More than 25 Kaohsiung businesses call themselves ‘The King’

More than 25 Kaohsiung businesses call themselves ‘The King’

2022-10-06

Kaohsiung is a city blessed with many thriving small businesses. Have you ever noticed how many of them are the king of something? In name, at least. A recent survey found that over 25 businesses in Kaohsiung call themselves “Dawang”, which means “the king.” Let’s take a trip to the south to explore just a few of the kings in the city.

In Kaohsiung, there are shops proclaiming to be the king of milk, the king of schoolbags, the king of pork ribs. Is anyone in Kaohsiung not a king?

King of lotus root
I think it’s about our bold spirit. Because in the past very few people in Kaohsiung sold lotus root. We’re the second generation, in business since 1966.

Perhaps it’s also because a store called king is easy to remember and sounds pretty good. This lotus root shop has been in business 56 years. Customers say the name with the word “Dawang” sounds majestic.

But it does share many namesakes. This green bean soup shop has been in business for 50 years. Customers say the beans here have just the perfect texture, with each bean maintaining integrity.

Member of public
The king of green bean soup… You probably have to be very confident to choose that name. Something like king or conqueror…

King of green bean soup
The Chinese characters don’t have many strokes. I wanted to see if a name with the word king might make more money.

According to a Facebook page “Kaohsiung Tien” there are at least 25 establishments in the city who claim to be the king of something. There are kings of Job’s tears, mutton, glasses, pants, and all kinds of other clothes and cuisines. Perhaps the most famous is a drink shop claiming to be the king of milk in Kaohsiung, founded in 1966. Meanwhile, a young entrepreneur is continuing the honored tradition, opening up a shop as the king of ice treats.

King of ice treats
We call ourselves the king of ice treats because all our drinks are made with natural ingredients. We want that commitment to come across to every customer. We want to be the best in the drinks world, so we’re the king.

And let’s not forget the king of schoolbags, founded 63 years ago. It is still the only shop billing itself as the king of schoolbags in Taiwan. This store is a shared memory of school days for thousands of Kaohsiung locals. Next time you’re in the port city, make sure to watch out for royalty around every corner.

牛乳大王、書包大王... 高雄人開店就愛叫大王!

2022-10-06

你知道嗎？高雄有不少老店都取名「大王」，像是知名的牛乳大王、蓮藕大王，還有綠豆湯大王，第一代老闆有人是因大王兩字筆畫簡單，也有人覺得霸氣，而經過"高雄點"臉書統計，高雄就有超過25家店，取名"大王"。

高雄牛乳大王、書包大王、排骨大王，高雄店家，處處有大王。

[[蓮藕大王老闆]]
“應該是霸氣，因為以前高雄很少人在賣。我們是第二代，從民國55年到現在。”

因為叫起來好記又好聽，營業56年的陳蓮藕大王，客人說叫大王聽起來就很厲害。

不只蓮藕大王名稱響亮，粒粒分明、口感煮到恰到好處的綠豆湯，"綠豆湯大王"已經在地飄香50年，不少客人聞名而來。

[[民眾]]
“綠豆湯大王，應該很有自信才會這樣取，因為像大王，或是霸王之類的。”

[[綠豆湯大王老闆]]
“大王這個名字，總共的筆劃比較好。大王這個名稱，可以看會不會比較發。”

根據"高雄點"臉書統計，在高雄就有超過25家店取名"大王"，包含薏仁、羊肉、眼鏡、褲子，吃的喝的穿的都有，在裡面最有知名度的，就是"高雄牛乳大王"，創立於1966年，已經有將近一甲子的歷史，不過也有年輕老闆創業，就取名"大王冰鋪"。

[[大王冰舖老闆]]
“大王冰舖，因為我們的飲料都用天然的食材去做，那我們希望把這份堅持傳達到每一個人，我們要做到飲料界最好，所以叫大王。”

還有開業63年的書包大王，名字更是全台唯一，也是許多高雄人讀書的重要記憶。這趣味大王店名，高雄處處可見，也意外成為網友熱烈討論的新話題。

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