TRANSLATION | Eugenia Yang

餐桌上那盞氤氳黃光，曾是許多人的回憶漩渦裡，渴望返家的企盼與念想。走入 gubami Social，陣陣香氣裡藏有熟悉的溫婉片段，拉門上的復古窗花、客家花布抱枕、原住民圖騰，恰與不設限的料理國界相互輝映，「吃飯，對我來說，是一種情感的交流。」亞洲最佳女主廚陳嵐舒輕柔笑答，由她一手打造的台灣餐桌，正如繁花綻放驚艷四方，每每入口皆是新奇意趣。

Some say the wavering light on the dining table encapsulates the longing to return home in people’s memories. As you walk into gubami Social, the aroma is filled with familiarity and nostalgia in between each whiff. From the retro window grills, Hakka-style pillows, to the aboriginal totems, everything is a reflection of the borderless world of culinary. “To me, dining is a kind of emotional exchange,” says Asia’s Best Female Chef, Lanshu Chen. Like the blossoming of flowers, the Taiwanese cuisine created by her is enriched with novelty and amazement. 

磨練造就日常

大學畢業後，懷抱著對法式甜點的憧憬，毅然前往法國藍帶廚藝學校研讀，因緣際會下，意外發現步調緊湊的烹飪有著別樣挑戰，便激起了她躍躍欲試的念頭。「廚師其實是非常有挑戰性的，而甜點規劃是事前的，所著重的點不太一樣。」如今回溯二十年前，陳嵐舒則笑說沒有特別逗趣的學習經驗，將每日磨練皆視為理所當然，其成長茁壯便是支撐自我的最大能量。談及如何帶領核心團隊向上進步，她表示須分為兩個階段，一為年輕團隊須以組織規劃塑形工作習慣，二為如何扮演導師角色引領資深團隊，「因為創意有很多，但有價值的很少，如何讓他們的創意能夠被執行且是有價值的，就是我們現在正在做的事情。」

優雅平衡美學 

 相對過往的樂沐、gubami 至小樂沐，如今的 gubami Social 則是一個前所未有的嶄新嘗試，不僅以創意融會台、中、西等精髓，其單點小份量更呈現輕鬆共享的愜意氛圍，也正巧妙呼應 Social 一詞。提起 gubami Social 餐點的前身，陳嵐舒表示源自 2019 年 gubami 牛肉麵套餐中的小菜發想，以相異文化為出發點，所運用的烹調技法皆是交錯而生，而她卻在各方時空背景下，尋得最優雅的美味平衡。其中最具象徵意味的「巴斯克蚵仔煎餅」，結合了西班牙馬鈴薯烘蛋和蚵仔煎，看似空中妙有的奇想，實則歷經了無數次試驗，「層次是法國料理一件很重要的事情。」除了最基礎的分層烹調，找尋味道於嘴裡呈現的時機點也是一大關鍵。

刺激堆疊靈感

步入家庭後，周旋於主廚、母親、妻子的多重角色，陳嵐舒進而透露心境上並無太大轉變，將時間分割做好比重上的平衡，於每日光陰間隙中尋得自我獨處，為適時保留自我的一大黃金準則。談及料理上的靈感創作，於她而言，這是一個連續性過程，不論休息亦或工作，藉由日常不斷的驚喜乍現，層層堆疊感受刺激。「我自己還是需要旅行，有一些不同角度去看待一個食材的烹調方式，或看待自己用餐時有哪些感受。」對於未來展望，陳嵐舒表示即將推出另一法式餐飲計畫，以創作型 All day fine diet 為出發點的雅致風格，冀望為食客捎來別樣的高質感體驗，話語至此，著實令人引頸期盼。

Practice makes Perfect 

After graduating from college, Chef Chen followed her passion towards French patisserie and decided to attend Le Cordon Bleu. By surprise, she realized the fast-paced cooking environment was a different kind of challenge, one that she is eager to try out. “Being a chef is very demanding, while making dessert relies heavily on prior planning, which is a slightly different focus.” As she looks back on her twenty years as a chef, Chen laughs and says she did not have a particularly interesting learning experience. Instead, she normalized her daily practices and saw them as a source of energy that would help her grow. When it comes to leading her team, she sees it as a two step process. First, the younger team needs to establish proper working habits through organizational planning. Second, figure out how to play the role of a mentor in order to lead the senior team. “It’s not hard to come up with creative ideas, but it’s hard to generate ones that are valuable. Trying to find a way to execute these ideas, while finding their value, that is what we are trying to do here.” 

Finding the Elegant Balance 

Compared to Le Moût, gubami and Le Côté LM, gubami Social is an unprecedented new attempt. Not only does it creatively combine the essences of Taiwan with that of the east and west, but the new restaurant also offers smaller portions to establish a more relaxed and inclusive dining atmosphere, cleverly echoing the word “Social.” Inspired by the side dishes included in the braised beef noodle soup set served at gubami back in 2019, the dishes offered at gubami Social are a blend of different cultures. Although using a wide variety of cooking techniques, Chef Chen was still able to find the most elegant balance of delicious flavors. An entremet rich in symbolism, “Social Oyster Cake” brings together Spanish tortilla and Taiwanese oyster omelet, a rather inventive mixture that actually underwent numerous experiments. “Creating layers is a very important thing in French cuisine.” Aside from the basic layered cooking, building the right combination of flavors is also crucial. 

Staying Stimulated and Inspired 

Now having her own family and juggling between the multiple roles of being a chef, mother and wife, Chef Chen reveals that her state of mind remains the same. Her golden rule is to delegate her time and priorities properly, while finding solitary moments of selfcare amidst her busy schedule. To her, finding culinary inspiration is a continuous process. Whether she’s working or not, she is still stimulated by the constant surprises of everyday life. “Personally, traveling helps me gain different perspectives on how certain ingredients can be cooked and on what I’m feeling when I eat.” As for the future, Chen says she will soon launch another French dining project with “All day fine diet” as the core inspiration, in the hopes of bringing a distinctive, high quality culinary experience to the table for her guests.