Restaurant in Taipei, Taiwan
10-course French precision, Michelin-backed, book ahead.
A earns its Michelin star through a 10-plus course French tasting menu with drinks inclusive, delivered in a calm, gallery-like room in Da'an District. At the $$$$ tier, the all-in pricing and consistent execution make it one of Taipei's most coherent fine dining commitments. Book well in advance; this is not a last-minute option.
If you're weighing A against Taïrroir, the comparison is instructive. Taïrroir leans into Taiwanese identity as its central argument; A argues for French technique with Asian inflection, and it argues that case with considerable conviction. At the $$$$ price tier, with drinks inclusive in the tasting menu, A offers a complete, structured experience that removes the usual friction of wine pairing decisions. For returning diners wondering whether to come back or try something new, the answer is to come back — the format rewards familiarity.
A occupies a pristine white cube in Da'an District, and the room's gallery-like stillness is your first signal about what kind of meal follows. This is not a loud room. The energy is calm and deliberate, which makes it a strong choice for conversation-heavy dinners where you actually want to hear the person across from you. If you've been once, you'll know the atmosphere tends toward focused rather than festive , that's a feature, not a limitation. Come back with a client, a partner, or someone who takes the meal as seriously as the kitchen does.
Chef Alain Huang's tasting menu runs to ten-plus courses, French in origin but shaped by Asian culinary logic. The Michelin Guide's 2024 one-star recognition notes ingredients including king prawn, scallop, and veal, meticulously prepared and presented with care at each stage. The meal opens and closes with amuse-bouches and petit fours respectively, giving the experience a clean arc. For a returning diner, that structure is reassuring rather than repetitive , the interest comes from how those courses shift with season and sourcing, not from a dramatically different format each visit.
What earns A its price at the $$$$ tier is the inclusion of wine or alcohol-free drinks within the tasting menu. In a city where comparable French contemporary venues charge separately for pairing, this matters. It simplifies the spend calculation and removes the post-meal arithmetic that can sour an otherwise strong dinner. Compared to Amber in Hong Kong or Odette in Singapore, where you're paying for multi-starred ambition and price tags to match, A sits in a tier where the value proposition is genuinely competitive for what you receive. The service philosophy here is important: drinks-inclusive tasting menus signal a kitchen and front-of-house team that want to control the full experience rather than monetise each component separately. That's a decision worth noting when you're deciding whether the price is justified.
The Google rating of 4.9 from over 22,000 reviews is the kind of number that deserves some scepticism at scale , but at that volume, it's a meaningful signal. It suggests consistent execution rather than a handful of exceptional evenings skewing a small sample. For a returning diner, that consistency is precisely what you're banking on: the room will be calm, the courses will be well-timed, the drinks will be handled, and the kitchen will not surprise you in ways that feel uncontrolled.
For Taipei fine dining comparisons across the city, our full Taipei restaurants guide covers the category thoroughly. If you're building a broader trip, our Taipei hotels guide and Taipei bars guide are worth consulting alongside. For French contemporary dining in Taipei that sits at a different register, de nuit, Paris 1930 de Hideki Takayama, and 16 by Flo each offer different interpretations of the French-in-Taiwan format and are worth knowing if you're mapping the category. Further afield in Taiwan, JL Studio in Taichung is the most direct peer conversation at the $$$$ tier outside Taipei.
If you're extending your dining across Taiwan, GEN in Kaohsiung, A Cun Beef Soup in Tainan, A Gan Yi Taro Balls in New Taipei, Bebu in Hsinchu County, and Volando Urai Spring Spa and Resort in Wulai District round out a thorough picture of the island's dining range. For everything in Taipei specifically, our Taipei experiences guide and Taipei wineries guide cover the full picture.
| Venue | Cuisine | Price | Booking Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | French Contemporary | $$$$ | Hard |
| logy | Modern European, Asian Contemporary | $$$$ | Unknown |
| Le Palais | Cantonese | $$$$ | Unknown |
| Taïrroir | Taiwanese/French, Taiwanese contemporary | $$$$ | Unknown |
| Mudan Tempura | Tempura | $$$$ | Unknown |
| Golden Formosa | Taiwanese | $$ | Unknown |
How A stacks up against the competition.
check the venue's official channels before booking. A's format is a 10-plus course tasting menu with set ingredients including king prawn, scallop, and veal, so the kitchen's flexibility for dietary restrictions is something to confirm in advance. Tasting-menu-only venues at this price point ($$$$) typically accommodate with notice, but assume nothing without confirmation.
Yes, and arguably one of the better formats for it in Taipei's fine dining tier. A's gallery-like room and service-led structure suit solo diners well — the tasting menu pacing replaces the need for a companion to drive the meal. At $$$$ with drinks inclusive, solo dining here is a considered spend rather than a casual one.
At $$$$ with wine or alcohol-free drinks included across 10-plus courses, the all-in pricing makes the value calculation cleaner than most comparable venues. A Michelin 1 Star since 2024 backs the kitchen's consistency. If you're deciding between A and Le Palais for a single high-end Taipei meal, A is the stronger case for contemporary cooking; Le Palais is the call if you want traditional Cantonese.
For a service-led, multicourse format, yes. The 10-plus course structure is French in origin but pulls from Asian cuisines, and the all-inclusive drinks policy removes the bill anxiety that often undercuts tasting-menu value. If you want à la carte flexibility, this is not your venue — but on its own terms the format is well-executed and Michelin-recognised.
A's room is described as a pristine white cube with gallery-like stillness, which signals a formal register. Smart dress is appropriate — treat it like a Michelin-starred dinner in a European capital. Showing up in casual or athleisure wear would be out of place given the setting and price point ($$$$).
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
