Cheng Banzhang Taiwan Delicacy

This place never disappointed me. The noodle bowls are always good and all beef noodle bowls are highly recommended. They are not particularly roomy so plan to wait in line for a while if you go in peak hours.

I have been traveling back and forth Taiwan so frequently that I almost see myself as half a Taiwanese; one of the things that they pride themselves in has to be the food. Indeed, why would they not? Whether it is the street food found in street markets or proper meals such as beef noodles or taiwanese bento, Taiwan has it all.
Having said that I have a secret rule of thumb when it comes to food, that is, I will never eat Taiwanese food in Hong Kong and the same applies to the Hong Kong food in Taiwan. It might be a preconception on mine that the authenticity would very much be lost when the cuisine is introduced to a foreign piece of land; adding to that would be the fact that I have been let down for too many times and have gradually lose faith in it. It wasn’t until I have come to this shop coincidentally that I gradually restore hope in Taiwanese cuisines in Hong Kong.
I think the best way to tell whether a restaurant is good or not is to try out the basics; beef noodle soup is a staple of Taiwan and it would very well be a good indicator in how well a restaurant prepare their foods. The broth is quintessential in a bowl of noodles and 程班長 does it like no others. Traditional taiwanese beef noodle broth is rich and seasoned with soy sauce, behind the mellow fullness a punch of heat will catch you by surprise, and this is exactly how the broth is like in 程班長; going against the slightly broad and substantial noddles, the two matches perfectly. Whereas for the priced jewel, the meats, which could either be brisket, tendon or tripe or all 3 of them, are all very well braised and are melt in your mouth tender.
Last but not least, the pickles that add to the noodle soup play an important role in spicing up the flavors as well as freshen up the mouthful.
Thank to this restaurant, may be it is not a bad idea to give a little try on taiwanese restaurants in Hong Kong; a leap of faith is indeed called for nonetheless.