Taiwanese breakfasts often borrow similar concepts from American diners, which is why the linoleum tiles and Formica tables give Huge Tree Pastry a familiar ambiance. These dishes share the culinary thrust of a typical pancake breakfast, but they also have a Taiwanese bent toward textural play. The following are some examples of the most popular breakfast foods in Taiwan. If you’re looking for a unique breakfast, this Taiwanese eatery should be on your list.
Wheat cake:
The green onion pastry from Huge Tree is a delicious hybrid of croissant and onion scallion pancake. With its crisp outer shell and semi-stretchy flakes underneath, this flaky pastry is a cross between a croissant and an onion scallion pancake. The inside layers are moist and gelatinous, and can be stuffed with bland daikon, sweet curried pork, or a combination of the two.
Daikon cake:
This traditional Japanese dish features layers of steamed daikon. It is cooked in batches in a large nonstick skillet. Once the daikon is done, sprinkle the top with sesame seeds and serve with an herb soy sauce. You can make the sesame oil and soy sauce two days ahead of time. Alternatively, you can buy a packet of dried chiles and use them to top the daikon cake.
Traditionally, daikon cake was known as turnip cake in Chinese homes. Although the name is similar, it is often used in a different way in Taiwan. The term “daikon cake” comes from the Taiwanese word for turnip, “law bock,” which means “turnip tree.” The name Cai Tou also refers to the cake, which means “good luck.”
Huge Tree Pastry also serves Taiwanese breakfast foods like egg crepe, daikon rice cake, and you tiao cruller. A favorite is the huge daikon cake with egg, which is wrapped in a cruller and served with scallions and sweet or savory soy milk. The savory version includes pork chop rice. During the day, the place has a full menu of other Taiwanese snacks.