Mouth-Watering Pork Belly Dishes in Ximen

一甲子餐飲 – 祖師廟焢肉飯、刈包 is an extremely popular Taiwanese restaurant deep in the heart of Wanhua, yet still within walking distance of Ximending. Tourists have yet to discover this place en masse despite the proximity, but it is a cult classic for locals, and for good reason. They specialize in pork belly dishes like gua bao, lu rou fan and kong rou fan, as well as a kind of savoury pudding called wa gui that is almost guaranteed to sell out by midday. It’s been on our radar since a few friends independently proclaimed that they have the best gua bao in the city, which was more than enough reason for us to make the journey down to Ximen.

There isn’t much in terms of seating at 一甲子餐飲 – 祖師廟焢肉飯、刈包, but luckily the lines move quick and most people seem perfectly content to take their meal to go. There are about six or seven tables that are shared — don’t expect one to yourself — outside, and although it can get roasting hot, there is a nice misting spray that keeps the temperature down in the summer months. Check out their English menu once you sit down and give your order to the servers, who are lovely.

The first thing we ordered was the kong rou fan ($80), AKA soy-stewed pork over rice, as we had heard it was one of the most popular dishes. It comes with a big slice of pork belly, braised tofu, and pickled cucumbers. It was fantastic. The pork belly just melted in our mouths, and the pickles added enough crunch and freshness to keep the dish interesting. It was soft, flavourful, and delicious. Highly recommend.

Another dish that has earned rave reviews — both online and amongst our circle of friends — is the gua bao ($45) AKA Taiwanese hamburger, which many say is comparable to or better than the famous Lan Jia Gua Bao in Gongguan. They weren’t wrong — it was fantastic. Once again, the pork belly was the softest, tastiest piece of meat that fell apart in our mouths. It was accompanied by coriander and peanut powder. We wouldn’t say it was better than Lan Jia Gua Bao, but it was definitely a contender for the best in the city. At Lan Jia Gua Bao you can choose if you want lean, fatty, or mixed meat, which is better if you have a specific preference, but we didn’t mind being served this fatty chunk of pork belly at all. In fact, we probably enjoyed it all the more. Even if you don’t think it’s the best gua bao in the city, you’re bound to enjoy it.

Next, we ordered some lu rou fan ($30), AKA braised pork over rice. This was pretty similar to the kong rou fan we ordered, and when compared to other lu rou fans in the city it got mixed reviews from our group. Personally, we loved it. Instead of being made with measly pieces of minced meat, this was made with big fat chunks of sweetened pork belly that just melted and fell apart in our mouths. We keep describing it this way because seriously, there is no other way to describe it. It was dreamy. It was definitely more sweet than salty, which is what divided our group: some of us preferred the salty taste of regular lu rou fan, while others thought the sweetness not only added to the taste and texture of the meat but made the dish a little more unique. The pickles were a nice touch too, as lu rou fan can get a little samey after a few bites. We loved this, and if you like your lu rou fan to be softer and sweeter, you will too.

Last, we ordered some fish ball soup ($30) to accompany our rather heavy meal. We’re usually not the biggest fans of fish balls, but after seeing it come recommended online, we caved. We were glad we did, too, as it was very light but flavourful, perfect to accompany all the oily meat and carbs that we were feasting on. It was heavy on the coriander, which added a pleasant freshness, and was just a nice, simple addition to our meal. We would definitely get it again to lighten up our dinner.

Check out their menu down below:

Overall, we really enjoyed our meal at 一甲子餐飲 – 祖師廟焢肉飯、刈包 and would highly recommend checking it out one day if you’re in the mood for some incredible pork belly dishes. Everything we ate was marvelous and worth making the trek to Ximen. The service was fast and pleasant, and the English menu was an added bonus.

What’s the vibe?

Local restaurant in a very local area. It gets lined up, but the queue moves fast. The servers are all used to foreigners.

Worth it?

Heck yeah! The food is cheap and delicious, and the service was pleasant and efficient. Big thumbs up from us.

Would you go back?

You bet.

Last updated: September 2019

一甲子餐飲 - 祖師廟焢肉飯、刈包 /u>

Hours: 9am – 8pm Closed Sundays

Phone: 02 2311 5241

English Address: No. 79, Kangding Road, Wanhua District, Taipei City

Chinese Address: 台北市萬華區康定路79號