Feeling blue in autumn? Creative fruit dishes offer a “dietary therapy” to soothe the mood.

▲ Combining Western and Japanese styles, these fruit-infused dishes help regulate mood in autumn. (Photo / Reporter Chen Ziying, the same below)

Reported by Chen Ziying / Taipei

What kind of cuisine would result from combining the four elements of “food, fortune-telling, psychology, and tarot”? A unique studio tucked away in a building in Ximending develops à la carte private meals tailored to guests’ needs, emphasizing that what you eat can heal your body, mind, and soul. This mysterious studio comes entirely from a boss with integrated marketing concepts and a chef who blends dietary therapy with creative cooking.

Choosing to dine at “Mind & Body Food Retreat,” nestled within a building, feels as cozy as visiting an old friend’s home, making it perfect for gatherings with close friends. The menu and flavors are all customized by reservation, allowing guests to fully express their preferences to Chef Wu Ying (Anita), who then plans the meal and shops for ingredients based on the guests’ budget. Anita, skilled in refined, healthy, and creative cuisine, says, “Don’t Westerners often talk about dietary therapy? What you eat really does affect your mood, and I make almost every step of my dishes by hand.” Relying on hands-on experience and warmth, Anita combines her innate culinary inspiration—often leading to new menus that just “pop” into her head.

No matter the style, Anita insists that most steps of her cooking be done manually and freshly prepared. Drawing on years of culinary experience and her naturally creative ideas, she skillfully combines ingredients to consistently come up with new dishes.

If you’re looking for both a feast for the taste buds and a spiritual journey of self-discovery, the boss, Wang Minwei (Sam), excels at this. Originally trained in architecture, he developed a strong interest in psychology and holds licenses as both a psychological counselor and hypnotherapist. He eventually left his enviable career as an architect. Sam says, “I started learning about fortune-telling and tarot not just out of interest, but to understand and help people on a psychological level. Later, I met Anita by chance, and the idea of integrating food and wellness was born.”

Anita says autumn is a season when depression is more likely to occur, as people’s moods often fluctuate with the weather. At this time, incorporating fruit into dishes can help regulate one’s mental state, so she designed a series of “fruit banquets,” which are said to heal the low spirits of fall.

The fruit banquet begins with Avocado Cheese Tofu Grilled Scallops, packed with calcium, iron, vitamins A, C, E, and B-complex to calm diners’ initial mood and prepare them physically and mentally for the meal. It has a

 
▲Avocado cheese tofu grilled scallops offer a smooth and tender texture that’s refreshing and appetizing; the peach chicken salad with lemon vinaigrette combines the natural sweetness of the fruit, the acidity of the vinegar, and the aromatic flavor of premium chicken.


▲The stunning mushroom and seafood melon bowl retains the original flesh of the melon, blended with savory broth for a unique taste.

Pan-seared sea bass with Eve apples and red wine vinegar sauce combines the delicate textures of mango and fish, with the red wine vinegar enhancing the sea bass’s fresh, sweet, and refreshing flavors; the main course, French-style duck breast with fresh cherry sauce, features pan-fried caramel and XO brandy that bring out the aroma and sweet-tart notes of Washington cherries, using Hualien cherry ducks, with handmade cherry sauce perfectly complementing the natural sweetness of the duck.

 
▲Pan-seared sea bass with Eve apples and red wine vinegar sauce combines mango and fish in a refined and delicious flavor; the red wine pear sorbet highlights the natural sweetness of the pear to accentuate the subtle intoxication of the red wine.


▲The main course, French-style duck breast with fresh cherry sauce, uses Hualien cherry ducks, with handmade cherry sauce bringing out the full natural sweetness of the duck meat.

▲The dessert, caramel apple baked custard, is made with a generous amount of milk, setting it apart from common custards that use cream as a substitute.