Back in the day when reasonably priced Western restaurants were few and far between, Grandma Nitti’s was already providing comfort food for forlorn Westerners who had had enough of beef noodle soup and potstickers. Nitti’s location off Shida Road has become a well-known gathering place, and while the food on offer has drawn reviews ranging from the wildly enthusiastic to the derisive, the restaurant’s appeal has never faded for expats longing for a taste of home.
My Sweetie Pie Bakery & Cafe, located almost directly opposite, looks like it might have been transplanted from Taipei’s up-market East District (東區), but is in fact an extension of the Grandma Nitti operation. Clean lines, whitewashed walls and abundant natural light generate an air of casual sophistication.
My Sweetie shares some elements of Grandma Nitti’s menu, but according to Rainbow Lin (林虹惠), the driving force behind both operations, her new project is restricted to smaller brunch and snack dishes. The reason for this is to highlight the cake selection, which is displayed in a way that seems to wink alluringly at passersby.
Priced at around NT$90 a slice, the large portions of American-style cakes fill a niche in a market dominated by elaborately decorated production-line sweets or chichi concoctions of French or Japanese-inspired patisseries. Offerings such as carrot cake (NT$90) and warm chocolate cake (NT$80) make an appealing pairing with a large mug of coffee (hot NT$100; iced NT$110), and the banana chocolate cake (NT$90) is recommended for its robust textures and fresh banana flavor. This is comfort food, but there is an admirable restraint in the use of sugar and fat, and the cakes are nicely presented without being drowned in whipped cream.
For more savory palates, there are a number of brunch variations on offer, such as poached eggs with pesto sauce, ham and toast (NT$180), or light lunch meals that include homemade beef lasagna (with homemade pasta, NT$270). The prices include regular coffee or tea. A slice of cake or pie can be added to all orders for an additional NT$60, making for a very reasonably priced meal.
Apart from the restaurant service, My Sweetie Pie also sells cakes to order. Four-inch (10cm), 6-inch (15cm) and 8-inch (20cm) sizes are available, with prices for an 8-inch cake around NT$800.
The usual range of coffees, slushies, smoothies and milk shakes are available. My Sweetie serves also Mighty Leaf specialty teas as an added attraction.
The large airy space, open kitchen with gleaming surfaces, comfortable sofas and side tables with individual table lamps make this a location equally suited to work or relaxation. The friendly service and free Wi-Fi are icing on the cake.
— IAN BARTHOLOMEW
The Taipei Times last week reported that the rising share of seniors in the population is reshaping the nation’s housing markets. According to data from the Ministry of the Interior, about 850,000 residences were occupied by elderly people in the first quarter, including 655,000 that housed only one resident. H&B Realty chief researcher Jessica Hsu (徐佳馨), quoted in the article, said that there is rising demand for elderly-friendly housing, including units with elevators, barrier-free layouts and proximity to healthcare services. Hsu and others cited in the article highlighted the changing family residential dynamics, as children no longer live with parents,
It is jarring how differently Taiwan’s politics is portrayed in the international press compared to the local Chinese-language press. Viewed from abroad, Taiwan is seen as a geopolitical hotspot, or “The Most Dangerous Place on Earth,” as the Economist once blazoned across their cover. Meanwhile, tasked with facing down those existential threats, Taiwan’s leaders are dying their hair pink. These include former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) and Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁), among others. They are demonstrating what big fans they are of South Korean K-pop sensations Blackpink ahead of their concerts this weekend in Kaohsiung.
Taiwan is one of the world’s greatest per-capita consumers of seafood. Whereas the average human is thought to eat around 20kg of seafood per year, each Taiwanese gets through 27kg to 35kg of ocean delicacies annually, depending on which source you find most credible. Given the ubiquity of dishes like oyster omelet (蚵仔煎) and milkfish soup (虱目魚湯), the higher estimate may well be correct. By global standards, let alone local consumption patterns, I’m not much of a seafood fan. It’s not just a matter of taste, although that’s part of it. What I’ve read about the environmental impact of the
Oct 20 to Oct 26 After a day of fighting, the Japanese Army’s Second Division was resting when a curious delegation of two Scotsmen and 19 Taiwanese approached their camp. It was Oct. 20, 1895, and the troops had reached Taiye Village (太爺庄) in today’s Hunei District (湖內), Kaohsiung, just 10km away from their final target of Tainan. Led by Presbyterian missionaries Thomas Barclay and Duncan Ferguson, the group informed the Japanese that resistance leader Liu Yung-fu (劉永福) had fled to China the previous night, leaving his Black Flag Army fighters behind and the city in chaos. On behalf of the
RSS