[Food Notes]-Datong District, Taipei | 143POLARIS

Today I'm finally here to call the only switch that turns on me every morning!!

The name of this store is 143POLARIS , located at No. 143, Section 1, Yanping North Road, Datong District, Taipei City.

I became attached to this store in 2021 when the new crown pneumonia epidemic broke out.
At that time, Taipei City, the capital of goodness and the center of politics and economics, became a deserted and empty city due to the three-level alert issued by the government and the threatening and panicking new crown pneumonia.

However, this small shop is like a new seedling that burst out from the scorched earth after the war. It raised its head to face the clear sky where the war is no longer, and stretched out its first leaves.

At that time, I was also due to the various sequelae left by the epidemic in the wholesale market (uncontrollable entry and exit of field personnel, shortage of employee rosters in various industries, and low vaccination rate...  ), and was very busy.

I vaguely remember that it was lunchtime when I saw the deadline for submission of documents in front of me, and I still had a lot of to-do items in my hands. , I resolutely threw away the employee roster and the vaccination situation in my hand, and walked out of the office with my wallet and mobile phone.

If I don't eat and I will be scolded for not finishing it, then let me eat a full guillotine first.

On the way back to the office with a full meal, this small shop with elegant decoration and warm atmosphere came into my eyes.
And when I walked into this store, this store also came into my life.

As soon as he stepped into the store, the first thing that caught his eye was the cabinet full of coffee beans leaning against the wall.

"Actually, the preservation of coffee beans requires a lot of conditions." The boss said: "So at the beginning, I hoped to supply coffee beans to hand-brewed coffee lovers in a small amount on a regular basis, so that they can not create their own storage conditions for coffee beans. , and enjoy the best pour-over coffee.”

Turning around and leaning against the window next to the checkout counter is the treasure of this store.

The owner's technology is inherited from the Japanese, and all the coffee beans in the store are roasted using a Japanese-style direct fire method.
"To use this method, you must pick the beans before baking." Seeing me staring at the treasure of the store with interest, the boss explained: "Once the beans have been baked, it will be difficult to see his Good or bad. And if you don’t pick out the bad beans first, the coffee made from the good and bad beans will make people dizzy and palpitated.”

Up close, the machine is automatic, turning the knob on the gas stove. Occasionally, some sparks splattered out with the swirling airflow, like a hot wheel with an increasingly strong coffee aroma.

"This machine came to this store after a lot of hard work."
It turned out that the shop where the boss studied art also had such a machine. Only this machine that can bake beans on a gas stove can bake the soul of Japanese-style direct fire roasting.
After the boss learned to be independent, he searched all over Taiwan, but could not find such a machine that did not seem to have a complicated structure. Later, I asked the iron factory and asked them to draw the gourd in the same way, but the finished product was always unsatisfactory.
Even back to the home base of this machine - Japan, it is still impossible to travel around.

Then one day, the boss after work was just like everyone after get off work, swiping YouTube to relax.
At this time, an instructional video of coffee bean roasting appeared in front of him.
It was a Japanese film, the protagonist was a housewife, and the machine she used was the roaster the boss was thinking about?
At the bottom of the video is a link to the website of the company that sells the machines.

Without further ado, the boss immediately wrote an e-mail in Japanese, explaining that he wanted to open a store, but he couldn't find this machine.
The boss of the machine company also responded quickly. Just chatting, the man suddenly asked him, "You said you were in Taipei, so do you know XXX in XXX?"
XXX located in XXX is the former owner of the boss. After the man heard this reply, his previous positivity was swept away: "Then I can't sell it to you."
It turns out that the former owner of the boss is the son of the boss of the machine company. Although the father and son have not communicated for a long time because of their different ideas, it is impossible to provide the son's competitor with a means of making money no matter how they do not communicate.

The incident reached the ears of the boss's Australian friend, who volunteered and said, "What's so difficult about that."
He also wrote a letter to Japan saying he was Australian and wanted to bake his own beans at home.
So this machine first traveled from Japan to the southern hemisphere, and then crossed the ocean from the southern hemisphere, and has since settled in the boss's shop!!

It's a bit ashamed to say that the owner's shop has so many varieties of beans with different roasting levels, but I have only ever drank them, and I only like their signature black coffee.
I have always been a lover of black coffee, and the dark roasted coffee is my favorite.
Since my high school years or so, a cup of black coffee every morning has been the only switch for me to start a day that is busy or leisurely, good or bad.
Whether I’m at home, tired of driving or comfortable, I need to get up early for an internship, help with farm work to the current market patrol, or a holiday when I can sleep without doing anything until I wake up naturally, a cup of black coffee in the morning is my soul to wake up and prepare myself to go. To face the important ritual of this once again, similar but different life.

It's just from high school to now, in the past ten years, I have also gone from instant drink to ear-mounted drink to convenience stores, and finally to Starbucks' cold brew.
There are always some shortcomings in these processes: the fragrance is enough but the bitterness is too much, the bitterness is just right, and the aftertaste is not enough. Finally, the bitterness and the aftertaste are harmonious, but the fragrance can't stand them.
And the iced signature black coffee of this store always surprises me every morning.

When I first entered, the first thing I felt was ice. The temperature in my mouth dropped suddenly, but it also instantly lifted my spirit.
Next comes the bitterness of dark roasting.
The pure and bitter taste with chocolate and caramel aroma is the product of the Mena reaction during the roasting process, and it is also the tenacity and firmness inspired by the astringency and tenderness of the coffee beans with the vegetable smell after being quenched by the flame.

I used to be proud to recommend my coffee (?!) to my colleagues, but the evaluation in return was: "The beans are burnt!!"

But such bitterness is so humble and gentle, like a weather-beaten, experienced old man, not arrogant or arrogant, but still with an aura that is hard to ignore, conquering my taste buds just woken up, also deeply. It pierced into my soul, and after being stunned and educated by such a strong and pure bitter taste, only the joy like the rest of my life can save my taste buds again.
Every day before going to bed, looking at the dark signs in the refrigerator, thinking that tomorrow morning, I will be able to feel the deep and delicious taste that shakes the soul like a lightning strike, so I can always fall asleep with a smile.

[postscript]

The name of the store is called 143polaris, and the origin of the name can be divided into two parts: 143 is the coordinate of the store in the administrative division, and polaris refers to the North Star.
Before the owner opened the shop, he used to be in the navy. And when sailing, the North Star is a very important directional indicator.
The owner hopes that Polaris can guide them and make them run smoothly for a long time. He also hopes that this store can be a place for people who are still looking for polaris to rest and recharge, so that people can fill up their energy and continue to search for their own polaris.

In astronomy, the North Star can become the North Star because it happens to stand on the axis of rotation of the earth. As far as the northern hemisphere is concerned, all stars seem to revolve around the North Star.
During the year this store opened, because of my craze for their iced signature black coffee (?!), I have another expectation for work (you can buy coffee), and because of this store, Made me meet several people who worked near our office but never met.
Drinking their coffee has also allowed me to write one article after another every week during the year, completing one challenge after another, and slowly starting to realize my dream.
143polaris not only reminds me of my own North Star (writing), but also makes everyone who is close to him revolve around him.

Truly, the North Star for all who step into it.