Wendel's German Restaurant, Taipei

A piece of German Gemütlichkeit in the middle of Taipei

• Read my wife's review in Chinese | 中文版食記>>

I'm always eager to try good food in Taipei and that also includes restaurants of non-Taiwanese or Chinese flavors. I've never been to a German restaurant outside Germany and Wendel's looked like it would be a good choice of being the first such example. Located in Daan, Taipei's la-dee-da district, it's found right in the heart of the city. I probably wouldn't have visited, if it wasn't for my German friend, who recommended it as the best German food in Taipei. My wife and I decided to give it a try and to check, if he was right.

The first Wendel's bakery in Taiwan was opened in 1999 (source).

When we visited the restaurant on a Saturday afternoon, most guests were Taiwanese, only few foreigners found their way to Wendel's. I'm not sure, if this is a norm, but I think German food has a good reputation in Taiwan, as I see restaurants with the name German (德國式) popping up all over Taipei in recent years. Are they picking the fruits of Wendel's hard work? I don't know, but Wendel's is definitely the most known name of them all.

While I had a refreshing Weiz'n, locals were enjoying the Schweinehaxen.

And then our lunch was served:

Our starter was a basket of whole-grain bread with butter. Tasty!

I ordered German bratwurst with sauerkraut and mashed potatoes. I have to say I was a little disappointed. The potatoes were a little too compact, while the bratwurst tasted a bit bland. Germans have a lot of bratwurst dishes, maybe this one is supposed to be like that - I am not sure, but it didn't please my taste buds too much.

My wife had spätzle topped with cheese. Very tasty, but too much for her - I had to help here. Spätzle are generally very fulling - that one portion would be enough for both of us.

After the meal, we checked out Wendel's breads - looked very delicious.

Instead of bread, we chose to buy this cake and brought home - it was very tasty.

We skipped this fartastic offer and decided to head home.

Auf Wiederseh'n, Wendel's.

The verdict

Wendel's is definitely a great bakery and his breads and desserts are very tasty and healthy. When it comes to lunch, I expected more, especially because the prices were German, too. My lunch was around 500 NTD (app. 13 Eur) and for that kind of money in Taipei I expect more. My wife liked it a lot, though. She had no complaints, but she only had German food once before, while I visited Germany a lot of time and tried lots of juicier bratwursts. But like Germans say »Über Geschmack lässt sich nicht streiten« (There is no point arguing about someone's taste/preference), I will say that it all depends on you. I would definitely recommend Wendel's, as the over all impression and experience was very good. You just need a thicker wallet to dine there.

• English name: Wendel's German Bakery & Bistro
• Chinese name: 溫德德式烘培餐館
• Romanization: Wēndé Déshì hōngpéi cānguǎn
• Address: 台北市大安區光復南路260巷28號
• Phone number: (02) 27 11 89 19
• Opening hours: 9.00 - 22.00
• Website: www.wendels-bakery.com
• Money per person: Around 500 NT$
• Need to book: No.
• Find location: Google maps

[My FOOD IN TAIPEI page][All photos by MKL, 2012]