In partnership with the Industrial Development Bureau of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Taiwan Design Research Institute (TDRI) sponsored the “T22 Local Industry Revitalization via Design Project.” This project aims to promote regional revitalization initiatives—trendy in recent years—by incorporating design thinking and interdisciplinary collaborations. In 2019, the “Ceramic: Yingge” program was launched as a pilot project. Despite the challenges posed by the pandemic for the last three years, TDRI managed to accomplish a six-part strategy for Yingge’s revitalization. Meanwhile, other programs rolled out one by one such as “Urban Agriculture: Beitou” and “Stonework: Hualien.” TDRI actively facilitates the alliances among design brands, local businesses and producers and retail channels that are easily accessible to consumers, and drives the industrial restructuring of these places of origins through design thinking.
This summer, T22: Yingge will join hands with local businesses again, targeting Michelin restaurants that value a harmonious synergy between tableware and cuisine. Our goal is to introduce brands from Yingge into the custom-made design service market. For this vision, TDRI matched three distinctive Michelin restaurants with experienced design brands and three sets of tailored Michelin restaurant co-branding tableware are hence born.
This “Michelin Restaurants Co-branding Project” is sponsored by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, R.O.C., and organized by the Industrial Development Bureau, Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Small and Medium Enterprise Administration, Ministry of Economic Affairs, with the Industrial Technology Research Institute and Taiwan Design Research Institute as advisory. Yi-An Lu, a celebrated food and drink writer, is invited on board as the project consultant. By pairing our tableware with different cuisine styles, this project hopes to showcase the multifaceted charms of Yingge’s ceramic culture.
The Lingering Taste of LONGTAIL Emerged: LONGTAIL + The Shu’s Pottery, Tao ju + ADC Studio
LONGTAIL is named after Taiwan’s endemic species, the Formosan Blue Magpie, symbolizing the chefs’ pursuit of fusing local ingredients with their travel and life experiences across Asia. They hope such unique exotic flavors would reach the connoisseurs’ palates like flying birds. This co-branding project enlists the homegrown icon, The Shu’s Pottery, and Tao ju, a master pottery maker known for formulating diverse combinations of shapes and glazes. Both craft brands share a common vision of creating vessels that preserve the memories of a shared meal. ADC STUDIO also applied design mentality to meal pairing, introducing the Gaia tableware set and the co-branded “Longtail Seasonal Experience,” a 9-course set menu.
Each course features vessels of different heights and depths. The first course is served in the “Blue Magpie Egg” bowl, a highlight of the whole tableware set. This dish contains crab meat, avocado, sea urchin, and Vietnamese coriander. The coconut milk reduction, infused with a generous amount of Vietnamese coriander and dyed blue by butterfly peas, reflects the vessel’s color and pays homage to the restaurant’s name. The following delicacies are served on pottery and ceramic vessels with different textures, gleaming smooth luster, or steady metallic finishes. Even plain plates are adorned with exceptional linear patterns of flowing glazes.
The main course, a bone-in lamb rib with cumin and maple syrup sauce, is plated on a two-toned deep pottery dish. The glossy maple syrup sauce and golden garlic flakes complement the dual-toned pottery dish, providing a perfect finishing touch for the feast.
▲ crab meat, sea urchin, avocado, coconut milk
▲ lamb ribs, cumin maple syrup, eggplants
Name of Tableware: [Gaia]
[Longtail Seasonal Experience]
9-course Set Menu, priced at $3,280+10%.
The offer will be available by the end of September until December 30th.
Attainable Luxury with Classic Comforts: Three Coins + Tai-Hwa Pottery, Shin Tay Yuan International Development Co, Ltd + KateChungDesign
Established in 1970, Three Coins is a restaurant that exudes classic elegance with its antique decor and calligraphies and artistic atmosphere. Three Coins boasts of its Cantonese cuisines which fuse modern spirits with the heritage of culinary arts, and has become a staple for reunion banquets among Taipei citizens.
In this co-branding project, the restaurant has teamed up with two experts in ceramic productions: Tai-Hwa Pottery, renowned for their precise expressions of glaze texture and hand-painted artistry, and Shin Tay Yuan International Development Co., Ltd, known for their exceptional decalcomania and pattern decals. Designer Kate Chung has seamlessly integrated the features and expertise of these two brands, drawing inspiration from Oriental culture and creating a stylish and modern design that incorporates traditional elements.
The result is the “Reunion” tableware set, which features arc-shaped vessels with golden outlines and decals that are difficult to make. This tableware set is paired with a co-branded 12-course set menu and a complimentary glass of champagne. The Chinese title of the Reunion set symbolizes the unity among these four brands while paying tribute to the title of Three Coins, representing the fundamental ethos and a new beginning for the restaurant. The menu features classic dishes such as Golden Luye Chicken Soup, Deep-fried Crispy Goose, and Three Coins Peking Duck, each presented on unique and playful tableware.
For example, the soup is served in a golden thermos soup bowl, the duck and goose rolls are presented on a goose-shaped plate, and the main courses are served in a wave-shaped deep dish. The soft rounded curves and elegant designs of the tableware epitomize the perfection of everything coming full circle through reunions. To take the collaboration deeper, the limited “Hundred Birds Paying Homage to The Phoenix Giftset” strikes a balance between beauty and practicality.
▲ “Reunion”: [Three Coins + Tai-Hwa Pottery, Shin Tay Yuan International Development Co, Ltd + KateChungDesign]
Name of Tableware: [Reunion]
[Co-Branding Set]: 12-course Set Menu, priced at $3680+10% with a complimentary glass of champagne.
The offer will be available from September.
The [Hundred Birds Paying Homage to The Phoenix Giftset] is expected to be available since October.
Unadulterated Authentic Taste of Yakiniku [Da-Wan Yakiniku Dining Restaurant + Anta Pottery, Excellence Collection Ceramic Company + Wu Wei Cheng]
Da-Wan Yakiniku Dining Restaurant maintains an unwavering commitment to culinary finesse, offering customers flavorful and authentic yakiniku (Japanese BBQ). The owner insists on keeping ingredients and cooking techniques straightforward and simple, which resonates well with the philosophy of Anta Pottery and Excellence Collection Ceramic Company. Anta Pottery excels at tweaking glazes and mass-producing unique products, while Excellence Collection Ceramic Company gives pottery work a new image through modern designs which fit well in contemporary life.
Together with designer Wu Wei Cheng, they have created the custom-made tableware “Broil” for Da-Wan Yakiniku Dining Restaurant, a name which at once sounds like the Chinese characters for “humbleness” and “baking” and encapsulates the simple yet exquisite nature of the tableware. Highlighting the pursuit of natural taste and a casual lifestyle, the dinnerware features sleek silhouette and monochrome tones such as red, black, and white that augment the yakiniku. The design inherits the unassuming and “uncomplicated” style of Da-Wan Yakiniku Dining Restaurant, making the tableware vessels for both food and beauty in lifestyle.
▲ “Broil”: [Da-Wan Yakiniku Dining Restaurant + Anta Pottery, Excellence Collection Ceramic Company + Wu Wei Cheng]
Name of Tableware: [Broil]
Mainly available as A la carte options.
Classic Set Menu for Two priced at $3280-$3580 per person.
“T22 Local Industry Revitalization via Design Project” was initiated in 2019 and first announced publicly at the end of 2020. As our pilot program, the project’s success at Yingge is critical. People in Yingge have put in extra effort to appeal to the new generation of consumers. After the launch of “Local Icon X Michelin Restaurants Co-branding Project,” businesses in Yingge extended their pursuit of regional revitalization. The brand successors have formed the “Yinggooo Workgroup” and joined forces to promote the “Yinggooo” festival, which celebrates the city’s craftsmanship. Inspired by the “Tsubame-Sanjo Factory Festival,” they aspire to turn Yingge into a tourist spot for the artisan experience.
The main challenge facing these brand successors is how to adapt to the new context and appeal to the new generation of consumers. They hope to find the best solutions through collaboration. The “Yinggooo” festival will take place from August 26th to 28th and cordially invite the general public to visit the workshops, explore the Old Street, appreciate the beauty of Yingge, and take home a piece of ceramic work that embodies their memories of the culture, to cherish forever.
T22 Local Industry Revitalization via Design Project: Yingge Homegrown Icons X Michelin Restaurants: Co-Branding Project
Sponsor｜Ministry of Economic Affairs, R.O.C.
Organizer｜Industrial Development Bureau, Ministry of Economic Affairs, Small and Medium Enterprise Administration, Ministry of Economic Affairs
Advisory｜Industrial Technology Research Institute, Taiwan Design Research Institute
Project Consultant｜Yi-An Lu
