The Press Division of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York (TECO-NY) hosted a Taiwan Culinary Night tonight (12/8) in the lobby of the TECO-NY building in order to celebrate the official launching of Government Information Office’s (GIO) new website dedicated to Taiwan’s diverse food culture.

Nine representative dishes were served at the event in order to give New Yorkers an opportunity to taste and experience the many facets of Taiwanese food in the heart of Manhattan. This exclusive event was attended by close to a hundred guests, including international media groups like ABC, Wine Enthusiast Magazine, Japan’s Sankei Shinbun and Mainichi Shinbun, as well as famous food journalists and bloggers.

“Taiwan has always had rich and multifarious culinary influences,” points out Director of the Press Division, Brian Su. “In order to introduce the wonderful tastes and depth of Taiwan’s food culture, the GIO has designed a multilingual website devoted to Taiwanese cuisine and its distinctive origins and history. The dishes at tonight’s event were meant to inspire people to learn more about this important part of our culture and to use this exciting new resource.” TECO-NY’s Director General, Andrew Kao agreed, saying “Taiwan’s culinary culture is an important part of our soft power on the world stage and we hope that the international community can experience it in order to increase its understanding of Taiwan.”

The Press Division selected nine emblematic dishes for the evening’s guests: braised pork in steamed buns; steamed glutinous rice with red crab; lobster salad; sweet and sour sparerib; Hakka rice snacks and cakes; rice cooked in a bamboo stalk; sun cakes; and bubble tea. In addition to the spread, H.J. Jan, a renowned Taiwanese chef who won the gold medal in the 2008 IKA/Culinary Olympics and won first place in last month’s New York World Culinary Competition, used his unparalleled knife technique to carve intricate dragons out of fruit.

The GIO’s “Taiwan Culinary Culture Website” is divided into seven basic categories, which include Taiwanese street foods, Taiwanese cuisine, Taiwanese seafood, Chinese fusion, Hakka cuisine, indigenous cuisine, and traditional sweets and beverages. The website is accessible in Chinese, English, Japanese, Spanish now and will have German, French, Russian and Korean versions added later, making it possible for our culinary traditions to reach as many people internationally as possible. The website is meant to pique people’s interest in Taiwan’s food, heritage, and culture and encourage people to visit and try its delicious cuisine. The website is: http://taiwanfoodculture.net

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