Out of the window into your mouth: The “Hoja” is so small that the waffles can only be sold to take away.
Bild: Ilkay Karakurt
In Taiwan, waffles with special fillings have long been a street food classic. They are sold filled with taro puree, matcha crumbles or cream cheese. Now the first Taiwanese waffle shop has also opened in Frankfurt.
VThere isn’t much space in the kitchen, the room is just twelve square meters. Mario Mendeš stands in front and takes care of the teas: oolong tea with a lavender note, apple-cinnamon black tea, hibiscus black tea, optionally with or without tapioca pearls. Chih-Ching Lee is at work behind him. First she puts a dollop of batter in the heart-shaped waffle iron, then adds the filling, and finally a second dollop of batter. She closes the waffle iron, turns the whole thing in a circle, and a few moments later they are there: fluffy waffles with a crispy crust, the kind people like to eat in Lee’s home country of Taiwan. The waffles are called “Ji Dan Gao” there.
“Hoja Taiwanese Waffle & Drinks” is the name of the small shop that opened a few weeks ago on Leipziger Strasse in Frankfurt’s Bockenheim district. It is sold out of the window, so far only to take away. The place is the first Taiwanese waffle shop in the city. “Hoja” means “delicious”.