An Amis Fisherman’s Seafood Restaurant
It
was quite a distance to travel to Atomo
Arifowang Canglah Restaurant in Hualien from Taipei but it was truly worth
it. After a 2-hour train followed by nearly an hour by bus, we arrived in Fengbin Township, a rural township
bordering Taitung County.
As
the township is set by sea, the locals enjoy abundance of fresh seafood in
their daily meals. We were told that there is a very unique small restaurant
owned by an aboriginal fisherman and his family that has been enticing many
foodies there. Named after him and his two children, Atomo Arifowang Canglah serves lunch and dinner set course meal
from local caught seafood and foraged greens.
The
humble restaurant is set overlooking the sea. The restaurant has a lovely sea
theme. Lots of wood crafts to seashell collections and painted wall murals, the
ambiance is fresh and vibrant. Diners are mostly encouraged to sit on the upper
level to enjoy the view of the sea while dining.
Gorgeous
wood tables set with hand painted clay canister filled with water and clay cups
to green leaves, there’s a lovely charm in dining at Atomo.
Since
there is no menu, the curiosity intensifies the excitement of what’s to come.
As with all the meals served, Atomo served at 10-course omakase for a price of
NTD800 per person. They are generous with their courses so make sure to go on
an empty stomach.
The
starter came and a pretty one too! Chinese
Yam Egg Roll was so colorful at sight. The roll was delicately light with a
creamy sweetness from the yam. A vinegary sauce lifted the roll along with some
wild ferns and cabbage.
Sweet Potato Ball is a classic dish that is popular in
Taiwan. Atomo’s version was damn good. The natural sweetness of the sweet
potato was utterly divine and creamy. Crispy balls filled with a beautiful soft
and powdery mash sweet potato was the best sweet potato balls I have ever
savored.
By
the third dish, I was beginning to understand why many traveled so far for this
eatery. Atomo takes the freshest ingredients and seasoned them with minimal
seasoning or sauces. This allows the natural flavours and the freshness to
shine.
The
Steamed Egg with Wild Vegetables and
Clam was light and very tasty. Thick broth with wild greens, enoki
mushrooms, goji berry and clam provided a beautiful sauce for soft steamed egg
custard.
Three Flavour Platter is another course that highlights
freshness. Three bites of wild vegetable leaves with bamboo shoot, pickled
green papaya and homemade scallop sauce on wild fern proved that we should all
enjoy the natural flavours of our ingredients more often.
For
a palate cleanser, the homemade Passionfruit
Millet Wine is perfect. In fact, Taiwan is famous for their millet wine,
which to me tasted similar to Korean makgeolli. This one is perked up with
tangy and fruity passionfruit. I sure could drink up a few more of these millet
wine…
Even
the roasted fish are grilled with only some herbs and sea salt. A side of
seasoning salt and pepper is artistically shaped on the plate to resemble a
fish. We had three different fishes that day as we had a big party at our
table.
Depending
on the catch of the day, Atomo serves them the same way, paying homage to
natural flavours of the ocean. Out of the three fishes of Marlin (黄旗尾), Subnose Pompano (红杉) and Farm Mullet (乌鱼), the pompano was the sweetest. The mullet had very
smooth and fine flesh while the marlin had firmer flesh which yield towards a
meaty texture but the flavours are pretty good. Simple preparation of the finest
catch…. super yum!
The
fishes go well with the Purple Glutinous
Rice with Yam. I adored the presentation of the rice balls.
Taiwan’s local glutinous grain, the purple rice are quite fluffy and lightly sticky. Coated with shredded crispy yam, I enjoyed this very much, so much so I wanted to grab another one…
Taiwan’s local glutinous grain, the purple rice are quite fluffy and lightly sticky. Coated with shredded crispy yam, I enjoyed this very much, so much so I wanted to grab another one…
The
next dish of Bacon with Eryingi with
Scallion Roll was very much well-received. Quite expected as bacon does
make everything taste yummy, at least in my books.
A
large board holding the freshest thick cuts of Marlin Sashimi, Marlin Tataki, Areola Babylon Snail, Bottle Squid with
Ebiko & Wasabi Mayo, Squid with Onion Mignonette and Seaweed with Prawn made an impressive
sight. This oceanic platter captures the essence of seafood caught in the surrounding
waters of Hualien.
The
marlin taste pretty good raw as well as seared tataki style. What elevated the
sashimi is the side of fresh grated wasabi and soy sauce. The gastropod snails
were chewy and briny while the bottle squid has a crunchy texture topped with a
zingy creamy wasabi sauce with a pop of fish roes. The squid with onion
mignonette and seaweed with prawn were also decent. It’s a seafood paradise of
oceanic flavours.
By
this round, we are pretty much stuffed. Glad to see a soup course of Wild Vegetable with Fish Bone Soup, the
soup eased our tummy with much comfort notes. Brimming with lots of wild
greens, soft radish chunks, tomatoes, pumpkin and fried fish bones, the broth
was robust and delicious. Although I could barely eat anymore, I still couldn’t
resist enjoying the broth long with the soft vegetables.
By
now, our tummies were literally bursting. Then this luscious plate of Poached Prawns was placed on our table.
Simply irresistible, the prawns were superbly sweet and succulent. A light dip
in soy sauce enhanced the crustacean with more moreish flavours.
Our
amazing aboriginal Amis lunch ended with this pretty dessert of Roselle Jelly with Passionfruit &
Persimmon and fresh local fruits.
Pick up some house made fresh baked bread by the owner on your way out!
Pick up some house made fresh baked bread by the owner on your way out!
It
was truly a beautiful lunch at Atomo
Arifowang Canglah. The omakase is a wonderful and unique journey of local
Amis tribe flavours in highlighting the natural goodness of land and sea.
Despite us being very full from the omakase, we didn’t feel heavy as all the
dishes have a delicate balance of savory, sweet and sour. Truly
value-for-money, one is guaranteed to leave this place fully satiated.
Reservations required.
Atomo Arifowang Canglah is a dining experience that warrants
a return!
ATOMO
ARIFOWANG CANGLAH
No. 138, Jingpu Village,
Fengbin Township,
Hualien County
Tel: 03-8781479
Facebook: www.facebook.com/CanglahRestaurant/
Business Hours:
Lunch 11.30am
to 2.30pm
Dinner 5.30pm to 8.30pm
*This trip was made
possible by Taiwan Tourism together
with First Class Magazine and Eva Air. However, all stories and
comments in my posts are purely derived from my own experiences through the
trip.
Taiwan
Travel Series
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