From the owner of Cafe Kuroshio (咖啡黑潮) and Caffe Libero (咖啡小自由) comes Torarakuya-Taipei (寅樂屋). This time, coffee connoisseur Kao Chen-yu (高振御) waves his magic wand and transforms his parents’ modest curry joint into an old-school Japanese eatery, looking charmingly out of place in the traffic-clogged, noise-filled midtown of Taipei.
Concealed behind a row of ramshackle houses at the bustling intersection of Xinyi Road (信義路) and Guangfu South Road (光復南路), the tiny establishment emerges from a small, dark alley as a haven of rest, with warm, yellowish light shining through the glass windows. Slide open a wooden door open and you immediately feel as though you’ve stepped into an old Japanese eatery frozen in time, where both the mind and the stomach are soothed with simple, home-cooked fare and nostalgic ambiance. Inside, wood furnishings dominate the room, which is only big enough for four small tables and a two-seat bar. Vintage pendants and table lamps grace the place with sentiments of a bygone era, while the opera music heard in the background adds a touch of sophistication.
In other words, Kao once again proves his proficiency and ingenuity to capture and revive the nostalgia for a simpler time, much in the same way that he turned a 40-year-old mansion into the now popular Caffe Libero in the neighborhood surrounding Yongkang Street (永康街).
Photo courtesy of Fantasy Dining Hall
Torarakuya-Taipei specializes in only one thing — Japanese curry — and does it well. Patrons can choose the sweeter pork and chicken curry (豬雞咖哩, NT$160) or spicier beef curry (牛肉咖哩, NT$160), all of which comes served with either rice or macaroni. Like the simply delicious food prepared by your mother, the dish is a nourishing combination of the vegetables’ sweetness and tenderly cooked meat. For an extra dose of smoothness, add an egg, sunny-side up (荷包蛋, NT$20), to the curry. The small side dish of shichi fukujin pickles (福神漬, NT$15) offers mixed pickled vegetables, which is said to aid digestion.
Torarakuya-Taipei’s beverage selection includes a limited choice of beer including iKi (NT$160 and NT$180) as well as Japanese whiskey (NT$220 and NT$250 per shot). Noted for his enthusiasm for the spirit, Kao selects two types of single malt whiskey from the Nikka distilleries, one in Yoichi, Hokkaido, the other in Miyagi Prefecture, Northern Honshu, and seems eager to share his knowledge of the brew with curious diners. For those looking for good conversation, the always amicable proprietor is also a knowledgeable one to talk to about food, drink and the good life.
Another thing about Kao is that wherever he goes, there will always be good coffee brewing. For the Japanese-style eatery, the maven prepares specialties including the Iced coffee with plum wine (梅子酒冰咖啡, NT$180) and iced coffee with awamori (泡盛冰咖啡, NT$180), a type of distilled rice wine unique to Okinawa, Japan. For something sweet and children-friendly, there is a selection of hot chocolate (NT$120 to NT$150) and ice cream (NT$80 and NT$100).
Photo courtesy of Fantasy Dining Hall
Torarakuya-Taipei is a great spot to relax, enjoy a simple, delicious meal while learning one or two things about coffee, whiskey and life in general from the always amicable owner. But diners may want to bear in mind that the recently opened eatery doesn’t take reservations and is often packed during lunch and dinner rush hours.
Warning: Excessive consumption of alcohol can damage your health.
Photo courtesy of Fantasy Dining Hall
In late October of 1873 the government of Japan decided against sending a military expedition to Korea to force that nation to open trade relations. Across the government supporters of the expedition resigned immediately. The spectacle of revolt by disaffected samurai began to loom over Japanese politics. In January of 1874 disaffected samurai attacked a senior minister in Tokyo. A month later, a group of pro-Korea expedition and anti-foreign elements from Saga prefecture in Kyushu revolted, driven in part by high food prices stemming from poor harvests. Their leader, according to Edward Drea’s classic Japan’s Imperial Army, was a samurai
The following three paragraphs are just some of what the local Chinese-language press is reporting on breathlessly and following every twist and turn with the eagerness of a soap opera fan. For many English-language readers, it probably comes across as incomprehensibly opaque, so bear with me briefly dear reader: To the surprise of many, former pop singer and Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) ex-lawmaker Yu Tien (余天) of the Taiwan Normal Country Promotion Association (TNCPA) at the last minute dropped out of the running for committee chair of the DPP’s New Taipei City chapter, paving the way for DPP legislator Su
It’s hard to know where to begin with Mark Tovell’s Taiwan: Roads Above the Clouds. Having published a travelogue myself, as well as having contributed to several guidebooks, at first glance Tovell’s book appears to inhabit a middle ground — the kind of hard-to-sell nowheresville publishers detest. Leaf through the pages and you’ll find them suffuse with the purple prose best associated with travel literature: “When the sun is low on a warm, clear morning, and with the heat already rising, we stand at the riverside bike path leading south from Sanxia’s old cobble streets.” Hardly the stuff of your
April 22 to April 28 The true identity of the mastermind behind the Demon Gang (魔鬼黨) was undoubtedly on the minds of countless schoolchildren in late 1958. In the days leading up to the big reveal, more than 10,000 guesses were sent to Ta Hwa Publishing Co (大華文化社) for a chance to win prizes. The smash success of the comic series Great Battle Against the Demon Gang (大戰魔鬼黨) came as a surprise to author Yeh Hung-chia (葉宏甲), who had long given up on his dream after being jailed for 10 months in 1947 over political cartoons. Protagonist