the wonders of afternoon tea

When I think of afternoon tea, I imagine pretty porcelain floral tea cups, sweet cranberry scones, and girly gossip with (girl)friends. But in Taiwan, it is much more than that. Well, I've never had "afternoon tea" back in the States, nor have I ever really anticipated to anyway. I mean who has time to allocate an hour or two in the mid-afternoon to drink a cup of expensive coffee and eat delicate cakes and desserts? And, I don't think I've ever seen a restaurant in Cali that serves afternoon tea. It certainly isn't embedded in American culture..

Anyhow, today a friend treated me to afternoon tea at a bright, colorful café called Bunny Listens to the Music (兔子聼音樂). We met at 2pm, so not quite the time to eat a full meal or to only eat sweets. So, we shared an afternoon tea set, which came served on two-tiered plate stand. Two real-deal foccacia ham (or turkey?) sandwiches and two scone-like sweets. My friend explained to me what they were....they were some kind of French dessert (far breton)that had a crumbly surface and prune on top. The top tier had two green tea macarons and two cakes of our choice: a slightly sour apple tart (tarte tartin) with a crumbly crust and a maple brulee cake. The set also came with two drinks, I chose an iced cappuccino. Unlike in the States, nothing we ate was too sweet. My throat didn't burn after the sugar load. Also, apparently they get all their ingredients imported, so everything is very high quality. I could certainly taste the difference between their desserts and other cakes I've had from Taiwanese bakeries and restaurants.

far breton

a real sandwich! most Taiwanese afternoon tea places give flimsy sandwiches made with yucky white bread.

tarte tartin

 LOVE. my first time eating macarons in Taiwan! I've been craving them for months.

This café is definitely on my return-to-before-heading-home list. Their cakes are the best I've had in Taiwan, or maybe even the best I've ever had. Afterward, my friend took me to Bunny's sister bakery: Boite de Bijou. Mmmm it is [carb] paradise. All their breads are nothing like other Taiwanese bakeries. Their bread is French-style ~ crunchy outside and moist inside and barely sweet. I couldn't resist, but had to buy breakfast for tomorrow. A dark chocolate bread that is surprisingly not sweet nor bitter and a whole grain bread. Sighh, if I could, I would buy their bread everyday. Ah, can I just move to Taiwan NOW?