Originally Posted by
JerseyJoe
1. Is there one [or more] night markets recommended for visits?
There are night markets all over Taipei; which ones will be more appealing to you depends on your personal preference as far as crowdedness, touristy feel, and of course any specific food items you're looking for.
Shilin and Raohe are the obvious tourist choices, with the latter often being insanely crowded - although perhaps less so now with the reduction in mainland tourism.
Tonghua is my pick for a more local feel.
Originally Posted by
JerseyJoe
2. Restaurant suggestions: would be interested in local/regional cuisine -- budget not a concern.
There aren't that many sit-down restaurants that specialize in Taiwanese cuisine (as you'll find a lot of the staples at night markets). Shin Yeh gets my vote in this category especially as they have a branch on 85F of Taipei 101, so you can knock that tourist spot out of the way while eating. Can also consider the Aoba (Chin Yeh / Green Leaf) restaurants. Some might point you to Ming Fu (which kept its 1* in 2019) but I always thought it was a tourist trap.
There are a lot more restaurants that specialize in farm-to-table Taiwanese ingredients, but aren't Taiwanese cuisine.