The Taiwanese know how to use space - especially when it comes to small businesses. A quick wander through Ximending, Gongguan or Shida reveals that shopkeepers can and will use every available nook and cranny to sell anything from food or the latest clothing to knick-knacks and gewgaws. As storefronts go for a premium in these bustling areas, landlords are willing to rent every available ping to anyone who wants to try their luck.
Though some complain about overcrowding or - in the case of restaurant stalls - hygiene concerns, the consumer benefits from cheap food.
Take, for example, Biff's Pitas, a street stall that opened one month ago and has seen customers lining up to dig into some of the tastiest pitas in town. The owner, who calls himself Biff Cappuccino, is a Canadian who has lived in Scotland, Nigeria, Ireland, Uganda, the US and has spent the last two decades in Taiwan.
PHOTO: NOAH BUCHAN, TAIPEI TIMES
Biff's is located in front of an alley off Shida Road beside a Wellcome supermarket. There is no room for tables or chairs - besides a small space behind the grill for cutting chicken and fresh vegetables. Shida Park (師大公園) is right across the street. Low overheads mean paying low prices for healthy and delicious food.
"My father had a tradition where he would never cook the same meal twice in one month," Biff said. "He loved to experiment preparing foods from different countries." Though the menu at Biff's is fixed, he said he applied his father's ethos by experimenting with his cooking methods before arriving at his current creations, which reflect his interest in Asian flavors.
Five choices of filling are available for Biff's whole-wheat pitas: Madras curry chicken; Xinjiang cumin chicken; fennel seed chicken; Sichuan-style chicken; Mexico jalapeno chicken; and Thai tam yam chicken. One sandwich costs NT$55; two go for NT$100. Toppings include fresh cucumber, lettuce, onions, tomatoes, and a dollop of sour cream. The proprietor says he can make his sandwiches as spicy or mild as the customer wants.
My favorites are the Madras curry chicken and the Mexico Jalapeno chicken, extra spicy. The pitas are a bit on the small side but, at NT$55 for one, it's hard to complain. If one doesn't fit the bill, order a side of potato wedges (NT$35) or potato wedges with basil sauce (NT$50). If that isn't enough, order another pita.
In the March 9 edition of the Taipei Times a piece by Ninon Godefroy ran with the headine “The quiet, gentle rhythm of Taiwan.” It started with the line “Taiwan is a small, humble place. There is no Eiffel Tower, no pyramids — no singular attraction that draws the world’s attention.” I laughed out loud at that. This was out of no disrespect for the author or the piece, which made some interesting analogies and good points about how both Din Tai Fung’s and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s (TSMC, 台積電) meticulous attention to detail and quality are not quite up to
April 21 to April 27 Hsieh Er’s (謝娥) political fortunes were rising fast after she got out of jail and joined the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) in December 1945. Not only did she hold key positions in various committees, she was elected the only woman on the Taipei City Council and headed to Nanjing in 1946 as the sole Taiwanese female representative to the National Constituent Assembly. With the support of first lady Soong May-ling (宋美齡), she started the Taipei Women’s Association and Taiwan Provincial Women’s Association, where she
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) hatched a bold plan to charge forward and seize the initiative when he held a protest in front of the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office. Though risky, because illegal, its success would help tackle at least six problems facing both himself and the KMT. What he did not see coming was Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (將萬安) tripping him up out of the gate. In spite of Chu being the most consequential and successful KMT chairman since the early 2010s — arguably saving the party from financial ruin and restoring its electoral viability —
It is one of the more remarkable facts of Taiwan history that it was never occupied or claimed by any of the numerous kingdoms of southern China — Han or otherwise — that lay just across the water from it. None of their brilliant ministers ever discovered that Taiwan was a “core interest” of the state whose annexation was “inevitable.” As Paul Kua notes in an excellent monograph laying out how the Portuguese gave Taiwan the name “Formosa,” the first Europeans to express an interest in occupying Taiwan were the Spanish. Tonio Andrade in his seminal work, How Taiwan Became Chinese,
RSS