Postcard Getaway

Savor the best Donggang Taiwan Food in this Epic Culinary Adventure

Written by Kaelie Piscitello

When I booked the ferry to Xiao Liu Qiu, I did not originally intend to spend much time in Donggang. However, my friends from Taiwan recommended that we eat lunch there and explore after my overnight trip to the small coral island next door. 

I didn’t know what to expect because I read online that the county of Pingtung does not have many activities to do there. However, I soon discovered that I was wrong.

A Taste of the Best Sashimi of My Life

My visit to Donggang started off with a fantastic lunch. My friend suggested eating sashimi in the Donggang market, located next to the pier. This market has more fish stalls than I have ever seen all at once before, and every single one sells sashimi to the public. 

At some of the places, customers can sit down for a meal. At others, however, people purchase sashimi to go. Instead of stopping at one of the smaller stalls, my friend led my boyfriend and me to a large indoor sit-down restaurant where we enjoyed our food.

My friends and I ordered one sashimi bowl per person, the largest bowl of miso soup I have ever seen in my entire life, and a platter of fried cuttlefish. The soup arrived first, and I couldn’t believe my eyes. The tin bowl took up half of the table and it contained large chunks of salmon and swordfish in addition to the customary seaweed and tofu bits. 

The fish added to the broth’s salty flavor and tasted incredibly fresh. The fish still had bones inside, so I stayed mindful while eating, but it was still the best bowl(s) of miso soup I have ever eaten.

The cuttlefish arrived next. I love biting into crunchy sea bites coated with incredible spices and tasty shrimp crackers. The chef’s style of cooking this dish reminded me of the fish sticks I used to eat as a kid. However, it tasted far better than any fish stick I’ve eaten. I could have eaten an entire plate of these and felt happy.

Of course, the piece de resistance was the mixed sashimi bowl that came out last. The chef cut the fish into moderate-sized pieces, and I could tell the fish came fresh off the boat that morning. Before coming to this restaurant, my friend told me that she could eat sashimi every day, and after trying this place, I could, too!

Fish Candy

After eating in the market, I felt stuffed to the gills, but my friend insisted that I needed to try a fried fish ball from one of the most popular stalls at the market. This fish ball tasted sweet and fresh, and I do not regret waiting thirty minutes in line!

While waiting in the queue, my friends and I passed a stand selling dried fish candy. I don’t know what I expected it to taste like, but I should have anticipated that the candy would have such a sweet flavor. The texture reminded me of a cat treat, and I’m not sure I would eat it again. However, I’m glad I tried it for the experience.

My friend also purchased fruit-flavor soda for us in line, and I loved the fizzy pink strawberry one I tried. The bottle had clever packaging, and each person had an adorable animal illustration painted on the plastic coating wrapped around the bottle.

The Spanish House

After this feeding frenzy, I found it impossible to eat for hours. I needed to feel human again, so my friend and I met up with her siblings and drove to another pier nearby. 

This pier had some cool features, including a building in the Spanish architectural style right on the water! I did not expect to see anything like that here in Taiwan. Nearby, I could see the remains of a dugout bomb shelter. This city loves to mix old and new, that’s for sure.

In addition to the Spanish house, everyone also walked around a nice park with incredible art installations. One statue depicted a mermaid with a shining silver face and peaceful, clanging seashells that made the body of her skirt flutter in the breeze. In the distance, I could see a huge fish sculpture.

Once I returned to the parking lot, I couldn’t help but notice the sounds of cars racing about. I mentioned it, and my friend led us over to the steepest set of stairs I had ever climbed in my life. (Yes, I would even compare these to those of the castles in Europe.) 

At the top of the stairs, I stood under an airplane turned into a viewing platform for race car drivers! The scooters zoomed around the track instead of cars when I visited, but I still enjoyed watching it.

Donggang will someday become a hopping tourist spot in Taiwan. While it has not yet reached its tourism goals, Taiwan expects it to become a large resort destination soon. People will come to stay in friendly hotels, watch the races, see the boat burning party, and float around the pier. I hope it does become more popular because everyone should enjoy the fish here.

You Guessed It…More Fish!

At this point, everyone somehow managed to digest in time for dinner! I’m glad I took that walk because dinner involved more sashimi from a different restaurant. My friend’s family took us out, and we ate another giant meal with four plates of sashimi, fried rice, stir-fried, stir-fried vegetables, and more.

At the end of the night, everyone stopped at a grilled bun place on the way home for dessert. My friend shared that the buns don’t look special but taste that way.

The bakers filled the insides with sweet butter, and eating one felt like enjoying a delectable charred bun from Texas Roadhouse. (The one from Taiwan was better, of course.). I do not know how I managed to eat that, but I will always have room for dessert!