎麵食館, here).
The restaurant serves a variety of noodle dishes, and the noodles themselves are super springy and delicious. There are also various small sides to choose from.
Do you prefer to enjoy your coffee in the presence of a furry feline? Then CAT.jpg (貓圖咖啡, here) is a cat café just off Yongkang Street on Chaozhou Street (潮州街).
There’s only one cat in house, often sleeping on the bar by the espresso machine. So if you want the full cat café experience, you’ll want to try one of these other cat cafes in Taipei. This café is very quiet, as most people go there to study, so it’s not suitable for kids.
Yong Kang Street dead ends at Lane 33 Lishui St., but the neighborhood to the south is atmospheric and worth exploring, with large trees forming a canopy over the streets, a rarity in Taipei.
Several lanes (2-12) veering east and west off Qingtian Street (青田街, here) contain some of the most beautifully preserved Japanese-era houses in Taipei, several of which housed Japanese professors at the time.
A few have been converted to lovely traditional teahouses.
Qingtian Teahouse (青田茶館, here) is one such teahouse, which I highly recommend due to its gorgeous traditional setting. You’ll need to pay for the gorgeous setting, though. A pot of tea starts at TWD 450, but can be shared and you can sit and enjoy it for hours.
Right next door and every bit as stunning, He He Qingtian Teahouse (和合青田) offers a tour of the premise and guided tea brewing in a tatami mat room for TWD 600 per person (advance reservation required, call 0223210055).
Qingtian 76 (青田七六, here) is another similar option, offering meals in an old and beautifully renovated Japanese-era home.
The area around Qingtian Street is also home to numerous religious buildings of various faiths, including Taipei Grand Mosque, Taipei Peace Presbyterian Church, and the Mongolian and Tibetan Cultural Center.
For vegetarians looking for a feast, you can venture a little further south to Spring Vegetarian Restaurant (春天素食餐廳–台北大安店, here), a large and popular vegetarian buffet restaurant.
Go further south, and you would reach Shida Night Market, once one of the most popular night markets in Taipei.
To finish your tour, take a stroll to Da’An Park, the largest park in Taipei, or make your way back to Dongmen MRT station along the road one block east of (and parallel to) Yongkang Street.
Along it, there are several good coffee shops, including Café Kuroshio (咖啡黑潮), Saturn Landing Turkish Coffee, Caffè Libero (咖啡小自由), and Roaster Family Coffee (烘焙者咖啡).
There’s also a Mongolian Hot Pot restaurant (原風蒙古火鍋永康店) and a small, friendly sushi joint called Tsukiji Sushi (築地壽司) on the same road, which you’ll probably have to save for next time!