Category: Taiwan

#2764: Vedan Double Bang Thick Beef Broth Noodle

#2764: Vedan Double Bang Thick Beef Broth Noodle - Taiwan Taiwanese

This one’s got horns and flying saucers on the packaging – something that denotes… Well, horns and flying saucers I suppose. I guess it more likely denotes ‘hey look at me – I’m on the store shelf!’ The double bang is for the two noodle blocks. The other variety I reviewed in this series had two in it as well and called for (like this one) 700ml boiling water. Guess we will see how this one goes as well! I remember seeing these on store shelves – I think I got all but one of the varieties (sniff) but hey – got some pretty fascinating ones. Taiwanese beef noodles, it is your time to shine. ...see full post

#2756: TTL Carbonara White Wine Sauce Instant Noodle

#2817: TTL Chicken Alfredo White Wine Sauce Instant Noodle

This was one variety I didn’t want to leave Taiwan without. I was lucky – we walked around the food expo in Taiwan last November and didn’t see it. Then We went through the beer, wine and spirits section and boom – there it is! A huge booth for TTL (Taiwan Tobacco & Liquor) and a guy asks is he could answer any questions. ‘Where are the noodles?’ Well, I showed him my event badge and he knew who I was which was very cool. Nice guy who went by the name of Ben – if you see this Ben, contact me – would love to do an interview about this product line! ...see full post

#2733: Jinbo Selection SOul Spicy Noodles

#2733: Jinbo Selection SOul Spicy Noodles

Was emailed in October 2017 by a representative of this company about trying their samples. I thought hey – of course, I’ll try them. I don’t know if I’ve ever turned down samples – the only time I do usually is when there’s a variety that’s just noodles – no flavoring. Although I’ve done reviews of just noodles and just broths that can be mixed and matched though. ...see full post

#2730: Little Cook Braised Beef Noodles With Tendon & Meat

#2730: Little Cook Braised Beef Noodles With Tendon & Meat 小廚師牛肉麵母親節禮盒

I received this as a gift from a representative of the Little Cook brand in Taipei, Taiwan at the Taiwan International Food Expo! Thank you very much! She also accepted the third place award from The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Taiwanese Instant Noodles Of All Time 2017 Edition – Little Cook Green Curry –  at the awards show. ...see full post

#2724: Vedan Double Bang Thick Pork Broth Noodle

Here’s one I brought back from Taiwan in November 2017. There are four different ones with different illustrations of different expressions – they’re pretty interesting. Now,m there’s scant few characters on this bowl I can read, so I’d like to thank everyone on Facebook for the help in translation! Much appreciated! So double bang – why double bang? Well, there’s two noodle blocks. Bang! Noodles! Bang! Noodles! Makes sense to me. Really excited as this isn’t the first one I brought back from Taiwan I’ve reviewed, but this is the first Taiwanese variety I’ve brought back from Taiwan I’m reviewing – let’s have a look! ...see full post

#2700: Vedan Jhen Mian Tang Spicy Hot Noodle

#2700: Vedan Jhen Mian Tang Spicy Hot Noodle - Taiwan - The Ramen Rater - instant noodles

NOTE: At the bottom, there is a kind of documentary about how I review instant noodles – from picking the variety to photography, editing, research, cooking and reviewing. Hope you enjoy it!

So here’s one I found while coming back from our big family drive to California this summer. I found it in the Beaverton Uwajimaya actually. I got about 10 varieties or so there during our pit stop on the way home. ...see full post

#2695: GGE Ramen Snack BBQ Cube

#2695: GGE Ramen Snack BBQ Cube

It’s snack time! So today we have a ramen snack from Taiwan. There a whole slew of different flavors and varieties – and shapes for that matter of these products. The first thing I do notice about these is that they’re called cubes, however, they look more like short cylinders to me. This being the case, it begs the question ‘doesn’t a crunchy cylinder sound good?’ I think they went with the right name, to be honest; BBQ Cubes sounds better than BBQ Cylinders. Let’s have a look. ...see full post

Travels: Taiwan 2017 Day 7: Departure And Arrival

Day 1 & 2 *

Well, finally it was the day to depart. I really love Taiwan – all the sights, sounds, smells… But I definitely was really missing my wife and kids. That was the hardest part of the trip. Being a stay at home dad is so rewarding – not seeing the smiles on everyone’s faces was really killing me.I packed everything up and met Kyle to go out for some dim sum. ...see full post

Travels: Taiwan 2017 Day 1 & 2: Travel, Arrival & Exploration

Travels: Taiwan 2017 Day 1 & 2: Travel,. Arrival & Exploration

Day 1 & 2 * Day 3 * Day 4 * Day 5 * Day 6 * Day 7

Taiwan 2017 Day 1 & 2: Travel,. Arrival & Exploration

Off I Go

On November 14th, 2017, my wife drove me to Seattle International Airport. My main impetus for the trip was to do an awards show at the Taiwan International Food Expo – the first food show I’d ever been invited to. They asked if I’d come and do a little awards ceremony for the top three from The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Taiwanese Instant Noodles Of All Time 2017 Edition list that came out in September. I was definitely all in for doing this for sure – after visiting Taiwan last year I was keen on visiting again. This time was different – it was my first time travelling alone. I was a little pensive about this (I’m legally blind) but I have flown to Taiwan 3 times previously and so thought hey – I can do this. Oh – and a week before I broke my pinky toe. That was really annoying but broken toe be damned – I was going! So I got to the airport around 11pm, went through security, grabbed some drinks and snacks and headed to my gate. Hopped on the plane just after midnight. ...see full post

#2645: Happy Noodle Noodles With Minced Pork & Chinese Mustard Blend

#2645: Happy Noodle Noodles With Minced Pork & Chinese Mustard Blend - Taiwan 0 The Ramen Rater

Alright, so here we go! I’ve been curious about these since they showed up in the mail.

The box is interesting – kind of looks like a tissue box in a way but definitely nothing like that inside. There are four packages inside and they are accompanied by four sachets. Let’s take a look at this unique variety from Taiwan! ...see full post

#2579: Just Way Noodles Spicy Hot Sesame Guan-miao Noodles

 #2512: Just Way Noodles Spicy Hot Sesame Guan-miao Noodles - Taiwan - The Ramen Rater

This variety comes by way of Colin, a reader from Massachusetts – thank you! It was originally said by Oscar Wilde: ‘Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.’ I have often found this to be true for the most part. Indeed, why would someone want to imitate exactly what you do unless they want to attain something that you did prior? Well, sometimes it just seems like it takes a bit of a spiral from flattery to pure copying. ...see full post

Unboxing Time: Happy Noodle From Taiwan

Unboxing Time: Happy Noodle From Taiwan

Today, it’s another installment of Unboxing Time With The Ramen Rater. We have some interesting things from Taiwan to check out! I thought it would be fun to have a special guest on this unboxing, so my son Andy has joined me today. Impressively, he’s sampled some of the spiciest noodles in the world – the number one from my top ten spicy list – and handled it pretty well earlier this year! Well, let’s get to the unboxing – I’ve started a new video series called ‘Unboxing Time With The Ramen Rater’ – I hope you enjoy it! ...see full post

The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Taiwanese Instant Noodles Of All Time 2017 Edition

Taiwanese The Ramen Rater's Top Ten Taiwanese Instant Noodles Of All Time 2017 Edition

It’s been quite a year of reviewing as far as Taiwan is concerned. I brought back a trove of varieties I’d never had the chance to try before. Really opened my eyes many varieties that people had recommended I try over the years. This is the top ten – the best Taiwanese varieties I’ve tried from the over 2,500+ reviews I’ve posted to date. As always, if I’ve not tried your noodles, please contact me! I’m interested! Let’s check it out! ...see full post

#2540: GGE Noodle Snack Wheat Crackers Mexican Spicy

#2540: GGE Noodle Snack Wheat Crackers Mexican Spicy - Taiwan - The Ramen Rater -

Here’s yet another opone of the GGE noodle snack varieties – Mexican Spicy. There are so many of these varieties its kind of mind boggling./ Actually, when you go to Taiwan and go down the noodle aisle, these aren’t there. Indeed, there’s an aisle with chips on one side and noodle snacks on the other. Why do we have so few of them here? I can’t think of any USA branded noodle snacks really at all. It’s like they came out with a few varieties of ways to offer up instant noodles here in the US and then they just stuck with those and kind of quit innovating. I mean, what about a beef stew instant noodle bowl with beef? A A spicy cheese? A pizzas flavor? Closest we get is a cheap cheese cup. I think the instant noodle world in the USA should really go and just kick some major butt and try some new things. I mean hey – no risk, no reward, right? Anyways, let’s check out this snack noodle! ...see full post