Hangzhou Food | Cuisine, What to Eat, Where to Eat & Best Restaurants

About Hangzhou Food & Hangzhou Cuisine

• Chinese：杭州菜 Pinyin: háng zhōu cài

Hangzhou Cuisine (Hang Bang Cai in Chinese) is an important branch of Zhejiang Cuisine which is one of the Eight Famous Cuisines in China. The history of Hangzhou Cuisine could date back to over 1,000 years ago, in South Song Dynasty when Hangzhou is the prosperous capital city packed with best chefs from all corners of China. These talented gourmets took advantage of local ingredients and created various Hangzhou-style dishes. The eminent litterateur Su Dongpo once said that even the most delicious food in the world could not compare with tasty Hangzhou Food.

With accumulative efforts and exploration, Hangzhou Cuisine became quite popular. What’s more, each of the most famous dishes has its own story or culture. If you visit Hangzhou, you can’t miss this big gustatory feast.

Hangzhou Cuisine has two branches – Lake Cuisine (湖上帮) and City Cuisine (城里帮). The former focuses on fish, shrimp and vegetables which were mainly cooked for officials, businessmen and distinguished personages in ancient times. The later gives priority to domestic animals and fowls, usually for citizen themselves. But now, you could taste the two categories at the same time.

Other than the sweet Suzhou Cuisine, thick Shanghai Cuisine and spicy Sichuan Cuisine, Hangzhou food features in freshness and lightness. Major cooking techniques of Hangzhou Food is stir-frying, steaming and pot-roasting. While cooking Hangzhou Cuisine, the cookers always avoid using spicy seasoning to keep its original taste and flavor.

Braised Dongpo Pork (东坡肉)

Hangzhou Streamed Bun (杭州小笼包)

West Lake Fish in Vinegar Gravy (西湖醋鱼)

West Lake Fish in Vinegar Gravy is a signature dish of Hangzhou. There goes a story of the origin of West Lake Fish in Vinegar Gravy in Hangzhou. It is said that there was a poor fisherman who lived from hand to mouth near West Lake. One day, he got sick seriously but he couldn't go to the doctor for the lack of money. His sister-in-law caught a fish and cooked with only vinegar and sugar. Magically, the sick man recovered soon after eating the fish. Later, this dish became popular among Hangzhou Restaurant. The major material of this dish is grass carp which enjoys high nutritive value. Being easily cooked and without much seasonings, West Lake Fish Vinegar Gravy shows slippery gravy, sour aroma and tender meat.

Braised Dongpo Pork (东坡肉)

Braised Dongpo Pork can be attributed to Su Dongpo, a great litterateur in North Song Dynasty. When he was an official in Xuzhou, he built the bridges and roads for local people. The citizens gave him much pork to show their thanks. As Su Dongpo received these gifts, he cooked them and distributed to the citizen again. Moved by Su Dongpo, people called this braised pork as Dongpo Pork. Today, Braised Dongpo Pork developed better and its unique flavor make people hard to forget. Even a short glimpse of bright-colored Braised Dongpo Pork will make your mouth watering. With half fat and half lean of the pork braised by the mixture of water and alcohol, it smell aromatic and tastes tender enough to dissolve immediately in your mouth. The knack of cooking Braise Dongpo Pork is slow fire, less water and more alcohol.

Fried Shrimps with Long Jing Tea (龙井虾仁)

Fried Shrimps with Long Jing Tea is a special flavor of Hangzhou which is made up of shrimp meat and tea. The shrimp meat is fried with lard, so it is oily and bright but never greasy. Using the perfect tea plucked before Tomb-sweeping Day (seldom exposed to insects), you can fully enjoy the wonderful mouthfeel of this dish. With rose-white shrimp meat and emerald-green tea, this dish is in good-looking and coordinated color. Taking a little bite, smooth and chewy meat with slight scent of tea will leave you a faint fragrance lingering in your mouth. In fact, you could only eat authentic Fried Shrimps with Long Jing Tea in Hangzhou because the best Long Jing Tea is only grown in Hangzhou.

Beggars' Chicken (叫花童子鸡)

Long long ago, there was a beggar wandered to Hangzhou. Suffering from hunger and coldness, he fell in a faint. His fellow suffer stole a chicken for him. Without pot and stove, his fellow wrapped the chicken with earth and roasted it over the fire. About two hours later, they striped the earth off and found the chicken smelt attracting and tasted delicious. As this story came to a chef in a restaurant, he improved the cooking technique and succeeded in making notable Beggars' Chicken. Today, the chicken is wrapped with bamboo reel shell, lotus leave first and special mud then. The duration and degree of heating is quite important to cook Beggars' Chicken well. While Beggars' Chicken done, the delicate fragrance of chicken greets the nostril and the meat is soft and even the bones are tender.

Hangzhou Streamed Bun (杭州小笼包)

Streamed Bun is a kind of traditional stuffed bun popular in Hangzhou, Shanghai, Changzhou, Wuxi, and other cities in the south reaches of the Yangtze River. However, Streamed Bun in different places has different flavor and characteristics. Hangzhou Streamed Bun features in white and thin skin made by flour, plump fillings with lean pork and tasty soup. The skin is elastic but not sticks to your teeth. A fresh Hangzhou Streamed Bun is half-transparent and attracts you to have a bite.

West Lake Lotus Root Powder (西湖藕粉)

West Lake Lotus Root Powder stands out among various Hangzhou snacks not only for its unique flavor but also for its rich nutrient content. Hangzhou once offered West Lake Lotus Root as tribute to the imperial palace. The lotus root powder is in thin sheet and rose color. Mix the powder with a little water and then dilute it with hot water. The soup with slender transparency tastes fresh and sweet. In addition, it is heathy for children, elders and patients.

Double Happiness (幸福双)

Xingfushuang in Chinese, Double Happiness is a kind of pastry created by Zhiwei Guan – a famed restaurant in Hangzhou. It gets such a name because it is always served by doubles which mean happiness and love. Major ingredients of sweetened bean paste and dried fruit filling like nut, candied date, grape, ivy gourd etc. are wrapped with superior flour and molded in a special shape. After streamed, the pastry enjoys soft texture and sweet fragrance.

Others

Apart from Hangzhou Streamed Bun, West Lake Lotus Root Power and Double Happiness, there are also other countless snacks, like Pianchuaner Noodles (片川儿)– featured in fresh potherb mustard and bamboo shoots, Ears of Cat (猫耳朵) – dough pieces looking like the ears of Cat, Pastry Roll (酥油饼) – sweet dough cake recorded in ancient books... Never miss these snacks in the world.

West Lake Fish in Vinegar Gravy

Oil but not greasy Braise Dongpo Pork

Fried Shrimps with Long Jing Tea

Beggars' Chicken

The best places to savor Hangzhou dishes and snacks are the West Lake Scenic Area, Hefang Street, South Song Imperial Street, Hedong Road, and Shenglihe Food Street.

West Lake Scenic Area

The whole West Lake Scenic Area is extremely large. There are many great restaurants opened. What makes the restaurants at West Lake Scenic Area stand out is their unbeatable close distance to the beautiful sceneries of the West Lake. You can find restaurants near Lingyin Temple, Leifeng Pagoda, Longjing tea Plantation and so on. Some of the restaurants are right by the lake, allowing you to admire the picturesque lake views while dinning.

Hefang Street & South Song Imperial Street

Hefang Street and South Song Imperial Street, close to each other, both are famed ancient streets which can be traced back to South Song Dynasty. Known as a paradise of food, they attract enough tourists with authentic local snacks and traditional snacks from different corners in China. What makes Hefang Street distinctive from other snack streets is that you can satisfy your taste bud as well as your feast your eyes. There are also rich Hangzhou cultures you can explore by visiting traditional Chinese medicine halls, interesting museums, celebrities’ former residence etc. Exquisite arts in Hefang Street will also give you a visual treasure.

Hedong Road

Hedong Road, especially at night is a good choice of rich Zhejiang Food in that there are various restaurants and canteens with various dishes and snacks. Apart from Zhejiang food including amazing Wenzhou seafood, there are also Sichuan Cuisine, Hunan Cuisine, Xinjiang Specialties and so on. The night market of Hedong Road is divided into north section and south section. The restaurants in north section enjoy more elegant and peaceful environment (always closed around 2:00 am). The south section has more roadside food stalls with lively atmosphere. These stalls are always closed at around 4:00 am and some stalls are in service 24 hours.

Shenglihe Food Street

Shenglihe Food Street, also called Gushui Street and located in the Gongshu District of Hangzhou, is a well-planed food street constructed with an antique style. It is divided into four parts with four different functions - Handicrafts Zone, Smoke-free Barbecue Zone, Specialties Zone and Drinking Zone. Most stores in Handicrafts Zone and Smoke-free Barbecue Zone are removable carts equipped with folding tables and chairs. Combined with dining, tourism, leisure and shopping, Shenglihe Food Street has become one of the most popular streets in Hangzhou. If you visit Shenglihe Food Street, Sauteed Shrimps is a must-try.

Lou Wai Lou Restaurant by the West Lake

Hedong Road

Best Restaurants in Hangzhou

Lou Wai Lou (楼外楼)

Lou Wai Lou Restaurant is located at the bank of West Lake and foot of Gushan Mountain. In this restaurant, you get a precious opportunity to enjoy the scenery and food at the same time. The rooms in Lou Wai Lou are fine-designed with great facilities. It goes like a convention that when the gusts come, the owner will treat them in Lou Wai Lou.

Specialties: West Lake Fish in Vinegar Gravy, Fried Shrimps with Long Jing Tea Beggars' Chicken, Songsao's Fish Soup etc.

Location: No. 30, Gushan Road, Xihu District (close to Moon over the Peaceful Lake)

Grandma's Home (外婆家)

Grandma's Home is attracted large amounts of customers with its first-rate home cooking at reasonable price. You can not only enjoy the tasty Hangzhou food in diverse types and enough amounts, but also feel the enthusiasm and kindness of the smiling servants.

Specialties: Grandma's Braise Pork, Xiangchi Fish Head, Tea-flavored Chicken etc.

Location: No. 6, Mateng Road, Xihu District

Zhiwei Guan (知味观)

First built at 1913, Zhiwei Guan enjoys a history of over 80 years. At first, it was a small restaurant focusing on local snacks and Hangzhou dishes. Nowadays, it has developed into one of the most famous restaurant in Hangzhou.

Specialties: Braised Dongpo Pork and Snacks like Ears of Cat, Double Happiness, noodles, Hangzhou Streamed Buns etc.

Location:No. 83, Renhe Road, Shangcheng District

The Out-look of Lou Wai Lou

Grandma's Home with Warm Decoration

Interested in Hangzhou Cuisine and unsatisfied with just eating? Hangzhou Cuisine Museum is waiting for your deeper discovery. Located in the south part of West Lake (3.5 km away from Prince Bay Park), Hangzhou Cuisine Museum has 10 exhibition areas displaying 20 history scenes from which you could learn about the development and inheritance of Hangzhou Cuisine. In Experience Zone, it is available to watch the cooking performance and cooking competition sometimes. If you are lucky enough to encounter some big days of Hangzhou Cuisine Museum, you can also make Hangzhou Cuisine by yourselves in Hanghzou Cuisine Museum. There are restaurants operated by Hangzhou Cuisine Museum, where you could try the most delicate Hangzhou dishes with perfect color, aroma, and flavor.

Best Hangzhou Food Tour: 2 Days Hangzhou Excellent Gourmet Tour >>

Delicate Dishes in the Restaurants of Hangzhou Cuisine Museum