What dish are you craving? The boss will make it for you! RebirthCafe & Restaurant, the worry-free general store that makes dreams come true

Tucked away in a small alley on Wenzhou Street, Rebirth Cafe once appeared as a scene in the film "At Cafe 6." Its one-of-a-kind style leaves a deep impression on everyone who visits. Kevin, who is both owner and chef, buys groceries himself every day, using his unique cooking techniques to bring out the full flavor of every ingredient. His ingredient utilization rate is close to 100%, with almost zero waste.

From chef to owner: paying off debt before making any money

The storefront looks like a bar. Walking in at 6 p.m., you see floor-to-ceiling bookshelves and vintage arcade machines still lit up. The owner is writing today's menu in chalk across the entire blackboard wall. This is the most anticipated moment of every day. "I got a lot of sweet potato leaves yesterday, so today I'll make traditional braised pork belly, it pairs best with that." The owner says casually, then after writing down the prices, returns to the kitchen to cook.

"Back in the day, I've sliced sashimi, worked at stir-fry places, and even worked at hotels and restaurants." Kevin, who has worked part-time at all kinds of restaurants since childhood, has long hair. At work he wears a hat and ties it in a ponytail. His soft-spoken tone gives no hint of the store's turbulent past.

Rebirth Cafe, hidden in a small alley on Wenzhou Street, is now in its tenth year of business. Four years ago, Kevin was just a chef. The business was struggling, and after his business partner left, Kevin was left alone. Rebirth also moved to a new location. "So I became the owner. On the first day of moving to the new place, I was notified that I had millions in debt."

An undefinable store, a general store that makes dreams come true

Searching for "Rebirth Cafe and Restaurant" online, you'll see it categorized as a cafe. But actually walking in, it's very different from what you'd expect a cafe to be. The atmosphere where customers speak freely feels like a bar; the dazzling array of books on the walls looks elegant from afar, but up close you find most of them are manga; a woman reading in a corner of the store is a tarot card reader who is a regular fixture here.

The store occasionally hosts photography exhibitions, small concerts, and even barbecue parties. No matter how many times you visit, you can't quite figure it out: is this a cafe, a restaurant, or a bar? To this question, Kevin answers: "Whatever you think it is, that's what it is. I didn't set out to define what it should look like, but I prefer to describe this place as a 'general store.'"

Kevin's interpretation of a general store is: "A place that can embrace and make any idea or dream come true." As long as visitors to the store can come up with an idea and a way to execute it, there's a chance it can be realized here. For example: one dish written on the wall called "Daydream Memory" was actually something a customer dreamed about. After waking up, they described the dish and its flavors to Kevin, and before long, it appeared on the menu.

Buying groceries in person after closing in the early morning for maximum freshness

Rebirth's business hours run from 2 p.m. to 2 a.m. After 2 a.m., once the store is empty, Kevin cleans up and then prepares to go buy groceries. "The wholesale market starts operating in the early morning. That's the only time you can find the freshest ingredients!" After Kevin returns from grocery shopping and puts everything in the fridge, he rests first. At noon, he takes inventory of the day's ingredients and menu, then goes to the traditional market to restock as needed.

"How can a chef who doesn't go to the market in person bring out the true flavor of ingredients?" Kevin says seriously. With one cut, he opens the fish he just got, deftly scaling it and separating the bones from the flesh. He throws the fish bones into the soup pot, and while the broth simmers, he cuts the fish fillets into pieces and soaks them in sauce to marinate.
Besides buying groceries himself, Kevin also occasionally receives "gifts." "Sometimes I get vegetables from farm friends, or someone comes back from a farmers' market with ingredients I've never seen before." He then turns them into dishes. The most unusual ingredients he's seen were dragon fruit flowers and snake gourd, which he made into fried dragon fruit flowers and stir-fried snake gourd with meat, respectively.

Breaking free from fixed menus, imperfect produce becomes the star of the dish

After buying groceries each day, Kevin looks at the ingredients in the fridge and plans the day's dishes. "There used to be a fixed menu, but later everyone only ordered from the blackboard menu, so gradually I stopped preparing ingredients for fixed dishes, and then there was no more fixed menu." On the blackboard, only drinks are fixed; other dishes disappear from the blackboard after a few days.

"With the old fixed menu, ingredients went out of season and were hard to buy. Now I'm not restricted, I can just cook with seasonal ingredients from the market, and seasonal ingredients are freshest and cheaper." He now cooks whatever ingredients he buys. Even imperfect produce that others turn their noses up at can become a delicious meal on the table.

"Nobody likes these ugly fruits and vegetables, so vendors sometimes sell them cheap, but they actually taste great." He takes out a misshapen beef tomato, cuts off the bruised parts, chunks the rest, and blends it into a puree to make sauce. The intense aroma and slight tartness are perfect for adding freshness and flavor to meat.

A menu that changes at any time, seasonal ingredients as inspiration

Only certain ingredients in the store are fixed, such as rice, which comes from Xin Nan Tian Dong rice in Yilan, while others