Cafe Astoria Bakery – Belarusian Marshmallow Candies
Cafe Astoria's Belarusian Marshmallow Candies
Cafe Astoria Packaging for Belarusian Marshmallow Candies
As I was making my rounds at work during my lunch break, my co-worker Tina stops me by her department and generously offered this mysterious looking pastry to try. At first I thought that it was glutinous rice flour with walnuts, but when I took a closer look, it was not made of that material. Tina, told me that her mother bought her this from Taiwan and asked whether I had tried this before. Of course I did not, and when I tried it, all I can say that it tastes like a powdery marshmallow with walnuts. There was something unique about it. It wasn’t oozing with flavor, it was a simple desert that literally is a combination of walnuts and marshmallow. Somehow I enjoyed it and it was a unique eating experience. Now whether this was a Taiwanese specialty or not, I had to find out.
Cafe Astoria is located in Taipei, Taiwan.
7, WuCheng St, Sec 1
(02) 2331-7370
Hours: 8:30 am-8:30 pm
From what I learned from the above website and on the Wall Street Journal page, this gourmet cafe is known for their marshmallow candies and great over a cup of coffee. The owner who was from Belarus, opened their first shop in Shanghai and then moved to Taipei. This candy is a Belarusian treat and it is very light and fluffy. Eating this is like eating a piece of cloud. At least that’s how I’d imagine it to be.
If you are fortunate to be in the neighborhood, stop by and share your eating experience there!
Until next time,
<3 FCG
What’s for Lunch at the Lord Series – Day 5
Salmon and Shrimp Cake w/wild rice and califlower
Close up of Salmon and Shrimp Cake w/wild rice and califlower
Fridays are my days to cheat a little for lunch. Originally I had the intentions of having a salad when I went upstairs to the cafeteria, but when I saw this Salmon and Shrimp cake I had to have it.
Let me sum up by saying how disappointed I was at this dish. The salmon and shrimp cake was dry but wasn’t as dry and flavorless like the wild rice, but still pretty dry. Thank goodness it came with tartar sauce because I would have had a tough time eating it. The cauliflower was steamed and flavorless but I didn’t really complain because it makes me feel healthy eating it. Nonetheless I finished the whole dish because of the tartar sauce, I absolutely loved this t-sauce! I don’t think I will have this again next time but I’m glad I tried it because it is an interesting to have.
Until next time,
<3, FCG
What’s for Lunch at the Lord Series – Day 4
Cosi
1 Exchange Place
Jersey City, NJ
(201) 451-0535
So naturally I was excited when my co-workers invited me to have lunch at Cosi. There is only one sandwich that I absolutely love at Cosi and that is the Hummus and Fresh Veggies flat-bread sandwich. I have this soft spot for warm bread and hummus. In my opinion the combination between the creaminess from the hummus and the hard, yet soft texture of the warm bread is the perfect marriage of deliciousness. The best part about cosi is that for the most part they serve healthy and delicious foods.
Cosi Fresh Hummus and Veggies Flat-bread Sandwich
Next time I need them to take out the onions, but nonetheless this is a very delicious sandwich. Cosi is always bristling with crowds of people. If you come here at a later time like 1:30pm+, it is less crowded.
Until next time,
<3, FCG
What’s for Lunch at the Lord Series – Day 2
Tuna fish, sweet peppers, cucumbers with spicy mayo over a toasted multi-grain roll
Oh baby, look how deliciousness ooze completely out. I’m ready for my second one now at 1:35am. My dear friend has introduced me to tuna fish in this paste-like form in a form of a sandwich and I cannot thank my friend enough. I remember having such a disgusting experience when I tasted it in the cafeteria in elementary school that I have never dared to eat it again. Tuna fish that is not served by the government, since I went to public school, is absolutely amazing! I usually have this with the spicy green peppers, but my co-worker distracted me by engaging me to talk to him about my naughty cats that I wasn’t aware that the girl making my sandwich gave me a red sweet pepper. It wasn’t bad, but let me tell you, mayo and spiciness is key on having a delicious tuna fish sandwich!
Tuna fish sandwich w/plain ruffles
I usually get Miss Vicki’s Jalapeno potato chips, but today I felt like having something plain with hard ridges which is why I chose ruffles! A meal with a sandwich is just not complete without chips. Ya gotta have it! I haven’t had chips in such a long long time that I absolutely savored every single chip and at the same time wolfed down all of it.
Anyways, quick little posts here and there. I do promise to make posts of the restaurants that I have come acrossed and also things that I have made!
Until next time,
<3 FCG
What’s for Lunch at the Lord Series – Day 1
Dear loyal Finechinagirl readers,
I recently got the newly released Blackberry Onyx (9700) and you cannot believe how excited I am to have it. I have had the Blackberry Pearl, but I never got the data plan because it was much too rich for me. But anyways, I can definitely go on about this amazing phone, but I won’t. Now I can say is that this phone has a 3.2MP camera which I am excited to have and make use of. I don’t need the camera to have such a high megapixels because I didn’t get the phone for the camera capabilities.
With this camera, I can safely whip out my phone and take pictures wherever I go without people staring me down like when I have my camera. Somehow when you carry your camera, especially at work, it is just always shunned upon, unless you work for a photography studio which I’m sure not all of us does. This past Monday, I decided to take pictures of my lunch and send it to my friend Sally over at the Tasty Confection. She has suggested that I post the pictures on my website and I thought, hey why not. So this will be the first of the many lunches that I will post. There are days where it will be the same thing, but I will explain to you the thought process behind choosing that particular dish.
So on Monday, I decided to get a salad from the cafeteria at work and dessert:
Romaine lettuce w/chickpeas, peanuts, cherry tomatoes and cucumbers mixed with olive oil
Not a bad image for a 3.2MP picture! Most of the time I will be eating this unless I’m feeling famished. This is my favorite combo for a salad. It is healthy, fresh, and the different textures makes this an interestingly delicious salad. The chickpeas and the peanuts are the highlight of my salad and I cannot eat it without it. The rest of the toppings are there to lighten the heaviness of the creamy chickpea and the salty peanuts. Absolutely my favorite. Call me crazy, but I love it.
Apple Crisp
At first Sally thought it was a potato kind of a dish, but it is actually an Apple dish. It looks like remnants of an apple pie. This apple crisp isn’t as sweet as I would like it but it was acceptable. The tartness from the apple can be too much, but the top crust is crunchy and subtly sweet just the way I like it. I wish the cafeteria lady gave me more of the crust because it compliments well with the apples, but that is quite alright.
Ok, until next time,
<3 FCG
