Garen

The Street Food PhD

Responds quickly
  • I live in Taipei
  • I speak English, 中文
  • Verified Local host
  • Response time less than 3 hours

Hi there! Nice to meet you

Garen

Hi there! I'm Garen!

I love exploring and learning new things.

Traveling is the most satisfactory and comprehensive way.

Exposuring to new places and new people can be really reviving personally and also eye opening to see how other people live. To see how life functions, whether human or natural life, in other places is really humbling.

I’ve been South Africa, Australia, Korea, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Shanghai, Beijing and many provinces of Southeast China.

I was born and grew up in Hong Kong, I immigrated to Taiwan in 2017 and starting my tour business. I am a licensed tour guide and travel planner in Taiwan.

I am also a foodie! 😄 I’ve tried all kinds of food in Taiwan and even more than local people. I walked throughout from the side alleys, wet market and food court to Michelin restaurants and the most luxurious cuisine. I will not only recommend local food for you to taste, but also telling you the ingredients and the way to make it as I love cooking as well.

In addition, I am happy to share all kinds of stories related to Taiwan's history, religion, and culture with you during my tour, as I also take a Historical Tour, City Highlights and Hidden Gem Tour and Magical Evening Tour.

Pick me to be your host in Taiwan, I’m sure you will receive a very unique journey with a wonderful hidden gem.

Feed your belly & your mind!

  • I live in Taipei
  • I speak English, 中文
  • Verified Local host
  • Response time less than 3 hours

My Taipei in pictures

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Let's explore Taipei together! As your local guide, I'll show you the best of Taipei on a private & personalized tour for you.

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Reviews

Amy
7 March 2025
We absolutely loved our food tour with Garen, which we booked after being recommended Garen specifically by my sister who did a tour with her a few months prior. Not only did Garen very delicious food and local restaurants, but she also shared lots of interesting information about life in Taiwan - including insights into Taiwanese culture and politics (we were actively asking about the politics, I'm sure if you're not interested in this aspect she would tailor the content). Thank you Garen!Amazing food with an amazing guide
Deb
4 March 2025
We had a wonderful afternoon with Garen on our foodie tour. We were introduced to lots of local dishes that we probably would not have tried if we were on our own. We even went back for the egg pancakes the next day as they were so delicious. Garen also gave us some tips on other places to see that we took advantage of the next day. i.e. Taipei 101 and the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall. Thanks, Garen for a great experience!Great day in Taipei
Monica
26 February 2025
We had an excellent time with Garen.. she was exceptional, courteous, and selected places we will never had try on our own. She was very good in keeping communication. We had an awesome experience and could recommend her to all my friends.Experiencing new foods im Tapei
John
14 February 2025
We’ve never hired a guide before, but I decided to give it a go for our short 4-days in Taipei. Turns out hiring Garen was a brilliant idea and has inspired me to do the same whenever we visit a new country! On our first morning in Taipei, Garen met us for a breakfast tour (her recommendation). With an in depth knowledge of Taipei history, and her kind demeanor, Garen spent three hours with us visiting various food stops we never would have thought of, trying foods that were unique and impactful to everyday Taipei life, with a rich history of each dish that helped us connect with the culture. I think the various soy milk tastings were high up in our rankings, but the fishballs were awesome too. We were so impressed with Garen, we hired her for another 4-hour tour on our last full day in Taipei. This time we covered tea, an historic city street, and the famous Nangxia night market. What an experience! Garen started with taking us to a multigenerational tea shop for an intimate private tea tasting with the owner of the shop and plantation. What an incredible experience to learn the history and taste the quality difference in commercial vs family teas. This was a special experience. Next was Dihua Street, with its amazing history and architecture only someone like Garen could walk us through. We tried various foods as we perused, based on Garen’s recommendations. They were spot on. All of it was awesome. Last was the Nangxia night market. One of the many reasons to hire Garen is that she knows which stalls make good food and why. Like a food Jedi she passed over various stalls and shared why, helping us identify which were the right ones. And she certainly was not wrong. The food she hand selected was amazing. She’d even wait in line and communicate with the vendor on our behalf to ensure success! While we’d consider ourselves food adventurous, I’d say each tasting well within any traveler’s range. Hire Garen if you want a local’s take with some history and a hand-curated list of food vendors sure to deliver the quality you’d expect from someone experienced in Taipei life like Garen. Our experience with Garen made me realize even back home I do not have the kind of grasp on food and its integration in culture as Garen. She brought an element to food that only someone deeply engrained her culture could - highly curated with love and passion. This was not simply an eat here not there kind of tour. Thank you Garen for making our trip so special! What a fantastic memory!Garen Made Our Trip Unforgettable
Mathieu
13 February 2025
Garen was really sympathetic and knew all the spot of the neighborhood. She gave me all the infos about Taiwan food and also cultural history. She adapt the different meals and stop according to my taste and feeling. Excellent food and cultural experience
YAEL
6 February 2025
Garen is a very pleasant guide. She speaks fluently english and we discovered with her the taiwenese customs. Thanks for this very interesting tour. Great cutural experience
Stephen
3 February 2025
We really enjoyed our food tour with Garen, whose enthusiasm for Taiwan and its food culture(s) was absolutely infectious. She accommodated our vegetarianism without any hesitation, and her food choices were exemplary. We appreciated the way she also worked hard to shine a light on Taiwan's broader history and contemporary geopolitical - it provided invaluable context for the tour. Thanks again Garen! Brilliant food tour with Garen
Conny
1 February 2025
We had a truly wonderful tour with Garen - not only did we learn a lot, we also had a great time! Travelling with Garen felt like travelling with a friend. Highly recommend! :-)A truly wonderful time!
Karen
31 January 2025
Garen went above and beyond to take care of our group. She did a full day private tour with us and accommodated our every need! We saw all the major sights of the city and experiences delicious food. She was so knowledgeable and we learned so much from her. Would 1000% recommend Garen was amazing
Rachel
30 January 2025
We met up with Garen on our first morning in Taipei. She gave us a great overview, introduced to regional politics and history and showed us practical things, ranging from where to find bathrooms to how to use the MRT. She also took us to two key sites and made them more meaningful with her explanations. We would highly recommend her tour. Fantastic Introduction to Taiwan/Taipei

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