Qiyan One 奇岩一號 @ Taipei

A really heavy business lunch, but a wonderful menu recommended by my business associate in Taipei.

Qiyan One 奇岩一號, named after the street it was originally at, is renowned for its authentic Sichuan and Hunan cuisine, masterfully crafted by the experienced and exceptionally skilled Executive Chef Cai Zhengrong 蔡振榮 who brought along his deep knowledge of Taiwanese cuisine into the mix.

The restaurant insists on selecting fresh high-quality ingredients, using intricate preparation methods, delicate seasoning, and masterful culinary techniques to redefine traditional spicy flavours and present a magnificent new interpretations of classic Sichuan cuisine.

胡麻檳榔花 Betel Nut Flower Salad with Sesame Sauce

The fronds of the betel nut flower are delicately beautiful, and they keep their shape well when cooked. While the flower does not present the carcinogenic dangers of the betel nut, most sources recommend its consumption only in moderation, as it contains alkaloids such as arecoline, which can lead to sweating and difficulty in breathing. Nausea, vomiting and stomach pain are also associated with excessive consumption of betel nut flower.

泡菜中卷 Mango Sauce Poached Squid Stuffed with Pickles

This is a rather innovative appetiser, 泡菜中卷 Mango Sauce Poached Squid Stuffed with Pickles. A lot of flavour with each mouthful.

川味口水雞 Poached Chicken in Sichuan Chili Sauce aka “Saliva Chicken”

It was originally translated as “saliva chicken” and it freaked the hella of foreigners visiting China for the first time. But it does leave the tastebuds salivating with the numbing and pulsating spiciness and complexity in flavours. This is a simplified version with less spiciness.

蓉城夫妻肺片 Sliced Beef and Ox Stomach with Sichuan Chilli Sauce

蓉城 Rongcheng is another name for Chengdu. This dish has a very “romantic” Chinese name, 夫妻肺片 or “Husband and Wife’s Sliced Lungs”, meaning a married couple speaking in one voice. No lung is served in this dish. Instead it is made up of sliced beef tripe, beef stomach and beef brisket, all tossed in a copious amount of Sichuan spices.

辣皮蛋窩窩頭 Stir-fried Minced Pork, Chives and Minced Preserved Egg Served with Chinese Buns

窩窩頭 Wowotou is usually made with cornmeal in Northeastern China, but that is a rather unenjoyable grain, so the chefs here used regular wheat flour to make these buns. Wowotou is special because of the cavity on the backside to allow you to fill it up with the delicious minced pork, chives and preserved egg, something we call 蒼蠅頭 Cangyingtou, which literally translates to “Flies’ Heads”. Delicious, a rice killer for sure.

蘭陽西魯肉 Yilan-style Cabbage Stew

蘭陽西魯肉 Yilan-style Cabbage Stew, which is full of Yilan’s hometown flavour, uses simple ingredients such as cabbage, shiitake mushrooms, dried shrimp, shredded pork, etc. Finally, it is covered with fried egg crisps 蛋酥 and coriander, and topped with deep fried shallots. The stew is delicious and a rice killer. It is a dish that would warm the hearts of Yilan’s natives missing their hometown.

When one sees the phrase “魯肉“, the braised pork belly comes to mind. But this “lu” 魯 refers to “dalu” 打滷, which is to thicken the soup with a starch. “Xilu” 西魯 is a homonym of Japanese character「汁」”しる”, which means soup.

In the old days (not too long ago), this stew was a popular soup that families prepare for their guests. Because meat was scarce, the fried egg crisps were made to replace the meat. Everything was harmonious stewed together, sweetness from the cabbage, umami from the shrimps and mushrooms, and fragrance from the deep fried shallots.

孜然椒鹽排骨 Salt and Pepper Pork Ribs with Cumin

I skipped this dish as I cannot eat cumin, don’t know why it causes me to nauseate these days. I am sure it is delicious.

稻香大地牛 Braised US Beef Rib Tied with Straw Rope

This is one of the signature dishes by Chef Cai, 稻香大地牛 Braised US Beef Rib Tied with Straw Rope has won accolades in local culinary awards as one of the Top 500 dishes of Taiwan. A beef rib on its bone is marinated and then tied with a straw rope. The entire thing is braised in a savoury brine to produce a tender, succulent braised rib.

The rope is removed at table side before serving and the rib is sliced to pieces, Condiments like the au jus sauce and Himalayan salt flakes are provided if you find the beef too bland, which it is definitely not. With such a rich meat, you only need boiled baby corns and okras to accompany it.

剁椒鰱魚頭 Steamed Black Silver Carp’s Head with Chopped Chilli Sauce Served with Noodles

This is a Hunan classic dish, 剁椒鰱魚頭 Steamed Black Silver Carp’s Head with Chopped Chilli Sauce Served with Noodles. Qing dynasty mathematician Huang Zongxian 黃宗憲 tasted this dish while living in a farmer’s house in Hunan. After tasting it, Huang Zongxian felt that the taste was extremely delicious, and let his chef imitate it after returning home. The rest, as they say, is history.

The fish head is taken off 2.5 silver carps from Zengwen Reservoir 曾文水庫 and full of collagen. For me, the highlight of this dish is the delicious sauce that can be mixed with noodles that come with the steamed fish head.

鮮蝦毛血旺 Sichuan Spicy Offals Stew with Tiger Prawns

毛血旺 Sichuan Spicy Offals Stew is a Chongqing speciality. 毛 “Mao” in Chongqing dialect means “casual” or “random”. This dish came as a coincidence. A butcher’s wife used offals that remained from a butcher store to create this Sichuan classic to sell for more money. This was 70 years ago and Wang’s Spicy Offal was born. This version is an enhanced version that adds more expensive ingredients like prawns and abalones. But these delicacies do nothing to enhance the flavours, totally wasted in the spices.

鮮干貝扒時蔬 Braised Fresh Scallops and Vegetable

鮮干貝扒時蔬 Braised Fresh Scallops and Vegetable is one of the three non-spicy main courses that we ordered. It has a superior stock from the sweetness of the scallops and mushrooms, and the loofah soaks up all the goodness in the stock.

天府冒鴨鍋 Spicy Sichuan Hotpot with Deep-fried Yilan Cherry Duck

「冒菜」Maocai is a stew-like dish originating from Chengdu, which is also called 天府 or “heavenly city” in Sichuan. It is composed of a variety of vegetables as well as meat and/or fish in a stock made of mala sauce. In this instance, the mala hotpot is cooked with a local delicacy from Yilan, the cherry duck.

宜蘭櫻桃鴨 Cherry duck is bred in Sanxing 三星鄉, Yilan, and its meat is soft and tender, making it perfect for crispy roast duck. 

The name maocai is derived from the action mao (冒) which in Sichuan dialect refers to the blanching of the ingredients in a colander in hot water by moving the colander up and down repeatedly. This pre-cooking of the ingredients before immersion in the stock sets it apart from most types of hot pot.

Although claiming to be a Sichuan and Hunan restaurant, the food here is only mildly spicy at most and has been adjusted to local taste.  Nevertheless, all the dishes were tasty and satisfying, and the environment was elegant and conducive for business discussions. The Chef’s Recommendations are all good eats, but remember to order in advance. 

Qiyan One 奇岩一號
台北市中山區樂群二路199號2樓（台北萬豪酒店中城廣場）
Tel : +886 (02) 8501 1380 

Visited Sep 2024