Jin Chun Fa

Jin Chun Fa (金春發牛肉店Jīn chūn fā niú ròu diàn) traces its roots to 1897, when founder Chen Wu sold scalded beef and beef offal soup from a cart near the old Taipei Circle. The main shop on Tianshui Road in Datong is now run by the third and fourth generations, and the city lists it as one of Taipei's century-old businesses. Several other branches around the city are each run independently by a different line of the family, including the Dazhi shop near Miramar.

The beef is fresh rather than frozen (溫體牛), and the house style is 清燉, a clear broth rather than the red-braised kind. The clear-stewed beef noodles and the beef offal soup (NT$160 at the main shop) are the classics, and you can also order by cut: tendon, brisket or heart. The stir-fried curry beef noodles (around NT$140) turn up on almost every table at the Miramar branch.

The Tianshui Road shop is open 11:30 AM to 8:30 PM with no afternoon break, and closed on Mondays. Broth refills are free there, but cost NT$40 at the other branches.