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RESTAURANTS: PS Tapas

PS Tapas Address: 181, Dunhua S Rd Sec 1, Taipei City (台北市敦化南路一段181號) Telephone: (02) 2740-9090 Open: Mondays through Fridays from 4pm to 2am; Saturdays and Sundays from noon to 2am Average meal: NT$800, including drinks Details: Chinese and English menu; credit cards not accepted

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The PS design group is revered for introducing high fashion from Japan to Taiwan. PS made its first sally into the hospitality industry a few years back with an Italian restaurant in the basement of its East District (東區) headquarters. Now, the group is consolidating its move into the market for trendy dining by jumping on the bandwagon of the Spanish tapas trend. The result is PS Tapas, which opened three months ago.

PS Tapas has proved enormously popular, with long lines at its candle-lit outdoor seats on weekend evenings illustrating the necessity of booking in advance. If you haven’t booked, it’s best to put yourself on the waiting list and come back later for dinner.

The interior has a lounge feel with dim lighting and easy-listening lounge music. A black leather sofa serves as the focal point of the space, standing in marked contrast with the white ceiling and floor.

Having heard that portions were small, my dining companions and I ordered a range of dishes. We didn’t have a problem with the quantity that was served, but, unfortunately, many of the dishes simply did not pass muster.

First up was the beef carpaccio (NT$160), which was a huge disappointment. The slices of raw beef had the taste of the refrigerator about them, as though they’d been defrosted. The beef souvlaki with yogurt dressing (NT$160) also failed to impress, the supposedly Greek-style beef brochettes having no character other than being excessively greasy.

Other disappointments included the deep-fried seafood plate (NT$180) of fish, shrimp and squid topped with a “salsa” that seemed to be little more than olive oil with a trace of chili. The dish that was supposed to be the highpoint of the PS Tapas experience, the Spanish seafood paella (NT$360), totally failed to bring out the flavors of its ingredients.

It wasn’t an unmitigated disaster, though. Simple dishes like the Spanish platter (NT$230), eight pieces of French bread with two dips (a choice of creamy chickpea, sun-dried tomato, and guacamole), salami and cheese, was adequate. The garlic butter shrimp (NT$140) was savory and nicely balanced between buttery lushness and garlicky tang. The Spanish omelet (NT$180), with potatoes, bacon and bell peppers, was the one dish that really hit the spot and was as good as an omelet gets.

Sangria (NT$260 for a glass, NT$750 for a pot) was the drink of choice, and the way it was mixed at PS Tapas earned plenty of praise from our table. But good sangria is not enough, and PS Tapas is going to have to sharpen its act if it is going to live up to its hype.— Ho Yi

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