Opened less then four months ago, Love Lovely is a unique addition to the East District’s increasingly crowded selection of cafes. Located in the lanes between Dunhua South Road and Guangfu South Road, Love Lovely bills itself as an “antique brocante and cafe.”
While there are now several cafes in Taipei (including Cafe Trouve (找到咖啡) and the VVG group’s establishments) that showcase vintage decor, Love Lovely puts its own spin on the genre with a subtle Gothic Lolita twist. Old anatomical posters are proudly displayed, cases are lined with a large selection of paper-mache doll heads and 19th century cabinet cards are available for sale. A well-fed street cat nicknamed Niu-niu makes regular appearances at Love Lovely’s door (and is rewarded with food served in a tiny fish-shaped ceramic dish).
Even the wait staff’s black and slate blue uniforms are carefully calibrated to emphasize Love Lovely’s aesthetic. Waitresses wear carefully tailored pinafores, while waiters are decked out in suspenders, knickerbockers and argyle socks. It’s a style combination that has the potential to go horribly wrong, but Love Lovely’s servers manage to make the outfit look jaunty.
Photo: Catherine Shu, Taipei Times
Fortunately for diners, Love Lovely’s focus on atmosphere does not mean it skimps on serving tasty food and drinks, many of which are whimsically presented. The cafe’s fresh tropical fruit iced tea (NT$220), for example, is served in a tall decanter topped with a tumbler filled with diced pieces. You can either mix the fruit into the black tea and drink the beverage from the decanter with a straw or pour some of it into the smaller glass for daintier sipping.
Several afternoon tea sets are available. The cafe gourmand (NT$290) features a three-tiered stand stocked with Belgium chocolate and sweet baked goods. For diners who want to share a heartier snack, an oven pancake with caramelized apple is available for NT$320. Several sets are geared toward single diners, including the cupcake and tea (NT$220). I had high hopes for Love Lovely’s red velvet cupcake, but it was the most disappointing item I tried. The cream cheese frosting was delicious, but the cupcake itself was dry and crumbly.
I fared better with Love Lovely’s scone set (NT$290). The two plump, buttery scones are served with a selection of spreads and toppings. I chose raspberry jam and lemon curd. The latter was a bit creamier in texture than traditional lemon curd, but was still suitably tart and mouthwatering.
Photo: Catherine Shu, Taipei Times Photo: Catherine Shu, Taipei Times
For dinner, I ordered boneless short ribs and mashed potatoes (NT$380) as part of a Paris set meal — for an extra NT$100, you get your choice of red or white wine. My serving of the crisp white wine was smaller than I expected, but the size of my entree made up for it. Two large slabs of tender, juicy beef were plated with steamed vegetables and creamy mashed potatoes. There was so much meat that I had enough leftover for an extra meal.
Love Lovely enjoys brisk business on weekends and reservations are highly recommended. On weekday afternoons and evenings, however, it is a relaxing place to linger for a leisurely tea with friends. The cafe also hosts regular art classes (including a watercolor course); for more information: class@lovelovely.com.tw.
Photo: Catherine Shu, Taipei Times
May 6 to May 12 Those who follow the Chinese-language news may have noticed the usage of the term zhuge (豬哥, literally ‘pig brother,’ a male pig raised for breeding purposes) in reports concerning the ongoing #Metoo scandal in the entertainment industry. The term’s modern connotations can range from womanizer or lecher to sexual predator, but it once referred to an important rural trade. Until the 1970s, it was a common sight to see a breeder herding a single “zhuge” down a rustic path with a bamboo whip, often traveling large distances over rugged terrain to service local families. Not only
By far the most jarring of the new appointments for the incoming administration is that of Tseng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦) to head the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF). That is a huge demotion for one of the most powerful figures in the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). Tseng has one of the most impressive resumes in the party. He was very active during the Wild Lily Movement and his generation is now the one taking power. He has served in many of the requisite government, party and elected positions to build out a solid political profile. Elected as mayor of Taoyuan as part of the
Moritz Mieg, 22, lay face down in the rubble, the ground shaking violently beneath him. Boulders crashed down around him, some stones hitting his back. “I just hoped that it would be one big hit and over, because I did not want to be hit nearly to death and then have to slowly die,” the student from Germany tells Taipei Times. MORNING WALK Early on April 3, Mieg set out on a scenic hike through Taroko Gorge in Hualien County (花蓮). It was a fine day for it. Little did he know that the complex intersection of tectonic plates Taiwan sits
Last week the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) released a set of very strange numbers on Taiwan’s wealth distribution. Duly quoted in the Taipei Times, the report said that “The Gini coefficient for Taiwanese households… was 0.606 at the end of 2021, lower than Australia’s 0.611, the UK’s 0.620, Japan’s 0.678, France’s 0.676 and Germany’s 0.727, the agency said in a report.” The Gini coefficient is a measure of relative inequality, usually of wealth or income, though it can be used to evaluate other forms of inequality. However, for most nations it is a number from .25 to .50