I was recently introduced to this eatery house that serves AUTHENTIC Taiwanese food. The place was particularly famous for their Mi³-Tai²-Mu⁴, a sort of rice noodle. While I can understand why restaurants serving foreign cuisines change and adapt to suit the local taste buds, I appreciate and prefer restaurants that stick to the original favours and taste.

One of the restaurant’s signature dishes: Stirred-fried Mi-Tai-Mu. Yummy… A MUST try!! (RMB 16)

They have many ways to cook and serve Mi-Tai-Mu. This is the dry Mi-Tai-Mu and they do have Mi-Tai-Mu soup.  A simple but authentic dish. (RMB8)

The famous Taiwanese Lu-Rou-Fan – Stewed Meat Rice – (RMB 6). Don’t be fooled by this photo. The serving is quite small though. The braised tiny pork pieces spreading over the steam rice, and are sprinkled with braised meat souce which often accompanied with radishes and pickles. The tasty braised pork rice will keep you wanting seconds!

It’s fun coming here and listen to the Taiwanese owner blah-ing out Chinese terms in their Taiwanese accent.

Instead of “Lu-Rou-Fan“, they say “Lu-Lou-Huang“. Instead of “Yiu-Dou-Fu“, they say “Yiu-Do-Hu“.

“Yiu-Do-Hu“, (RMB 8): one of my favourite dishes.  A bowl of rice….  Some hot steaming braised tofu and I’m good… They are cooked in a braised souce made with special Chinese herbal ingredients. With a strong herbal scent, this tofu have a special taste that is like none other.

Another signature dish: Oriental stuffed chicken roll (RMB 16). Basically, it is minced chicken meat and some water chestnuts wrapped in bean curd skin and fried together – just the thing to get the stomach rumbling.

Try the Taiwanese Sausage as well (RMB 18). I could smell the sausage across the room before the waitress even delivered the plate to our table. The slices of garlic adds just a touch of spiciness to the dish.

The restaurant is very small and are only about 5 tables. It looks like Taiwanese style “xiao chi” and tea house. Couple of Taiwanese linger over some snacks at simple square dark wood tables as Taiwan channel news play on the wall mounted plasma tv. When we got there at 1pm, it was crowded and there were no empty seats.

The owner cum chef is a Taiwanese grandma.  Many Taiwanese dine there to fulfill their craving for authentic home-made dishes.

The eatery is named after its signature dish, Mi-Tai-Mu. The rice noodle is hand made and the ingredients are imported from Taiwan according to the chef. For dessert, you can try their Ice Mi-Tai-Mu, which rather unique. Unfortunately, we were not able to try this dessert as the restaurant have finished selling their last bowl.

Aside from these dishes we ordered above, the menu has O-ah-jian (Oyster Omelet), fried drumstick rice, fried calamari ball, braised egg, braised pork knuckles, variety of soups and more…

ALL food are served without MSG!!

Address: No.158 Zi-Teng Lu, Minhang.

Delivery: 34315456
Opening hours: 10:00am – 12:00am

Popularity: unranked [?]

A lot of people are talking about how the financial crisis is affecting China. But today, which also happens to be Valentine’s Day, a trip to Ikea would have you think otherwise. The place is jam packed. The food section is doing very well. In fact, so well that the cashiers can’t seem to stop collecting money. Inside, it gets worst. Too many people pushing empty trolleys… if you are only buying some bulbs and body lotion, use the bag, not the trolleys!! And if you are going to use the trolley, please try not to stop in the middle of the aisle to make a phone call!

Out on the streets, there are so many “movable stalls” side by side selling roses and teddy bears. In fact, these stalls are just bicycles loaded with flowers and banquet of cute tiny bears. Not sure how much they cost but they are probably not cheap. When you ask them how much the roses cost, they will asked you back how many of them do you want!

I have seen people selling these kind of teddy bears before last year at Valentine’s day. Did not see any one carrying one of these huge teddy bears though. The stall owners will probably stow them away in some corner after today, dust them clean next year and sell them again.

Popularity: unranked [?]

The start of a new year is often a time of reflection on the past year, as well as a time to look forward to the year ahead. Here’s a summary of my 2008:

• January 2008

Shanghai was blanked with thick white snow. This was a series of snow storms that affected large portions of central and southern part of China, the worst winter storm in five decades!

Shanghai Financial Center finally completed, was planned to be the tallest building in the world when it was first designed before Taipei 101 popped out.

We arrived in Malaysia, my In-Laws place to celebrate CNY. We booked AirAsia, an award winning Malaysia budget airline who just launch it’s first flight from Hangzhou to Kuala Lumpur.

• February 2008

My first time giving Hong Bao during CNY!

There were rumors saying that Microsoft intent to buy Yahoo! for $44.6 billion.

• May 2008

Superman spotted in Shanghai metro.

7.8 magnitute quake hit Sichuan province, was worried and can’t contact my sis, a former Beijing Expat in Chengdu.

The Olympic torch is finally in town, and the Goverment warn foreigners to carry passport around Shanghai. Pudong International airport new terminal was completed for the summer games.

• June 2008

After Superman spotted in Shanghai metro last month, here comes “Man in Pink“.

Was traveling and manage to update the latest airport shuttle bus schedule in Pudong airport.

There’s a new icon in Pudong, a supertall skyscraper was approved for construction and scheduled to be complete in 2010, might be in time for the 2010 World Expo.

It was Bill Gates’s last day in Microsoft.

There were rumors said Disneyland will be build in Shanghai in 2012?

• July 2008

The construction of Beijing National Stadium aka The Bird Nest is completed. The design was lead by Pritzker Prize winning architects. While the whole China is concentrated on Olympic, Shanghai has launched World Expo exhibition at HuaiHai road.

It was super hot in Shanghai but I love to shop in these English bookstore. I dreamed I’m pregnant and encounter some weired stuff, the crazy guy giving speach in subway, people ate lychee and spit the seed back to the basket of lycee selling in Carefour, the disgusting toilet theme restaurant, and another weirdo in Shanghai metro.

Visited Chengdu Giant Panda Breeding Research Base and the cuddly bears were unaffected by the May 12th devastating earthquake.

• August 2008

Olympic flame finally reach Beijing. There are places that provide big screens for people to watch Olympic, and for those who would like to watch it online. We were at Nanjing Lu and after that proceed to Xintiandi. Liuxiang limped away from race…

Shanghai ranked #27 for the most expensive cities in the world where I renew my Chinese Visa and bought a Nokia E71, feel regret and thought of orphan sponsorship.

• September 2008

Went to Maldives for our Honeymoon and have lots of fun. We received a free underwater disposable camera and a surprise by Malaysian Airline. I get to design my own t-shirt, and we snorkeled in the middle of the Indian Ocean! Can’t believe I’m back to Shanghai again…

• October 2008

Marks & Spencer finally open its door in Shanghai Nanjing Road. Unfortunately an accident happened on the 4th day of their opening.

My mom visited us in China, attended 2008 China food festival and met our friend – Panda at the research center.

Update Pudong International airport long distance bus schedule.

Another weirdo in Shanghai metro – Mummy.

• November 2008

I turned 30 years old and celebrate our 1st wedding anniversary!

• December 2008

Wrote down my personal goals of the month and found out something is wrong… and China SMS scam got me crazy…

Updated this blog to Wordress 2.7. It has cool interface and I love it very much!

I was interviewed by Cebu Pacific Air about views on Shanghai.

Before the final few minutes of 2008 is over, I have to say, to all my true friends and families who stood by me when I needed you most, thank you. To all my business associates, thanks for the precious opportunity to work with you. To all my readers whom I never met and whom I met, thank you for reading my blog and I appreciate it.

Goodbye 2008!

Happy new year people!!

Popularity: 52% [?]

I’m sick of this SMS thing! I received many of them, from donate money for a good cause, or call the bank at a number they provided to confirm that you have spend XXX amount of money a few days ago, or call a number if you are interested in getting a loan at low interest rates, to miscellaneous lucky draw… whatever!! Another SMS scam that I received this afternoon… The scams tries to get you to respone to their message. Once you call back, they will try to work their charm to convince you to part with your money!

Translation:
“I am leaving today. I thought about it for a long time but still could not find the courge to call you. Call this number 125905869 and press 1 to listen to the song I have dedicated to you. There is a message for you at the end of the song. Do not call this number to find me as I borrow this phone from someone else.”

Popularity: unranked [?]

This happens in the city of Shanghai when a Chevrolet Captiva driver left the tow truck driver in despair! After much arguing, the poor truck get towed by Chevrolet in Shanghai… lol. Lesson learned, don’t argue with a Shanghainese girl…

Popularity: unranked [?]

It reminds me of this post I wrote. What do you think when you look at this photo? It worth a thousand words…

Popularity: unranked [?]

I often go shopping for groceries at the nearby local Tesco and Carrefour outlets and I hate playing bumper car game with the locals. Occasionally when I intend to buy more or bigger stuff, I would like to use the shopping cart. Otherwise, I usually use the shopping basket provided. While you can easily find shopping baskets at the entrances, the same thing cannot be said about the carts. Don’t get me wrong. It is not that the shopping outlets do not have carts. In fact, there are LOTS of carts. If you are fortunate enough to find one, it is a nightmare navigating it through the masses of carts inside. While at the cashier, many of the carts have only a few items in it. Why do you need such a big cart while you only have 3 items to buy? Some of the Chinese mainland put their shopping baskets into their carts!?!? Grocery in the basket, basket in the carts. So clever! No wonder I can’t find any carts when I need them.

Back to navigating your carts in the supermarket; it is worse than driving around in Shanghai. It is really a result of some bad habits and “Who cares” attitude that the locals have. I absolutely hate it when some of them leave their carts in the middle of the pathway. One minute, they are pushing and pulling their carts. The next minute, they spot something interesting, leave their carts behind, and simply walk off to take a look. They can left their carts at the head of the pathway while they are looking at stuff at the end of the pathway. Amazing…

The other annoying thing is that they like to pull their carts along, instead of steer their carts. When you pull your cart along with one hand, it tends to move away from you. Not only does it block the whole pathway, the cart also hit other people, which can be very painful. The cart handles are designed so that you PUSH, not PULL!! When you push, you have a clear sight of where your trolley is moving. When the Chinese mainland pull their carts, it is like the blind leading the blind.

Very often, some will push their carts and unknowingly, hit someone or something in front of them. It seems like they do not realize they are pushing something physical in front of them.

Popularity: 37% [?]

Another weirdo in Shanghai again! A guy wrapped himself like a mummy was spotted in the metro last week.

China Smack

Early this year, someone spotted Mr. Superman in Shanghai subway, and apparently there’s also Mr. Giraffe in subway and Man in Pink.

A video game metro?

Popularity: unranked [?]

In China, everyone knows most couples have only one kid. This is the result of the Chinese government’s successful one-child policy, creating what many call “little emperors”. The child becomes the central focus of his parents and grandparents. They are given lots of love and attention to the point where sometimes, they become spoilt. I’m having my lunch with a few local friends today, I gain a deeper insight on how Chinese parents spoil their kids.

Interestingly, several of them point out that they will do everything in their power to let their daughters live a life beyond their means. Simply put, their daughters are the “princess” of the households. They get all the best and do not really need to help out with the chores. Even after their daugthers have started working, their parents continue to give them money every month to finance their buying sprees. One young colleague of mine was given a few hundred thousand yuan to buy an apartment in order to stay nearer to her working place. The other was given 10k cash to buy a LV handbag. Her salary is only 2k a month. Another was given a car so that she does not need to take the metro to work, although metro in Shanghai is super convenient. It’s also common to have your subordinates wear and drive better than you. I don’t know you, but at least it happens to me, my hubby and some of my expat friends.

The rational behind this is that, parents hope their daughters will grow up spoilt and look for a rich spouse that can continue to provide her with this lifestyle they have grown accustomed to. In this way, they hope their daughters will not suffer, at least in the material aspect.

“Give your daughter more money to spend on branded cloths, handbags, accesories etc… she will look more “high-class”! This way, they can get a rich spouse.”

I simply shook my head with a speachless smile. Chinese mainland like to emphasize the word “high-class”.

They are too spoilt, but some insist that they are not spoilt at all. What do you think?

Popularity: 30% [?]

Just an update for Pudong International Airport shuttle bus schedule I wrote few months ago. The photo was taken from the airport terminal last week and I’m surprise to found there are 7 spelling mistake! Shanghai is organising World Expo soon and they ought to do something about the information board!

Please click the image to enlarge!

I noticed some visitors to my blog were looking for informations on how to travel from Shanghai Pudong airport to the surrounding cities. Hence I decided to post this information to help.

Pudong Airport Long Distance Bus Station:
Pudong airport serving direct buses to:
Zhejiang Province: Hangzhou, Jiaxing, Yiwu and Qingtian.
Jiangsu Province: Nanjing, Suzhou, Kunshan, Wuxi and Zhangjiagang.

You can buy tickets at the ticket counter at gate 6-9 of arrivals hall. Tel: 021-68345743.

Pudong In’t Airport to:

1. Hangzhou Yellow Dragon Sport Centre (Fare: RMB 100)
   Pudong: 9:30, 10:50, 12:00, 13:30, 15:30, 17:30, 19:30.
   Hangzhou: 07:00, 08:30, 10:30, 12:30, 13:30, 14:30, 16:00.
2. Jiaxing West Bus Station: (Fare: RMB 58)
   Pudong: 11:10, 13:10, 16:10, 18:10.
   Jiaxing: 07:30, 10:00, 13:30, 15:40.
3. Qingtian: (Fare: RMB 222)
   10:40, 13:40
4. Yiwu: (Fare: RMB 180)
   13:10, 16:50
5. Kunshan: (Fare: RMB 76)
   10:30, 11:30, 12:30, 13:30, 14:30, 15:30, 16:30, 17:30, 18:30, 19:30
6. Suzhou: (Fare: RMB 82)
   10:00, 10:40, 11:20, 11:50, 12:50, 13:50, 14:40, 15:20, 16:10, 16:50, 17:50, 18:50, 20:00
7. Wuxi: (Fare: RMB 100)
   11:20, 12:20, 13:20, 14:20, 15:20, 16:20, 17:20, 18:20
8. Zhangjiagang: (Fare: RMB 120)
   12:50, 14:40, 15:40, 17:40
9. Nanjing: (Fare: RMB 136)
   10:20, 12:50, 14:50, 16:50, 19:20

If you are travelling to nearby cities that are not listed above, you will need to take the airport shuttle Line 5 to Shanghai Railway Station, or shuttle Line 7 to Shanghai South Railway station and buy a train ticket to your destination.

Popularity: 64% [?]