Visit Yangzhou for an Unforgettable Culinary Experience!

Because of this hairy crab, I found myself in Yangzhou! A foodie photographer’s journey to Yan[...]

Because of this hairy crab, I found myself in Yangzhou!
A foodie photographer’s journey to Yangzhou!

Yangzhou, one of the four major culinary capitals known for Huaiyang cuisine, offers surprises at any time of the year. It’s not just about the food; there are the Slender West Lake, classic Chinese gardens like Ge Garden and He Garden, and the popular Grand Canal Museum. The entire city landscape connected by the canal makes every visitor to Yangzhou happy with fun activities, satisfying sights, and a delightful dining experience.

Eating is an absolute and eternal theme when visiting Yangzhou. This time, I arrived just in time for the hairy crab season. Our itinerary starts with food. Let me take you to experience and feel the most representative restaurants and morning tea culture in Yangzhou, including Yangzhou Banquet, Qu Yuan Tea House, Fuchun Tea House, and Ye Chun.

The Slender West Lake Yangzhou Banquet is a must-visit restaurant for those coming to Yangzhou to taste Huaiyang cuisine. It begins with a steamed hairy crab that is both large and beautiful. We start our exploration from the true taste of the food. The hairy crab is almost throughout the Huaiyang cuisine and Yangzhou morning tea culture. Well-known dishes like crab roe soup dumplings, crab roe lion’s head, and drunken crab all use the rich and fatty hairy crab as the soul.

Therefore, the highlight of each Yangzhou feast must be chosen at the famous Yangzhou Banquet. It truly represents the top level of Huaiyang cuisine. The ingredients, skills, and presentation hold a leading position in the world’s culinary capital of Yangzhou. If you come to Yangzhou, you must experience it, especially the Slender West Lake store with its unique location and high-quality service experience.

This full table of dishes is definitely worth it. The hairy crab is full of yellow and fat, so fragrant that your mouth can stick together. The marinated goose head is very tough, full of flavor. Drunken shrimp, soft pouch, and river shrimp are a top match. The traditional cooking methods allow you to feel the inheritance of culture. The Eight Treasure Gourd Duck is in the best state in terms of shape, color, taste, and meaning. Every bite is a great satisfaction. This feast in Yangzhou is truly well-deserved!

Every morning, there is a long queue at Qu Yuan Tea House. We are here. How can we not visit Qu Yuan when in Yangzhou!

Qu Yuan’s extra-large salt merchant’s five-ding bag is unique, and the crab roe soup dumpling is also in season. The small green vegetables in the emerald dumplings are to my liking. I like the Jiangnan way of making sweet green vegetables into bun fillings or dumpling and wonton fillings. They are refreshing and delicious.

Fish roe is also armed on Qu Yuan’s rice balls, and the golden osmanthus sweet dumplings are sweet and refreshing. Gao You’s double-yolk duck eggs are never absent.

We are seated at the Brocade Mirror Platform by the Slender West Lake, which is the second-ranked single building of Qu Yuan. Celebrities, politicians, and big shots from all walks of life have tasted morning tea here. Leisurely and elegant garden, a reflection of Yangzhou’s morning tea culture!

In addition to Qu Yuan, there are other famous morning tea stores in Yangzhou, such as Fuchun Tea House and Ye Chun Tea House. In order to check in every delicious morning tea in Yangzhou, we must taste them all.

A bowl of Wen Si tofu soup with crab roe added Buff made me feel fresh and my eyebrows fell off. A Fuchun crab roe soup dumpling that Duang Duang wobbled made me poke endlessly. A cup of fragrant Kui Longzhu tea made me keep drinking.

At Fuchun Tea House Fuchun Hall, experience the tea snacks prepared by the non-heritage inheritor Master Zhang for us. The 138-year-old Fuchun Tea House is also a must-visit morning tea restaurant in Yangzhou. It is worth recommending to you with many pictures.

Delicacies shaped like rabbits and pears are crafted under the guidance of Master Zhang by the skilled chefs of Fuchun Teahouse. It is said that Fuchun Teahouse’s various branches offer such creative and uncommon pastries, giving a sense of treasure hunting and exploration. Traditional appetizers like burst fish, hot dry silk, and reed cucumber are meticulously prepared by Fuchun, offering a delightful taste and flavor that is hard to describe but truly astonishing to experience. I hope you can come and try them for yourself.

For lunch, we switch to another branch of Fuchun, located at Desheng Bridge, the birthplace of Fuchun Teahouse. Here, you can experience the Huaiyang cuisine of FDrawn by the famed hairy crab, I embarked on a journey to Yangzhou! A food enthusiast and photographer’s exploration of Yangzhou. Known as one of the four major gastronomic capitals of China for its Huaiyang cuisine, Yangzhou offers surprises beyond the famous springtime scenery. It’s not just about the food; the city boasts the Slender West Lake, classic Chinese gardens like Ge Garden and He Garden, and the recently popular Grand Canal Museum. The entire cityscape connected by the canal provides a delightful experience for visitors who come to enjoy, indulge their eyes, and savor the local cuisine.

Culinary experiences are the absolute and timeless theme in Yangzhou. My visit coincided with the season when the hairy crabs are in market, so our itinerary, as the title suggests, begins with the food. Allow me to guide you through the most representative restaurants and morning tea culture of Yangzhou, including Yangzhou Banquet, Qu Garden Teahouse, Fuchun Teahouse, and Ye Chun.

The Slender West Lake Yangzhou Banquet, known as a must-visit restaurant for Huaiyang cuisine, starts with a steamer of large and beautiful hairy crabs. We begin our culinary journey with the true essence of the food, where hairy crabs are a central theme in Huaiyang cuisine and Yangzhou morning tea culture. Dishes such as crab powder soup dumplings, crab powder lion’s head, and marinated crab all revolve around the rich and flavorful hairy crabs.

Each grand meal in Yangzhou should be at the renowned Yangzhou Banquet, a place that truly represents the pinnacle of Huaiyang cuisine. The ingredients, skills, and presentation hold a prominent position in this world gastronomic capital. If you visit Yangzhou, be sure to experience it, especially the Slender West Lake branch, with its unique location and high-quality service experience that you deserve.

The visible chunks of crab roe embedded in the lion’s head enticed me to take a spoonful urgently. It was indeed soft, smooth, and fragrant, melting in the mouth and leaving only the aroma lingering. The dish was exquisitely prepared.

Traditional dishes such as Yangzhou fried rice, marinated fish slices, boiled dry silk, and drunken shrimp with marinated meat are all elegantly presented with rich and substantial flavors, living up to Fuchun’s century-old reputation for excellent cuisine, welcoming guests from all over the world. It’s truly praiseworthy!

Yangzhou also boasts another heavyweight breakfast destination, Ye Chun Teahouse. Every visit to Yangzhou must include a visit to Ye Chun’s Imperial Dock branch, which was once the dock where Qing Dynasty emperors boarded and disembarked. The Imperial Dock branch, with its beautiful garden scenery and proximity to the canal, is highly favored by food connoisseurs.

In recent years, with each visit to Yangzhou, I have witnessed Ye Chun’s continuous innovation based on traditional Yangzhou breakfast, trying a new path that integrates elements of Cantonese breakfast. The daily crowded guests are a clear indication of Ye Chun’s success with this approach.

The riverview private rooms are the best choice for enjoying breakfast while appreciating the scenery. Ye Chun’s tableware is primarily red, and the traditional small steamers are very cute. The steamed buns and siu mai are smaller in size but look very full when served in a basket, suitable for sharing among family or friends. You can also invite the resident singer to perform impromptu songs, adding flavor and elegance to the breakfast experience.

So, not satisfied with just breakfast, we also chose Ye Chun for lunch. A group of sunlight passing through the window lattices shines on the dishes, warm and natural, proving that natural light is indeed more charming!

Ye Chun’s dishes are not only visually appealing and delicious but also reasonably priced, making them suitable for family or friends to gather. Sitting in the elevated pavilion by the Grand Canal at the Imperial Dock branch, basking in the sun while sipping tea and enjoying a meal is very pleasant. The garden courtyard, with the red of maple trees about to appear and the golden yellow of ginkgo trees currently on display, showcases Yangzhou’s autumn colors that bloom in winter, which is very romantic.

In addition to the delicious food, Yangzhou’s beautiful scenery is also well-known. Autumn here always arrives later than in the north. Currently, the colors of ginkgo and maple trees in Yangzhou city are at their most vibrant. The breeze by the Slender West Lake is refreshing. The Five Pavilion Bridge and the White Pagoda are surrounded by towering trees with colorful foliage, showing visitors the rich colors of the season. The blue sky, clear water, gray tiles, and white walls, with red bridges and painted boats cruising by waterfowl, create a picturesque scene of the Jiangnan region.

If you like, you must take a boat trip from the South Gate of Slender West LakeThis grand feast in Yangzhou truly lives up to its reputation. The table full of dishes is definitely worth it. The hairy crabs, with their rich and flavorful yellow and cream, are so delicious that they stick to your mouth. The marinated goose heads are hearty and flavorful, making time fly by as you chat and eat, resulting in a very enjoyable meal. The combination of marinated shrimp, soft pouches, and river shrimp is top-notch, allowing you to experience the cultural heritage through traditional cooking methods. The Eight Treasure Gourd Duck, carrying the most auspicious meaning, is in its best form in terms of shape, color, taste, and meaning, with every bite being a great satisfaction.

Every morning, there is a long queue at the Qu Garden Teahouse, and we were there. How can you miss Qu Garden when in Yangzhou? The extra-large salt merchant’s five-ingredient bun at Qu Garden is exceptional, and the crab yellow soup dumplings are also in season. The small green vegetables in the jade green siu mai have always been to my liking because I really enjoy how the sweet and juicy green vegetables from Jiangnan are made into fillings for buns or siu mai and wonton, creating a refreshing and beautiful taste. The rice balls at Qu Garden are adorned with caviar, the golden osmanthus tangyuan are sweet and refreshing, and the double-yolk duck eggs from Gaoyou are never absent.

Seated by the picturesque lake of Slender West Lake at the Jinjing Terrace, ranked second among the Qu Yuan’s unique buildings, it has been a place where celebrities, politicians, and business tycoons have enjoyed morning tea. This is a true reflection of the early tea culture in Yangzhou! Apart from Qu Yuan, other renowned morning tea establishments in Yangzhou include the Fuchun Teahouse and the Ye Chun Teahouse. To experience every delicious morning tea in Yangzhou, we must try them all.

A bowl of crab powder-infused Wensi tofu soup left me with a freshness that was indescribable, a DuangDuang swaying Fuchun crab powder soup dumpling that I couldn’t stop poking, and a cup of fragrant Kuilongzhu tea that kept me drinking incessantly. In the Fuchun Hall of the Fuchun Teahouse, we experienced tea snacks meticulously prepared for us by the non-heritage inheritor, Master Zhang. With a history of 138 years, the Fuchun Teahouse is a must-visit morning tea restaurant in Yangzhou, worth recommending with many pictures. The rabbit-shaped and pear-shaped pastries before us were all newly created under the leadership of Master Zhang by the chefs of Fuchun Teahouse.

It is said that different branches of the Fuchun Teahouse will have such creative and uncommon dim sum, giving a sense of treasure hunting and discovery. Traditional appetizers such as fried fish, hot dry silk, and cucumber in a straw coat are also meticulously crafted by Fuchun, and while it might be hard to describe, the taste and flavor are truly astonishing. We hope you can experience it for yourself.

For lunch, we switched to another Fuchun location, the old store at Desheng Bridge, where Fuchun truly started. We experienced the Huaiyang cuisine of Fuchun Teahouse, and what amazed me the most was the crab powder lion’s head served in a small pot for each person. The entire bowl was filled with fragrant golden crab powder broth, and the large pieces of crab powder embedded in the lion’s head were so tempting that I couldn’t wait to scoop one up and savor it. It was truly soft, smooth, and fragrant, melting in the mouth, leaving only the aroma lingering. The dish was exquisitely prepared.

Traditional dishes such as Yangzhou fried rice, marinated fish slices, boiled dry silk, and drunken shrimp with marinated meat are all beautifully presented and rich in taste and texture, truly a testament to the century-old Fuchun’s culinary skills, welcoming guests from all over the world with a smile. Praise, praise, praise!

There is another heavyweight morning tea establishment in Yangzhou, that is, the Ye Chun Teahouse. Every time I come to Yangzhou, a must-visit is the Ye Chun Imperial Dock store, which was once the dock where emperors of the Qing Dynasty boarded and disembarked. The Imperial Dock store, with its beautiful garden scenery and proximity to the canal, is highly favored by food connoisseurs. Over the years, every visit to Yangzhou includes a trip to Ye Chun, and I have witnessed Ye Chun’s continuous innovation on the basis of traditional Yangzhou morning tea, trying a new path that integrates elements of Cantonese morning tea. The daily crowded guests clearly show that Ye Chun’s choice has been very successful. The private rooms by the river are the best choice for enjoying the scenery and having morning tea. Yechun’s tableware is mainly red. The traditional small steamer is also very lovely. Steamed buns and shaomai are smaller in size but a full cage looks much fuller. It is suitable for sharing among a family or many friends. You can also invite the in-store singer to perform impromptu ditties.A Morning Tea and Lunch at Yechun

Starting the day with a morning tea meal full of flavor and elegance is a delightful way to begin. Yechun’s offerings are not just for breakfast; they are also a great choice for lunch. As sunlight streams through the window lattice by the river, it warms and illuminates the dishes, casting a natural and inviting glow. Natural light, indeed, adds an extra charm to the experience. Yechun’s dishes are beautifully presented, delicious, and reasonably priced, making them perfect for family or friends to gather and enjoy.

Sitting in the overhead attic by the Grand Canal at Yumato Store, basking in the sun, drinking tea, and having a meal is an extremely comfortable experience. The garden courtyard is a sight to behold, with the red of maples and the golden yellow of ginkgoes heralding the arrival of autumn. Even in winter, Yangzhou’s autumn colors bloom, adding a touch of romance to the season.

Yangzhou’s Scenic Beauty

In addition to its delicious food, Yangzhou is renowned for its beautiful scenery. Autumn arrives later here than in the north, and the city is currently in the midst of its most vivid colors. By the Slender West Lake, a gentle breeze accompanies the vibrant hues of ginkgoes and maples. The towering trees by the Wuting Bridge and the White Pagoda display their colors proudly to tourists. The scene is a classic Jiangnan landscape, with blue skies, clear waters, grey tiles, white walls, red bridges, and painted boats with waterfowls swimming by.

A Boat Ride Through Time

If you have the chance, take a boat ride starting from the dock at the south gate of the Slender West Lake. Feel the luxury of the mansions of salt merchants along the banks, then pass by the red bridge next to Xu Garden. Xiaojinshan, with its delicate beauty, is worth a short exploration. As you continue on the boat, the view suddenly opens up to reveal the Wuting Bridge and the White Pagoda in the distance. The Fishing Terrace is nearby, a beautiful spot for photos. Pass through the largest bridge opening of the Wuting Bridge and enjoy the warmth of the sun on your body. At the end of the journey, the Xichun Terrace and the Twenty-Four Bridges, often mentioned in ancient poems, come into view. This is more than a boat tour; it’s an immersive journey back in time, in accordance with the scenes in ancient poems. To fully experience the charm of Slender West Lake, embark with poems that will help you understand why it has been so praised and mentioned by the ancients.

Exploring Daming Temple and Songjiacheng

The Daming Temple and Songjiacheng by the Slender West Lake are also highly recommended. Daming Temple is where Master Jianzhen once practiced, and the Pingshan Hall was built during Ouyang Xiu’s tenure as the prefect of Yangzhou. Many literati, including Su Shi, have visited and left their calligraphy marks. The Qiling Tower in the temple offers a panoramic view of the Slender West Lake.

Song Jia Cheng, a millennium-old city, has been meticulously planned and constructed into a leisure park with complete city walls. The ginkgo avenue is an essential spot to capture the essence of Yangzhou’s autumn, stretching for hundreds of meters and offering the purest autumn experience.

Tianning Temple and Shi Kefa Memorial Hall

For those who wish to experience the autumn ambiance of the canal and the ancient city, Tianning Temple and Shi Kefa Memorial Hall are must-visit places. These locations are home to the oldest ginkgo trees in the city. Tianning Temple, once the residence of Qing Dynasty emperors in Yangzhou, boasts red walls and colored glaze tiles, with deep and layered courtyards that exude grandeur. The gardens within Shi Kefa Memorial Hall are also exceptional, featuring multi-layered courtyards that invite one to explore at a leisurely pace.

Ge Garden and He Garden

Speaking of gardens, the Ge Garden, one of China’s four famous gardens, is located in Yangzhou and should not be missed. Renowned for its bamboo, the most captivating section of this garden is the Four Seasons Garden. Even the owner, who loves the evergreen bamboo, cannot resist the beauty of the changing colors across the seasons. Spring blossoms are beautiful, and autumn hues are unparalleled. Thus, beside the rockery and artificial hill in the eastern corner of the Four Seasons Garden, numerous red maples are planted.

In the setting sun, the Ge Garden is bathed in warm light that filters through the scarlet maple leaves, casting dappled shadows on the pavilions and towers, creating an atmosphere rich with autumnal charm. At this moment, one would need a small table, a set of tea utensils, and a pot of hot tea, to sit with a friend and chat about the world over the steaming tea. DoesnThe ‘Ji Xiao Villa’, the first garden of the late Qing Dynasty designed by He Zhi, has been the filming location for numerous movies and TV dramas. It is also a popular spot for tourists who love traditional costumes to take photos and check in. During my short visit, I captured many beautiful young men and women. Truly a sight to behold.

So, who says one can only visit Yangzhou in the misty rain of March? Yangzhou in winter is indeed full of autumnal charm, with colors and poetic imagery that I adore. However, no matter how much I praise Yangzhou, it is nothing compared to experiencing it yourself. Come to Yangzhou during the crisp autumn weather. Enjoy a morning tea or a table of Huaiyang cuisine. Stroll leisurely and take in the scenery of Slender West Lake, gardens, ancient city, and alleys. Appreciate the autumn views and enjoy the serenity.

Yangzhou is a wonderful place, waiting for you with its poetic charm and picturesque scenes…