Love Art? Love Delicate Handmade and Retro Food and Gifts? Come to Huashan 1914 Creative Park!

First Post of the Summer!!

Hi there, this is Yvonne, the TASC Initiative Publicity Director. Today, I am going to share with you one of my favorite to-go place in Taipei City. 

If you like going to art exhibits, shopping at flea markets, enjoying artistic and creative vibes, then this is a place for you!

Huashan 1914 Creative Park contains different buildings for regular art and film exhibits, creative shops, restaurants, and an open area for streat artists and performances. The picture above was taken right under the tunnel where the movie ticket office is located for the Huashan movie theather. The movies shown here are not the typical movies you see in movie theaters, but are films related to culture and art filmed by local and global film makers and artists. 

During the weekends, local farmers will also come to Huashan Creative Park to sell their freshly picked vegetables and fruits. The products here are organic, and the vendors are always really nice and approachable. Feel free to chat with them and ask them for a cheaper price!! :) 

Because the the art museums in Huashan were packs with visitors, I didn't have the chance to go inside and take pictures. BUT!!! Here comes my favorite part of Huashan Creative Park.

This red brick building houses my favorite cafe, VVG Thinking, one of the famous cafes in Taipei City. It is a part of a chain creative stores/restaurants company called VVG, which stands for Very Very Good.

The book store named VVG Something, located about 15 min drive away from Huashan Creative Park, was also selected as one of the top 20 most beautiful bookstores in the world by flavorwire.com. 

Below are some pictures showing the interior of VVG Thinking

The furnitures used in the store and in the restaurant/cafe portions of the store are all for sell. The fact that they are not afraid the customers will damage the furnitures while they are eating amazes me. Apparently, this method works really well, as the company proceed to opening more and more stores throughout Taipei.

Decorations on second floor.

The style of VVG Thinking is very industrial and retro. 

Stairs going down to first floor


1st Floor: Dining and Cafe
2nd Floor: Store

The wings can move!!!!!
VVG Thinking calls it the Da Vinci Wings.

After into the store, my family and I decided to eat here for lunch!

Here is the table we were sitting at.

And.. HERE COMES THE FOOD!!!

 

Place where you you can pick the freshly made pastries

Well, yah, couldn't give you the names of the food because I forgot... but ALL THE FOOD HERE WAS SUPER DUPER GOOD!!! VVG fuses seasonal fruits and veggies with different herbs and oils into their menu. Every bite felt like heaven. My family and I practically tried all the desserts and main course of the season. And yes, they change their menu base on season, so you will never get tired of going there! Their interior also change drastically every half year or so, don't be confused if it looks different from above!

 

After eating, you can go upstairs for some shopping. VVG Thinking has a huge variety of retro things that ranges from writing utensils, old fashion brooms of different sizes, clothing made by local designers, cook books, artistic book collections, beakers (?!), shampoo and soaps from Aesop, etc.

Sometimes they also hosts seasonal events where they invite artists to make some little artwork that you can take home, and VVG will also treat you with their special event menu.

And yes.. what is summer without the rain...

Walking around the Creative Park. :) 

~~ I'm sing~ing in the rain~~

Some Retro Vibe for you 

Ready for another round of food? XD I'm READY!!

So yah, the weather clears off and the Yen family (my family) continues their food expedition. 

The restaurant I am going to introduce to you now is also located inside Huashan 1914 Creative Park.

Here we are at our second food stop of the day. In the middle of Huashan Creative Park is AL CICCHETTO by CASA DELLA PASTA. As you can guess from the name, it's an Italian restaurant

What we got from AL CICCHETTO: 

Soup and salad

 Kids menu. Spaghetti with meat sauce combo. 

Dessert

Homemade Egg Pudding 

The interior of the restaurant. Again, super retro and industrial. <3 LOVE

Servers wearing shirt and sleek black apron.

In case you were wonder what the take out drink in the middle was. It was a tea we bought from a tea house in Huashan Creative Park.

You can see the tea leaves on the bottom. Its a type of tea called 冷泡茶 (len pao cha) which is just tea made with cold water instead of the regular hot water and ice. Very refreshing in the hot and humid weather of Taiwan.

After all, Huashan is a good place to go with your hipster friends. Going around Huashan and visiting every store and museum in there will take about half a day, depending on how many exhibits there are. Make sure to check out upcoming events and exhibits online before you go! 

WOOHOO end of the very first posts!

Hope you enjoy everything shown in this blog!

For more information see below: 

Huashan 1914 Creative Park 

By Metro

Take the Nangang/Blue Line to Zhong Xiao Xing Sheng Station (忠孝新生).Take Exit one and continue to walk straight for about a block until you see an underpass and a giant red diamond. The Huashan Creative Park is just across the street.

Price Range of the restaurants: $$$ (average about $20-$40 per person for a whole course meal including salad, soup, main course, and dessert)

Tastiness: AWESOME