Taipei is an internationalized city with various immigrants, and all kinds of restaurants have sprung up to satisfy the diverse appetites of its different residents. Cuisine of all nations is available here, along with all of the regional foods of mainland China and snacks from the different parts of Taiwan--and, of course, vegetarian food too. For visitors, dining in Taipei is convenient and something to be eagerly anticipated, for the city can satisfy whatever palate the gourmand brings to the table.

Yongkang Street, Tianmu, Ximending, the East District shopping area, and Fuxing South Road (which specializes in rice gruel and small accompanying dishes) are all major culinary attractions in Taipei. Tianmu (with its foreign atmosphere) and Yongkang Street are home to vast arrays of restaurants that offer an infinite variety of cuisines including dishes from all over the world as well as traditional Chinese foods and the tastes of different parts of Taiwan.

The Chinese food available in Taiwan covers the range from palace cuisine to street-stall snacks, and all have their characteristic and delicious flavors. The palace-style dishes served at Din Tai Fong and King Join attract numbers of tourists every day. The allure of the snacks sold in Taipei's night markets makes them truly irresistible--Lungshan Temple and the night markets at Huasi Street, Shilin, Tonghua Street, Raohe Street, Liaoning, and Jingmei, among others, all have their own special snacks giving off aromas that draw in diners from far away.

Huaxi Street is the most famous night market in Taipei and attracts numbers of both domestic and foreign tourists every day. The best-known snacks available here, probably, are snake meat and snake wine. Other popular delicacies include potside stickers (dingbiancuo), Tainan danzai noodles, bowl rice (wanguo), water-turtle meat, and seafood. Compared with other night markets, Huaxi Street has a greater emphasis on attracting tourists, so its prices are a bit higher than others. The nearby Longshan Temple has a row of blind masseurs in front waiting to loosen you up, and "Herb Lane" just next door is another point that you will not want to miss.

If you want a taste of aborigine flavors, you will have to go to Wulai in suburban Taipei where local delicacies such as soft millet cakes and bamboo-tube rice offer distinctive tastes. While at Wulai you can enjoy aborigine singing and dancing, you also can soak in hot-spring water, view the waterfall, or cross the gorge in a cable car. To get from the scenic area entrance to the waterfall you can take one of the unique push carts, the only ones left in Taiwan but motorized now, up the hill. This may not be the most practical way to travel, but it imparts its own special exotic feeling.

Travelers with interest in tea-tasting can go to the Muzha tourist tea plantations, which mainly serve Tie Guanyin, or "iron Goddess of Mercy," tea. They can also move on to the neighboring Maokong to savor their tea with a casual chat.