Chang Huei-min (張慧敏), the owner of ORME Gallery refers to herself as a gallery director rather than a restaurant proprietress. Hidden away in Shuangcheng St, ORME may be the only restaurant in Taipei that decorates its walls with original pictures by established Taiwanese artists -- rather than the ubiquitous reproductions of Monet or Picasso. There's an exhibition every other month and currently the ink paintings of Chu Ge grace the walls on the ground floor and in the basement.
The view outside ORME's floor window, framed by bamboo and other plants, is mostly of a small park across the street. The high ceilings complement the ink blue Japanese, zen-styled decor, to create a calm, relaxing atmosphere. You feel worlds away from the rest of the bustling city.
ORME Gallery was among the first restaurants to promote the now ubiquitous "fusion cuisine," when it opened three years ago. The idea is to mix European and Japanese cooking styles, Chang said, adding that it evolved naturally through the cooperation of its two chefs, one specializing in European and the other in Japanese cuisine.
"I'm a gourmet myself. My experience is that when I finish a wonderful Italian meal, I feel that it's too Italian. And if I have a Japanese meal, I also feel there's something lacking. So it's probably best to combine Japanese and European flavors into one meal, so that you can have a complete dining experience," Chang said.
A typical set meal at ORME may have sashimi for appetizer, Franco-Japanese lamb chops or chicken, Italian seafood soup, mixed vegetable salad with spiced vinegar dressing and French bread with homemade pastes (for around NT$600 including dessert and drink). The pastes are the highlights of the restaurant. Italian tomato paste is made of large peeled and minced tomatoes, with rosemary in extra virgin olive oil. The Greek olive paste processes black and green olives and garlic in a similar fashion. Neither has butter but there taste is no less rich and fragrant for that.
To ensure the freshness of the ingredients, Chang drives to either Keelung harbor or the Taipei Fruits and Vegetable Market at 2am every day and has changed five purveyors of beef and pork to acquire the ideal meat. The salmon and shellfish in the seafood soup are tender and juicy and the meat in the German pork knuckle (NT$350) was tendon-rich and enjoyable.
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