Christmas is synonymous the world over with great food and lots of it. And while Taiwan doesn't officially recognize the day on which Christians celebrate the birth of their savior with a national holiday, plenty of restaurants, bars and hotels will be laying on special scrumptious Yuletide spreads in order to cater to those with a whim for seasonal victuals.
Czech expats might be hard pressed to find their traditional Christmas meal of carp and black bean sauce and like-minded Latvian expats may have to do without their famous festive repast of brown beans, bacon sauce, cabbage and sausage, but there is certainly no lack of turkey and other assorted fowl-based Christmas dinners on offer this weekend.
The proprietors of JBs have decided to forego the turkey dinner for their Christmas bash and will instead be serving a set NT$1,200 menu featuring goose and for dessert the joint's chef has prepared both sherry trifle and Christmas pudding. JBs' Christmas meal starts from 5pm tomorrow and continues through dinner on Sunday. At 148, Shida Rd, Taipei (
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE IMPERIAL HOTEL
Jake's Country Kitchen has long been a favorite with the expat community at Christmas time and this year is no exception. The chefs will once again be working overtime and the joint's NT$900 per person turkey dinner will be available from 11am tomorrow through late Sunday evening. At 705, Chungshan N Rd, Sec 6, Taipei (
Taipei's trusty Western diner, the G'Day Cafe will be serving up its Christmas dinner from tomorrow lunchtime until 5pm on Sunday. At NT$500 per person it might be Taipei's cheapest Christmas dinner, but those who choose to spend Christmas at the G'Day certainly won't be disappointed with the quality or size of the popular diners set festive menu. At 180, Xingan St, Taipei (
The notorious Taipei hotspot Carnegie's will be getting festive on Sunday between 12pm and 5pm when it puts the table top dancing on hold and serves up a special Christmas buffet lunch for NT$800. At 100 Anhe Rd, Sec 2, Taipei (台北市安和路二段100號). Call (02) 2325-4433.
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE IMPERIAL HOTEL
The Landis Taipei will be cooking up a Yuletide storm tomorrow and Sunday when it offers diners the choice of everything from a traditional turkey dinner to a special French village Christmas meal. Prices range from NT$880 to NT$3,666 depending on which restaurant you opt for. At 41, Minchuen E Rd, Sec 2, Taipei (台北市民權東路二段41號). Call (02) 2597-1234.
Turkey is off the menu this year at The Imperial Hotel, but diners looking for something special can still chow down on a heap of great food from between 6pm and 9pm tomorrow and Sunday at the NT$1,200 per person Christmas buffet in the hotel's Tomatina restaurant. At 600, Linsen N Rd, Taipei (
The Sheraton's Kitchen 12 will be whipping up the hotel's festive meal with an expanded buffet selection that will include turkey, cranberry sauce and all the trimmings. The special buffet costs NT$1,200 per person. At 12, Chunghsiao E Rd, Sec 1 Taipei (
In Taichung the popular English teacher hangout, PJ's Cafe will once again be serving its popular cut-price turkey and mashed potato dinner for NT$195 per person on Sunday. At 23, Dayeh Rd, Taichung (
The Howard Prince Hotel will be providing both buffet and set Christmas meals tomorrow evening only. Both the full buffet, which is located in the hotel's Mirage restaurant and the set semi-buffet, which is located in the hotel's lobby bar cost NT$1,200. At 129, Anho Road, Taichung
In Tainan the Evergreen Plaza's Tasting The World restaurant will be serving its NT$880 Christmas buffet tomorrow evening and Sunday lunchtime. At 1, Lane 336, Chunghua E Rd, Sec 3, Tainan (台南市中華東路三段336巷1號). Call (06) 289-9888.
Of course, stuffing oneself with artery clogging cholesterol, far too many carbohydrates and, if you happen to enjoy rich traditional Christmas pudding, small doses of potassium -- yes, really -- and topping it all off with large amounts of alcohol might be nice, but it is not very healthy.
According to a report by the British Nutrition Foundation studies showed that on average people gain 2kg over the Christmas period. If you're not worried or concerned about gaining weight you might still want to watch what you eat, however, as overeating can lead to mood swings and irritability.
An online survey carried out by a UK newspaper found that six out of 10 Britons reported having arguments on Christmas Day. A staggering 73 percent of those claimed that tensions reached a peak after Christmas dinner.
Merry Christmas!
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