Qi Tiao Tong (
Zum Fass (
PHOTO: CHRIS FUCHS, TAIPEI TIMES
But why put a German-Swiss restaurant here? "This building used to have a Swiss air-conditioning company in it," said Jack Hsu (
In the beginning, the beer took priority over the food, Hsu said. Most of the dishes were made by the wives of Swiss businessmen who worked upstairs. It wasn't until a bit later that a Swiss cook was flown over and hired to create standard restaurant fare. Those recipes are the ones that are still used today, Hsu said.
The menu has over 50 selections, with such Swiss and German specialties as gemischte wurst (a variety of German sausages) and schweinshaxe (roasted pig knuckles), which Hsu said is a favorite among his customers.
The gemischte wurst includes three types of sausage: veal, cheese and frankfurter. None of them is overly sweet. A healthy portion of homefries and imported sauerkraut -- which doesn't have that from-the-can-sour taste -- rounds off the meal.
The perennial favorite at Zum Fass, though, is roasted pork knuckle. Hsu said pork knuckle is often fried to make it crispy. Zum Fass, however, roasts its pork knuckle for more than three hours, allowing the skin to gradually turn dark red and the meat tender.
What would German food be without German beer? Zum Fass's draft selection is Warsteiner Vorn Fass. Erdinger (in three different varieties) -- Kristallklar, Dunkel and Hefe -- is also available in the bottle.
Hsu said Zum Fass hasn't changed one iota since it opened in 1977. Consistency, he said, is what has made his restaurant stand out among his neighbors along Qi Tiao Tong.
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