I was going to take on the cuisine of Malaysia today; I was made aware of a place I want to try via one of Mrs. Bao’s friends on Facebook, Mr. Du however, Mrs. Bao also wanted to try it. As it is also nearby to where the young ‘un has football “practice” (I use the term very loosely) on Saturdays, we will wait until then. In the meantime…
Southern US Barbecue. I dunno man, it has always been one of those things that I thought only makes sense if you are from that country. Such as (also in America) marching band practice isn’t a punishment, the relationship between The Tragically Hip and Canadians and in the UK-having your washing machine in the kitchen (Seriously mate, it makes sense. You have the plumbing there for the dishwasher, and the sink and everything. You also have the electrics for the dishwasher; why not add the washing machine?)
Anyway I digress. I’ve always found barbecue to be an anticlimax. I’ve been to a few places (which may or may not still be around) with Americans who have raved about that particular venue and I’ve thought well, yeah I can see they are good at what they do, clearly get a lot out of their work and customers enjoy it but it just isn’t for me. I want to like it, but it doesn’t really gel for me. Maybe it is too heavy, maybe I don’t go there hungry enough, maybe we are just lost souls spinning, hurtling, towards a vortex wherein death is the only release. Maybe.
So in the interests of science, I’ve tried to give it another crack. Because there are people out there that consider my words blasphemy. Non-vegetarians mostly.
I’ve been to Baba Kevin’s before, once with Ms. V and The Prophet of Miltown, and once with Lady Whirlwind and Lady Snowblood as a farewell to Lady W when she left her job in Taipei. Lady W is supposed to come out with me again at a later date, but we’ll see. I enjoyed both visits up to a certain point; however everyone else enjoyed it more.
Kevin himself is a truly great host, very very friendly and one of the most upbeat people I’ve met in Taipei. Very chatty, always happy to talk about pretty much anything and going there just to see Kevin is a good enough experience on its own. Today though, he wasn’t there and I chatted with the other staff who were lovely in their own right. I can see he chooses his staff well.
menu
So the food, as barbecue is my nemesis I decided to go with the half platter. As you can see from the menu you get a choice of one of six different meats and two sides as well as pilaf rice. I wanted to be as darn tootin’ as possible so went with the pulled pork and for the sides, sweet potato and cornbread. Oh and a sprite.
Well, I think I’ve been converted, sort of. It is never going to be something I hanker for, I think the situation has to be right (planets aligned, money in my pocket, a smile on my face and not a cloud in the sky) but I have to say I did enjoy it. The size was generous for 250NT (about 8.5 USD), pork was tender and everything worked together well. The service and atmosphere are all great, quite relaxing on a Wednesday lunchtime when it is flipping hot outside. I already knew those things to be true so no difference there.
So yeah, I’d recommend it. Barbecue-heads will love it and those of us who are a bit more on the fence (I’m English don’t you know!) would get something out of it. Maybe it could be like green belt level barbecue, and you are working your way up to black.
So now I’m going to join a marching band and listen to The Hip to see if there is anything there. My washing machine is sadly on the balcony and as my house is a rental, there it shall stay.
Address:
No. 6號, Lane 115, Section 2, Minsheng East Road
Nearest MRT: Xingtian Temple (about a five minute walk)
52 Cuisines? 