Red Onion Cafe in UP Town Center: The Home of Hand-Shaved Noodles

I think it’s rare to find authentic Taiwanese restaurants in Metro Manila, especially compared to other Asian cuisines like Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, and Thai. To be honest, I’m not really familiar with Taiwanese food—until Wen-Szu Lin of Red Onion Cafe in UP Town Center invited us to his restaurant last week to try some of their best-selling dishes.

Photo grabbed from Red Onion Cafe’s Facebook page

I was very, very excited to eat—especially because this was my second time in UP Town Center. (Ironic, I know. Considering I live so near.) Red Onion Cafe is located on the Ground Floor of UP Town Center along Katipunan Avenue, Quezon City. It’s behind Cotton On, so you won’t really see it when you pass Katipunan going to C.P. Garcia.

The Cupcake and I were able to indulge in a number of their dishes such as the Taiwanese Crispy Dumplings (Php 198), Taiwanese Beef Noodles, Stir-Fried Beef with Leeks (Php 328), Red Onion House Fried Rice (Php 188), Winter Melon Tea (Php 78)—refills are 50% off, and Spiced and Iced Coffee Latte (Php 128). For dessert, we had Mantou with Condensed Milk.

 Taiwanese Crispy Dumplings.Taiwanese Beef Noodles

Stir-Fried Beef with Leeks

Mantou with Condensed Milk

The Taiwanese Crispy Dumplings are very similar to Gyoza, but Red Onion Cafe’s are longer and served uniquely upside down. They’re half pan-fried and half-boiled, so it’s a perfect combination of crunchy and chewy. It’s a bit heavy for an appetizer (since the servings are bigger), but I’d choose this over Gyoza anytime.

The Taiwanese Beef Noodles were really fulfilling. I also loved watching the Chef manually shave the noodles, before boiling them. You can watch the video here:

Although the Stir-Fried Beef with Leeks were overpowered by the leek flavor, it went really well with the tenderness of the beef and their House Fried Rice.

I also need to highlight their specialty drinks. The Winter Melon Tea tasted a lot like Discovery Shores’ Pandan Water. It was incredibly refreshing! Cupcake also enjoyed his Spiced and Iced Coffee Latte, which had a very interesting presentation. I took a sip of the latte as well, and was expecting to dislike the spiciness of it—but to my surprise, it was good. It’s spicy in a way that a pinch of cinnamon and other spices were used to amplify the flavor.

 Winter Melon Tea.Spiced and Iced Coffee Latte

If you’re looking for the best and most authentic Taiwanese restaurant in the Metro, I think Red Onion Cafe boasts a menu that the whole family will definitely enjoy.

Because I just have to share the awesome hoodie I was wearing that evening. Hihi!

Red Onion Cafe

G/F Ayala UP Town Center, Katipunan Avenue, Quezon City, Philippines

(02) 955 2263

11:00 am – 10:00 pm

https://www.facebook.com/myredonioncafe