林園粗食(Means "simple food in a garden". Dont think they have an English name)

"便當"(bian-dang)is some kind of lunch or dinner box really popular in Taiwan and Japan. I actually really like them, not only because of the convenience, but because some of them could be really good.

In Japan, my favorite place to enjoy it is in some garden of  a temple, under the spring or autumn time sunlight, with perhaps a small jar of Sake. (Chilled or warmed, depends on the weather.)

I also love to have it on a train, bring along a Perrier and a bit of wine to go with it, but unfortunately, the kind of stuff they serve nowadays in Taiwan isn't good at all.

In Taipei, however, if you've got a bit more time than a rushed at work lunch, and you happen to be somewhere near 師大路(Shi-Da road) area, you can consider to give this restaurant a try.

This place used to be a small, crowded, noisy and greasy eatery also selling take-out lunch box, a few years ago the boss decided to dress the place up, although still selling the same type of food, but the ambiance is totally  changed, turned out to be a brilliant idea.

Now, you can sit down at a quiet corner next to the window, listening to classical music, and enjoy your dessert(although the portion is very small, but it comes with the menu, you can't beat the price, only around NT160 per set menu, including soup, main course, dessert and one beverage) with a cup of coffee.  

Entrance decoration designed to match their theme: simple dinning in a bamboo garden.

2010 Summer, North Fork, Long Island, NY

Longing to visit this newly developed wine country since a while. North and south forks of Long Island are the closest US wine regions across the ocean from France, used to be just farmland full of potatoes and cauliflowers, and a few wine makers trying to copy the Bordeaux style. Today, there's about 46 wineries in North Fork area and 4 wineries in South Fork.(The famous Hamptons, with it's sandy beaches and trendy stores, land here is way more expensive.) Wine makers started to learn the local "terroir" and try to develop their own styles. With the rich resources of seafood from nearby harbours, fresh vegetables, fruits from the region, and cheeses, ducks, fois gras, etc, this area attracted lots of Manhattan famous chefs moving here, some even settled down, opening  restaurants with their own farms and very stylish B&Bs. These newly developed wineries are not as big or famous as Californian ones yet, but therefore are way less commercialized (especially North fork ones), a bit rustic but homey, quiet and laid back.

Went straight without stopping from my sister's Manhasset home to Shinn Estate, Mattituck, North Fork. We were running late because we visited an aviation museum first. This museum wasn't a tourist trap, so there weren't very many people, but it was extremely educational, full of historical information, very suitable for you if you are travelling with some smart and curious kids.