I usually cook at home because I got used to it in Finland and Taiwanese food isn't so healthy in my opinion. But there are some great food here which I really like. Many of them came from China, for example dumplings and noodles (the fried noodles are excellent in Taiwan). Actually it's a bit difficult to find very local food, almost any western foods are available with reasonable prices with a Taiwanese twist.
Lu rou fan is a rice dish I got introduced when I moved here. It's a rice dish with meat, maybe not the best parts, very well cooked, and tastes delicious. If I'm abroad, this a kind of dish I eat when I'm coming back.
Oyster omelet, a little bit mucous look makes it weird for a foreigner but I bet it's worth a try. This dish is available in most of the night markets and cost around 50 NT. Maybe I like it because you it with a chili sauce.
Tofu, also the fried stinky tofu with Taiwanese kimchi, is very healthy food and really cheap. Cheese isn't so common in Taiwan, it's also expensive (probably 2-4 times more expensive than in Finland) but you can get it from supermarkets. You can't use tofu like cheese but it's a good extra for any dish.
If I'm going for a dinner, I prefer to choose a hot pot restaurant. It differs from Hong kong hot pot, and to my mind it's a food you can't make a miss. Sauces or hot pot soup can be unhealthy, greasy, but if you don't eat it everyday, I think it's just fine. Many places offer all you can eat with less than 20 euros, a lot of meat, free flow of beer and Haegen dazs ice cream for a dessert (and cakes).
I have tried Taiwanese BBQ restaurants as well. They are places where you'll have your own BBQ on the table and can cook or ask waitresses to do it for. A really good option for a dinner, tasty with fresh quality meat but can be a bit more expensive.
Supermarkets sell a lot of organic vegetables and certified meat which make them very convinient. For an amateur cook they are hidden gems in this city. Usually I buy my vegetables from a smaller shop but there are times when you don't have extra time stop by one of them.
