Under its most infamous ruler Qin Shi Huang (秦始皇), the Qin Dynasty (秦朝) was a time marked by the centralization of government and codification of laws. According to Lin Hui-lin (林惠玲), owner of Qin Wei Guang, it was also a time when the emperor systematically categorized the history and ingredients of many dishes from the region that is today called Shaanxi Province (陝西).
Lin tells this and a bevy of other stories as she explains the origins and uses of the tapestries adorning the celebrity-signed walls, the patterns on the tablecloths covering the hardwood tables and the dishes on the menu. Even the corn, red peppers and garlic hanging out front of the restaurant serve as the foundation for a story about differing weather conditions between steamy Taipei and temperate Xian (西安), Shaanxi's capital city. It's this attention to detail that has made Qin Wei Guan a staple on many a gourmand's list of eateries to frequent.
The food Lin serves is as hearty as her stories. As Shaanxi cuisine is influenced by the numerous Muslims living in the area, the menu consists mainly of beef, lamb, broad-cut noodles and paomo — a broth stewed for a day and served with un-leavened bread. To accommodate local palettes, Lin has added fish, pork, and tofu to the menu.
PHOTO COURTESY OF YULI KIM
We started off with Hu Pi Hui (NT$160) — a mixture of green pepper, fried tofu and hot bean sauce — and cut broad noodles (NT$90). Cut broad noodles are a staple of Shaanxi and ours were served in a large bowl with chopped green onions and Lin's special chili paste, which, when mixed together, was simple but delicious.
For the main course we ordered Zhi Zi Gu Pai, or spareribs/spices (NT$360), a dish that is marinated, steamed, fried and baked before being brought to the table. The outer skin is crispy with the meat inside moist and succulent.
Halfway through our meal two dessert pastries arrived at our table. After a minute, one of the servers noticed that the delicate desserts were getting cold and told us to eat them. Only later did Lin tell us that it is the custom to eat dessert halfway through dinner.
"The sugary dessert helps with digestion and increases the appetite so that more food can be eaten," Lin said.
Every now and then, it’s nice to just point somewhere on a map and head out with no plan. In Taiwan, where convenience reigns, food options are plentiful and people are generally friendly and helpful, this type of trip is that much easier to pull off. One day last November, a spur-of-the-moment day hike in the hills of Chiayi County turned into a surprisingly memorable experience that impressed on me once again how fortunate we all are to call this island home. The scenery I walked through that day — a mix of forest and farms reaching up into the clouds
With one week left until election day, the drama is high in the race for the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) chair. The race is still potentially wide open between the three frontrunners. The most accurate poll is done by Apollo Survey & Research Co (艾普羅民調公司), which was conducted a week and a half ago with two-thirds of the respondents party members, who are the only ones eligible to vote. For details on the candidates, check the Oct. 4 edition of this column, “A look at the KMT chair candidates” on page 12. The popular frontrunner was 56-year-old Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文)
“How China Threatens to Force Taiwan Into a Total Blackout” screamed a Wall Street Journal (WSJ) headline last week, yet another of the endless clickbait examples of the energy threat via blockade that doesn’t exist. Since the headline is recycled, I will recycle the rebuttal: once industrial power demand collapses (there’s a blockade so trade is gone, remember?) “a handful of shops and factories could run for months on coal and renewables, as Ko Yun-ling (柯昀伶) and Chao Chia-wei (趙家緯) pointed out in a piece at Taiwan Insight earlier this year.” Sadly, the existence of these facts will not stop the
Oct. 13 to Oct. 19 When ordered to resign from her teaching position in June 1928 due to her husband’s anti-colonial activities, Lin Shih-hao (林氏好) refused to back down. The next day, she still showed up at Tainan Second Preschool, where she was warned that she would be fired if she didn’t comply. Lin continued to ignore the orders and was eventually let go without severance — even losing her pay for that month. Rather than despairing, she found a non-government job and even joined her husband Lu Ping-ting’s (盧丙丁) non-violent resistance and labor rights movements. When the government’s 1931 crackdown
RSS