We joined another couple for dinner at Trader Vic’s, located at the northwest corner of the Dunhua Rd and Minsheng Rd. intersection.  The restaurant shares a building with Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse and McDonalds, an interesting combination.  Trader Vic’s is located on the 7th floor, accessible via an elevator just inside the building entrance next to the McDonalds.

Coming off the elevator, you instantly notice the decor of the restaurant.  Trader Vic’s is we known for offering up a South Pacific feel in each of their franchises around the world.  The Taipei franchise is no exception, with an abundance of Tiki wood carvings and decor and giant tropical fish-filled aquariums throughout the restaurant.

There is a bar area that you can head to when you enter, however, as our table was located at the window with a nice view of the top of Taipei 101 and the busy Dunhua Rd. / Minsheng Rd. intersection, we decided to wait at the table and watch the city passing by in front of us.

To help pass the time, we perused the cocktail menu and were astonished at the amazing number of choices of tropical drinks on the menu.  Most shocking to us both, however, was the information that the famous Mai Tai cocktail was invented at Trader Vic’s.  According to legend, the drink was invented by Trader Vic in 1944 when he mixed up his now-famous concoction and served it to a customer who exclaimed “Mai Tai Roá Ae”, Polynesian for “Out of this world!”  The Mai Tai at Trader Vic’s in a combination of Bacardi Rum, Havana Club 8-year Dark Rum, and their proprietary third mixer which they would not divulge.  The drinks come very strong at Trader Vic’s, and can be requested with half the alcohol if desired.  Later on the four of us split one of the four-person Scorpion Bowl drinks, which was also very nice.

Perhaps the most difficult part of the evening was ordering.  Set menus are available featuring a starter, soup/salad, main course, dessert and coffee/tea, or you can order à la carte.  To make things easier, if there is a specific main course you want not offered on the set menus, they will let you make a set menu out of that main course.

For our set menu I wanted the yellowtail tuna carpaccio, but it was not available tonight, so I

went with the  Beef Cho Cho, which was a plate of six skewers of beef with a soy sake sauce, cooked medium rare and served with a little hibachi to cook more well if desired.  Erin went with the Piri Piri Prawns, four prawns in a nice piri piri sauce that wasn’t too spicy.

For the soup/salad course, I went with the Scallop Asparagus Salad (which was delicious!) and Erin ordered the Cioppino, which came nicely shelled.

Our main course selections were both from the Filet family.  Erin stuck to the official set menu and ordered the Filet with Foie Gras and Mango, while I went with the Pepper Crusted Filet with Horseradish Sauce.  Both were ordered medium rare and came out very nicely prepared.

For dessert, I had the Ginger Lime Crème Brûlée and Erin had the Chocolate Macadamia Custard Tart, both of which were outstanding!

All of the food was wonderful, as were the drinks and the atmosphere in the restaurant.  The place was surprisingly quiet that evening, with only a handful of tables occupied, which was lucky since our reservation was not, in fact, found when we arrived, but we still managed a great table and a great evening!

Our total bill (including tax and service) came to 4,600 NTD, around $145, with $30 of that on the drinks.  Not one of the cheapest nights in Taipei, but very reasonable for the quality.  I look forward to our next visit, either here in Taipei or one of their other worldwide locations.