I’ve had the good fortune of eating my way through many cities, countries and continents, but it wasn’t until I went to Taipei that I discovered that the Taiwanese are the true masters of eating. They’re so good at it, they have it down to an art.

As soon as our plane landed, our excited extended family in Taiwan was ready to feed us and fill us with information on the best places to eat: everything from sticky rice balls to shabu-shabu to spring onion pancakes. Food for thought.

It’s no wonder I had such a deep connection to this amazing city – through its food! But unlike me, my Taiwanese cousins managed to still stay trim and terrific despite frequenting buffet venues. Turns out that there is an actual sequence to eating at buffets to ensure that, a) you get the most nutrients from your Meal, b) you get the most bang for your buck, and c) you feel satisfied but not stuffed!

So, here’s something you may not have known before: the food order you should consume at a buffet:

1. Soup: start your digestive tract with something warm and nutritious
2. Fruit: most people eat fruit at the end of their meal because fruit is the healthier alternative to sugary treats but fruit travels the fastest through the gut so ideally they should be eaten first. Otherwise they will just be fermenting away as they sit in traffic jam with the rest of the meal… If you can’t stomach fruit so early in your meal, then head straight to…
3. Veggies/salads: vegetables have the shortest gut transit time after fruits. Vegetables are the stepping stones to health. They provide fibre, nutrients and make our gut bacteria really healthy and happy. And they’re delicious!
4. Proteins- now you can go head over to the seafood bar, the roast table or the Peking Duck queue, and eat to your heart’s content.
5. Now you can have your cake, and eat it too. Insert carbs- healthy (rice, bread or quinoa?), or unhealthy (hello dessert, hey there icecream!)

So this is the simple 5 step to eating at buffets. It’s actually the ‘right’ way to eat at any meal -home, potluck or restaurant.

I used to eat dessert first, but now I know better!

The photos shown in this post are actually taken from the JW Marriott, where we spent an entire week in Singapore devouring gastronomic delights from the Executive lounge. We didn’t get to take many photos in Taiwan because we were just too preoccupied with eating… but hopefully they sufficed to illustrate my point :)