YEN – W TAIPEI’s Cantonese Restaurant Overlooking Taipei’s Spectacular Skyline

Located on level 31, look forward to a symphony of culinary delights at the W brand’s debutant Cantonese restaurant, YEN. Upon entering the restaurant, you will be greeted by YEN’s team of friendly and fun servers. The restaurant is surrounded by long glass windows, allowing you to enjoy the sunset before dinner. It felt so magical to watch the city light up. The elegant interior with bold colours give the restaurant a romantic vibe, making this the perfect location for a surprise proposal. You will be presented with classical dishes with stylish innovation. YEN’s breathtaking creations in modern interpretations are works of art.

Both the lunch and dinner menu are extensive, but there is a wide variety of dim sum items available only during lunch. We were hosted to dinner at YEN, and were spoilt for choice, as there were so many items to choose from – the barbecue selections, nourishing soups, luxurious delicacies, heavenly seafood, and more. Eventually, we were recommended the Starry Starry Night Dinner Set Menu III (TWD2,580 per person).

Starry Starry Night Dinner Set Menu III

This 6-course dinner menu began with appetizers such as vinegar-cured black fungus salad, baked sweet fish with Yilan scallion, chilled green and white bitter gourd with longan honey, and roast kurobuta pork belly. The fish was fresh, and its aroma was enhanced by the scallions. My personal favourite was the roast kurobuta pork belly. The skin was super crispy, and you could hear the crackling sound when you sink your teeth into the little cube of meat. Every bite gave a burst of juices. It was so good on its own, you didn’t have to pair it with the mustard.

Next came the double boiled chicken soup with morel, fresh lotus seeds, and tender greens. This savoury soup was light on the palate, and the combination of textures and sweetness made it very delectable.

This was followed by the wok fried Hokkaido scallop with asparagus and XO sauce, and the braised Australian oxtail with aboriginal pigeon pea. The scallop was the highlight of our dinner. They were fresh, plump and juicy. You could taste its natural sweetness despite being drenched in the XO sauce. The braised oxtail was tender, but we would’ve preferred it to be meatier. If you can’t take beef, you can always let the servers know, so they can have the beef replaced with other meats. One of my dining partners tried the Iberico pork instead of beef.

The final unique savoury item before dessert was braised e-fu noodle with shrimp and enoki mushroom, served in a lobster bisque gravy. What a great marriage of Eastern and Western flavours!

The dessert consisted of almond tofu with raspberry, fresh fruits, and an accompanying creamy egg tart at the side. The overall sweetness of the dessert helped wash down the savoury dishes that we had earlier on. We also enjoyed the fresh fruit platter, which we kind of deceived ourselves into being healthy even on a holiday.

Vegetarian Set Menu

YEN restaurant also features a vegetarian set menu, and the starter includes Sichuan-style black fungus salad with spicy dressing, chilled cherry tomato with osmanthus flower, and honey-glazed walnut. This appetizer really prepared the palate for heavier dishes that were to be served later on.

The set menu also contains double boiled vegetable soup with matsutake, bamboo fungus, and tender greens. The delicious soup complemented the steamed luffa with Cantonese-style preserved vegetable, and melon ring with cordyceps and assorted mushroom.

This 7-course vegetarian set menu ends with steamed assorted fungus, carrot with truffle wrapped in bamboo fungus, and a vegetarian bun, before dessert. The lemongrass crystal jelly with aloe vera, and lime sorbet, was so refreshing. Our tastebuds were surprised by the tangy twist from the sorbet.

YEN Restaurant Details
Address: Level 31, W Taipei, 10 Zhongxiao East Road, Section 5 Xinyi District, Taipei, Taiwan
Contact: 886 2 7703 8887
Opening Hours: 11.30am to 2.30pm (lunch) and 6pm to 10pm (dinner) daily
Website: http://www.yentaipei.com/en/

Besides the restaurant, there is also the YEN Bar where you can toast to the vibrant Xinyi lights of the sprawling Taipei skyline through soaring floor-to-ceiling glazed walls. The bar boasts more than 80 kinds of whisky, 90 kinds of cocktails, and 100 kinds of wine on the list with an alluring variety of delightful and modern Asian tapas. The Summer Breeze (TWD450) is a refreshing mix of Sauvignon Blanc, fresh kiwi, honey, passion fruit, apple liqueur, rosemary, and cranberry juice.

YEN Bar Details
Address: Level 31, W Taipei, 10 Zhongxiao East Road, Section 5 Xinyi District, Taipei, Taiwan
Opening Hours: Sun-Tue 2pm to 12am. Wed-Sat 2pm to 1am.
Website: http://www.yentaipei.com/en/yenbar

Note that this is an invited tasting.