Amajia seafood restaurant, nestled amidst the bobbing boats of a quaint fishing harbour of Huanggang in Jinshan District, New Taipei City, is a haven for seafood lovers looking to get out of the city. This humble family-run restaurant prides itself on the fresh seafood delivery from the fisherman in the local harbour just down the hill.
Imagine savouring the ocean’s freshest offerings while relaxing and looking out at a panorama view of the sparkling sea in the Jinshan District of New Taipei City. A 1hr drive/1.5hr bus journey from central Taipei, Amajia‘s picture-postcard setting makes it a worthwhile destination for a scenic drive on a crisp, clear day. Whether you’re in the mood for a date or a little family outing, Amajia is welcoming and has that homely feel. You’ll get honest food in a beautiful location, allowing you to fully unwind from a busy work week.
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When you arrive at Amajia and walk up the steep slope to the restaurant hidden down an unnoticeable alleyway, you’ll notice a quaint neighbourhood vibe – that is what Amajia Seafood is all about. Amajia in Chinese translates to Grandma’s house, and that’s definitely what the feeling is like when you’re there.
When you arrive outside after your brief jaunt up the hill, you come to the main restaurant, resplendant in flowers and greenery. Either you’ll be able to get a table here, at the neater venue of Amajia‘s Seafood restaurant, or you’ll be moved to their less modern outdoor venue just opposite – the place opposite has slightly better veiws, so that’s all good for me.
If you aren’t sure how to order or what to do when you arrive at Amajia, then this is the post for you. See below for How to Order in Taipei Restaurants like a definitive pro!
3 Fast Tips on How to Order in Taipei Restaurants like a definitive pro!
The Menu at Amajia Seafood
The menu is split into 4 main area, so it's fairly simply to understand:
- Soup - 湯品
- Carbs/Starch - 主食
- Drinks - 冰飲
- Fishing Port/Harbour Specials - 漁港特色料理
We were fortunate to get there on a sunny day but the sun was still manageable, not oppressive in its heat. We could see the mountains through the bushes, which rose above the sea. The faint sounds of seagulls in the background, everything felt very vacationy. A long, relaxing lunch is certainly the order of the day at Amajia seafood.
What We Ordered
Cold chicken
白斬雞 - Bái zhǎn jī
It's certainly not winning in the looks department, regardless of the orange slices and basil adding a pop of colour. There's something that many people get put off by when faced with chicken that comes to your table cold. But you have to stick with it to get through to the meat - succulent, flavourful, and absolutely delicious. The skin is thick and chewy (in a good way), and the meat has bags of chicken flavour. You should definitely expect bones in the chicken, but the juiciness of the chicken is probably something that you wouldn't expect here, but oh it's there!
Barbecued Beef Rib
燒烤牛肋條 - Shāo kǎo niú lè tiáo
While the Amajia seafood is on point, we had to get some beef as it's barbecued and comes with a salad. There's not much more that I find refreshing - maybe harking back to my days of family barbecues in the 1-2 weeks of the summer sun in England. The salad was nicely fresh, but I couldn't help but feel a little disappointed by the steak. A good steak is tender, juicy, flavourful, and brings a smile to my face. But this was a little gristly and not particularly tender. It wasn't bad, but don't have your expectations too high.
Shark meat soup
阿爸特製鯊魚羹 - ā bà tè zhì shā yú gēng
Importantly, this is not shark fin soup. There are chunks of shark meat that are battered and deep-fried, then plopped into this thickened soup. Lots of thinly cut carrots and bamboo shoots are scattered throughout the soup, and it's all quite refreshing.
The sharky meat itself doesn't have a discernable flavour or texture that would allow me to know what type of fish it is. It's meaty, it's tasty, and I like it. You must make sure to add a dab of vinegar to the soup, as this brings out a sharp freshness that it really benefits from.
Alcohol Steamed Clams
酒蒸蛤蠣 Jiǔ zhēng há lì
There's not much of a better sight than a big bowl of clams when eating at a seafood restaurant such as Amajia seafood. Especially at this beautiful location on the Jinshan District coast next to the fishing harbour. The smells of freshly cooked clams with little spikes of basil in the air is exactly what makes this dish well worth ordering.
Big, meaty, fresh, delicious. There's not a harsh taste of the alcohol used to steam these clams, so it's difficult to know exactly what the alcohol used is, but I would guess a rice wine. They were really tasty and paired with the rice nicely. I would certainly order them again.
Stir-fried Squid with Ginger
薑爆小卷 - Jiāng bào xiǎo juǎn
Upon ordering this I thought that it would be those slivers of fresh ginger that we often find to accompany our steamed soup dumplings, so I was surprised for it to arrive at our table with a waft of delicious aromas and a thick almost deep-fried texture to the ginger that the squid had been fried up with. The smells were of intoxicating ginger and those fresh seafood flavours of squid.
The textures were a great contrast of crunchy ginger and delicate squid that had a chewy bite to it. The tentacle part of the squid was more chewy, but overall the flavours throughout the dish were really good.
The whole meal at Amajia seafood was really good, and for a day out trip to the Jinshan District fishing harbour little village that Amajia seafood is located, it's well worth the effort. Make sure to go on a sunny day and walk around the harbour area afterwards. There's even a little public hot spring to dangle your feet into just around the corner, too. Amajia seafood + foot hot spring sounds like a pretty afternoon out.
The Bottom Line
Is it worth it? It's a bit of a drive out of Taipei, but on a sunny day it is worth it.
What is the best dish? The stir-fried squid with ginger. You're not going to find it on every menu, but seafood being the specialty here at Amajia seafood, it would almost be rude not to order this.
Are there other places like this? There are plenty of places like this, but not as refined as this. You can check out some more seafood restaurants through this link.