Taiwan’s Putrid-Smelling But Apparently Delicious ‘Stinky Tofu’


Great Big Story visits Dai’s House of Unique Stink in Taipei, Taiwan to meet owner Wu Xu Biyin and learn more about her restaurant’s famously odoriferous “stinky tofu.”

“With its unconventional name and niche menu offerings, Dai’s House of Unique Stink is a distinctive food joint. First, there’s the fact that the restaurant has had to move seven times because of the smells. Then there’s the food that they cook. We’re talking, of course, about stinky tofu. One of Taiwan’s favorite dishes is a fermented concoction full of live bacteria and a whole lotta smell. Its pungent aroma has been compared to decaying garbage, rotten meat and smelly feet. Nevertheless, it enjoys a dedicated following—and no one does stinky tofu like Dai’s.”

Previously from Great Big Story: The Gravity-Defying Balance Art of Rocky Byun