MEMORIES OF GASTRONOMIC DELIGHTS

And the food journey continues.  Our hosts who are owners of a local chain of hotels all over China brought us to dinner at one of the best, if not the best restaurant in Maanshan, a city in Anhui province, showcasing gastronomic delights of Anhui cuisine and its nearby provinces.

One of the best in Maanshan, Xin Kai Yuan Restaurant located inside Xin Kai Yuan Hotel.

Lobby of the hotel

THE menu

Food o glorious food!

Standard table setting in the private dining room. The small pitcher (extreme right) is where wine or any form of alcohol is placed. Contents are then poured into the tiny coupette glass (to the pitcher's left). This tiny glass is used because a lot of "GAN BEI" meaning toasts/cheers are done during the meal and diners can get intoxicated if a regular wine glass is used. We guests opted to have the tiny one taken away for the usual, larger wine glass =) GAN BEI!

Start off with Peking duck....only because we guests insisted =)

Thai lemongrass prawns. Apparently lemon grass is widely used in Anhui cuisine as well.

Very good spinach

We had this!

Here it is. King snake secret. This snake was deep-fried. Taste is similar to chicken.

String beans stew. Texture is creamy as it initially touches your tongue then as you bite into it, the crunch happens. Amazing dish!

String beans up close.

Steamed sand goby fish. Beautiful, succulent fish.

This is the BEST soup I've had so far. Bird's nest (sorry bird advocates) with tender chicken morsels and fish intestines. Broth is purely divine. Words cannot express the divinity of this broth which is gelatinous, full of flavor and combines perfectly well with all of the ingredients.

Soup accompaniments if needed. L-R: pink vinegar, cilantro leaves, mushroom strips

Love this soup! Had 3 or was it 4 servings? =) The white ingredient you see is the fish intestine pounded flat, surrounded by chicken & bird's nest.

Noodles with tofu

Our host that evening, Mr. Wang

Candy, our interpreter, posing beside one of the many art works found in the hallway. This restaurant has many private rooms. It reminded me of a huge chain hotel that has several function rooms on one floor.

This dinner shall remain in my memory for a pretty long time because of the glorious food we had, most especially the soup, and of course the enjoyable  conversation amongst those present, albeit translation for every sentence uttered.  Just proves to show that wonderful food and company transcend barriers and lead to beautiful memories.

SEEING CHINA THROUGH FOOD

A recent visit to China took TBW to 2 cities not usually frequented by foreigners unless for business. The cities are Maanshan located in Anhui province and Nanjing in Jiangsu province.  Our local hosts were ultra generous with their hospitality especially shown with food and this was how TBW  got to know these 2 provinces of China.

On our first day in Maanshan, a welcome dinner was prepared for us consisting of local specialties.

Chagan: TBW likes this. It looks like strips of sauteed meat but is actually tofu and has the taste and texture of mushrooms. Maanshan is big on tofu and has many dishes made from this.

Fresh pop beans cooked with egg. China's food world is filled with pop beans...fresh, roasted, braised, fried and the list goes on.

Bluefin leather jacket fish in spicy soy sauce. The Chinese call this Bapiyu fish. Tastes like a meatier milkfish.

A refreshing soup made with tomatoes and eggs

Familiar mapo tofu

Omelette

Black fish in a sour broth. Similar to tom yum.

Sweet & sour spare ribs. Yes, they have s/s but this is different as made with more soy or oyster sauce and tomato.

Chicken & potatoes in a spicy,tomato based sauce with start anise & cilantro. The star anise brings a different dimension of flavor to this dish's sauce.

Not peanut brittle. These are savory rice crackers.

Braised fresh water shrimp

There were a few more dishes  on the lazy susie for everyone to enjoy.   This welcome dinner they call “simple” was surely a sneak preview of our hosts’ lavish brand of hospitality.  Food is important to them and is a symbol of their warmth and sincerity.  And with this they never faltered for more was offered as we continued our journey to Maanshan and  Nanjing.