Salted Soy Milk and Steamed Pork Chop Buns at Sihai Soy Milk in Taipei, Taiwan

Classic Taiwanese Soy Milk Breakfast

by Sihai Soy Milk, Taipei, Taiwan (四海豆漿大王)

I was up early in Taipei, and hungry for a good Taiwanese breakfast! I had heard lots of great things about Sihai Soy Milk, a famous and well-regarded classic eatery in Taipei, so I took the MRT to Zhongshan Station for my breakfast. The restaurant was easy to spot due to the crowd forming outside. That's always a good sign!

The queue moved fast, though, and we were soon seated at a small table in the back of the shop. Moments later, our breakfast arrived. I had a hard time deciding what to order, so we went ahead and picked out several of the restaurant's most popular items to try including the shop's specialty: salted soy milk.

classic Taiwanese breakfast at Sihai Soy Milk in Taipei

As you could probably tell from the restaurant's name, Sihai Soy Milk specializes in soy milk. Specifically, they sell very traditional Chinese street food duo of soy milk and youtiao (a type of fried dough sometimes referred to as a "Chinese donut" that pairs really nicely with chilled soy milk).

I ordered that, of course, and as expected the chilled soy milk was very nice and refreshing, but something else on the menu had caught my eye: salty soy milk. I ordered it, having no idea what to expect. In my mind, soy milk is usually mildly sweet.

The salty soy milk, or xian dou jiang, turned out to be a bowl of savory soy milk lightly curdled and thickened with vinegar and served with green onion, sesame oil, and pieces of soft, fluffy youtiao soaking in the soy milk. The dish is eaten with a spoon, almost like a very thin porridge. I had also ordered a serving of crispy "clay oven rolls", which were sort of a crunchy deep-fried youtiao, and were excellent when dipped in the salty soy milk.

salted soy milk with youtiao for breakfast

I also ordered a mantou bun, a steamed wheat bread originating in northern China. The manto was sliced open and filled with a thin seasoned pork chop and a folded scallion omelette, kind of like a Taiwanese breakfast sandwich.

Taiwanese steamed bun with pork chop and egg

The final dish was xiaolongbao, one of my all-time favorites! Xiaolongbao, or "soup dumplings", are a type of steamed dumpling filled with a savory pork ball and a rich broth. To eat them, you hold the dumpling in your spoon, bite a hole in the skin, and slurp out the broth before popping the rest of the dumpling into your mouth.

xiaolongbao, or soup dumplings, for breakfast in Taipei

These xiaolongbao were awesome! Taiwan is known for its amazing soup dumplings, but I honestly think that the best ones I had on my journey to Taipei came from this restaurant. Even though I was already full from the previous dishes, I finished every one.

pork soup dumplings for breakfast at Sihai Soy Milk

Some of my favorite breakfasts around the world:

If you can read Chinese, you can simply tick off what you want from a paper menu and hand it to the counter. If you cannot, the staff will seat you and give you an English menu with pictures. You don’t have to write down your order; they will take it for you. After ordering, just take the ticket to the front counter to pay, and your meal will shortly be served at your table.

Sihai Soy Milk menu with pictures

Location

Sihai Soy Milk is located at No. 29, Chang'an W Rd, Datong District, Taipei City, Taiwan 103 near Zhongshan MRT Station. The restaurant is very popular and can be packed during the morning rush. Prepare for a queue, but know that the line moves fairly quick, and the staff are efficient about seating and serving people to keep the crowd moving. We only had to wait for about ten minutes.

Sihai Soy Milk breakfast restaurant in Taipei, Taiwan

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