I love chilling at home but, occasionally, we have to make it out of the house so that we don't go blind binging 500 shows. I've been craving barbecue lately and we have to have enough protein even on cheat days, so I looked around and found Miso Izakaya, which is also on the MRT blue line. Miso Izakaya has several locations that are all extremely convenient. We came to JiangCui Store (Banqiao 2nd Store), which is only a 2-minute walk from exit 2 of MRT JiangZiCui Station.
The store has a very authentic Japanese style interior. Though there are no private booths, the seating arrangement makes it is surprisingly perfect for hanging out and catching up with friends. Soon after we arrived, the store was completely packed and everyone was chatting loudly and happily, however, Ares and I never once felt disturbed by the other customers. In fact, we had such a great time joking around and enjoying our food, I think I burnt most of the calories talking and laughing.
Banqiao Japanese Barbecue–Miso Izakaya: Appetizers
Once we sat down, we had a small plate of edamame while we were ordering, Edamames are not just a convenient snack, but has high protein content and lots of dietary fiber. It has always been one of our usual sacks. I thought it's just edamame, but Miso Izakaya's actually made edamame unique. Miso Izakaya's edamames are saltier and more flavorful than any edamame I've ever had before. They are actually marinaded in sauce that tastes like chicken broth with a hint of sesame oil. Once we've finished the beans, Ares actually started sucking on the empty edamame casings because he said that the "broth" that the beans are sitting in is simply delicious.
Banqiao Japanese Barbecue–Miso Izakaya: Main Course
For the main course, we had a Seafood Alfredo Udon (NTD$240). The Alfredo udon at Miso Izakaya is one of their signatures. It is so creamy that it's almost like a carbonara. You can distinctly taste the seafood even in the sauce and noodles, which means that they did not simply make the noodles then place the seafood on top, but they have either used shellfish stock in the sauce, or cooked the shrimp along with the noodles and sauce. The noodles are flavorful even on their own because they have sufficiently soaked up the sauce. Yet they are still perfectly al dente and not sloppy or overcooked.
The shrimp has a hint of sweetness to it. And they had whole strips of crab meat sitting around the udon. Ares specifically likes the crab meat. It is soft with a hint of crunch on the surface, it almost does not taste like meat. The center is so tender that it melts against my teeth.
Ares never particularly liked anything that resembled pasta dishes, but he liked this. He said he was surprised by how good it was and actually finished all of the noodles!
Banqiao Japanese Barbecue–Miso Izakaya: Meat Skewers
Izakayas are all about the meat skewers. My favorite dish on this day has to be Pepper Salt Chicken Knee (NTD$120). Yeah, you didn't think you could eat knees did you? We Asians can utilize every part of an animal's body. This dish uses the joint area between chicken thighs and drumsticks. The meat around it is extremely tender and juicy, even more so than drumsticks! Juice oozed out as soon as I bit into it and releases an amazing flavor almost that of chicken stock. In between, there are small pieces of cartilage that are crispy on the outside but chewy in the center, which are Ares' favorite.
My second favorite would be Teriyaki Beef Diaphragm (NTD$180). Yes, diaphragm, the one that cramps up and makes you hiccup. If you are not familiar with it, let me assure you that the best parts of beef are beef diaphragm and tongue. Don't freak out, just try them. The thin slices of beef are coated with a fine layer of sauce and grilled until they're medium. Eaten alone, it's rich and moist. It's just as good when you wrap in some fresh spring onions that are set on the side. It becomes refreshing and creates layers of flavors. Ares also loved this without me telling him what it was. By the time he realized it was diaphragm, he did not care.
I'd say that the 2 dishes above are must-orders at Miso Izakaya.
The Grilled Boneless Short Ribs (NTD$200) are super soft. When you bite into the thick meat, juice trickles down and the center is a perfect pink. The Cherry Duck Breast (NTD$160) comes with sections of spring onion whites. The white parts of spring onions has a more pungent taste, a bit sharp and tangy, which perfectly complements the strong flavor of duck breast. The duck breast was so juicy, I could suck on it. It's done so well that it almost tastes like steak. The Miso Pork Skewers (NTD$120) are clearly an exclusive dish at Miso Izakaya. I mean, the title of the dish contains the name of the restaurant. It uses a secret sauce that Miso Izakaya created. It is on the sweet side, which goes surprisingly well with pork.
We also had a serving of Grilled Zucchinis (NTD$100), which served as a perfect palette cleanser in between dishes and refreshes your taste buds.
Banqiao Japanese Barbecue–Miso Izakaya: Seafood
Thanks to the Grilled Giant Tiger Prawn (NTD$180), Ares peeled shrimp for me for the very first time. These prawns are massive, about the length of my palm and the thickness of 2 of my fingers. And I don't have dandy tiny hands, I have spider hands that I used to single-handedly play not just an octave but 9-10 notes apart on a piano. I never knew prawns and shrimps contain a pack of soup in them until now. It was sweet and filled with umami, not fishy at all.
The other seafood dish we had was Hokkaido Mackerel (NTD$180). I've always heard about the multiple health benefits of mackerel but never dared to try because I heard that they were fishy. But these were done so well! The texture is so soft and creamy, the kumquat juice makes it refreshing, and the pepper salt makes it savory. I feel like I have been lied to my entire life! Even Ares could tell how much I liked it and shoved bite after bite of mackerel into my mouth.
Banqiao Japanese Barbecue–Miso Izakaya: Dessert
For dessert, we got Japanese Grilled Mochi (NTD$90). They have a promotion right now, where you get a free serving of grilled mochi if you check-in on social media! Initially, Ares said "these look like tok, I don't like tok." I explained that tok is made out of rice and these are made from sticky rice, which is different. He mocked me and said "well, next time you are mad at me I'll say that it was sticky-Ares and we are different." What? But captain, that is illogical.
Anyway, I told him that these are my favorite Chinese desserts, so he made a face and said that he'd try them for me. He ended up loving it and crowning it as the best Asian dessert ever. Unlike regular mochi, grilled mochi has a crunchy shell while the center is still soft and sticky. Paired with the ground peanuts on top of the layer of condensed milk on the bottom, they both smell and taste amazing. We even ended up fighting over the last mochi. Give me that "tok" you thought you wouldn't like!
Ares and I don't drink, so we went for soft drinks instead. Ares got a glass of Coke(NTD$50), which is his regular. I never really drink anything sweet other than protein shakes, but I decided to try a White Peach Soda (NTD$120) which actually turned out to be so good! Surprisingly, it was not super sweet but light and cleansing. I don't think I've ever liked any other soda as much before.
Banqiao Japanese Barbecue–Store Info
Store name: Miso Izakaya Banqiao–JiangZiCui Store
Phone: (02)2251-0662
Address: No. 255, WenHua Road Section 2, Banqiao District, New Taipei City (about a 2-minute walk from JiangZiCui MRT station exit 2)
Branches:
Miso Izakaya SanChong-ChongXin Store (Taipei Bridge MRT Station|02-2976-6971|No. 6, Chongxin Road Section 2, Sanchong District, New Taipei City)
Miso Izakaya XinChuang-ZhongZheng Store (XinZhuang MRT Station Exit 2|02-2998-0176 |No. 231, ZhongZheng Road, XinZhuang District, New Taipei City)
Miso Izakaya Banqiao-XinPu Store (XinPu MRT Station Exit 3|02-2255-2293|No.11 WanBan Road, Banqiao District, New Taipei City)
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