The Gallery

Walking along 中山北路(Jong Shan N. Rd.) one afternoon, happened to glance in some alley, and there it is, an interesting white building with a gate which leads to a small yard, surrounded by lots of street trees.

It was built during the Japanese occupied époque. 

On a breezy sunny afternoon,

sitting here with a carafe of chilled white wine,

almost felt like dinning somewhere in the Mediterranean. 

There's lots of antiques from the boss's collection.

Used to be a little cute yellow bird chirping here,

but it died a while ago, unfortunately.

There are still a furry white Persian cat and a snobbish tabby living on the property. 

Simple white with just a bit of pastel color wall paintings and fresh flowers on the tables.

My favorite corner when the weather isn't suitable for sitting outside.

The court yard.

How on earth do they take such  good care of these black pepper plants?

Ours never look like these ones.

One of the favorites of the young generation of my family:

Escargot gratin with butter and herbs.

The first time I came,

I was surprised by the wine service:

Quite good selections of wines by the glass or even,

by carafe(half bottle amount),

the only place in Taiwan so far I've found.

By the glass priced around NT$280 and a carafe is about NT$520.

The escargot went pretty well with this Italian red.

Good quality wine glasses and decanters.

Pumpkin soup was a bit too watery, just like almost any where in Taiwan.

Truffle risotto wasn't bad with generous amount of Parmesan cheese.

Rice cooked just right.

You need to stir the black truffle on top into the warm rice to bring out the aroma,

although it wasn't fresh sliced but canned.

For NT$380 (US$12) or so, you can't demand too much.

Truffle pizza.

It was with some meat, green peppers and olives,

drizzling with some truffle olive oil, I suppose? 

Not bad, though. 

This beef wrapped with bread wasn't too good,

quite a waste of the piece of good filet mignon.

Crêpe with dark chocolate sauce.

Crêpe with bananas and dark chocolate sauce.

The must every time we come.

They started to serve some good bread recently.

A bit crispy outside,

warm, soft and slightly sweet inside.

Heaven with the butter melting in it.

Arugula and fig salad with raw ham.

Quite good.

The only thing not so satisfying was the fig.

Just like the avocados, figs from Taiwan are bigger, more watery but less aromatic.

Too much rain compared to CA, I guess. 

Prawn risotto was really good,

both the prawns and the saffron rice under it.

Duck breast wasn't a success, however. 

The meat was too dry and the sauce too sweet. 

Muscadet was a good match for both the weather and the dishes.

Mango ice cream from Mövenpick.

Espresso wasn't bad this time.

Roast chicken.

Truffle scramble eggs.

Grilled fish.

Rotating fish type according to the season.

Another kid's favorite:

Filet mignon with French fries,

tasty with some powdered cheese on them.

Crêpe with chicken and wild mushrooms.

As good as you can find in Taipei.

Traditionally in Normandie,

you order a salty whole wheat galette first,

choices with cheese, meat, spinach, etc.,

pair with a bowl of cider,

then a simple salad with fresh seasonal vegetables and nuts,

then end with sweet white flour crêpes with fruit, chocolate and a good cup of strong espresso.

This beef tongue is rather Taiwanese.

Arugula salad with Parmesan cheese,

good with just some lemon juice, olive oil and pepper.

Another Muscadet.

Regular coffee here is kind of never right for some reason,

although they seem to use pretty good beans.

This Sicilian white is clear, crispy and refreshing, not bad for the new brunch menu.

The starter for lunch set menu was surprisingly good,

spinach cheese mini crêpe.

The best Egg Benedict I've tried in Taipei.

The original one in their menu is with salmon fumé, probably good, too.

The oven grilled beef for weekends is not bad, either.

Fresh squeezed orange juice included in the brunch menu.

Ordered sparkling water and they served this still one by mistake.

But it was a nice surprise.

This water tasted really balanced and pure,

cleaned your palate nicely.

There was some movie press conference going on back in the corner. 

New manager Neil really knows how to promote through the media.

Vanilla, 

berries, 

and chocolate chip ice cream.

***

Being pretty much a regular here for one or two years already since I found this place.

It used to be quiet on the weekday afternoons,

but recently the business is getting better and better,

even for Mondays or Tuesdays.

Fortunately, the place has some kind of an historic quietness and elegance,

so you never feel too noisy here.

The food ingredients are usually good,

and the cooking skill and presentation are improving.

Come and experience a nice moment alone or with some friends,

it's a secret garden in the middle of Taipei!