Phoenix Saliva House 鳳涎居雞膳食坊

Profile

Address:   台北市大安區敦化南路一段190巷48號
                  No. 48, Lane 190, Section 1, DūnHuà South Rd, Da-an District
Phone #:  02-2771-9779
Website:

Price Range:   $$

Accepts Credit Cards: probably

Take out: probably

Waiter Service: yes

Outdoor seating:  no

Alcohol: no

Rating

Food Quality: 4 out of 5

Decor:  4 out of 5

Service: 4 out of 5

Overall: 4 out of 5

Recommendation: Great place for various Chinese chicken soups.

Review

In the alleys behind Zhong Hsiao Sogo lies Phoenix Saliva House. It is a chain that sells various types of chicken soups that are helpful against various ailments. You also can get very cheap sides at around 40 NT to go with the soup that runs arond 150 NT. It is a great place to get a bowl of hot soup, and it is good for your health too.

There is an adherence to a traditional chinese aesthetic, with deep finished wood benches. The laterns are very chinese, and the artifacts placed around the dining space all coalesce with their theme. The service at this chain was very nice, although they are more young servers, and the chain store at Gong Guan had good service as well, but the servers were older. Both stores were very good at being prompt to cater your needs, while being polite, but won't waiting on you like western restaurants would: It's just their style I guess. 

The main thing that makes this place special is their 8 or so different chicken soups that heal some sort of ailment. Whether you need to strengthen your stomach, liver, or heart, there is a soup there to help. They come in this huge ceramic bowls, and I personally think 2 people can share 1 bowl. I got one that is supposed to help my stomach, this was was light, semisweet, and had a faint taste of chicken. There are other soups like Sesame Oil Chicken that are more heavy and salty. There is a soup for everyone.

I recommend getting the 30 NT Chinese pulled-chicken rice to go with your soup. The rice will help you get some more solid food in your stomach, and it is delicious mixed with the sauce and the chicken. Don't forget to order some vegetables too, for a balanced diet. There is not much I can blog about the sides so I will just describe what they are. In essence, the sides are not so interesting and very common and imaginable. I really like the idea of the many chicken soups that help some sort of ailment though, and I really felt that it was crisp, healthy, filling, and veeery affordable.

 Mainland Chick: some sort of lettuce tossed in sesame sauce.

Golden-needle Musroom: Don't know how to translate this ubiquitous shabu shabu item 

Yam Leaves: If you had yam leaves before, these are not so different, just topped with some sesame sauce.