Friday, January 02, 2009

農曆新年採買建議 Chinese New Year Preparation

Profile 小檔案
city’super
The Mall 遠企店
0809-088-680
Hours 營業時間
Sunday-Thursday 週日-週四11:00 am–9:30 pm;
Saturday & Sunday & the day before national holidays 週六日和例假日前一天 11:00 am –10:00 pm
B1 & B2 No.203 Section 2 Dun-Hua South Road Taipei
台北市敦化南路二段203號B1 & B2
SoGo Fu-Xin Store復興店
0809-070-010
Hours 營業時間
Sunday-Thursday週日-週四 9:00 am – 9:30 pm;
Saturday & Sunday & the day before national holidays
週六日和例假日前一天 9:00 am – 10:00 pm
B3 No.300 Section 3 Zhong-Xiao East Road Taipei 台北市忠孝東路三段300號B3
www.citysuper.com.tw

Profile 小檔案
B2 Shingong Mitsukoshi Xin-Yi New Life Square A11新光三越信義新天地A11館B2F
02-8780-1000
Hours 營業時間 Daily 每天11:00 am – 9:30 pm
﹙till 10:00 pm on the day before national holidays 例假日前一天營業到10:00 pm﹚
No. 11 Song-Shou Road Taipei 台北市松壽路11號
www.skm.com.tw

新時代的來臨:不再四處奔波,便捷年貨採買一次搞定

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,八成對於採買年貨也意興闌珊吧。

我們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?因此,我們走訪了兩家台北市知名的超級市場,接下來要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。

city’super:獨一無二的生活、美食與品味盡在其中

除夕夜對於中國人的意義有如美國人慶祝聖誕節,這是個全家團圓的日子。當全員到齊,就可以開始用餐。我的除夕夜都是在爺爺奶奶家度過,我們家族人口多,我父親有十三個兄弟姐妹,平時旅居在美國、加拿大的家族成員一一返鄉過節。光是吃一頓年夜飯至少需要開兩桌,而且年紀太輕的小孩子還分不到座位呢!有將近十年的時間,我因為在美國唸書,無法回到台灣吃年夜飯,但是家人還是會為我擺上一副碗筷。

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,除夕夜前三天就已經忙得不可開交,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、害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。我個人曾經在農曆春節收到一盒日本進口南水梨﹙150元/顆;900元/盒﹚,那真是人間美味,我自己又去買了好幾盒送給家中的長輩。

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!

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

今年的農曆春節假期特別長,從1月24日直到2月1日,一共有九天的連假。往年遇到這麼長的連假,大家都迫不及待的想去國外旅遊,但是今年受到景氣的影響,據說海外旅遊買氣非常冷清。既然大家決定要待在台灣過年,咱們民以食為天,那麼就應該準備豐富的美食佳餚,以犒賞自己過去一年的辛勞。再加上平時工作太忙,沒有太多機會和親朋好友相聚,趁著農曆新年四處去敘舊、串門子去!登門拜年的基本禮儀,伴手禮是一定不能少的!

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,吃遍全天下啊!

中國習俗裡,在每年農曆12月24日必須以甜食祭拜灶神,吃了滿嘴甜蜜蜜的灶神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菓子老舖明月堂,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菓子象徵長壽,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多麼享受的一件事!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,相信必定討很多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。

麻雀雖小,五臟俱全的室內年貨中心

今年的農曆春節比往年早,才慶祝完聖誕節,一個月之後就是除夕夜,相信很多讀者覺得似乎有過不完的節慶,為了準備周全,有些人大概已經開始焦慮。既然時間緊迫,不如找個省時省力的年貨採購方式。實地走訪過city’super和新光三越信義新天地A11館之後,再與迪化街採買的經驗相比,猛然發現其實相同處不少!除了一個在室內,一個在室外,販售的都是年節吃喝用品,也都提供試吃試喝。不過,如果自行去迪化街採買,可能一手牽著小孩,另一手忙著試吃,還得提著大包小包的在人群之中購物,只怕最後手忙腳亂,小孩走失了、東西忘了買,真是會把自己給累倒!在室內採買年貨不必擔心外面刮風下雨,也不用煩惱如何載貨回家。只要在新光三越信義新天地A11館消費超過2,000元,就可享受免費宅配到府的服務。city’super對於旗下的晶片卡和金卡會員也有提供宅配服務,詳情請洽遠企店和復興店的服務台。

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!

A New Age Has Come: Everything You Need to Prepare For Chinese New Year Festivity in One Stop

Di-Hua Street in Taipei’s Da-Tong District is the most famous shopping center for Lunar New Year goodies. Every year just weeks before Chinese New Year tens of thousands of shoppers crowded the street. This year the shopping season begins on January 9th and will last for 17 days. Many will probably get discouraged when they learn through newspaper or TV news that it is quite chaotic to fight through the crowd within the shopping district for shopping.

We live in an era of convenience. Easy and convenient shopping is part of our lifestyle. Aside from the legendary Di-Hua street there has to be places that can provide relaxing, comfortable and yet speedy shopping. The goal is to search for a place that has it all. One-stop shopping is our mission. After thorough investigations we are pleased to introduce two of the most modern shopping centers and show you how to be a smart shopper for the upcoming Chinese New Year. Read on and get yourself ready for a brand new experience of shopping extravaganza!

City’super:Providing Unique Experience with Exceptional Taste in Food & Drink

Chinese New Year’s Eve is as important to Chinese people as Christmas is to the Americans. It is an annual family reunion. Dinner will be served when all members of the family are home for the holiday. I usually go to my grandparents’ house for Chinese New Year’s Eve dinner. My father has 13 siblings and each of them has a family of their own. For those who live abroad Chinese New Year is the time to be home for reunion. On Chinese New Year’s Eve we would need two large round tables in order to seat the adults. There was no room to kids to be sitting at the dinner table. For 10 years or so I couldn’t come back to Taiwan for the holiday and my parents would always save me a seat with food in my bowl as if I was home.

Chinese New Year’s Eve dinner is the most important meal of the year and the preparation work usually falls on the housewives. It takes a lot of time, effort and planning. Some would start shopping for Chinese New Year as early as two weeks prior to the festivity. Three days before Chinese New Year’s Eve they would be completely swamped, wishing they should have begun the preparation even earlier. Nowadays most women work nine to five and their schedule is already hectic enough. They simply don’t have all the time in the world to do just one thing: preparing for Chinese New Year.

City’super was first established in Taiwan in December 2004 and it has two branches so far. It is designed as a one-stop shopping center and has attracted high-end consumers who appreciate all the finer things in life. Before you start shopping for Chinese New Year’s Eve dinner in city’super it’s best to have a game plan so that you’ll find everything you need within minutes.

First of all it will probably be the most convenient to have hotpot on Chinese New Year’s Eve. According to tradition this reunion dinner should go on as long as possible. Hotpot is very fitting because you only cook small amount each time. Throughout each winter city’super always has designated sections for recommended hotpot ingredients. As for soup stock there are five or six different flavors to choose from. If you are rather health conscious you may use fresh milk or soy bean milk as a substitute for regular soup stock. Ingredients include a variety of fresh mushrooms, meat balls, seafood, vegetables and meat. There are certain types of food are must-haves for good luck. Fish balls and meat balls symbolize reunion and soy bean curds are meant for promotions. Chicken means a family of your own in the near future. For wealth you should eat won-ton because it’s shaped like a gold nugget used as money in ancient China.

It’s worth noting that city’super has a full-service meat department and customers can order cuts to their liking. This is a major advantage for shoppers who have troubles slicing meat at home. Whether you feel like getting short ribs, rib eye or tenderloin for the hotpot, your order is their command.

On Chinese New Year’s Eve the purpose of having an all night long dinner is to stay up past midnight which is a thousand year old tradition. It will bring longevity to the elderly in the family. For modern Chinese people they stay up all night to play mahjong, poker or dice. And late night snacks are essential to help them survive 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 isle dedicated to chocolates from around the world, such as France, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland, Italy, Venezuela, Australia, Japan and Russia. You can shop for these goodies right here in the comfort of city’super.

When you’re going home for the holiday be sure to bring gifts. For your parents healthy fruits are always popular. You can find top quality of local grown fruits as well as high-end imported ones. Japanese pears﹙NT150/each; NT900/box﹚are so delicious that your folks will ask you for more!

Occasions like a reunion call for a few drinks. The cellar at city’super provides extensive collections of fine liquor. You can seek professional advice from the clerks. Tasting is also available on site. For elderly who appreciate sake city’super has many exclusive brands of sake to choose from. Port is an excellent after dinner drink because it tastes like dessert. Portos Rozes reserve red bottle﹙NT840﹚and Portos Rozes gold bottle 10 years﹙NT1,680﹚are popular gifts!

If you happen to invite westerners to your house for Chinese New Year’s Eve dinner cheese and cold cuts will be great appetizers. You can go to SoGo Fu-Xin store where you’ll find the largest selections of cheese and cold cuts in Taiwan, including 700 varieties of cheese! And best yet sampling is provided before you make up your mind on what to buy. Roasted German pig knuckles﹙NT390/each﹚can be served cold or warm ﹙3 minutes in microwave﹚and it makes a great late night snack!

Shingong Mitsukoshi Xin-Yi New Life Square A11:Legendary Pastry Shops All In One Floor

This Chinese New Year holiday will begin on January 24th and end on February 1st, a total of 9 days. In recent years most people will head overseas for such a long holiday. It seems that the current economic has taken a toll on the vacation moods. Instead of traveling abroad many have decided to stay put in Taiwan for the lunar New Year celebration. For 9 consecutive days you will have many opportunities to entertain guests at home and therefore you’ll need to stock up on food. Also you might visit friends to wish them a happy new year and you definitely cannot show up at the doorstep empty handed!

Take a walk around the level B2 of Shingong Mitsukoshi Xin-Yi New Life Square A11. Not only you’ll find many traditional pastry shops from all over Taiwan but also lots of snacks that you have not seen since childhood. You won’t need to drive across the island for these tasty childhood treats because they are all in one place!

According to Chinese tradition on December 24th (lunar year) people must pay respect to the Kitchen God with sweets so that Kitchen God will only speak of the good things when he reports to the higher authority of Almighty God. Hence there is a Chinese saying, “Eat sweets and then speak sweetly for a prosperous year.”

Speaking of Taiwanese pastry the first comes to mind is Yu-Chen-Chai, established in 1877. Originated from Lu-Kang Yu-Chen-Chai has been making traditional sweets for the last 131 years. Rice senbei﹙NT100﹚, squash cake﹙NT70﹚, peanut brittle﹙NT220﹚, black sesame brittle﹙NT220﹚, dry plum candy﹙NT150﹚, sugar coated twists﹙NT100﹚ and caramelized twists﹙NT100﹚are crowd pleasers. Seeing all these treats brings back all the childhood memory from Chinese New Year festivity!

Founded in 1890 Jiu-Zhen-Nan from Kaohsiung specializes in Taiwanese pastry. Sugar coated peanuts﹙NT155﹚, plum-flavored sticks﹙NT140﹚, sesame peanut brittle﹙NT135﹚, jujube walnut cake﹙NT220﹚and assorted flavors of nougat are good omens in Chinese culture. Ms. Wu Hui-Fen, the sales lady for Jiu-Zhen-Nan says that these traditional treats are only available for Chinese New Year. For the rest of the year Jiu-Zhen-Nan sells mostly traditional wedding pastry. The limited edition of gift pack contains a variety of most popular traditional treats and comes in a bowl that’s shaped like a jewelry box. It is very fitting for your supervisors at work or your children’s teachers in school. They will speak highly of you in the year to come.

Xin-Fu-Zhen started in 1898 and has become one of the top three specialties of Hsin-Chu followed by rice noodles and meat balls. Chu-Chan cake from Xin-Fu-Zhen is a savory pastry and the filling is the same as sticky bun. Therefore it’s also called the Hsin-Chu meat cake. Minced pork steam cake﹙NT85﹚is a rare pastry and a treat after having too many sweets. Tangerine is also a local specialty in Hsin-Chu. Xin-Fu-Zhen makes tangerine mochi﹙NT16/each﹚and the gift pack﹙NT320/box of 20﹚is a good present for your clients or friends who will soon become entrepreneurs.

From Taichung the 100-year-old Pao-Chuan pastry shop is famous for suncake﹙NT264/box of 12﹚. It is a tradition to eat rice cake for progress in the New Year to come. Pao-Chuan has 3 flavors available, red bean paste, jujube paste and longan tree fruit. Each comes in a half kilogram gift pack. You can give it to those who work hard but seem to be underappreciated at work. Radish is also a good omen during Chinese New Year. You may give Hong Kong style radish cake to friends who had a rough in 2008 and can’t wait for a brand new start.

Min-Yue-Tang is the longest running shop making Japanese pastry in Taiwan. My personal favorite strawberry red bean paste mochi﹙NT45/each﹚is only available in the winter. It makes a great gift for those you admire secretly or any female who has worked diligently last year. Min-Yue-Tang peach pastry is for longevity and anyone over the age of 60 will appreciate such a delicious treat!

I remember my father used to hit the flower market for tangerine plants not only as decorations in the house but also for relatives. Tangerine from I-Lan is juicy and sweet. Orange country, a candied fruits shop, makes tangerine peanut brittle﹙NT120﹚, tangerine cake﹙NT150﹚and tangerine concentrated juice﹙NT200﹚. This year’s most recommended gift pack is tangerine preserved fruit﹙NT800﹚because it is all natural with no sugar or artificial color added. And it’s low in calorie. You can enjoy sweets without the guilt trip.

Too much of a good thing can’t be good. After indulging in literally non-stop eating you might want to drink tea to wash off all the grease. Besides hot tea in the winter is always an enjoyable item. LUPICIA is a tea specialty shop from Japan, bringing in tea from all over the world. Imported from Japan momo oolong tea with white peach flavor gift pack﹙NT668/original; NT600/promotion﹚comes with tea leaves, tea honey, and silver serving spoon. If you’re not sure what flavor to purchase you can always seek help from the clerks. They have extensive knowledge in tea and may offer you free tasting until you find the perfect tea set as gifts!

All-In-One Indoor Shopping Central Is the Way to Go

This Chinese New Year comes earlier than usual. Exactly one month after Christmas here comes the lunar New Year. It seems like a never-ending holiday season. Some might suffer from holiday anxieties since there is little time left for Chinese New Year preparation. Your already hectic work schedule does not allow you to start shopping two weeks prior to Chinese New Year. Then you should try this one-stop shopping method to save time and energy. After visiting city’super and the level B2 of Shingong Mitsukoshi Xin-Yi New Life Square A11 I do see similarities between the indoor one-stop shopping center and Di-Hua shopping district. You will find everything you need for Chinese New Year from food to drink to decoration. However, at Di-Hua shopping district you will have to fight through the crowd for shopping, carry your own grocery while keeping an eye on your kids and reaching out for free samples. It’s just too chaotic. Shingong Mitsukoshi Xin-Yi New Life Square A11 provides complimentary delivery service for any purchase over NT2, 000. City’super also offers home delivery service for its e-card and e-gold card members. For details please check with the information desk at the Mall and SoGo Fu-Xin store.

This shopping experience has left a very good impression on me. I find the sales ladies at the Taiwanese pastry shops, such as Yu-Chen-Chai, Jiu-Zhen-Nan, Xin-Fu-Zhen and Pao-Chuan, extremely friendly and extra helpful. They are like the neighborhood moms, warm and generous. They will offer you free samples while chitchatting. In the end you’ll be so full from sampling! Now I know that shopping for Chinese New Year should be relaxing and stress-free!