新時代的來臨：不再四處奔波 便捷年貨採買一次搞定楊韻凡/文 & 譯 林祐年/攝影 台北市大同區的迪化街是著名的年貨大街，每逢農曆春節前，迪化街總是人滿為患。今年的活動從1月9日開始起跑，為期17天。想必有很多人從電視新聞中看到年貨大街的場面，大家扶老攜幼、爭先恐後的，以致於不想去人擠人的朋友，八成對於採買年貨會望之卻步，意興闌珊吧？ 走在講求效率的時代，便捷已經成為生活方式。除了年貨商圈，是否有比較迅速、輕鬆、悠閒的購物場所，在同一個地方把所有需要的東西採買完畢？為此，Taiwan Fun走訪了兩家台北市知名的超級市場，為大家介紹如何不費吹灰之力，也不必東奔西跑，重要的是如何在寬敞的空間真正享受採購年貨的樂趣。 |
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city'super：獨一無二的生活、美食與品味盡在其中 除夕夜團圓飯是一整年最重要的一餐，因此家中的婆婆媽媽為了準備這團圓飯，早在過年兩個禮拜前就要開始採買，除夕夜前三天更是忙得不可開交，搞得人仰馬翻的只為了一頓團圓飯。現代女性大多身兼數職，白天努力工作，晚上照顧家人，忙得分身乏術，實在無法像往昔的傳統家庭主婦，花費大量的時間和精力準備一年一次的年夜飯。 標榜是一站式購物中心的city'super於2004年12月進入台灣市場，至今有兩家分店，吸引許多追求優質生活品味與美食美酒的顧客。當你踏入city'super，準備採購年夜飯所需的美食酒水時，最好有個採買計畫，以免把自己弄得團團轉。 首先，建議除夕夜可以吃火鍋，按照傳統，團圓飯是吃越久越好，火鍋最適合因為可以煮整晚，因此必須準備大量的食物。city'super每到冬天都會有火鍋食材推薦區，光是火鍋湯底就有五六種選擇，注重養生的可以牛奶或是豆漿取代一般的湯底。食材包括各式各樣的新鮮菇類、各種丸子、海鮮、蔬菜、和肉類應有盡有。帶有特殊涵意的菜是必吃不可，魚丸和肉丸代表團圓的意思，吃豆干會升官，吃雞肉會起家，吃餛飩象徵元寶，財源廣進。 值得一提的是city'super的肉類區提供代客切肉的服務，這對於怕見血、怕動刀的女性消費者而言是個很大的吸引力。無論想吃牛小排、沙朗還是菲力，都可以切成下火鍋用的肉片。
除夕夜除了要吃一頓很久的團圓飯之外，還必須要守歲，傳統習俗的守歲是為了祈求家中父母長壽，現代人守歲是為了打徹夜的麻將、撲克牌和骰子。既然要熬夜，一定要準備源源不斷的零食。city'super有個專區是獨家代理進口的日本零食和糖果，讓你不出遠門也可以吃到好吃的零嘴。如果想買巧克力，city'super也特別闢劃一區為世界巧克力專櫃，有來自法國、德國、比利時、瑞士、義大利、委內瑞拉、澳洲和日本，甚至有俄羅斯進口的巧克力。長年在外打拚的遊子，返鄉過節要記得帶些禮物。city'super的水果大賞區，有最珍貴的本土水果之外，也有高檔的進口水果。 全家團圓的日子，小酌幾杯應該不為過。city'super的酒窖收藏非常豐富，如果不知道如何挑選，可以請專業人員協助，現場也提供試喝。適合送給長輩的天壽獻壽盃純金入清酒﹙720ml原價1,200元；特價690元﹚是city'super的獨家商品，帶有金箔的清酒不但喜氣洋洋，同時兼顧面子和裡子！另有一款來自葡萄牙的蘿瑟絲十年金色波特酒﹙1,680元﹚和蘿瑟絲精選紅色波特酒﹙840元﹚，波特酒是最適合在年夜飯後與家人分享的酒類，喝起來像是甜點，因此年輕人或是老人家都很容易接受。 如果有機會邀請外國朋友到家中共度除夕夜，可以到city'super復興店買起士和火腿，那裡有全台灣最大的乳酪火腿區，光是乳酪就有將近七百種，最棒的是你可以先試吃再買。熟食區有提供現烤豬腳﹙390元﹚，放到烤箱加熱三分鐘後直接上桌，老少咸宜的宵夜點心！
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新光三越信義新天地A11館：來自全台灣老字號的傳統糕餅送禮自用兩相宜 在新光三越信義新天地A11館的B2逛了一圈之後，發現這裡充滿著百年歷史的傳統糕餅店，而且其中有很多童年愛吃的古早味零嘴。最方便的是雖在台北，但可以買到台灣各地的名產，真是人在家中坐，吃遍全台灣啊！ 中國習俗裡，在每年農曆12月24日必須以甜食祭拜灶神，灶神吃了滿嘴甜蜜蜜，才會在玉皇大帝面前說好話。所以有句俗話說：「吃甜甜，說好話，過好年。」提起台灣糕點，必定會想到創立於西元1877年、源自彰化鹿港的玉珍齋。許久不見的傳統糕點在這都可以找到，米栳﹙100元﹚、冬瓜糕﹙70元﹚、花生糖﹙220元﹚、黑芝麻糖﹙220元﹚、梅餅﹙150元﹚、糖麻花﹙100元﹚和蜜麻花﹙100元﹚，一吃到嘴裡彷彿又回到兒時過新年的歡樂氣氛。 創立於西元1890年來自高雄的舊振南餅店，有各式各樣的傳統甜食，生仁﹙155元﹚、棗枝﹙140元﹚、芝麻花生糖﹙135元﹚、棗泥核桃糕﹙220元﹚、牛軋糖、花生栳、杏仁栳、芝麻栳和米栳，都是代表著好兆頭。專櫃阿姨吳惠芬說，想要買到傳統甜食，每年只有一次，就是農曆春節前後大概六個禮拜的時間。為了送禮方便，同時推出禮盒包裝，如限量的春臨萬榮﹙950元﹚，有五種舊振南餅店最受歡迎的甜食，而且包裝一打開就像一個聚寶盆，漂亮又好吃，可以送給公司主管、學校老師等等，希望他們在未來能為自己的另一半和下一代說說好話。 新復珍源自新竹，從西元1898年至今，繼米粉和貢丸之後，新復珍的竹塹餅是新竹的第三大名產，內餡和粽子一樣，因而有新竹肉餅之稱。滷肉口味的水蒸蛋糕﹙85元﹚，不但少見，而且讓你的味蕾在吃過甜食之後，可以換個口味嚐點鹹的零嘴。新竹盛產柑桔，新復珍的美祿柑以柑桔為內餡，再外包麻糬，齒頰留香，柑桔代表大吉大利，因此美祿柑禮盒﹙20入/320元﹚適合送給客戶或是準備自行創業的朋友，祝福他們好運連連。 台中的寶泉食品，有道地的台中名產太陽餅禮盒﹙12入/264元﹚，春節吃年糕有步步高昇的意思，寶泉食品的年糕有紅豆、棗泥和桂圓三種口味，重達一斤的年糕禮盒是個賀歲好禮，或是送給努力工作但久未升官的朋友。過年吃菜頭帶來好彩頭，菜頭便是蘿蔔，港式蘿蔔糕也可做禮盒送給那些去年衰事不斷的朋友。 台灣歷史最悠久的和 子老舖明月堂，有著我最愛吃的草莓大福﹙45元/顆﹚，每年只有在冬季限量提供、讓我吃到感動的草莓大福，最適合送給心儀的對象、或是勞苦功高的婆婆媽媽。明月堂的桃和壽的和 子象徵長壽，送給銀髮族是最貼心的禮物！ 我記得小時候父親在過年前會到花市買很多金橘的盆栽，除了自家留個兩三盆之外，其餘送給親朋好友。宜蘭是金橘的故鄉，橘之鄉蜜餞形象館以宜蘭的金橘製作金橘花生糖﹙8片/120元﹚、果香金橘酥﹙8片/150元﹚、生津金橘汁﹙600克/200元﹚等等。最推薦的是大桔大利禮盒﹙12粒/800元﹚，金橘蜜餞完全不加糖、色素或是香料，非常健康天然，而且卡路里低，吃甜食卻沒負擔。目前橘之鄉推出買五盒打九折，到手的消費卷拿來使用剛剛好。 農曆春節大吃大喝之後，泡茶不但修身養性還可去油膩，更何況在寒冬喝熱茶是件享受的事！茶葉也適合拿來送禮。來自日本的LUPICIA綠碧紅茶苑引進世界各地茶葉的專門店，推出年節禮盒以供挑選，日本進口限量版的白桃烏龍茶禮盒﹙原價668元/優惠價600元﹚是第一首選，帶有日本白桃香氣的文山烏龍茶搭配一罐相同味道的茶蜜和精緻的茶葉專用杓子，相信必定討好喜歡喝茶的女性朋友。也可以花一點時間和專櫃人員溝通，並試喝幾款不同的茶葉，一定會找到適合自己或是送禮的茶葉組合。 |
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麻雀雖小，五臟俱全的室內年貨中心 印象最深刻的，台灣傳統糕餅店的老字號，如玉珍齋、舊振南餅店、新復珍和寶泉食品的專櫃皆是雇用非常和藹而且熱心的媽媽型店員，她們不但會跟客人閒話家常，聊天過程中還不時拿出好康讓大家試吃，逛街逛到最後都吃飽了。採買年貨就是應該這樣輕鬆、悠閒、零壓力！
遠企店
(02) 8780-1000 |
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Easy, one-stop shopping for Chinese New Year festivitiesWords and translated by Diva Yang DiHua Street, in Taipei's DaTong District, is the city's most famous shopping hub when it comes to lunar new year goodies. Every year just weeks before the Chinese New Year, tens of thousands of shoppers crowd this street. This year, the shopping season begins on January 9 and lasts 17 days. While many people may feel a bit discouraged by media reports about chaotic crowds in such districts, we thankfully live in an era of easy convenience. This means that besides the legendary DiHua Street there are definitely places that can provide relaxing and comfortable, yet speedy, shopping. The goal is to search for somewhere that has it all--a one-stop shop. After some thorough investigation, Taiwan Fun came up with two modern shopping centers that not only offer a new form of shopping extragavance, but also will help you make smart use of your pre-Chinese New Year purchasing excursions and time. |
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City'super: Providing exceptional food & drink options Preparation of this most important annual dinner usually falls on housewives. It takes a lot of time, effort and planning, and some start shopping as early as two weeks in advance. Three days before Chinese New Year's Eve, they often are completely swamped, and wishing they could have started preparations even earlier. These days, when most women work nine to five and already have hectic schedules, there simply doesn't seem to be enough time. City'super first opened in Taiwan in December, 2004 and now has two branches. The supermarket chain is designed as a one-stop shopping center and attracts higher-end consumers who appreciate the finer things in life. Before you start head to City'super for your Chinese New Year dinner shopping, it's best to have a game plan, so that you'll find everything you need within minutes. First, consider hot pot as one of the most convenient Chinese New Year's eve dinner options. According to tradition, this reunion dinner should go on as long as possible and hot pot is very fitting because you only cook small amount each time. Each winter, City'super always has designated sections selling recommended hot pot ingredients. For soup stock there are five or six different flavors to choose from and, if you're more health-conscious, you can use fresh milk or soy bean milk as a substitute for regular soup stock. Other ingredients include a variety of fresh mushrooms, meatballs, seafood, vegetables and meat. There are also certain types of must-eat food for good luck. Fish balls and meatballs symbolize reunions, while soy bean curds represent promotions at work. Chicken points to a family of your own in the near future and for wealth you should eat won-tons because they are shaped like the gold pieces used as currency in ancient China. City'super also has a full-service butchery and customers can order cuts to their liking, making it great for shoppers who have difficulty slicing meat at home. Whether you want short ribs, ribeye or tenderloin for the hotpot, your wish is their command.
On Chinese New Year eve, the purpose of an all-night dinner is to stay up past midnight, a thousand-year-old tradition meant to bring longevity to a family's elderly members. Modern Chinese stay up all night to play mahjong, poker or dice, and late-night snacks are essential to making it through the night. City'super has a large section of exclusively imported Japanese candies and snacks. If you're a chocolate lover, there is an entire aisle dedicated to chocolates from around the world, including France, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland, Italy, Venezuela, Australia, Japan and Russia. If you're heading home for the holiday, gifts are also a must. For your parents, healthy fruit is always popular and you can find both top-quality, locally-grown and high-end, imported fruit here. Occasions like reunions may call for a few drinks, and City'super provides an extensive selection of fine liquor. The sales staff can provide professional advice and tasting is also available on site. For those, particularly the elderly, who appreciate sake, the supermarket has many exclusive brands to choose from. Port is another excellent after-dinner drink because it tastes like a sweet dessert. Portos Rozes reserve red bottle (NT$840) and Portos Rozes gold bottle 10 years (NT$1,680) both are popular gifts. If you happen to invite Westerners to your house for Chinese New Year's eve dinner, cheese and cold cuts are great appetizers. You can go to Sogo Department Store's FuXin branch, where you'll find the largest selection of cheese and cold cuts in Taiwan, including 700 varieties of cheese alone! Best yet, sampling is provided to help you decide what to buy. Roasted German pig knuckles (NT$390 each) can be served cold or warm (3 minutes in microwave) and makes a great late-night snack, too. |
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Shinkong Mitsukoshi XinYi New Life Square A11: Legendary pastry shops on one floor Take a walk around the B2 level Shinkong Mitsukoshi XinYi New Life Square A11 and not only will you discover many traditional pastry shops from all over Taiwan, but also plenty of snacks that you haven't enjoyed since childhood. This means you won't need to drive around the island for these tasty childhood memories. According to Chinese tradition, on the 24th day of the 12th lunar month people must pay their respects to the Kitchen God with sweets so that he will only say good things when he reports back to the Jade Emperor. Thus, the Chinese saying, "Eat sweets and then speak sweetly for a prosperous year." When it comes to Taiwanese pastries, the first place that comes to mind is Yu-Chen-Chai, established in 1877. Originally from the famous old town of Lukang, Yu-Chen-Chai has been making traditional sweets for the last 131 years. The Rice Senbei (NT$100), squash cake (NT$70), peanut brittle (NT$220), black sesame brittle (NT$220), dry plum candy (NT$150), sugar coated twists (NT$100) and caramelized twists (NT$100) are all crowd pleasers and treats that will conjure up childhood memories of Chinese New Year festivities. Founded in 1890, Jiu-Zhen-Nan from Kaohsiung specializes in Taiwanese pastries. Sugar coated peanuts (NT$155), plum-flavored sticks (NT$140), sesame peanut brittle (NT$135), jujube walnut cake (NT$220) and assorted flavors of nougat are good omens in Chinese culture. Jiu-Zhen-Nan saleswoman Wu Hui-fen says that these traditional treats are only available during the Chinese New Year; the store mostly sells traditional wedding pastries the rest of the year. A limited-edition gift pack contains a variety of the most popular traditional treats and comes in a bowl shaped like a jewelry box, making it a very fitting, pleasing gift for your supervisors at work or your children's teachers. Xin-Fu-Zhen started in 1898 and makes one of the top three Hsinchu specialties, together with rice noodles and meatballs. This store's Chu-Chan cake is a savory pastry with the same filling as a sticky bun. Therefore, it's also known as a Hsinchu meat cake. Minced pork steamed cake (NT$85) is a rare pastry and treat after having too many sweets. Tangerines are also a Hsinchu specialty, and Xin-Fu-Zhen makes a tangerine mochi (NT$16/each) plus a gift pack (NT$320/box of 20)--a good present for clients and friends who are planning on soon becoming entrepreneurs. From Taichung comes the century-old Pao-Chuan pastry shop, famous for suncakes (NT$264/box of 12). It traditional to eat rice cakes for progress in the new year to come, and Pao-Chuan has three available flavors--red bean paste, jujube paste and longan tree fruit. Each comes in a half-kilogram gift pack. You can give this to those who work hard but seem underappreciated at work. The radish is also a good Chinese New Year omen, and you can give Hong Kong-style radish cake to friends who had a rough 2008 and can't wait for a brand-new start. Min-Yue-Tang is the longest-running Japanese pastry shop in Taiwan. My personal favorite, strawberry red bean paste mochi (NT$45/each), is only available in the winter and makes a great gift for those you admire secretly, or any female who has worked diligently in the last year. Min-Yue-Tang peach pastries symbolize longevity, and anyone over the age of 60 will appreciate such a delicious treat. I remember my father going to the flower market for tangerine plants, not only as home decorations but also for relatives. Tangerines from Yilan are juicy and sweet. Orange Country, a candied fruits shop, makes tangerine peanut brittle (NT$120), tangerine cake (NT$150) and tangerine concentrated juice (NT$200). This year's top recommended gift pack is tangerine preserved fruit (NT$800) because it is all-natural with no sugar or artificial colors added. It's low in calories, so your sweet enjoyment can be guilt-free. Too much of a good thing isn't good. After indulging in nonstop eating, you might need some tea to wash away the oil. Hot tea in the winter is always an enjoyable item and Japanese tea specialty shop LUPICIA offers tea from all over the world. Imported from Japan, the momo oolong tea with white peach flavor gift pack (NT$668/regular; NT600/on promotion) comes with tea leaves, tea honey, and a silver serving spoon. If you're not sure what flavor to purchase, you can always ask the sales staff, which has an extensive knowledge in tea and may offer you free tasting to help you find the perfect tea set gift. |
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All-in-one indoor is the way to go Overall, my shopping at these two places was very positive. The sales ladies at all the Taiwanese pastry shops were extremely friendly and extra helpful--warm and generous like neighborhood moms--and offered free samples while chitchatting. Thanks to this experience, I've finally discovered that Chinese New Year shopping can indeed be relaxing and stress-free!
The Mall
(02) 8780-1000 文章來源: http://www.taiwanfun.com/north/taipei/articles/0901/0901coverstory.htm 照片來源: www.andy5338.com |
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