A Date For Your Diary

On my final evening in Taipei, we headed out of the hotel in search of dinner and quite by accident stumbled across a wonderful little restaurant called “Diary” on Dongfeng street in Da-an district (台北市東豐街53號). Attracted by its striking interior of exposed concrete walls and roof beams, softened by wooden tables and subtle lighting, we ventured inside…

Diary Restaurant

Overlooking the open kitchen we soon realised that the hand-written menu was all in Chinese but luckily the proprietor was kind enough to walk us through it and our neighbours provided some helpful recommendations. Apparently, they plan to have an English menu soon. Diary doesn’t serve a specific cuisine so I guess you could call it “fusion” food.

Fried Rice with Mushroom & Truffle

Mushroom and Truffle Risotto – I don’t think I’d ever eaten anything containing truffles before up till that point but wow, the texture and flavour was something else. Filling but left you wanting more.

Stuffed Veg

Stuffed Tomatoes, Courgettes and Potatoes – bite-size and healthy little morsels, beautifully presented with a pesto sauce.

Pork Chops + Mash

Pork Chops with Mash Potato and Herbs – I’m not usually one for rare-cooked meet but this was seriously tasty.

Diary Table / Bar

Seeing everything cooked in front of you immensely enhanced the experience and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves in the relaxed atmosphere. This is one place I thoroughly hope I can return to in the future.

David avatar

4 responses

  1. Dear David, I like your blog which has subject matter on travel information, I hope you would consider mutual link exchange with me. Best regards, jeremy

  2. Hi Randomwire, found your blog while looking for info on Diary. Love the simple design and beautiful photography! I ended up going to Diary and found it to be exactly how you described it – a place I hope I can return to in the future 🙂

    1. That’s great – I’m glad you enjoyed it 🙂 I’m hoping to go to Taiwan in April and maybe revisit if I have time.

  3. gregory flad avatar
    gregory flad

    On June 12 2013 I had the wonderful pleasure of dining at DIARY a restaurant in the Da an section of Taipei.
    After having spent many days and evenings eating at various night markets in around Taipei I felt the urge for a nice indoor sit down experience. As I strolled around the area near my hotel, the Éclat, I passed by a restaurant which looked busy and had an interesting decor, and being from New York city I was immediately drawn in.
    I asked if they had a menu in english at which point the waiter sent the host, a man named Alex over to me, with the menu in english and after looking at it briefly i decided to stay, with no seats in the dinning area I took a seat at the bar which not only afforded me a great position to watch the crowd but allowed me a good view of the exhibition kitchen were the food is prepared. Among the things I ordered were the smoked duck quesadilla, the crab ravioli and the fried rocks. Each item had its own unique flavor and was very delicious, combine this with the incredibly warm hospitality provided by Alex and their staff it proved one of my best experiences in Taipei and a treasured memory! I hope to return soon to Taiwan and will make DIARY one of my first stops!
    G. Flad
    6/29/13

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