High Quality, Local Eats in Hangzhou

24 hours in one city. Every meal counts. Every bite counts.

Lunch was already pretty good, so I was hoping dinner would be similar. I was wrong.

Dinner at Jin Sha, also at the Four Seasons, was so much better. It was the highlight of the trip.

We ordered all the local specialties, like the Beggar's Chicken which was brought to our table with a mallet. My brother had the opportunity to hammer it open. Fun!

Even the vegetables, which were so simple, were so packed with flavor while still making the taste of the vegetable the star. And the highlight of the night was the pork buns! The pyramid layered presentation was beautiful and so creative. Pork buns in Asia are to a higher level of ridiculously deliciousness.

Place your cursor above "Notes" as some of the pictures have captions.

The slide show here runs on Flash. If you can't see it, check out my Flickr album: Jin Sha

WLB - West Lake Bistro at the Four Seasons Hangzhou

After the train ride into Hangzhou, we were ready for a late lunch. The hotel bistro seemed like the perfect place.

WLB, West Lake Bistro, is one of the restaurants at the Four Seasons Hotel where we enjoyed our overnight stay. The bistro has a variety of International and Local menu selections.

The main reason, aside from convenience, that we chose the restaurant is that the menu offers Dong Po. Dong Po and Zhang Yimou's show are the only 2 reasons why I wanted to take my family to Hangzhou.

Dong Po is pork belly braised with soy sauce, sugar, and Chinese wine. It's named after its creator, Dong Po, who improved on the traditional recipe while exiled in Hangzhou.

We learned about this from a National Geographic special and tried the recipe at home. So melt-in-your-mouth good! Then we had it in Taipei and Hong Kong, ridiculously good!

So the Dong Po in its originating city has to be amazing, right? Well, this definitely did not disappoint.

The slide show here runs on Flash. If you can't see it, check out my Flickr album: WLB

Four Seasons Hotel in Hangzhou

A family trip to anywhere. The requirement? A nice hotel.

In researching accommodation in Hangzhou, I was really excited to see a brand new Four Seasons in Hangzhou, which opened in October of 2010. Perfect!

The property is located along the Westlake. It combines traditional Chinese architecture on the outside and a modern minimalist Chinese look on the inside. For a getaway location, I was hoping for a more thematic setting and atmosphere. The interior felt a bit impersonal, as though we were in a business hotel.

Nonetheless the stay was clean and comfortable. The best part of the hotel was the restaurants, which will be featured later this week.


Here are pictures in and around the property:

The slide show here runs on Flash. If you can't see it, check out my Flickr album: Four Seasons Hangzhou

Visiting the Historic West Lake in Hangzhou, China

After a sight and sound spectacular in Yangshuo, I had to see more of Zhang Yimou's Impressions' shows throughout China. If you found the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony impressive, I highly recommend seeing at least one of those shows in your lifetime.

When my family planned a trip to Shanghai, I included Hangzhou into our itinerary just to see Zhang Yimou's Impression of West Lake.

A short hour high speed train ride, and you're there. Hangzhou is a big city that has a historic lake. At the end of the 13th century, Marco Polo had declared Hangzhou to be "the City of Heaven, the most beautiful and magnificent in the world."

Away from the bustle of the city and the crowds of tourists, a boat ride on the lake is a relaxing retreat (and authentically mainland CHina with our spitting boat driver).

The Zhang Yimou show is another impressive production. We sat in the VIP boat seats, but I would actually recommend sitting in the middle of regular seats to enjoy the center point of view of the show.

The lights, the thematic colors, the cast, and the number of them are all sights to see. Zhang Yimou continues to succeed in his craft.

From big cities to rural, China is filled with so many cities and towns to visit. They are all so different with unique natural or metropolitan settings.


Here are some pictures from my trip to Hangzhou. In the days to follow, I'll feature our hotel and, of course, a couple of the memorable meals.

The slide show here runs on Flash. If you can't see it, check out my Flickr album: Hangzhou Fall 2011