Restaurant of the week: Chiu Fan keng (九番坑)

Here is a place you can gulp a bowl of Taiwan beer while feeding on a big piece of pork, and then crack a few peanuts and maybe sing along with the music of Wu Bai. It is a place with a truly Taiwanese essence. But you won't see greasy tables, a dirty floor and the clamor often found in Taiwanese restaurants. Chiu Fan Keng gives out an aura of classic simplicity. You sit at the 60-year-old antique wooden table and bench and pour yourself a cup of tea with an old fashioned tin tea pot. You might then ask for a bowl of beer. There are no cups here: only big antique bowls, a detail that owner Chien Ching-tzung (簡慶宗) insists on. You might also want to take in the Chinese calligraphy on the wall, the plants and roses in the corner and the wooden lattice on the window. Then you begin looking at the menu.

Being an interior designer for more than 20 years makes Chien demand an aesthetic presentation. When we walked in the house he was just instructing his staff in a stern voice to trim the leaves of the rose bushes.

The antique tables and chairs are all part of his own collection. The finely decorated wooden dragon at the edge of the beam was originally from a temple. In Chien's overall design they have a slightly modern feel. "This is not retro, nor nostalgia chic. Because we are using this tableware we give it new life. So the time has moved forward," said Chien.

The dishes at Chiu Fan Keng are prepared in a Chiufen style. This is Chien's hometown. Sixty years ago it was a prosperous town with gold and coal mines (chiu fan keng means pit number nine). This is Taiwanese food, but much more delicate than what is usually available. "Nowadays, popular Taiwanese cuisine is synonymous with fast stir-fry dishes. Many complicated dishes are disappearing," Chien said. Sealed Pork (封肉) is one dish that needs more than eight hours to let the seasoning and sauce permeate thoroughly into the meat. And then it takes several procedures to extract oil from the fat. In this way, the lean meat tastes tender and the fat part tastes smooth without being greasy.

Five-flavor fish (五味魚) is a simple but rare dish. The shallow-fried fish has a side of home-made dip, which gives out a complex taste of sweet, sour, spicy, and salty. And then there are spicy ribs (辣椒排骨), a dish with equally good visual presentation. The slightly spicy chopped ribs are topped with shredded red chili and orange slices, which give the pork an extra freshness. And lastly, to taste genuine old-fashioned Taiwanese cuisine, you have to ask for a bowl of pork oil with rice (豬油飯), which is rice with pork oil-seasoned soy sauce. This bowl of rice ensures substantial satisfaction.