// TAIPEI 台北 // YUAN SHAN 圓山, ZHONG SHAN 中山 // 

maji

a general store and food concept with modernized nostalgia

Culture is cyclical. Trends come and go and come back, and nostalgia finds its way toward trends. And so it’s no surprise that a place like MAJI has found success among the young and old a like. MAJI is a food and lifestyle brand, with a market that specializes in old school and artisanal groceries and local products, all repackaged up into a well-designed modernized experiential retail space. As a brand, MAJI takes the alluring nostalgic aesthetic and merges it with the appeal of a simplified, curated lifestyle.

MAJI has two very different locations in Taipei. The first is a multipurpose complex within the Yuanshan Expo Park. The open air space offers a varied selection of Taiwanese and international flavors united in a lofty shaded space. There are “small eats” in street vendor style stands in a food court format, fast casual spots and sit down restaurants, as well as specialty retail stores and entertainment venues rounding out the complex. In the afternoons, there’s also a daily farmers market featuring local produce and food products in an open market.

The second is a general store and restaurant perched within Eslite Spectrum by Zhongshan station. This newer space occupies a corner of the 4th floor of the department store bookstore. On one side there is a small but abundant general store, similar to the location in Yuanshan, filled with thoughtfully curated food and home products that range from specialty teas and sauces to old school pantry staples and snacks, special enough to be a gift but casual enough to be an everyday life good. On the other side is a casual “set meal” style restaurant serving up modern Taiwanese food and small bites in a minimalist space.

While the two locations offer very different experiences, both iterations of MAJI embody a simple joys kind of lifestyle that modern city folk crave.

the details

AddressYuanshan Expo: No. 1, Yumen Street, Zhongshan District, Taipei City
Nanxi Eslite: 4F No. 14 Nanjing West Road, Zhongshan District, Taipei City
Websitehttp://www.majisquare.com/
http://www.majitreats.com/
Instagram@maji_square @majitreats
Hours

Expo: 12:00 – 21:00 weekdays, 11:00 – 21:00 weekends
Eslite: 11:00 – 22:00 Sunday – Thursday, 11:00 – 22:30 Friday and Saturday

Price$$ – the things they sell are pretty simple, so nothing is too pricey but definitely more than a typical grocer or traditional market
Aestheticold school nostalgia, simple, bright, minimal

good to know

Go here for: giftable grocery items, a nice lunch or afternoon tea set meal

Buy this: peruse their selection of local teas, jams, sauces and snacks as edible souvenirs

Amount of time to spend: 20 min to peruse, an hour or two with a meal

When to come: weekdays are a lot more chill, weekends can get crowded in both locations

Getting here:

  • Expo: take the red line to Yuanshan and follow the signs into the floral expo park.
  • Nanxi: take the red or green line to Zhongshan, use exit 2.

Last visited: October 2019

Last updated: March 2021

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