Promoting Taiwan’s cuisine
In the US, Chinese cuisine is widely considered cheap. French cuisine is usually considered high-end and is expensive. Such distinctions, although stereotypical, are not without basis. Newspapers and restaurant reviews typically mention Chinese restaurants only in their “cheap eats” sections and while most of them are rated with one “$” sign, meaning inexpensive, French restaurants typically receive at least three “$” signs.
Indeed, most Chinese restaurants aim to provide large quantities of food at a low price, thus fostering the image of Chinese food as being somewhat second-rate.
Asian restaurants in the US — with Japanese restaurants being the only exception — usually charge less than Western restaurants. A high-end restaurant is seldom one that sells traditional Asian food.
However, when Asian food is marketed as Asian fusion, prices are completely different.
For instance, the restaurant chain Roy’s offers dishes that mix Asian and Hawaiian food elements, with all branches located on harbor fronts. Appetizers include spring rolls, dumplings and other things commonly seen at Chinese restaurants in the US. At Roy’s, two vegetarian spring rolls cost US$8 and four pan-fried dumplings cost US$12, whereas at a regular restaurant the same dishes would cost no more than US$3.50. This certainly does not mean that the more expensive it is, the better it is, but in terms of its positioning, the higher price range, as a sign of confidence helps the restaurant differentiate itself from others.
Through branding and other marketing strategies, similar food can be sold at varying prices. If we could market Hakka cuisine like French cuisine at triple the price and help Hakka restaurants increase their market share and revenue, why not do so?
Taiwan is renowned for its night market food, so why not take it to the next level by developing more refined, high-end cuisine which would also benefit the local agricultural industry?
As the ruling party, the Democratic Progressive Party should of course be monitored. However, scrutiny over President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) having a personal chef, whom she pays out of her own pocket — and her spending more than US$1,000 on food at a French restaurant in Miaoli County — is quite unnecessary.
Speaking of chefs, there are five at the White House and their salaries come from taxpayers’ money. Their job is to make food for the family of US President Barack Obama and their guests. The executive chef has an annual salary of US$172,000 — far higher than what I earn. Despite the increased political polarization in the US, what the president eats is not yet a public concern. Hopefully, Taiwanese will soon turn their attention to more important political issues.
Hsiao Wen-ting
Washington
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