London Tea House offers an oasis of Anglophile tweeness among Taipei 101's designer boutiques and high-end restaurants. Located in the middle of the shopping center's fourth-floor City Square, the cafe, with its lovingly lit display of Spode tea sets and liberal use of flowery script, is charmingly quaint (or cloyingly precious, if your decorating tastes are more Philippe Starck than Laura Ashley).
Afternoon tea is served from 2pm to 5pm. The English Afternoon Tea service (NT$340) serves one person and comes with a dainty hazelnut-flavored cream tart, a finger sandwich and a scone, as well as a choice of beverage. Larger parties can order a Queen Anne Afternoon Tea (NT$680) or Victorian Tea Party (NT$1,360), which are versions of the English Afternoon Tea for two or four people, respectively.
The cafe's wide range of teas and coffee fills an expansive menu that looks like a children's picture book with Tiffany blue covers and watercolor illustrations. Presentation is clearly key - tea leaves are stored in indigo blue porcelain caddies that line sliding ebony shelves, and the cafe's herbal teas (NT$240 per pot) have been christened with names like "Spring of Youth," "My Fair Lady" and "Story of Lyric Rose." The whole thing is enough to make even the most recalcitrant tomboy or jet-lagged tourist sit up straight in their leather seats with pinkies raised.
PHOTO: CATHERINE SHU, TAIPEI TIMES
For the ultimate London Tea House experience, skip the iced teas and coffee and order a pot of hot tea. The china teapot (with matching tea cup and saucer) is presented snugly wrapped in a Liberty-print tea cozy and comes with a little hourglass so you can count down the minutes for optimal steeping.
The food, however, might prove somewhat anti-climatic to afternoon tea connoisseurs. The scone (NT$180) is generously described as bite-sized and the texture of the cream it comes with is more whipped than clotted. The finger sandwich (NT$240) is baked ham-and-cheese, and heavier and greasier than the usual cucumber or watercress sandwiches.
Sugarphobes might have better luck with the Elevenses Tea (NT$320), which is served from 11am to 6pm and comes with a choice of vegetable, tomato with herb, or smoked salmon sandwiches. The latter is especially good - thin slices of flavorful fish, crispy lettuce, sliced tomato and Dijon mustard nestled between layers of fresh white bread (crustless, of course). Likewise, those averse to savories can order the Hampton Garden Afternoon Tea (NT$320), which comes with a choice of cake. All items in the tea services are available a la carte.
You should try to come earlier in the afternoon if you want to order anything besides a pot of fresh brewed tea - a Darjeeling iced tea (NT$180) this reviewer had on a separate visit after regular tea service had ended was so oversteeped it would have probably made a satisfactory leather tanner.
Judged on its own merits and presentation, however, London Tea House's afternoon tea service is more than satisfactory if you are a tea lover, have a latent fetish for cabbage-rose motifs or simply want to take a break from shopping and people watch while enjoying a nice cuppa.
When the South Vietnamese capital of Saigon fell to the North Vietnamese forces 50 years ago this week, it prompted a mass exodus of some 2 million people — hundreds of thousands fleeing perilously on small boats across open water to escape the communist regime. Many ultimately settled in Southern California’s Orange County in an area now known as “Little Saigon,” not far from Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, where the first refugees were airlifted upon reaching the US. The diaspora now also has significant populations in Virginia, Texas and Washington state, as well as in countries including France and Australia.
On April 17, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) launched a bold campaign to revive and revitalize the KMT base by calling for an impromptu rally at the Taipei prosecutor’s offices to protest recent arrests of KMT recall campaigners over allegations of forgery and fraud involving signatures of dead voters. The protest had no time to apply for permits and was illegal, but that played into the sense of opposition grievance at alleged weaponization of the judiciary by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) to “annihilate” the opposition parties. Blamed for faltering recall campaigns and faced with a KMT chair
Article 2 of the Additional Articles of the Constitution of the Republic of China (中華民國憲法增修條文) stipulates that upon a vote of no confidence in the premier, the president can dissolve the legislature within 10 days. If the legislature is dissolved, a new legislative election must be held within 60 days, and the legislators’ terms will then be reckoned from that election. Two weeks ago Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) proposed that the legislature hold a vote of no confidence in the premier and dare the president to dissolve the legislature. The legislature is currently controlled
As we live longer, our risk of cognitive impairment is increasing. How can we delay the onset of symptoms? Do we have to give up every indulgence or can small changes make a difference? We asked neurologists for tips on how to keep our brains healthy for life. TAKE CARE OF YOUR HEALTH “All of the sensible things that apply to bodily health apply to brain health,” says Suzanne O’Sullivan, a consultant in neurology at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery in London, and the author of The Age of Diagnosis. “When you’re 20, you can get away with absolute
RSS