Wei Quan Sticky Rice

Review

Wei Quan Sticky Rice is on Zhongxiao Road in Taichung's South District, on the main strip of Zhongxiao Night Market, with a second sign calling it the Pork Rib King. Reports put its history at over thirty years. Some customers have eaten here since childhood and still come with their own kids, and TVBS calls it one of the few sticky rice shops in central Taichung with a regular queue. It sits next to the market's sugarcane milk stall.

The tube sticky rice is steamed chewy, with distinct grains that aren't mushy, topped with lean shredded pork and a braised quail egg, and the seasoning leans heavy. Sources disagree on the sauce: one report calls it the sweet chili sauce common in central Taiwan, while a 2026 roundup says it is a salty soy paste; chili lovers can add dried small fish chili or Dongquan chili sauce. The pork ribs arrive fresh daily: the stock is simmered first, the ribs are fried crisp, then steamed in individual pots with taro, daylily, bitter melon or mushrooms. The broth is clean and sweet, the ribs tender enough to fall off the bone, the taro chunky and soft, and the bitter melon barely bitter; the braised duck egg is firm. Reports from 2018 and 2019 list the sticky rice at NT$35 and rib soup at NT$60, alongside dry noodles, pork thick soup noodles and taro rib noodles.

Praise focuses on the chewy rice, generous soup ingredients and the roomy, clean dining area; one bowl of soup is enough for two to share. The main criticism is the heavy seasoning, which makes it taste close to oily rice and can feel salty to some; at mealtimes seats are hard to get, and at busy times it may sell out and close early.

It opens in the late afternoon and runs late into the night, closed Tuesdays. Opening and closing times vary by source (opening at 3:30 or 4 p.m., closing between 11 p.m. and midnight), so check before you go. Both takeaway and dine-in require queuing to order, though the staff work fast. Payment and parking aren't mentioned in the sources, so have cash ready.

It suits anyone who wants something to line the stomach before exploring Zhongxiao Night Market, or who craves traditional sticky rice with a hot soup. Order a tube sticky rice with a bowl of bitter melon or taro rib soup, about NT$100 in total; if you like heat, add a spoonful of the chili on the table.