TAIPEI: JURASSIC

台北市中山區八德路2段192號
No. 192, Sec. 2, Bade Rd
Hours: Sun-Thurs: 5:30pm- 2:00am / Fri-Sat: 5:30pm- 3:00am
Credit cards accepted.
(02) 2741-0550
http://www.indian.com.tw (Chinese only!)

PRICE: $$ (approx. NT$300/person ~US$10/person)
RATING: YY
DIRECTIONS: Drive. =)
RESERVATIONS: Not necessary
MUST GET: ...
MENU: English and Chinese!

Okay, I'll be honest and say this entry is going to be based on a vague memory. I went to this restaurant months ago and really-- I don't remember much about it which goes to show you this isn't a place I would strongly recommend.

What happened was Joe and I were in a cab on our way to another restaurant when we saw this place... there's no way you can miss this place if you are driving or walking past. Not only does this restaurant have three floors, but it also has dinosaur skeletons hanging off the front facade! Needless to say, Joe, the biggest grown up Indiana Jones fan you can find, wanted to go in, so we stopped the cab driver and got out.

We got inside and noticed that it was completely dead on the first floor despite the cool decor. For a second, I hesitated-- if there's no one at a restaurant during peak dinner hours, that's a bad sign; but we were quickly escorted to the second floor which was not only filled with people but also had a band playing. We also got a seat near the remains of a woolly mammoth. Neat.

Of the dishes we ordered, I only remember the egg and radish pancake and the fried crickets stir-fried with basil (as shown below). The egg and radish pancake was good, but how can anyone mess up this traditional Taiwanese dish? The menu is extensive, so I had to ask the waiter for recommendations and seeing that Joe is a foreigner, he said we should try something special like fried crickets because he thought Joe had never had them before. Joe actually had them back in Malaysia and liked them, so he suggested we give it a shot since I've never had them. The first few crickets were good, but then I ate one that just left this rotten taste in my mouth so I stopped eating them after that. I'm glad I tried them though, I'm always down to eat anything once.







So bottom line, I wouldn't go back here again. It's a restaurant you just need to go to once-- it is an experience. If you do wind up going, I would recommend you go with a few people to try more dishes on the menu and order some beer since that seems like the thing to do here.