南村｜私厨‧小酒桟

I recently tried the NT$1,280 (plus 10%) weekend lunch set menu with my parents. Given the restaurant's strong reputation and positive reviews, the experience was unfortunately underwhelming. I was also surprised to see only two other occupied tables during a weekend lunch service. The appetizers (開胃小品) were actually quite good and set high expectations for the meal. The 當歸香腸 was especially flavorful and was one of the highlights of the lunch. **富貴白斬雞** – The flavor was pleasant, but the chicken was not as tender as expected, particularly for elderly diners. **毛澤東紅燒肉刈包** – The flavor was good overall, but one of the three pieces of pork belly was noticeably tough and difficult for my mother to chew. **西魯肉** – Very bland. The broth lacked depth and richness, making the dish forgettable. **清蒸現流鮮魚（龍虎石斑）** – This was probably the biggest disappointment. The fish did not taste fresh and had a noticeable fishy odor. The texture was also firmer than what I would expect from a quality grouper dish at a restaurant in this price range. **河南蒸麵** – I struggled to understand the appeal of this dish. It was less flavorful than many fried noodle dishes you can find at a typical night market. **川味水煮牛** – Average at best. It lacked the depth, spice, and authenticity commonly found in even modest Sichuan restaurants. **金沙大草蝦** – One of the better dishes of the meal. The salted egg yolk coating was flavorful, although by this point I had started to question the freshness of some ingredients and wondered whether the strong seasoning was compensating for it. **白菜獅子頭砂鍋（湯）** – A fairly ordinary soup. I also expected the lion's head meatballs to be softer and more tender. Overall, the meal was disappointing considering the restaurant's reputation and price point. Perhaps the restaurant was outstanding at one time, but this visit felt like a case of declining quality that sometimes happens after management, ownership, or kitchen staff changes. Based on this experience, I would not be eager to return.

Walked past and decided to try it given it has so many Michelin awards :) Super attentive service and you can see how confident and proud the waiters are when they flash the light when we take photos of the food. They had some interesting dishes and we enjoyed our experience.

I have to say the places clean and open, The tables are big and great for large party. As to the food, everything tastes average nothing stands out and nothing that want me to reorder the dish. At the end of the meal, our party was talking because we have not seen each other for a long time. I can understand that it was their time to close the restaurant. But instead of blasting the music they should just kindly tell us that they need to close and we would have left.

There were a few interesting dishes that were delicious. However at that price point, I was expecting much more. A lot of dishes were just average. I do not mind paying NTD 200 for a plate of peanuts if it was good but it turns out just average. The surprising good dishes were the sausages, prawns and vegetable

Dine during Lunar New Year’s eve. Maybe this is the factor contribute to the mediocre dishes we had. Had been highly anticipated but turn out not as good as all the reviews. Must come back during usual business hour.