Place: Taipei, Tang Gong Mongolian Barbecue
Travel note snippet: With the Lunar New Year approaching, I was looking through the countless food photos on my computer and decided to follow the model of writing 30 quick notes before leaving Hsinchu—just a stream-of-consciousness cleanup, writing as much as I can. Starting with Tang Gong: it was a gathering to celebrate a few grad school classmates completing their mandatory military service. Attendees included Chao-Hung, A-Mao, Guan-Yu, Jia-Bin, Zi-Chun, Yuan-Zhang, and Morgan. Though their service ended, only Chao-Hung changed jobs, moving to a foreign company, CorelDraw. Tang Gong is quite famous online, offering all-you-can-eat Mongolian barbecue and pickled cabbage pork hotpot. From what I recall, it was about 450 NTD +10% per person. Compared to other places, they had venison as an option, and the seasoning bar had plenty of choices. Eating two or three bowls of Mongolian barbecue fills you up quickly, and it can get greasy, but the hotpot broth helps cut through that. Overall, it's a place I'd revisit, especially in winter. Thanks to Carson, who had just returned to IBM, for treating us!