Moon Baking Studio looks to bring delicious baking vibes to the Taipei brunch scene, offering up what many consider as being the best brunch in Taipei. Whether you’re looking for a croissant to accompany a filling breakfast of salmon and egg, or whether you’re looking for a stack of delicious sourdough pancakes (yes, sourdough pancakes), there’s a bit of something for everyone here.
Located a mere 5-minute walk away from Zhongshan Junior High School MRT station, I strongly recommend you to book Moon Baking Studio in advance, as it does get busy and you may have to wait a while if you come without a reservation. However, worry not, you can use their online system linked here to book a table in advance. They open from 10:00-18:00 every day and accept contactless payment, too.
Even if you don’t want to sit down here at Moon Baking Studio, they have plenty of bread and pastries to take away and enjoy with a delicious coffee for breakfast or on-the-go brunch in Taipei. But, we all need to slow down and enjoy the joys of breakfast or a wonderful Taipei brunch occasionally. So sit back, relax, and enjoy a great plate in the relaxed atmosphere of Moon Baking Studio in the Songshan District of Taipei.
Table of Contents
The first thing you see when you walk in is a wrap-around glass-fronted display of freshly baked bread and pastry. This makes me very happy. I love bread, pastry, and everything in between. You can pick a croissant, pain au chocolate, doughnut, or a loaf of bread to take home and make your own eggs in the comfort of your kitchen. Whatever you do, this is enjoyment.
If you aren’t sure how to order or what to do when you arrive at Moon Baking Studio, 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 Moon Baking Studio
The menu at Moon Baking Studio is via the QR code on your table, however, you can check it out in advance at the link below:
Menu link for Moon Baking Studio here
Everything has Chinese and English accompanying it, so it's a cinch to get that delicious food ordered with pictures (on the QR code version) accompanying most dishes.
What We Ordered
So after a couple of trips back and forth to the display, we settled on a croissant and pain au chocolat to take out, and their house-special red bean with butter bun as a dessert for our Taipei brunch. But let me tell you this - those almond croissants looked awesome, as did the canale and sourdough loaves. I'll be going back for their other goods at another time. Just the croissant and pain au chocolat this time.
Smoked Salmon Charcoal Croissant
Smoked salmon is always great. Add a runny (sunny side up) fried egg and a croissant to the mix and you're on to a winner. But charcoal? What about the charcoal fad that seems to have taken the food world by late? Apparently, according to a quick web search, activated charcoal in food is supposed to help with digestion, lower cholesterol levels, and also 'improve' kidney function. Take all of these supposed benefits with a (pun intended) pinch of salt, though. The scientist inside me calls BS on the aforementioned benefits. Furthermore, if activated charcoal does aid with those health benefits, what is to say that all places using it use it in the correct dosage and cooking method?
Anyway, to the description of the food itself - Served with a fresh side salad and a delicious fried egg, this charcoal croissant was quite tasty, especially as it was crammed full of smoked salmon, avocado, and a caper sauce. The croissant wasn't particularly delicate, but that tends to be a good thing when you're eating it as a sandwich. I enjoyed it, but I don't know if I would re-order it, especially given the sourdough pancakes below...
Coffee
So I love the milk texture of a cappuccino. To be specific, a cappuccino has two layers of milk that sit atop the milky coffee served underneath. Did you know that? Espresso-based, the second layer on top of the coffee is steamed milk, but then the layer that you see on top is a layer of steamed milk foam that has a specific silky texture. While the art on top is not particularly commonplace amongst many cappuccinos, it's a nice little flair and relatively simple to do in that steamed milk foam. The cappuccino here at Moon Baking Studio was delicious. I could've had several, actually.
The second coffee to the right there is the espresso Romano. The origin of this coffee is highly disputed but is largely thought to originate in the Campania region of Italy where the postcard pictures of the Amalfi Coast come from. This would make complete sense with the twist of lemon that is quintessential to this coffee, with the Amalfi Coast producing some of the highest quality lemons anyone can get their hands on.
The espresso Romano usually has 2 shots of espresso that then has lemon juice added to it to balance it all out. This espresso Romano from Moon Baking Studio has some aerated foam on top with a lovely lemon twist. It was incredibly refreshing, and went beautifully with the salmon croissant above, cutting through the rich salmon and avocado.
Sourdough Pancakes
I didn't really know what to expect from sourdough pancakes. For you wonderful people who follow Eating in Taipei on Instagram, you'll know that over the last few months raised my own sourdough starter and have begun to develop delicious sourdough bread. I appreciate sourdough everything, so was keen to give these pancakes a shot.
Splitting the yolk, spreading the butter on the sourdough pancakes, and then diving right in, I was immediately convinced that I had made the right decision. Served with shavings of cheese and some fig slices, these sourdough pancakes were certainly more savoury in nature. There was definitely some wholemeal flour up in there, so don't expect them to be too light, but more so to replace what would ordinarily be a bread accompaniment.
The egg was poached to perfection, and bacon was smokey and tasty, and the beans put a smile on my face as they reminded me of home. The pot of butter and walnuts went nicely with the leftover pancake I had after pairing the other 2 with my savoury food, and everything went down nicely. This was a great dish, and probably my favourite of the meal. Especially when washed down with that tasty cappuccino.
Red Bean Bun
This little beauty came out looking so tasty. Thankfully, as we were both quite full by this point, the bread bun wasn't very big. The bread itself was fragrant and had a chewy texture to it. Then the thick slice of butter that mixed in with the sweetened red bean paste in the mouth as the bread sandwiched it all together was right on point. I enjoyed this a lot, and would've got one to take out, too, if we hadn't already bought the pain au chocolat and croissant...
The Bottom Line
Is it worth it? Moon Baking Studio is worth a trip, but only if you book in advance. If you have to wait around 1hr to eat it and don't have anything else to keep you distracted in the area while you wait, I don't think it has the wow factor that makes that 1hr wait quite worth it...
What is the best dish? The sourdough pancakes were delicious, unique, and well worth a shot.
Are there other places like this? There are some excellent Taipei brunch offerings to try. Below are some of my favourites:
Taipei Restaurant – The Antipodean, Delicious Australian-Style Breakfast or Brunch
Taipei Restaurant – Supranormal Bakery Café – 1 of the Best Breakfast/Brunch Spots in Taipei.
Taipei Restaurant – M One Cafe Daan, A Great Shout For A Great Brunch