Taiwan shaved ice dessert - Jin gi moo

Desserts from a golden chicken.  Jin gi moo!  It’s the restaurant that lays a bunch of “golden eggs”.  Hidden in one of the alleys of Dongmen, locals patiently wait for their turn to try its best-sellers.  An emerging dessert hotspot that is slowly getting recognition.  Jingimoo's intriguing dessert will surely change the way you look at Taipei's must-try foods.

   

When I came to the store, patrons have been sitting on the benches and waiting there to have their names called.  I was too excited to eat that I entered the store immediately and pointed at their English menu.  Little that I know, that I have to write my name on the waiting list and then join the queue.  The restaurant space of Jingimoo is not that big so customers really have wait especially if you are going with a group composed of three or more people.

A sprinkle of love on a bowl of ice.  The sweet aroma of roses can be smelled as soon as the dessert is served on your table.  Accompanied by a tiny cup of condensed milk, freshly sliced bits of the red flowers can be seen floating.   The dessert sparkled under the ray of sunshine that entered the store.  I poured the condensed milk on the mountain of ice topped with glutinous rice balls and some jellies.   Adding flavor to my food had never been so much fun.  The fresh bits of roses had joined the larger pieces of petals that have been preserved as a jam.

underneath the ice was a layer of red beans

When all of the ice had melted

a rose petal

Magical roses!  Yes, they are edible.  Its sweet taste is as romantic as the love of a man to the woman of his dreams.   The dark shade of red on the shaved ice were the pickled petals that were soused with strawberry syrup.   A perfect combination that gives a powerful flavor to the dessert.   I can't believe that Jingimoo's organic rose dessert was as delicious as the mango shaved ice desserts of Taiwan.

In the kitchen, I got a chance to see how the shaved ice has been added with a sweet cream.

After the blueberry and raspberry dessert has been served on your table, the waitress will lit a fire. Watch how the sugar caramelizes!

The brown color on top is the sugar that has burned!

The store has another best-seller and I also wanted to give it a try.   After eating the rose dessert, I went back to the kitchen and ordered the burning blueberry and raspberry dessert.  A couple was sitting beside me and they also ordered the caramel topped shaved ice dessert.  When it was placed on their table,  I watched as the fire burned the frappe on top within a few seconds.  As it burns, the sugar on the mixtures caramelizes quickly creating the brown color on top.   It quickly hardens and when eaten reminds everyone how sweet the common table sugar is.

An explosion of flavors.  The sweet and sour taste of berries complemented each other when all of the ice melted.  I didn't enjoy the dessert at first when there was still ice. But when it all turned into liquid, it revealed its secret taste.  Add the white glutinous balls and you have an authentic Taiwanese iced dessert perfect during the hot summer months.  

The Organic Rose Dessert and the Fire Blueberry & Raspberry were just some of the foods, that one can try in this “secret” dessert shop in Dongmen.  Its unique flavors plus the Japanese feel of the restaurant makes it worth to visit.  So remember the Golden Chicken Mother when you visit in Taipei.  Don't forget to add it to your bucket list.  金雞母. Jin gi moo.

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Jingimoo (金雞母)
address: No. 36號, Lane 143, Section 1, Hangzhou South Road, Zhongzheng District, Taipei City, 100
[Google Map]
*The staff have poor English speaking skills but they have an English menu.

How to get here:  MRT Dongmen Station (Orange Line/Red Line) -> Exit 2 -> walk 230 meters

My orders:

[1] Organic rose dessert: NTD 120
(5 out of 5 luomujie stars)

[2] Fire Blueberry and Raspberry: NTD 200
(4 out of 5 luomujie stars)

Rapsa is a slang for the Filipino word "sarap" which means delicious. Delicious -> sarap -> "rapsa" (inverted syllable order). The Rapsa Edition of the "My Beloved Taipei" Travel Series will take readers to the tastiest and yummiest foods in Taipei. Get to know the best desserts and local delicacies that Taiwan's capital has to offer, through this subprogram of the luomujie blog.

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