New Motto For Taiwanese Restaurants

[Lili]

I have come up with a new motto for Taiwanese restaurants and guide book/travel brochures to employ.
I think it adequately reflects the nature, intent, and values that underpin the culinary establishment of Taiwan.

"And not a single fuck was given."

[Kal El]

Tell us what you really think.

[cfimages]

I'd say the opposite is generally true. Just now while having lunch,I found out I'd been given the wrong thing - when I mentioned it to them, a big apology and a piping hot replacement was served almost instantly.

[jimipresley]

I'd say the opposite is generally true. Just now while having lunch,I found out I'd been given the wrong thing - when I mentioned it to them, a big apology and a piping hot replacement was served almost instantly.

I'm going to have to disagree with you there, Mr images. Of course there are isolated incidents, but in general the service industry in Taiwan is abysmal.

1) 90% of restaurants that I've been to don't take a drinks order first. They want you to order everything at the same time. Often your food arrives before your drinks!

2) Service is sloppy more often than not. I can't tell you how many times I've had to, in a medium/ high-end restaurant, get up and find a waiter to take my order.

3) Food generally arrives sporadically and randomly. One of your party may be eating dessert, another a starter, another a entree while you are still waiting for a drink. And this is the rule, not the exception.

4) Dirty plates and empty glasses do NOT usually get whisked away. One of my pet peeves about eating at 5-star hotels in Taiwan is this in particular. You fork out a shitload of cash for a high-end meal, and there is little to no service. You have to sit there and watch plates and glasses slowly accumulating on your table. Really. I've eaten at all of them.

5) God forbid you try to catch a waiter's eye at one of the more "hip" restaurants. They are just too damn cool. They'll get to you when it suits them; at their leisure.

6) Complaints are usually not dealt with in the correct manner by management. It's almost like you're making them lose face sometimes.

I compare the Taiwan service industry to South Africa's, which is of the best in the world. In SA, waiters don't get a wage/salary. They work exclusively for tips. In a non-tipping, 10% service charge culture, what incentive is there really for waiters to supply exemplary service?

And don't write in a blog about how crappy a restaurant is. You'll get your ass sued!

[Dragonbones]

We get great service at some restaurants, so we go back to those ones, and don't go back to others. In some places, the waitresses even hold our baby for us while we eat! (e.g. this little Thai restaurant on Ruiguang, south of the flower market, and at Encore pasta near Yongkang St., which is a really great place run by a friend)

I don't care for the mediocre main courses at Skylark at Hala (we eat there in a pinch once every few years) but the other day we had nice service there, with water glasses refilled frequently and used dishes whisked efficiently away, over and over. The sides were all good values and not bad, but the mains (paella Valenciana and tandoori chicken) were predictably lame attempts at these dishes. Perfectly edible, but missing the main point of each dish. The paella rice was just cooked, colored rice, rather than something filled with the delicious flavors of the stock it cooks in, and the chicken was just a skin-on piece of chicken rubbed with turmeric. It wouldn't have taken much effort at ALL to improve those two.

[maoman]

We get great service at some restaurants, so we go back to those ones, and don't go back to others.

My experience is similar, and I eat out A LOT.

If I had to make any generalizations about the service industry here, it's not so much that they "don't give a fuck", but rather that they've never been trained. There's a distinct lack of professionalism. My anniversary dinner last Monday was nice, and our waitress was pleasant, earnest, friendly, but not very professional. It's too bad, but unless there's a huge shift in the culture with regards to service, it's not likely we're going to see any industry-wide changes any time soon.

In the meantime, do what Dragonbones and I do - give the places with great service repeat business, and tell them why they're getting your repeat business.

[Bunks]

I find that when it comes to other people meeting my undecided needs and whims things can be hit and miss. Sometimes I will be satisfied with the way other people try to provide me with contentment. Then again, other times I will not be satisfied with their attempts to satiate the unformed beast that is my momentary peccadillo. When I go to a restaurant I become particularly interested in how the satisfaction thing will play out. Sure I eat three meals a day. 21 per week. 84 a month and almost 1100 per year. In my life I have consumed about 41 thousand meals. A lot of them pass me by without a murmur. Yet when I am in a restaurant I find myself paying attention to the details of how I feel during the whole experience. How much money has passed from my hands? What visual treats did mine eye glance upon during the repast? What things ran across my tongue? How did these elements react in my stomach? Were my little whims catered to? I become a critic.

I like the way you have elevated that to include sweeping racist statements about a whole island of people though. Nice touch.

[sandman]

We had an anniversary lunch in a hole-in-the-wall sashimi bar off Shi-Da Rd. yesterday. The staff and the food could not have been better. Absolutely wonderful. This means that the service in the entire east Asia region is without compare, obviously.

[jimipresley]

I like the way you have elevated that to include sweeping racist statements about a whole island of people though.

How is a critique of the general food and service industry in Taiwan racist, Bunks? Maybe I'm just a bit thick.

[Bunks]

We had an anniversary lunch in a hole-in-the-wall sashimi bar off Shi-Da Rd. yesterday. The staff and the food could not have been better. Absolutely wonderful. This means that the service in the entire east Asia region is without compare, obviously.

Why stop at East Asia, why not say the food in the entire world is without compare. You have to learn to really SWEEP those generalisations about more.

I've just noticed my advent calendar is still up. Cardboard across the whole of western Europe really is sturdy.

[Bunks]

I like the way you have elevated that to include sweeping racist statements about a whole island of people though.

How is a critique of the general food and service industry in Taiwan racist, Bunks?

Well, how is saying that nobody in an entire nation who provides food service gives a fuck about anything NOT racist generalisation?

How is the continual boring blather that starts with, "In Taiwan..." anything other than an attempt to define other people based on your own race and experiences of your race?

I guess I am either bored or depressed with the general inability to do anything other than continually define what Taiwan is by talking about experiential evidence and feelings. I should go outside, or find some new websites to look at. I think 'giving up thinking about Taiwan,' is one of the last hurdles in my recovery. Realising that is no bad thing. I love you guys, honestly.

[jimipresley]

I like the way you have elevated that to include sweeping racist statements about a whole island of people though.

How is a critique of the general food and service industry in Taiwan racist, Bunks?

Well, how is saying that nobody in an entire nation who provides food service gives a fuck about anything NOT racist generalisation?

A critique of the general chabudouness of a "nation" is certainly not "racist". There are hundreds of different races contributing to the mediocrity.

[Bunks]

Don't quote Chinese at me mate, I know how to say, "Where is McDonalds?" and, "I want a number one meal." See, IMPRESSIVE mad skills. I can probably also say, "I want to go to Taichung." Don't flex at me, cos I know THREE sentences!

it's not a critique to say, "Nobody in Taiwan who seels food gives a fuck." It is boring, racist, blinkered, stupid, shallow, divisive, blah blah blah. I can't wait for Lily to leave Taiwan so she can go back to America and spread the JOY and HAPPINESS she has so obviously embraced during her year in Taiwan.

Again, I am just being a miserable bastard, and you guys do have the right to continually talk about everything you do in terms of, "This is happening while I am in Taiwan... and it is therefore a function of Taiwan."

[maoman]

Aiyo. She wasn't proposing it as a thesis of a doctoral dissertation. I imagine she had a bad experience today, and is venting a little. Nothing wrong with that - she wasn't nasty about it.

Every time I have a fight with my wife, I shake my head in exasperation and think, "Women!". Like yesterday, my beloved called me from Tianmu asking me for directions back to Taipei. But she didn't know what street she was on, she didn't know whether she was going north, south, east or west. She didn't know if she was headed towards Taipei or away from it. And she got mad at me for not being able to help her, and hung up on me. I muttered darkly about the inability of Taiwanese women to navigate outside of department stores, but in fact, I do recognize that not all women are the same. It's just a little bit of harmless hyperbole.

[Bunks]

Aiyo. She wasn't proposing it as a thesis of a doctoral dissertation. I imagine she had a bad experience today, and is venting a little. Nothing wrong with that - she wasn't nasty about it.

Every time I have a fight with my wife, I shake my head in exasperation and think, "Women!". Like yesterday, my beloved called me from Tianmu asking me for directions back to Taipei. But she didn't know what street she was on, she didn't know whether she was going north, south, east or west. She didn't know if she was headed towards Taipei or away from it. And she got mad at me for not being able to help her, and hung up on me. I muttered darkly about the inability of Taiwanese women to navigate outside of department stores, but in fact, I do recognize that not all women are the same. It's just a little bit of harmless hyperbole.

Is it harmless though, that is really my question. I have nothing against Lily at all, but is it really harmless to vent in such a way? Do I EVER think when my father does something silly, "English men are such idiots?" Of course I wouldn't. And to be honest whatever I do in my daily life I NEVER stop and think, "this is happening because I am in England." I dunno really what my point it, and of course, I am not trying to stifle discussion, really trying to prise open the mindset of the overseas adventurer. Apologies to Lily, for any direct comment which may be seen as insulting.