Location: Hsinchu Shanghai Meat Bun & Guanxi Qingxiang Hakka Cuisine
Travel notes: Three days ago, on a whim, a friend and I set off from Hsinchu for a nearly 200km motorcycle trip along the Northern Cross-Island Highway. Before heading out that morning, we grabbed breakfast at the Xinyuan Market next to Mackay Memorial Hospital. Since I usually work weekday mornings, I rarely get to explore here. I’d seen a blogger named DadoDaren recommend some good eats here, but we decided spontaneously, so I had no internet and couldn’t recall which spots he suggested. No worries—we just wandered around and picked a place by instinct. Walking along, we turned into an alley by a pharmacy on Xinyuan Street and spotted a small shop on the right with a sign saying 'Shanghai Meat Bun.' Seeing the stacked steamers at the entrance felt right, so we decided: breakfast here! :P We got a red bean bun and a meat bun, both NT$12. The red bean filling was smooth and rich, really flavorful. The meat bun had minced pork with scallions, with a hint of savory juice that made my mouth water. Trying both buns left me quite satisfied—next time, I’ll definitely go back to try the other three varieties! -------…