When you've had enough of soy milk or cereal breakfasts and want something warm and substantial to set you up for the day, a visit to the Pot Pie Cafe, a sympathetic little joint that opened two months ago near the Technology Building metro station is just the ticket.
The restaurant boasts a "British" menu of potpies, fish and chips and a "full British breakfast."
The "full British breakfast" includes two eggs, bacon, sausage, baked beans, sauteed mushrooms, grilled tomatoes, fried sliced bread and coffee or tea (NT$380). If all that is a bit too much, almost any variation of this selection is available, and regular toast can be substituted for those who fear the artery-clogging fried slice.
PHOTO COURTESY OF POT PIE CAFE
"We are a small restaurant, and are very flexible in meeting our customers' needs," said Simon Lin (林清華), the owner.
The breakfast is available all day, but the real highlight for this reviewer was the variety of potpies, after which the establishment is named. The shepherd's pie (NT$180) is made of finely chopped lamb topped with feathery light mashed potato. Served with a lightly dressed salad, it's considerably better than anything you could get in Britain for anything near the same price. The use of chopped lamb rather than mince, along with the rich herbal seasonings, made the simple dish stand out.
"We made a few modifications of our own," said Maggie Liu (廖憶嘉), the culinary consultant behind the menu who owns Le Bistro de l'Olivier on Anhe Road. Her touch may account for the hint of Continental elegance in the British staples. The chicken and mushroom potpie (NT$150) is lightly flavored, but also delicious. Eaten in the restaurant, the pies are served in ramekins, but are also available for take-out in a light, flaky suet pastry shell (NT$120 for shepherd's pie; NT$100 for chicken and mushroom).
The fish and chips err on the side of sophistication. The fillets are more tender and the batter lighter than you'd get from many a greasy spoon back in Blighty. The potato wedges served with malt vinegar show that Pot Pie Cafe understands its spuds.
To finish off, the homemade apple and walnut crumble (NT$150) is lovingly put together and served piping hot.
The general feel of the food and the place is homey, the flavors fresh, the atmosphere relaxed. Whether you're going for a meal with friends or just a coffee and crumble with a good book, Pot Pie Cafe is an excellent option.
Many people noticed the flood of pro-China propaganda across a number of venues in recent weeks that looks like a coordinated assault on US Taiwan policy. It does look like an effort intended to influence the US before the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese dictator Xi Jinping (習近平) over the weekend. Jennifer Kavanagh’s piece in the New York Times in September appears to be the opening strike of the current campaign. She followed up last week in the Lowy Interpreter, blaming the US for causing the PRC to escalate in the Philippines and Taiwan, saying that as
Nov. 3 to Nov. 9 In 1925, 18-year-old Huang Chin-chuan (黃金川) penned the following words: “When will the day of women’s equal rights arrive, so that my talents won’t drift away in the eastern stream?” These were the closing lines to her poem “Female Student” (女學生), which expressed her unwillingness to be confined to traditional female roles and her desire to study and explore the world. Born to a wealthy family on Nov. 5, 1907, Huang was able to study in Japan — a rare privilege for women in her time — and even made a name for herself in the
This year’s Miss Universe in Thailand has been marred by ugly drama, with allegations of an insult to a beauty queen’s intellect, a walkout by pageant contestants and a tearful tantrum by the host. More than 120 women from across the world have gathered in Thailand, vying to be crowned Miss Universe in a contest considered one of the “big four” of global beauty pageants. But the runup has been dominated by the off-stage antics of the coiffed contestants and their Thai hosts, escalating into a feminist firestorm drawing the attention of Mexico’s president. On Tuesday, Mexican delegate Fatima Bosch staged a
Taiwan can often feel woefully behind on global trends, from fashion to food, and influences can sometimes feel like the last on the metaphorical bandwagon. In the West, suddenly every burger is being smashed and honey has become “hot” and we’re all drinking orange wine. But it took a good while for a smash burger in Taipei to come across my radar. For the uninitiated, a smash burger is, well, a normal burger patty but smashed flat. Originally, I didn’t understand. Surely the best part of a burger is the thick patty with all the juiciness of the beef, the
RSS