A “New Taiwanese Cuisine” restaurant, popular among Taipei’s sophisticated diners, called “Sizhi Tang,” has inspired a new restaurant in Kanazawa!
Ave. Budget: Brealfast: 1,000 JPY, Lunch 1,000-2,000 JPY, Dinner 5,000^7,000 JPY
Book via ”Official web” Check the information on ‘Tabelog’
Restaurant features
The restaurant I used to go to the most in Taipei, Taiwan, which I haven’t been to recently, is the innovative Taiwanese restaurant “Sizhiting”.
What makes it innovative is that they use olive oil and finish the dishes lightly.
Moreover, as the owner is a designer, the interior is comfortable.
It strikes a balance between being stylish, while creating a relaxed atmosphere with skillfully arranged antiques, rather than being overly designed.
In Tokyo, it would be similar to the positions of “LIKE” or “PATH”, and the fact that it serves Taiwanese cuisine is refreshing.
There is still no Japanese restaurant that gives me this kind of feeling.
Suddenly appeared in Kanazawa, “Sizhiting”
It was probably before the summer of 2020.
Back then, I was still leisurely thinking, “I wonder if overseas travel will be lifted soon? Should I go to Taiwan first?”
Then, the suggestion for “Sizhiting Kanazawa” began to appear on my social media feed.
I was surprised and wondered if it was a branch or something, and why Kanazawa of all places, but at that time I didn’t know the truth.
The Instagram posts showed classic Taiwanese street food such as delicious douhua, congee, and lu rou fan.
I wondered if it was Taiwanese or something different, but time passed and when I got a chance to go to Kanazawa for work, I thought, “Let’s go to Sizhiting!”
After doing some research, I found out that they started offering course meals for dinner from the autumn of 2021.
It’s a perfect opportunity.
As soon as I arrived at the restaurant and sat down, the mystery was solved.
According to the manager, “Our owner is a close friend of the owner of Sizhiting in Taipei, and we borrowed the name Sizhiting when we opened our restaurant.”
The concept of the restaurant is to offer breakfast, lunch, and dinner featuring dishes created by a Japanese chef, in a space designed by the owner, with the friendly and approachable atmosphere of Sizhiting in Taipei.
It’s a unique way of forming an alliance and it makes the experience a little more enjoyable.
The dinner menu offers both course and à la carte options.
On the reservation website, it was stated that the course menu is available for two or more people, so I only reserved a table and wrote in the comments section that “I’m a solo traveler on a business trip, and if possible, I would prefer the course menu.” I received a quick response saying “It’s okay.”
It was a very thoughtful service.
So, this time I ordered the 5,000 yen course menu.
First of all, toast with Taiwan beer.
ssorted appetizers
You can enjoy 5 kinds of appetizers.
Steamed local vegetables
Steamed seasonal vegetables served in a steamer basket.
The fermented tofu-based bagna cauda sauce adds a distinct Taiwanese flavor to the dish.
Stir-fried squid and mushrooms with xo sauce
The mushrooms used in this dish are maitake mushrooms.
While beer is great, it’s also important to have some oolong tea, so I ordered “Dong Fang Mei Ren” to accompany the meal.
Fried domestic chicken with milk
It’s fried chicken, but the spicy ketchup gives it a tropical vibe.
Black vinegar sauce for spare ribs.
I thought there was an incredible amount of meat, but it turned out that half of it was taro.
The balance is just right, of course, and it’s delicious. The dish is seasoned with red pepper.
Seafood grilled rice vermicelli
Mixed seafood including shrimp, scallops, and squid with vermicelli noodles.
Garlic sprouts add a nice touch.
Shrimp wonton soup
Purple potato in sweet white bean soup
Taiwan black tea
I ordered a course this time, but there are also à la carte options available.
I thought this was a really stylish restaurant, and the BGM was particularly pleasant.
Among the restaurants I’ve been to lately, the music selection was really tasteful.
Although it was mainly jazz and world music, the playlist also incorporated some downtempo alternative rock from the UK and US in just the right places, which made me think, “Yeah, that works too!”
Especially when the music of Yo La Tengo, a New York alternative rock band, from around 2000 was playing, it reminded me that I had forgotten how well Yo La Tengo’s music fits the atmosphere of a restaurant!
Street food morning
Since I was in a good mood from dinner, I decided to go out the next morning as well.
Instead of the formal dining room where they serve proper meals (which apparently opens from lunch and tea time), they used the outdoor space in front of the restaurant like a food stand.
I didn’t mind having some lu rou fan (braised pork rice) for breakfast, but I ordered douhua (soft tofu pudding) since it felt like a continuation of last night’s dinner.
It had a delicate taste and just the right amount, so I ordered a pepper bun to fill my stomach a bit more.
Summary:
As someone who loves ‘Sichito’ in Taipei, I couldn’t help but compare it to other restaurants, but what I found interesting was how the atmosphere was cohesive, rather than just having similar surface-level aspects.
It seems that valuing good and comfortable things, as well as cherishing local ingredients, are shared values among restaurants such as ‘Lespirasion’ and ‘A la Ferme de Shinjiro’ and this restaurant, which is in the historic Owari-cho area and was once a soy sauce wholesaler’s old house, definitely exudes that same sense of inevitability.
Menu
【Taiwanese stall】8:00-16:00
“Bean flower”, “porridge”, “minced pork rice”, “pepper rice cake”, “soybean soup”, etc.
【Cafe】10:00-16:00
“Favorite Taiwanese tea + baked confectionery” 1,200 yen including tax
【Lunch】11:00-14:00
“Raw meat rice or chicken rice + dessert + drink” 1,500 yen
“Beef noodles + dessert + drink” 1,700 yen
【dinner】
“Course” from 5,500 yen
“A la carte” from 990 yen
*Menus and prices are for reference only. Please note that this may change depending on the season and availability of ingredients.
予約方法How to Reserve
Thank you for the information! Here’s the English translation:
“Dinner requires reservations. Reservations can be made by phone or web. Instant reservations are available on the official website.”
Map & Access
–Restaurant Information on “Sizhitang kanazawa”–
Business Hours: Lunch 8:00-16:00, Dinner 18:00-22:30
Holiday: Wed
Telephone: +81 276-254-5505
Address: 2-11-24 Owari-cho, Kanazawa City, Ishikawa Prefecture
Official web
