It’s all hip-hop and hot dogs at DJ, a “music and fast food” restaurant in a hipster neighborhood in the East District. A turntable booth stocked with a collection of rap and R ’n’ B vinyl takes up a sizable portion of the dining area. The shelves proudly display albums by Eminem, Ying Yang Twins, Michael Jackson and Mariah Carey.
As for America’s favorite snack, DJ offers seven varieties, including the “American-style” hot dog (NT$90), which comes loaded with onions, sauerkraut and pickles, and the chili hot dog (labeled “spicy meat” on the menu, NT$130). For the adventurous, there’s the calamari hot dog (NT$130), recommended by the friendly manager.
Another house recommendation, the cheese hot dog (NT$130), is basically the American-style dog with a combination of processed American cheese and cheddar shreds melted on top. The frankfurter or “German wurst,” tasted much better than the average store-bought sausage. DJ, which seats about 20 people, did this dog right by keeping it simple. Looking appropriately messy and lowbrow, the frankfurter arrived with artificial-looking yellow cheese blistering on top. The side of French fries and soda at an additional NT$70 delivered on “fast food” comfort. The only drawback was the slightly overcooked bun.
Those with American-sized appetites should also order from the deep-fry selection, which includes French fries (NT$100), fried potato wedges or “Golden Fries” (NT$130), onion rings (NT$100), chicken nuggets (NT$120) and cheese sticks (NT$120). Spicy chicken wings are also available for NT$180.
A flat screen TV hanging on the wall played a DVD mix of hip-hop and R ’n’ B. Scarfing down greasy food and watching rap videos almost felt like the equivalent of getting mesmerized by a Bollywood movie at an Indian restaurant. Halfway through the meal, I suddenly realized that I had sat through several clips by rappers Young Buck and Lil’ Wayne, as well as Mary J. Blige’s stylish video for We Ride (I See the Future), in which she cruises Los Angeles and the southern California coast on a chopper motorcycle. Consider getting takeout if such a playlist would detract from your hot dog moment.
According to the manager, DJ has more of a bar vibe in the evenings, when they turn down the lights and have live DJs work the turntables. The drink selection includes Budweiser (NT$120) and Smirnoff Ice (NT$120), while teetotalers can have canned sodas or tea for NT$70, and Mango or Cranberry juice for NT$90.
Though it doesn’t quite match the selection or the quality at Gusto Street Hot Dogs (located on Ruian Street (瑞安街) and open only on weekends), DJ makes for an acceptable quick fix if you are in the neighborhood and in a hip-hop mood.
On April 26, The Lancet published a letter from two doctors at Taichung-based China Medical University Hospital (CMUH) warning that “Taiwan’s Health Care System is on the Brink of Collapse.” The authors said that “Years of policy inaction and mismanagement of resources have led to the National Health Insurance system operating under unsustainable conditions.” The pushback was immediate. Errors in the paper were quickly identified and publicized, to discredit the authors (the hospital apologized). CNA reported that CMUH said the letter described Taiwan in 2021 as having 62 nurses per 10,000 people, when the correct number was 78 nurses per 10,000
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
May 5 to May 11 What started out as friction between Taiwanese students at Taichung First High School and a Japanese head cook escalated dramatically over the first two weeks of May 1927. It began on April 30 when the cook’s wife knew that lotus starch used in that night’s dinner had rat feces in it, but failed to inform staff until the meal was already prepared. The students believed that her silence was intentional, and filed a complaint. The school’s Japanese administrators sided with the cook’s family, dismissing the students as troublemakers and clamping down on their freedoms — with
As Donald Trump’s executive order in March led to the shuttering of Voice of America (VOA) — the global broadcaster whose roots date back to the fight against Nazi propaganda — he quickly attracted support from figures not used to aligning themselves with any US administration. Trump had ordered the US Agency for Global Media, the federal agency that funds VOA and other groups promoting independent journalism overseas, to be “eliminated to the maximum extent consistent with applicable law.” The decision suddenly halted programming in 49 languages to more than 425 million people. In Moscow, Margarita Simonyan, the hardline editor-in-chief of the
RSS