BAFA

我只想說這個地方 讓我可以休息又享受很棒的咖啡...
A quiet corner

店內有免費的無線上網

這是我最愛的特調: Caramel cinnamon latte

這盤沙拉很開胃 很清淡 吃起來很舒服
之前也提過 試用和風醬為base的沙拉醬 加上芝麻 & Almond 提味 真的很清爽

symbolic

雖然這篇和這個blog的本意 -- food沒有太大的關連 但我想這次的經驗可以幫助我未來的career... 再加上一些情感的因素 i want to leave something and dedicate this to my team members who made this whole thing possible.

懷孕
九月底 副總宣布要把舉辦經銷商大會
原本應該是project leader的同事 因為懷孕 所以淡出這次的project... 重擔因此落到我頭上

法國
一個人在兩個月裡做這樣的大proejct -- handling all the customers and arrange all the details -- sounds a bit unpromising. 原本應該是小主管要來跟我一起做這個工作的 因為他要請10天的假去法國 變成是我另外一位同事跟我co-own this project. 她叫卡卡

接下來1.5月
....場勘
會議內容&晚會內容安排&遊玩行程安排
客人名單收集--不但客人回報的很慢 家裡的業務也很沒效率
...安排150個人的交通-- 高鐵 開車 &遊覽車
...安排150個人的車次 -- 哪家客人不能跟哪家客人坐啦 哪些人回的目的地又一樣啦....
...安排住宿 -- VIP/非VIP/公司同仁但非工作人員/公司同仁但是是工作人員/單人/雙人陌生人/雙人非陌生人, 某些人又攜伴卻不想參加會議因此需要early check in...
...食物 -- 遊覽車上吃的點心/會議吃的點心菜色/晚宴吃的菜色/素食/自己在場佈的時候該吃什麼
...150個人的行李條上 --行李條上需要有客人的名字先,還需要有標明他去程的遊覽車車次,以免他不知道自己要去哪班車
還有包括那些阿哩阿匝的製作物:
名牌(150個名字全部都是我和卡卡key的,裁的,因為屋內的designer說: 你以為我有這麼多時間啊?!)
車掌手上的手舉牌、客人手中拿的guidebook、抽獎券、晚餐的桌次表、飯店該怎麼佈置、員工表演節目(自己也得表演)、還有員工要拍的video、自己要報告的presentation...
這一切的一切 都成為我和卡卡和A-lin每天加班的理由
原本,加到8點多就差不多掛了...後來禮拜五都一樣工作到9點多,回到家裡往往也還沒吃飯,梳洗一下就上床睡了
活動開始的前幾天,更是每天加班超過深夜12點,還因為這樣,當天上班的打卡紀錄異常...(因為在同一天之內 沒有下班刷卡的紀錄 隔天上班卻是凌晨1點開始)

心理影響身理
孕婦跟我說: 2年前他是一個人做的,所以這次有兩個人的我們,只能比之前更好,不能失敗.
說實在的我是那種不知道如何面對這種壓力的人,所以失眠的夜晚一個禮拜三四天.
又一直狂吃零食,長時間不運動的狀況,爆肥了許多,之前買的褲子都變緊...
還有--我的生理期一個月內斷斷續續來了三次,去給醫生看,藥又沒按時吃--總是到下班時候才想起該吃的沒吃到...我應該沒救了!!
身體上的症狀不斷,某天加班到10點多的時候...扁桃腺就腫起來了. 後來加班到1點多的那幾天因為睡眠不足,火氣大,嘴巴裡面破了好幾個洞. 都要直接含Vitamin C才能抑制疼痛....還有dakara 哈哈

釋放

在某天的9.28 A-lin去惡搞了另外一個比較早下班同事的桌子

我在想 A-lin因為壓力很大 所以才會藉由這種無聊的把戲搞笑 舒壓吧!
我們幾個也在活動開始的前個禮拜 去錢櫃唱了五個小時的歌 唱出來的時候 已經是清晨六點了...有沒有這麼亢奮?

去唱歌的那天 A-lin到最後已經是躺著唱音浪了 整個很累 辛苦他得陪這幾個瘋女人

我加班到1點多的那幾天,說實在的,精神是很緊繃的...就算我再過不到5個小時,就要回到工作崗位,不知怎麼的,我還是一點都不覺得疲倦...可以說是靠意志力在撐.

34頁/100M
這是我的報告,總共才34頁,但是檔案到100 M+....其中還有我嘔心瀝血再禮拜六凌晨2點完成的老闆的講稿....最後他卻說: 阿? 我忘記我叫你幫我寫了 WOOHOOO...!

金山寺
活動前一天,我和卡卡去金山寺,幫我們兩個求了活動順利的護身符.同時也幫a-lin和S各求了一個

後記
當中遇到很多~很多~塞事: 包括一些人的incompetency & lack of execution... 當然 我也在這次的經驗裡面,深刻的體會到:官位真的...真的不代表能力.
我也知道我自己規劃能力不夠、反應也不夠快,面對要傳達這麼多消息給客人的時候,就會浪費了很多寶貴的時間

但是這個活動真的很成功,客人所有給我的feedback都是正面的. 老闆聽到的也全部都是正面的...他臉上有光、最大的客戶又很讚賞這次的活動,說實在可以讓他在最大的客戶面前,這麼有面子,加班到1點我也有了代價.

客人說: 我參加過這麼多場經銷商大會,你辦的這一場就最棒.

應邀與會的同仁跟我說: 我覺得你這樣安排真的很棒耶! 好開心喔!

幫忙我的工作人員拍拍我的肩膀對我說: 你辦的真的很棒,辛苦了!

今天副總在outback,舉著sprite對大家說: To Emily and Carol... a well organized event!

能有這些正面的feedback, 都要歸功於這些無怨尤願意為他們負責的國家以外幫忙的team member

還有一位team leader, 在我最忙的最後一天, 放下手邊的工作,並指派他們其他的team member來幫我...還有一群業務,自告奮勇願意幫我忙,還有同仁幫我解決了最難的customer politics...
沒有這些人的幫忙,我想我不眠不休也沒辦法做的好.
nor would i be able to fend off the annoyance brought on by those incompetent people.

我一直覺得,擁有一個career, 不論是什麼,都要擁有個"great achievement".... and I'm really lucky, I think I just had mine....

第二天早上,我們帶客人去遊湖...天公很作美!!這麼舒服的天氣,日月潭真的很美!

You know how it's like, regardless what career you choose, you want to have at least one GREAT achievement, before you, like, think about giving it up? Well, I think I've got mine already!

苗栗 泰安+大湖 哈哈呼呼行 之1

本週末 去鄰近的苗栗完成了一趟 哈特斯補拎 (hot spring) 和呼特(food)行
這是這次不帶手錶小旅行的遊記

從國道一號苗栗交流道下,右轉上省道6號,向西走大概五分鐘...就可以接上72號快速道路一路往"汶水"去.... 72號是銜接 後龍 (省1上一個濱海的點) 到 汶水 (省3山上的一個景點)的東西向快速道路.. 常常在桐花季、草莓季這條快速道路就會變成慢速道路

越往汶水的方向越是山區,而且一路上幾乎沒有什麼車,時速最低70,咻基咧就到了終點!


72號快速道路的終點就是省道3....右轉南下省道3 不久就會接到苗62 -- 這條就是上到泰安溫泉區的省道
不過 在省3 & 苗62的交接處有個7-11 這個7非常的具有重要性 兩年前出去玩的時候 也在這家7休息過再上路的 這家7沒變啊 蒼蠅還是很多! 唯一是兩年前來的時候沒啥人 這次去的時候遊客很多(台客也是....)

省3上靠近大湖的7-11 去泰安溫泉必經之景點!!

這是午餐--值得一提的是 在這邊也買到了大湖限定的草莓OPEN小將 穿著草莓十~分的可愛 XD

轉上苗62之後 不久就會看到雪霸公園遊客中心 然後便正式的進入了泰安鄉
沿途經過"洗水坑豆腐街"...顧名思義是以豆腐為主題的一個小鎮 只不過不論是去程還是回程 我的肚子老是飽飽 所以沒有機會去品嘗
洗水坑是"營建署城鄉新風貌計畫工程"中的一個project, 2000年重整後才有了現在的小鎮風貌:

1. 很特別的雜貨店招牌

2. 據說這家粉圓很不錯吃,嚐過也還ok...糖水不夠可以回去給他加 3. 從洗水坑橋上看去的山谷景色

1. 鷂(ㄧㄠˋ)婆山是小鎮南方的山區 2. 小鎮裡到處都可見的洗手台

離開洗水坑繼續往東向我們的目的地出發,沿途的山景仔細看,還有颱風遺留下來的疤痕...兩旁的道路不難發現從山上滾落的大石頭,也有不少的標示寫著 "小心落石" 或 "此區落石多 颱風地震時不宜逗留" ......有時候我常想,當你颱風或是地震看到這種sign的時候,不是已經太遅了嗎? 又有幾個村民在開車下山的時候會覺得說今天有地震FU,最好經過某幾處的時候開快一點...? 不過我也知道這種警告標語原本就是為了降低legal issue而設置的....so I'll stop babbling about it.

1. 山區裡面也是有住家(和包葉)的喔! 2. 注意落石的sign

一路開真的是綠意盎然,再加上拜六的天氣其實不錯,藍天綠山 心情整個很放鬆...
大約從豆腐街開15分鐘,就會到了一個valley.... 這裡開始就有很多民宿、溫泉會館出現..首先最具代表性的就是"泰安觀止"了
繼續往山裡開個約10分鐘,就會看到眺望整個溫泉谷的"湯悅" >> 這個據說是拜犬女王裡面有出現的場景... 不過個人對這個劇沒興趣所以也就沒研究
還有另外一個在溪邊開的"湯唯",因為名字時再是太白爛了,我不知道照了這個招牌幾次!! XD

1. 苗62 別名 上島公路 2. 湯唯被消費也 XD

經過了湯唯就可以看到遠方日出溫泉的招牌啦!!! 衝啊~~~ 大概再開1分鐘 就看到"日出溫泉度假飯店"的大招牌,上面還打著"HOME AWAY HOME"!! 真的有這麼好嗎? 且待我揭曉
網路上本來就有review說,這個飯店走的是 Bali Island風,實際看到以後真的還不錯 ... 大門寬敞,石頭鋪的路 ,兩邊還有凉椅可以聊天乘涼,停車場的旁邊更有個sun deck可以坐在那裡跳往山谷和下游民宿的景色! 一整個放鬆很OK!

車子經過的時候拍的 "日"不小心被CUT掉了 哈哈哈
不過說實在的在山上卻建造成Bali 風 也很奇妙

1. 這是從sun deck看到的景色 遠方的山脊飄著霧真的很漂亮

2. 溫泉區的Bali主題 很多decoration都很漂亮
3. 這個放在石塊上的小水盆 其實是ashtray 超有fu的

日出的鎮店之寶是設置於飯店門口大廳、一個據說有上百年的木雕佛像...佛像坐在一個木作檯子上,整個大廳散發著淡淡的檀香,一踏進門口的瞬間就真有種度假的感覺
不但每個房間裡面有泡湯的地方,飯店裡面也有露天的泡湯,免費讓房客使用
日出的湯是42C碳酸泉,據說是比一般的硫磺泉要來的低溫,也比較無味....去的那一天,露天湯屋沒有什麼人使用,所以我就一邊泡著溫泉,一邊看著眼前山下的景色...泡了一陣子,再到溫泉池旁邊的sun deck曬曬太陽,跟h說: 這才叫人生啊!!!
日出有個好處,他的房間數其實不多...所以即使當天的旅館是滿員的,也沒有到人滿為患的程度 -- a real sweet little spot tucked away in the mountains

話說我看到這尊佛像的時候 覺得他的座姿超讚的

泡湯完,我們到附近散散步,呼吸新鮮空氣 -- 山上的空氣真的好舒服!芬多精灌滿了肺,讓人整個精神好了起來,剛泡完熱呼呼的溫泉,也舒活了筋骨...只能說心靈身體,都好好的受到照顧了
差不多走到半山腰後折返,我們回到飯店吃晚餐... 這裡的飯店都是一泊二食,因為山上要覓食真的不容易 (話說我有看到房客到山下去買必勝客上來 XD 真是太世俗了!!!)
日出的晚餐是套餐桌菜(!) 基本上...就是看幾個人,他就出幾人份的套餐桌菜
昨天的菜色總共是 (如果我記得的話):
1. 三盤小菜: 干貝 麻油凉拌 黒豆 2. 鹹水雞 3. 酥炸排骨 4. 和風花椰菜 5. 枸杞燙蝦子 6. 洋蔥甜蒸魚 7. 四季豆排骨湯 8.水果&甜點 再來是白飯(免費續)和一壺很~好喝的烏龍茶....
我每一道都有吃,而且每一道都很不錯吃--除了蝦子我覺得沒有devein這一點以外--很清淡,很自然, 又很養生,吃起來很舒服...完全沒有對不起自己身體的一餐!
我們兩個食量也夠大...把90%的食物都吃掉了, 而且h還續了一碗白飯...

飽餐一頓後散散步...又在飯店外面的座位區上上網 順便噗個浪, what more can you ask!!?!
回到房間又泡了湯,奇怪的是,房間的湯卻有硫磺味!!! 不過管不了這麼多,泡完以後又是通體舒暢,而且... 我身上之前的小傷口的疤竟然在下午那次露天泡湯之後 淺了很多耶! 超神奇的

第一天的行程大概就到這裡,山上的清新的空氣已經把我身體裡的髒東西趕出去....吸取了這麼好的精華,我的身體也夠累了. 沒看完HBO播的電影,我就呼嚕嚕的睡著了,一覺到天亮,完全無夢! 隔天還要計畫去參觀大湖草莓博物館....最重要的是可以吃到草莓香腸啦!! MUAHHHHAHAHAHHAHAH....

(待續)

irresistible No. 2 桃源街牛肉麵

irresistible no. 2..... 就要給這個我吃了10+年 我爹娘吃了 30+年的 桃源街牛肉麵
不論台北市政府舉辦多少次牛肉麵節 選出多少個不同的第一名 this eatery would always be the no. 1 beef noodle place to me.

從我爹娘的大學時代 -- 莫約30年前 他們weekend坐火車回台北 一下車就會到這家在火車站附近(even in today's sense of distance, i think it's still far from the station, but this is my dad's account of the story anyways) 叫一碗好吃的牛肉麵 犒賞自己讀書的辛苦
就這一吃變成老主顧 幾十年來 除了隨著時代和通貨膨脹調高的單價外 據說口味也未曾換過 (maybe鍋子都沒洗過 哈哈) 當然 擅長讓人留下印象的老爸也早和老闆老闆娘 老闆娘的親戚 店裡的打工弟弟是熟識 老闆娘還會觀察我啥時比較瘦 啥時比較胖咧!!

去到源街牛肉麵 我點的always是清蒸牛肉麵+多蔥 我從來都沒有想過要點紅燒.... 因為光想吃不到清蒸的 我心裡就會難過起來 導致於我是無法跟各位證實到底紅燒有多好吃
除了牛肉麵以外 小菜"如果有"泡菜的話 這就是必點了

桃源街的牛肉麵是是我喜歡的那種白粗麵 嚼起來很有份量
最喜歡的吃法就是把麵條整整的塞滿一整口 滿滿的享受麵條上原本就附著的鮮美香甜(我覺得是)北方口味的牛肉高湯 根本就燙死我也不嚐命
牛肉高湯上浮著一小圈一小圈的亮吱吱的油 應該是在熬煮高湯的時候 骨頭(?)釋放出的精華 每次吃完以後 嘴唇上都浮著亮亮的natural gloss 哈哈
再來就是重頭戲的牛肉 -- 牛肉塊煮的很嫩 但一點都不爛 不是那種所謂用筷子一碰就散掉的 配合著一點點油脂咬起來超級柔軟 每一口都爆炸的juicy-- 吸著牛肉的湯汁 每次都讓我捨不得吞下去
每一塊肉和他的麵條一樣很有份量 每碗麵裡面的牛肉都是超過3 cm cube的大小 (哈哈) 真的咬起來 才有種爽快感 不過也拜老爸所賜 我的碗裡頭都會多一塊牛筋!!

If there's a word I have to put down for this beef noodle place, it's gotta be "essence". The place has all the essence of what a good bowl of beef noodle should taste like. The essence of the beef, its freshness, rawness, tenderness and its aroma, can all be tasted with each bite. It epitomizes the concept of how the most delicious food is only exemplified though the simplest ingredients. So, there's no doubt that this noodle place is irresistible.

吻仔魚炒飯

炒飯 話說 是一道非常家常的菜/飯 一次可以滿足一桌四菜的一盤菜 我吃過最好吃的炒飯 必要提的店就是新竹竹北的"十一街" 它不但葫瓜餃子有名 我個人認為 它的炒飯也很好吃
自從吃了十一街的炒飯 我就對他念念不忘 但是 我一直覺得(除了份量很小以外) 十一街的炒飯有點偏油 吃過之後 會有罪惡感 & 昏睡感+++的感覺

anyways 禮拜天 在檢視過我手邊有的食材之後 我發現我只缺吻仔魚 就可以做一道好吃的炒飯了 這次做的也頗成功 所以分享給大家

★Ingredients

1. 吻仔魚
   
2. 四季豆
   
3. 蛋
   
4. 大蒜
5. Extra virgin olive oil
6. 飯 -- 一定要隔夜的唷

★Directions

1. 四季豆先洗乾淨 兩頭切掉
   四季豆如果生吃的話其實是有毒的 尤其豆子的兩頭據說最"毒" 所以在做四季豆的菜時 是一定要煮熟 而且兩邊要切乾淨
   
2. 四季豆切0.5 CM寬 蒜頭切片先放在旁邊~
   
3. 中火鍋子裡熱油 熱了以後再炒切好的四季豆
   加點鹽調味
4. 炒熟了以後起鍋
   
5. 鍋子裡面再加點油 然後炒蒜片 炒香以後再把布拉魚丟進去快速翻炒 確保每一隻魚都有被garlic oil沾道
6. 加點鹽再調味
7. 在魚的中間撥個洞 加一點點油 把打好的蛋放到中間
   
8. 等到蛋差不多成型的時候 再用鍋鏟畫圓圈 把蛋打碎
9. 最後 再放入隔夜的飯 然後把火轉小一點 加入已起鍋的四季豆 用鍋鏟把飯粒炒鬆
   
10. 起鍋前加點鹽&胡椒 翻炒後確定每一口的味道都平均就可以啦

這道做起來 就不會這麼油 再加上用不沾鍋的關係 所以油可以用更少 健康又美味啦!!!
另外 一般買吻仔魚是建議要先洗過 因為畢竟很多魚不知道是用什麼chemical去養起來的 但是我買的是organic搭~ 所以我還頗放心的沒洗
再來是 白飯一定要用隔夜的 才能炒出粒粒分明! 大家試看看吧

irresistible No. 1 - BAFA Cafe specialty

每天活著 只要可以吃到美味的食物 我就會覺得今天活的又有意義了.
也因為愛吃 and obsessed with eating 老姐說我是貧窮的千金小姐
沒錢 又很挑
好 我承認 在吃這方面 雖然我不是什麼老饕 也不是什麼美食家 可是每一個吃飯的機會 我總是會希望送進我嘴巴裡的 不是單純的只填飽肚子 而是也可以滿足我味覺上享受的食物
總之 這樣的堅持 時常會導致跟我一起找餐廳的朋友們get pissed off
i'm sorry, but i can't promise i won't do it again. lol

所以我想說 這個blog既然是讓我紀錄我走向美食之夢的journal, let me start a series of irresistible food.
first on my mind, BAFA Cafe specialty....

這間店 是我在葉怡蘭的噗上面偶然看到的
原先在網路上查的時候 感覺是一般的咖啡簡餐店 想說既然葉小姐 -- as a gourmet person herself -- 推薦的話 就算是簡餐應該也不賴
第一次去的時候 was on a saturday afternoon. it was pouring rain outside. visibility was bad, and we arrived there at around 5.00PM.
本想要catch一個early dinner的 卻發現他的營業時間只到 6.00PM
店裡的服務生跟我們解釋 只剩下兩道熱食可以點 但是還是有咖啡
我們一人點了一道 搭的咖啡是巧克力拿鐵 (不是moccha唷) 和一杯蜂蜜肉桂拿鐵 (總之我對這種新奇口味都好奇心滿滿的)

坐下來以後才發現 店面其實不大 但眼見之處都是座位區XD 意味著.....space is well utilized.. or should i say, maximized
behind the bar, is the open "kitchen". where the waitress-at-the-same-time cook, works busily with the espresso machine, making the clanking sound with the portafilter.
第一次的BAFA經驗真的很"驚艷"... 雖然大家覺得honey cinnamon 這個combination的latte應該很恐怖 尤其是cinnamon這個香料很多人都會卻步
但是這杯咖啡 最上層鋪上滿滿的powdered cinnamon 還沒送上來 香味已經先傳到我鼻子了
cinnamon的味道不會過辛 很柔和 喝起來有種nutty的味道 蜂蜜消去latte的苦澀 但是卻沒有砂糖或是果糖的甜膩味 喝在口中和cinnamon 的nutty flavour是絕妙配合

這杯Latte的喝法 可以混著喝 也可以直接喝 我通常會混著喝 因為每一口都有cinnamon的味道 很推

BAFA也有一道很棒的料理 就是他的沙拉....重點是他的醬!!! 沒吃過這麼開胃又這麼香的沙拉醬
醬的base是所謂的"和風醬" -- mustard seed, soy sauce.. you know the drill. 最特別的是 他加了sesame paste and almond flakes...讓原本只是 和風醬的romaine hearts salad頓時變的風味十足
這道沙拉 真的很.....開胃!!

The House Salad -- not ordinary at all!

之後我再去 就是點他的早餐set 網路上有人說份量不夠 但是我覺得剛剛好 -- 早餐set有水果 沙拉 主菜 和一杯咖啡....
由於BAFA是以咖啡為主的 所以和一般餐廳是主餐的金額 再加價點飲料是相反的 這邊是咖啡決定底價 再加夠a餐或是b餐 很妙 但也是充分的顯現出咖啡才是鎮店之寶的感覺

每個週末 我有去台中的話 就一定會找時間去BAFA吃早餐 不過店員似乎還不熟我們 哈哈 因為都只是週末去 很難對我們的臉有印象吧
後來 我又喝到了 caramel honey latte 和 cranberry latte... 都是冰的
目前我最喜歡的是 caramel honey latte
這杯latte就一定要攪拌均勻才能喝 cream上面的caramel sauce上面還有灑brown sugar... 喝起來的口感超順口又很香甜 喝到顆粒的brown sugar的時候會停下來 把它嚼碎 瞬間釋放的甜味再度讓口中充滿甜甜柔柔的味道 說實在的 this is an over-the-top-sweetness cup of coffee. 我很愛

Caramel Honey Latte. The little cube beside the cup is the handmade yogurt. I love it too!

今天喝的呢 則是cranberry latte.... 說實在的 喝起來像stawberry smoothie, cranberry的味道太搶眼了 到至於咖啡在哪裡都不知道!! XD
但是 這杯咖啡的顏色真的超漂亮 很夢幻!!!


自從第一次走近這家店之後 我就對她的咖啡念念不忘了
In conclusion, at BAFA, the coffee is THE irresistible!

@: 台中市惠來路一段161號 (第六分局附近)
#: 04-22517701

Nordcap

I've always wondered about this coffee shop and I finally tried it today. The shop is designed like a big gift box wrapped with flowy ribbons. It's actually a complex, called "Moving Box". There are a total of three different shops: in the corner occupies Nordcap, a coffee shop, to the east, a bakery shop, Moving Box and a steakhouse, 洛克牛排.

This is obviously an installation art trying to catch people's attention on 公益路 where every inch of the road stands a restaurant, a coffee shop, a patisserie or eatery of some sort.

I ordered my usual choice of coffee, Latte, which only cost me NTD$50. I wasn't exactly expecting espresso with that price, so as far as I was concerned, if it's got caffeine in it to wake me up, it'll do. With the coffee, we ordered a chocolate marble cake, which tasted really.. well, marble-like.

The good thing about this corner coffee shop is that the whole side of the shop is covered with a big pane of glass window, so it actually looks bigger than it does from a spatial prospective. It also allows coffee-shop hypocrites like me to look out the window pretending not to give a shit about the world (while the pedestrians can do the same thing to me).

Overall, I think this coffee shop is OKAY.. like, if you really can't find a Starbucks nearby and coffee is all you crave. Except for the deco that really was wroth writing about, I find the food just mediocre, and probably was manufactured from a factory in 三重 and distributed to 700 different coffee shops in Taiwan. (Okay, I'm sorry, I don't think there are actually that many coffee shops in Taiwan.. after subtracting the number of Starbux).

Anyways, nice to have tried it though.

Stumbling upon Las Vegas

I like Taichung, for its gourmet food, designer brand shops and mobbish people.

Last weekend, a casual sunbathing in Miaoli led me and Harry down to Taichung searching for food after two hours of frying on the beach. We were in a mood for American food, burgers, fries and sodas. Since we allowed ourselves in developing a taste for finer foods, the ol' Colonal and McDonald just simply wouldn't do. So in the spirit of exploration, we tried our luck in the vicinity of SOGO Department Store. And indeed, we stumbled upon Lusso Restaurant.

The whole restaurant's image is based on Las Vegas casino, it's not hard to see, cuz the restaurant logo gave it away.

It even says Nevada down at the bottom of the business card.
Not hard to miss the connection.

The bar, with music video of Moby and The Verve playing on the screen, I think it'd be cozy at night.

The velvet chairs, comfy.

The wallpaper, is this Victorian? Gothic? I've no idea.

The waitress was cute. She sat in the empty chair while taking orders from us. Really cool.

The stack of tissue paper was already present when we were seated. It wasn't till later that I realized why the whole stack.

The food was awesome! H ordered the beef patty burger, and I ordered the Jack Daniel Chicken burger. The beef patty wasn't actually really authentic, because it was actual a STEAK sandwiched in the buns! The fries tasted really good too. Hot and freshly fried, not greasy at all. Salty but not overwhelming. I didn't need any ketchup to finish the fries on its own.

My Jack Daniel burger was huge. I had a hard time finishing it on my own. The chicken was sauteed to exact tenderness, yet the skin was crispy.The sauce was sweet and it glazed nicely on the chicken. Both burgers were super juicy and that's why we needed the tissue paper, to wipe our hands and mouths.

This is H's order of beef burger.

This is my Jack Daniel chicken burger.

Lusso would definitely be much more relaxing and enjoyable at night. There was a section closed off when we were there. It probably will open up at night since on the door was a poster of party invitation scheduled on June 13.. hey, that's this Saturday.. HRRMMMMMMM...

finer things in life

I'm lucky, my body is very cooperative when I enjoy the finer things of life. No lactose intolerance, no bulimia nervosa, no known food allergies to peanuts or shellfish or eggs etc. And yesterday, the finer thing in my life was realized at Ruth's Chris Steak House.

This is the menu book of Ruth's Chris Steak House - Leather cover with gold embossed letters, classy...

The three of us shared an order of Porthouse Steak, Ruth's Chop salad, and with dessert, an order of crème brûlée. The restaurant also provides complementary bread and butter. I'm not eloquent with words at all, so the pictures will have to tell the story for me. The dinner itself is the epitome of how a meal enlightens my life - being able to taste food of such delicatecy and deliciousness, my whole life was worth it. The steak at RC's..outdid every other piece of steak I had in my life. And now it feels kinda disrespectable to even mention the restaurant names that served what I thought was "steak" in the same paragraph.. as though this would've tarnished their name.

This was the fillet we had last nite. Cooked to medium rare, meat was tender and extremely juicy, there needed no sauce at all, a pinch of sea salt was almost even too much. The sizzling butter was made possible by the super heated hot plate.

The Porthouse Steak. On the otherside of the bone was New York Strips. This is such a big portion of steak, even shared among 3, we had trouble finishing our own portions.

This is the crème brûlée we ordered. The creme was filled with vanilla seeds, making it so fragrant and tasty. The strawberries and blueberries balanced the dessert so it wouldn't become sickening after the fifth bite. This is actually one serving, can you believe it?

The dinner was so satisfying. We all went home with an exploded stomach. I really appreciate Ruth's Chris Steak House for serving and appreciating gourmet food. This would be another restaurant I wanna work at. When I do get the chance, I will talk about Aqua in Taichung. Food is my passion, my career, my goal, and I hope I'd never forget it.

PS. I bought the salt and pepper grinders today, finally! Say good-bye to sucky ol' table s&p!

Curry, serve it smooth

I know bringing your own lunch to work in Taiwan is kinda rare -- especially in this part of the country where eating out (and cheap) is what most people do. BUT like I said, if I don't get good food, I get cranky. And so Curry has become one of my favourite recipes, cuz a big pot of it can last for about 4 meals, and variation is just as easy.

I'd been making Curry the same way for god knows how many years because Food Network Canada doesn't really teach Japanese-style curry rice. I'd start by heating the oil with some curry powder, and add in onions later. This way, it gives the Curry a hint of spiciness, which is a good balance to the sweetness of Japanese curry roux. And since I decided to take my cooking seriously, I Googled "Curry" "好吃" and "Recipe". Along came some real good tips, and by summing it up and slightly modifying it for single gals or living-on-your-owns, here's the recipe -- without the measurement. (Because I don't really have a gauging machine at home, and I always cook by feeling it out.. takes time I know, but I've never really gone awfully off track before!)

Ingredients:

• Garlic (couple gloves)
• Onion
• Carrot
• Potato
• Butter
• Sugar (Powder or Brown -- I'm not a big fan of Powder, though)
• Curry powder
• Curry roux of your choice
• Extra Virgin Olive OilWater
• + Meat of your choice

How to make it:

1. Heat the extra virgin olive oil at medium with some curry powder
2. Add in coarsely diced onions & garlic into the curry-infused oil and cook until soft and tender and brown-ish
3. Add in water, enough so it submerges all onions for about 3cm
4. Add in chopped potato & carrots and bring the water to a boil and turn it down to simmer
5. Keep on simmering the veggies for about 15-20 minutes till it softens
6. Remove from heat and let it set for 5 minutes
7. Add in butter & curry roux and stir till both melt
8. Add in a small amount of sugar for smoothness

With the curry sauce done, actually you can do whatever with the meat. Slightly season and flour the meat and sautee them in a frying pan. Just remember, don't mix the meat into the sauce, so the sauce stays "pure" and smooth.

After Work Salad

Well, before I start writing about the "salad", lemme just explain why I started writing at ALL.

I work for a multi-national American IT company in Taiwan. The thing I enjoy everyday is the fact that I get at least three chances of encountering with good food. I try to make sure every encounter is worthwhile, but this doesn't always happen. And whenever I have a "bad encounter", I get cranky. So yeah, I love food, and have been in love with it since Food Network Canada taught me how to cook my first plate of pasta. Not surprisingly, just watching TV isn't going to make me a good cook. So this blog is going to be my journal on becoming a real good cook. (fingers crossed)

So it's summer now in Taiwan: hot and humid, and I have lost my appetite. Knowing that if I don't eat something for dinner, my stomach'd end up growling and starting to burn like hell. I picked up a box of salad at the 7-11 near my office.

So this is the salad I bought... 12 veggies: romaine lettuce, green cabbage, tomato, red cabbage, corn, yellow bell pepper, carrot, and what else?

I am never a big fan of raw veggies, actually, and I especially hate pre-packaged salad dressing, so of course, I decided to take things into my own hands. And a little SPAM always makes everything all that better! So i cut up some and added in the only cheese I can find in my fridge, Emmental.

Like I said, I don't like pre-packaged salad dressing, especially when it's a Thousand Island. I donno, the image of a factory somewhere in the Peasant State, churning up the sauce day after day, just doesn't sit right with me. So i figured, well, Emmental's got a nutty flavour to it, and SPAM is salty enough, so a little bit of Extra Virgin Olive Oil w/ a pinch of pepper should do the trick (I really donno what I was thinking).



Anyhow, the salad wasn't all that bad, at least I didn't lose my appetite after I'd already lost it. Emmental didn't really fit in though, it wasn't the taste, it was more because of its creamy texture. If this was to be a better dish, maybe the SPAM strips should've been lightly sauteed and the dressing........ hrmmmmmm........ haven't really figured out a better option that won't turn this salad into a Caesar. Any better idea?

Just on a side note, I really love Emmental Cheese. I used to take two pieces of toast and just sandwich Emmental, lettuce and ham in between. Cut it in quarters, and Voila! a simple snack for studying the finals.