Spartan Race Taipei: One Race, Endless Food, and Why Taipei Might Be the One of My Favourite Food Cities in Asia
- Alex
- Oct 26, 2025
- 8 min read
Day One: Tokyo to Taipei and Straight Into Night Market Chaos
Day One started with a flight from Tokyo into Taipei, landing and heading straight to my Airbnb in the Da’an district.
In my opinion, Da’an is one of the best places you can stay in Taipei. It’s central, well connected, and close to multiple MRT lines. I found myself using the red line the most, but having access to the orange and green lines made it incredibly easy to move around the city.
I’ve always preferred staying in an Airbnb, especially when travelling for a few days around something like a race. It gives you space, flexibility, and the option to settle into a routine.
Not that I used the kitchen once lol, but the optiuon was always there!
This trip ended up being just one day of racing and the rest of the time sampling Taipei's incredible food scene!
After checking in, I didn’t waste any time. I headed straight out to Linjiang Night Market for my first proper introduction to Taipei street food.
The first few bites were a mix of hits and misses. I tried Cong you bing, a crispy scallion pancake, which wasn't bad. Then the glutinous rice sausage with Taiwanese sausage. Funnily, the direct translation of the name is "small sausage in large sausage". It was unreal. That alone set the tone for the trip.
I had a crepe with honey and banana that looked better than it tasted. It was fine, just not what I was expecting. Then came a taro sago bubble tea, which was refreshing and easy to drink in the heat.
One of the more unique things I tried was the famous peanut ice cream roll. It’s a thin crepe filled with shaved peanut brittle, coriander, and scoops of ice cream, all rolled together. It sounds strange, but it absolutely works.
That first night was exactly what you want from Taipei. Busy streets, endless food options, and the feeling that you’ve barely scratched the surface!
Running the City, Taiwanese Breakfast, and a Mid Start That Got Better
The next morning started early with a 15 kilometre run along the river.
It was around 35 degrees, hot and humid, and it absolutely drained me. But it was worth it. Running is one of the best ways to see a new city, and the river paths gave a completely different perspective of Taipei.
After the run, I went for a traditional Taiwanese breakfast at 青島豆漿店.
To be honest, it was a bit underwhelming. It needed more salt, more chili, just more flavour overall.
I had a mix of classic items. Four fried dumplings, known as jian jiao , two filled with vegetables and two with pork. Alongside that was youtiao , the long, deep-fried dough sticks that are a staple of Taiwanese breakfasts.
The main dish was doujiang , a savoury soy milk soup that’s often served with tofu and topped with vinegar, soy sauce, and bits of youtiao soaked into it. It’s a very traditional dish, and while I can appreciate it, it wasn’t something I loved straight away.
Chiang Kai-shek Memorial and Unexpected Food Discoveries
Later in the day, I visited the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial.
The scale of it is what stands out the most. It’s massive, open, and very clean in its design. There’s a simplicity to it, but at the same time it feels incredibly grand and important.
After that, I spent the afternoon just walking through different parts of Taipei, and this is where the city really starts to shine.
I came across an oyster and beef noodle soup shop, completely random, and had one of those meals that just hits perfectly at the right time! THEN, I found a bakery and this was one of the biggest surprises of the trip!
Taiwanese bread and pastries are on another level. They’re lighter, softer, and subtly sweet in a way that’s hard to explain. Not heavy or too dense, or too complicated for that matter. The texture alone makes them addictive. And the slight sweeteness to the bread, irresistible. (No pics taken due to the fact the bread was consumed immediately lol)
I squeezed in a gym session in the afternoon before heading out again that night.
Raohe Night Market: The Best Food Experience of the Trip
That night, I went to Raohe Night Market, and this was easily one of the best food experiences I’ve ever had.
It’s right up there with Rio de Janeiro and Hanoi.
Everything just works. The layout, the energy, the smell of food everywhere, and the sheer number of options.
One of the first things I had was gua bao. It’s a soft, steamed bun filled with braised pork belly, crushed peanuts, coriander, pickled greens, and a bit of sugar. The combination of sweet, salty, soft, and slightly crunchy textures makes it one of the best street food items you’ll ever eat.
I also had a bag of mini sausages cooked with garlic and chili, simple but ridiculously good.
Then came the standout. A melon pan bun filled with two scoops of taro ice cream. That was easily the best bite of 2025.
I tried the famous black pepper buns, known as hu jiao bing, cooked in traditional clay ovens. They were good, especially watching the process, but I would have liked a bit more salt and spice.
To cool down, I had a fresh watermelon juice, and finished with oyster omelette, a classic Taiwanese street food dish made with oysters, egg, and a starchy batter.
By the end of the day, the abs were still there. Slightly less sharp, but still holding on lol.
Pre-Race Day: Dumplings, Beef Noodles, and Getting Ready
The day before the race started with another Taiwanese breakfast at Tian Jin Onion Pancake.
This time I had a multiple cong you bin. It was good, but nothing compared to what my Chinese grandma makes. Hers has more scallions, more flavour, and is just better overall.
Walking around that morning, I noticed a lot of Japanese tourists. Later I found out Taipei is a really popular destination for people from Japan, which made sense.
For lunch, I went all in on dumplings. Pork shumai topped with prawn, xiao long bao (directly translated to small basket buns in English), and barbecue pork buns. Big portions, but no regrets. As you can see below.
Later, I headed out to New Taipei to check in for the race, and then made my way to the famous Yongkang Beef Noodle House for dinner.
I had a spicy beef noodle soup, braised pork rice, and a refreshing dessert to finish. Not exactly the ideal pre-race meal, but it was worth it.
Race Day: First Spartan Race and a Lesson Learned
Race day arrived, and this was my first ever Spartan race.
I didn’t sign up for the elite division because I didn’t realise anyone could just enter. So I started in the age group wave.
From the start, I went out hard.
The first section was about 10 kilometres of trail running, and I was overtaking people constantly. The heat and humidity were intense, but having trained through the Japanese summer, it didn’t slow me down too much.
Then came the obstacles. Around 30 of them across the course.
I stayed steady, moved well, and by the end of it, I had what I believe was the fastest overall time on the day.
But because I wasn’t in the elite category, it didn’t count. No podium, no prize money.
Still, for a first race, I was happy with the result.
After finishing, it was pushing close to 38 degrees. I went straight back to the accom, cooled down, and spent the afternoon horizontal with the AC absolutely pumping, watching Studio Ghibli on Netflix :)
Post-Race: Back to Night Markets and More Food
That night, I went out again, this time to Ximending Night Market. The mission. More food.
Fried chicken, more pork, and a bowl of lu rou fan, braised pork over rice. It’s a classic Taiwanese dish, rich, fatty, and full of flavour. For me, it was a bit too fatty. I would have preferred a better balance of meat to fat.
I also had a jelly sago drink to cool down and walked through the undercover market area, which had fewer food options but was still interesting to explore.
It had been a big day, so I called it there.
Three Days of Training, Eating, and Living in Cafes
After the race, the weather turned. Three straight days of rain.
So the routine became simple. Train twice a day, eat constantly, and work from cafes in between.
Every morning started with Taiwanese breakfast, and one thing I kept going back to was fantuan.
Fantuan is a Taiwanese rice roll made with sticky rice, filled with things like pork floss, Chinese sausage, pickled vegetables, youtiao, and sometimes sugar. It’s soft, slightly chewy, and packed with flavour and texture. Easily one of my favourite breakfast items from the trip.
During the day, I’d find different cafes, eat, work, and then head back to the gym for another session.
One evening, the rain cleared just enough for another trip back to Raohe Night Market.
I went straight back to the best things.
Gua bao, sausage, grilled king oyster mushrooms, and of course, the melon pan with taro ice cream again. Still the best bite of 2025.
For dessert, I had a coconut milk, sago, and fruit bowl to finish.
Another day followed the same rhythm. Rain, double gym, more food, more cafes.
That night, I went to Din Tai Fung and ordered what was basically three people’s worth of food.
Xiao long bao, barbecue pork buns, different dumplings, and har gow, the prawn dumplings with a soft translucent skin. Everything was exactly as good as you’d expect!!
Fly Out Day and Why Taipei Is Worth Coming Back To
Fly out day came around quickly. This trip was simple. One day of racing, and the rest of the time eating, training, and exploring. What a life?!
I hit three different night markets and went back to Raohe twice, which says a lot. There were still places I missed, like Shilin Night Market and Nanjichang Night Market, which just gives me a reason to come back.
The Spartan race itself was a massive highlight. For a first race, the result was honestly really strong. It gave me a lot of confidence, not just in racing, but in where my training is at. It also made me realise that this is something I want to do more of. More Spartan races, more trail running, and more travel built around racing :)
Training in the Japanese humidity definitely helped. It prepared me well for the conditions in Taipei, and it’s something I’ll keep leaning into as I build towards more races throughout the year and the years ahead.
And then there’s the food.
The food result was just as strong as the race result. Night markets, breakfasts, dumplings, desserts, all of it. Taipei is easily one of the best food cities I’ve been to.
So the plan from here is pretty simple. Keep training, keep racing, and keep travelling to places where I can do both, and eat well while doing it!
Taipei, I’ll definitely be back!!
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