Taichung I

Hey Guys!  Sorry for the long hiatus.  Life got in the way.  Or more specifically, law school.  But that is winding down now so here are some long overdue posts from my Mom's summer in Taiwan with my Dad and my little Sister, who was in Taichung to teach English to kids.  Our Grandma also stopped by for a bit for a quick vacation.  Hope you all enjoy!

- Darin

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I promised myself that for the entire duration of my mom's stay with us in Taiwan,  we will not dine in a Western food restaurants but today I broke my promise!  Twice.

         
Since our arrival, we have tried to only patronize the restaurants serving Chinese dishes, if not local Taiwanese food.  And yesterday, in sticking to this rule, I thought we could find something new in one of the popular department stores near our hotel.  When we arrived, I remembered that we had  already been there for the Hong Kong Style "Yum Cha" (different kinds of steamed and fried snacks, usually in bamboo containers).  So instead, we found a very simple and quiet place for lunch.  The menu had not only soups and sandwiches but also couple of pasta and risotto dished, in addition to some gratins and salads with meat.  But what really caught our eye were all the different kinds of ice cream, shakes and beverages displayed.  Seeing that, I was more than happy break my rule.  I love Taiwan but it is very hard to find a place like this to relax or just hang out.

台中廣三SOGO店 (04)2328-1662

台中市中港路一段299號4F (廣三SOGO百貨4F)

http://www.kssogo.com.tw/

It is a cafe and a bistro.  I love what I ordered, Spaghetti with Seafood in Chili Sauce and for dessert, Chocolate, Mint Chocolate & Stracciatella.  And my mom got the Affogato, which is espresso poured over vanilla and hazelnut ice cream.  I was so excited I forgot to take pictures to share!  One other dish, which was very good, was the classic Clam Spaghetti with White Wine Sauce.  Nobody complained!We ordered the set menu so our meals came with soup and salad.  The three of us tried the Pumpkin Soup, Corn Soup and Vegetable Soup.  Very creamy and delicious.

That evening, after my younger daughter heard that we went for pasta, she demanded to have some as well (she was at camp when we went for lunch).   I saw this as another opportunity to seek out another cute shop to eat at.  I decided to go to another department store, knowing that it would also likely have a small cafe like what I had at lunchtime.

Dazzling Café

台中新光三越店
電話：04-2251-8036 (每月16號預約次月定位)
地址：台中市中港路二段111號4樓 (新光三越4樓)
營業時間：一至五 中午11:00 ~ 晚上22:00；六日 中午10:30 ~ 晚上22:00(最後點餐21:00)
官方網站：http://www.dazzlingdazzling.com/

Also one in Taipei:

Dazzling Cafe Pink

地址: 台北市忠孝東路四段205巷7弄11號1樓
電話:             02-8773-9238
統一訂位專線 :             02-8773-9229      
時間:12:00~23:00   (週日~週四)  ;  12:00~24:00  (假日前夕.週五~週六)          

This little cute shop has pasta with big flavor, very much what my daughter is fond of.  We all agreed that the food was better quality than what we had for lunch.  And infinitely better than 20 years ago, when I was growing up here and the few western restaurants available were just so Chinese it wasn't even worth trying.

This place also had a set menu for soup, salad and pasta for 2 for NT$ 699.  I was impressed.  The Chicken Pesto Pasta was the most impressive one.  The dish had two big pieces of chicken breast and after a bowl of soup, and half a salad AND another half of pasta dish with a piece of chicken, we felt more than full. Then I ordered a dessert that I was very excited to see, the Waffle with Mochi filling.  It is quite a marriage between Western and Eastern culture. So sweet! And the ice cream on top completed the union!