Taiwanese-Style Catering－臺灣文化「譯」起讀

When I was a kid, I always looked forward to Taiwanese-style catering. Taiwanese-style catering is a kind of feast. The feast is usually hold at the roadside. I could eat a lot of food when I went to Taiwanese-style catering. The dishes include: lobster, shark's fin soup, abalone slices and so on. After the meal, my grandmother always packed extra food and took it back home. We could eat the take-back-to-home food next day. One time, we took back much Taiwanese-style catering food and we ate it for a week.

【Delicious ingredients】
(Taken from Google Graphics.)

Taiwanese-style catering can be traced back to the Qing Dynasty. In early times, only wealthy people could afford Taiwanese-style catering. They invited chefs and asked them to cook at home. Later, the practice of Taiwanese-style catering flourished in 1980. This kind of feast reduces the cost of venue. Workers set up a tent on the empty, large ground. Taiwanese-style catering venues include: Temple Square, the school playground or the local activities centers. Taiwanese-style catering provides the guests delicious foods and satifies the taste buds of guests. This event is held in the following occasions:
(1) wedding parties
(2) the company's year-end feasts
(3) housewarming parties
(4) activities for one-year old children
(5) local political elections

【Taiwanese-style catering scaffolding】
(Taken from Google Graphics.)

Taiwanese-style catering is one of the most representative folk events in Taiwan. People hold Taiwanese-style catering on some occasions. It provides diverse dishes and rituals. For example, for the new couple to have children as soon as possible, people eat lotus seeds, at the wedding banquet. People eat a whole chicken, including offal, blood, at the birthday feast. This is a symbol of perfection.