Salad spinners at Costco

I saw a salad spinner at Costco yesterday. I didn't catch the brand of the spinner, but it was around NT$500. I bought a Tupperware salad spinner a few years ago and I don't know how I'd live without it. You can toss your washed lettuce in the spinner and it will completely dry the lettuce in just a few "spins." I've also thrown in things like washed mushrooms, spinach, etc., and it "dries them out" quickly.

Special Dark chocolate syrup at the EEC Filipino Store.

the EEC Filipino store (on Jhongshan N. Road) is the place to go for ice cream sundae toppings. Not only do they have caramel syrup, they also have Special Dark syrup. (for NT$79...a great deal!)

New chocolate-covered pretzels and three-cheese potato chips at Costco

I'm not sure if this is the exact brand of chocolate-covered pretzels that you can now find at Costco, but I do remember that the pretzels were coated in Special Dark chocolate. You can find big bags of these in the chip aisle.


And from personal experience, I highly recommend the Kettle Tuscan Three Cheese Chips, unless you're prone to eating an entire bag in one sitting, in which case you should stay away. These chips have a lot of pizzaz...as the bag reads, it's a "Mediterranean vacation in a bag."

Also, while you're there, pick up a German chocolate cake, which is likely a "limited-time only" dessert.

Market Cafe buffet in Tianmu---newly opened, and very tasty

It's been a long time since I've blogged, and there's a reason for that...I found out I was pregnant and couldn't stand to think or talk about food for a couple of months. But I'm doing much better now and am back to blogging. This past weekend, I tried the new Market Cafe buffet on Jhongshan N. Road in Tianmu, not too far from Wendel's. As you can see from the picture, they have both indoor and outdoor seating.

There are several buffets to choose from---a huge salad bar, a noodle bar, a Chinese-style hot pot bar, an Indian bar, and a dessert bar. During the week, you can pay for individual bars if you don't want the entire buffet. On the weekends, you have to purchase the entire buffet, which is NT$880. For a splurge, this is a great place to go if you want both Western and Eastern food.

One of the best parts of the salad bar is that you get to put your salad in a big bowl. (not on a tiny plate) And the chef will "toss" your salad if you want him to. The salad bar alone is worth the trip to Market Cafe. (I think the salad bar alone costs around NT$400 on weekdays)

Also, they have an ice cream and dessert bar, and they do the "Coldstone Creamery" thing with the ice cream. You can get your ice cream all mixed up on a cold slab and you can mix in things like nuts, chocolate sprinkles, cranberries (?), raisins (??), fudge, caramel syrup, whipped cream, etc. The ice cream was fantastic.

So next time you're in Tianmu, stop at Market Cafe. But bring your appetite.