Tucked down an alley behind the Shin-Kong Mitsukoshi Department Store in Tianmu and just two doors away from the Spice Shop, another Indian restaurant, is a jewel box of a restaurant, Saffron. It's fine Indian dining, but in a very elegant yet comfortable atmosphere.
Sandra, one of the owners, said they spent six months before the restaurant opened just working out the design, decor and menu. That attention to detail clearly paid off. Open just under a year (mid-March is the anniversary), Saffron quickly became a favorite of Tianmu residents and word-of-mouth has ensured that plenty of downtown denizens are willing to make the trek north to try it.
While not an extensive menu, there are between four and eight options each for appetizers (averaging NT$170), tandoori chicken and lamb dishes (ranging from NT$290 to NT$540), vegetable dishes (average of NT$250), breads (NT$75 and up) and rice dishes (around NT$200). The drinks include a small wine selection (NT$200 a glass), beers, soft drinks, lassis, juices and teas.
PHOTO: DIANE BAKER, TAIPEI TIMES
The chef has a very light hand with the oils and ghee; even the fried appetizers such as samosas and pakoras are crisp without being greasy. Diners can watch the tandoor chef at work because his glass-enclosed cubicle is at the front of the restaurant, which is a great way to keep the children entertained while they are waiting for their food or after they eat as well as a good advertisement for Saffron.
I have never had a bad meal at Saffron, but must-tries for anyone would have to include the methi pakora as an appetizer (feenugrek, onion, potato and green chiles all finely diced and mixed together into small patties, which are then deep fried) or the punjabi tikki (a mix of ground lentils and potato deep fried in a small patty); the baigan bharta (charcoal-flamed eggplant, which is diced up and mixed with garlic, coriander and onion), the sak paneer (a fine rendering of the classic creamed spinach and cheese dish) and the tikki masala (chicken marinated with herb-nut mix and cooked in the tandoor oven).
The dessert list is short, just two dishes, but I can't make a recommendation. I'm sure they are both good, but despite best intentions, we have always been too full to actually order them.
While reservations are not required, they are recomended for both lunch and dinner on weekends because Saffron fills up quickly.
That US assistance was a model for Taiwan’s spectacular development success was early recognized by policymakers and analysts. In a report to the US Congress for the fiscal year 1962, former President John F. Kennedy noted Taiwan’s “rapid economic growth,” was “producing a substantial net gain in living.” Kennedy had a stake in Taiwan’s achievements and the US’ official development assistance (ODA) in general: In September 1961, his entreaty to make the 1960s a “decade of development,” and an accompanying proposal for dedicated legislation to this end, had been formalized by congressional passage of the Foreign Assistance Act. Two
March 31 to April 6 On May 13, 1950, National Taiwan University Hospital otolaryngologist Su You-peng (蘇友鵬) was summoned to the director’s office. He thought someone had complained about him practicing the violin at night, but when he entered the room, he knew something was terribly wrong. He saw several burly men who appeared to be government secret agents, and three other resident doctors: internist Hsu Chiang (許強), dermatologist Hu Pao-chen (胡寶珍) and ophthalmologist Hu Hsin-lin (胡鑫麟). They were handcuffed, herded onto two jeeps and taken to the Secrecy Bureau (保密局) for questioning. Su was still in his doctor’s robes at
Last week the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said that the budget cuts voted for by the China-aligned parties in the legislature, are intended to force the DPP to hike electricity rates. The public would then blame it for the rate hike. It’s fairly clear that the first part of that is correct. Slashing the budget of state-run Taiwan Power Co (Taipower, 台電) is a move intended to cause discontent with the DPP when electricity rates go up. Taipower’s debt, NT$422.9 billion (US$12.78 billion), is one of the numerous permanent crises created by the nation’s construction-industrial state and the developmentalist mentality it
Experts say that the devastating earthquake in Myanmar on Friday was likely the strongest to hit the country in decades, with disaster modeling suggesting thousands could be dead. Automatic assessments from the US Geological Survey (USGS) said the shallow 7.7-magnitude quake northwest of the central Myanmar city of Sagaing triggered a red alert for shaking-related fatalities and economic losses. “High casualties and extensive damage are probable and the disaster is likely widespread,” it said, locating the epicentre near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay, home to more than a million people. Myanmar’s ruling junta said on Saturday morning that the number killed had