Charming Taipei Taiwanese Tea House 戀戀台北茶屋

Northpoint City had been seeing quite a fair bit of updates in recent time; it does seem that Rocky Master had moved out of the premises that it used to have occupied within the mall, and that a new tenant had moved into the same space. It has been said that Charming Taipei Taiwanese Tea House 戀戀台北茶屋 had been operating for quite a while before we had spotted the establishment being there — we aren’t quite sure if these folks are actually related to WANt Food 恋恋湾味 Taiwanese Delights at Chinatown considering the nearly identical Chinese namesake of the two (2) establishments. With that being said, Charming Taipei Taiwanese Tea House does see their space being sliced into two (2) parts; the kitchen takes up one of the shop units that is located beside Skechers, while the dine-in space is located in the middle of the shopping aisle that is located beside the dine-in space of the Joe & Dough outlet there. Much works had been done to the dine-in area to make the space their own; the most obvious being the carpentry where the use of dark-coloured wood panels can be observed in place of the ones installed by the previous tenants. The menu is split across several sections; this would include the Ala-Carte, Snacks at Taipei! and Drinks — the drinks menu comprising of several tea / milk tea options apart from Coffee C and fresh fruit tea.

The best way to try the various dishes that Charming Taipei Taiwanese Tea House has to offer would be through their Luxury Bento Set menu where one can pot between several different mains and opt for their choice of sides and beverages to go along with — the set also comes with free vegetables; one being a salad with Goma dressing and the other being braised vegetables where one can request for a top-up if more of so is to be desired. We found ourselves going for the Pork Belly Bun + Small Lu Rou Fan Luxury Bento Set, whilst opting for the Tempura (Fish Cake) for our choice of sides and the Peach Oolong Milk Tea for drinks. The Small Lu Rou Fan here comes with pickled cucumber, braised meat, half a braised egg and short-grain rice; we thought that the Small Lu Rou Fan was adequately sized for smaller appetites and there was enough braised meat sauce to go around the rice — provided the rice with a good amount of moisture and flavour that makes it particularly easy to have. The braised meat comes diced into small pieces; the cut of the meat used being of a little fatty so there isn’t much effort required in chewing — pretty melt-in-the-mouth and carrying a note of sweetness from the braising liquid without any hint of an undesirable porky stench.

Meanwhile, the Pork Belly Bun is similar to that of the Gua Bao; one that comes with a slab of braised pork belly sprinkled with peanut powder and coriander sandwiched in between lotus leaf bun. Here, the braised pork belly carried the similar notes and textures that one would find in the braised minced meat that can be found in the Small Lu Rou Fan; the larger slab does mean that there is a meatier bite — all these were matched well with the fluffy lotus leaf bun and the slight nuttiness and sweetness stemming from the peanut powder. The addition of coriander helps to cut through the flavours of the braised meat and the meatiness of the Pork Belly Bun. The Tempura (Fish Cake) was pretty springy; coated with a light batter that delivered a slight crunch and came with a sprinkling of plum powder that helps to add umami-ness that made the Tempura really addictive for us; these were wiped out as quickly as they came. During our visit to Charming Taipei Taiwanese Tea House we also got to try the Oyster Intestine Mee Sua; we also opted for the Small portion size for this dish (they do offer a Large for their Mee Sua offerings as well). The Oyster Intestine Mee Sua does carry a savoury and briny note whilst the Mee Sua was also slurpy — while the flavours are on point, we do wish that the gravy could be a little starchier for a better consistency, while the oysters used could be a little fresher for a better bite. There was no English name given for the 戀戀豆花冰（珍珠小芋圓仙草豆花） on the menu, but it could be translated into “Charming Cold Beancurd”.

Featuring elements like Taro and Sweet Potato QQ Balls, Chin Chow, Chilled Beancurd and Tapioca Pearls, the 戀戀豆花冰 is an item that is similar to that of the Taiwanese-style desserts that are being served at establishments like Nine Fresh Desserts Taiwan — it is difficult not to love the smooth and silky beancurd and herbal jelly, whilst the tapioca pearls and Taro / Sweet Potato QQ balls helped to give a bouncy and chewy texture for a contrast; all that without being overly sweet. On first sight, Charming Taipei Taiwanese Tea House does seem to be a spot that is often misunderstood as being a little pricey — that is especially considering how they only prominently show the prices of the Luxury Bento Sets at the shopfront; these being priced from $17.80 to $20.80. That being said, there are also the rice and noodles dishes that one can opt for should one not require that much food, and the items in the ala-carte menu are priced from $8.80 to $14.80 which can be described as reasonable. Food quality is overall pretty decent at Charming Taipei Taiwanese Tea House except for some minor details like the freshness of the oysters which we felt could have been a little better. The folks at Charming Taipei Taiwanese Tea House probably do face some form of competition from the more established Feng Food that also serves up Taiwanese cuisine in the basement of Northpoint City, though we do find that the two seem to cater to rather different genres; one which we also would consider dining at especially if craving for Taiwanese cuisine whilst around Yishun.