Because of this hairy crab, I embarked on a journey to Yangzhou! A foodie photographer’s travelogue to Yangzhou, the renowned gastronomic capital famous for Huaiyang cuisine among China’s four major culinary cities. Beyond the fireworks of March, Yangzhou offers delightful surprises at any time of the year. It’s not just about the food; the city boasts the Slender West Lake, classic Chinese gardens such as the Ge Garden and He Garden, and the recently popular Grand Canal Museum. The city’s landscape, linked by the canal, provides entertainment, sightseeing, and gastronomic pleasures for every visitor. The pursuit of food is an absolute and timeless theme in Yangzhou. Arriving just in time for the hairy crab season, our itinerary, as the title suggests, begins with a culinary exploration. I invite you to experience and appreciate Yangzhou’s most iconic restaurants and morning tea culture, including Yangzhou Banquet, Qu Yuan Tea House, Fu Chun Tea House, and Ye Chun. The Slender West Lake Yangzhou Banquet is considered a must-visit representative of Huaiyang cuisine. We start with a steamer of large, beautiful, and fresh hairy crabs, delving into the essence of the food. Hairy crabs are almost a constant presence throughout Huaiyang cuisine and Yangzhou morning tea culture, with well-known dishes such as crab roe soup dumplings, crab roe lion’s head, and drunken crab, all featuring the rich and full-bodied hairy crab as the soul. Every grand feast in Yangzhou should be held at the renowned Yangzhou Banquet, truly representing the pinnacle of Huaiyang cuisine with its ingredients, skills, and presentation, holding a leading position in this global gastronomic city. If you visit Yangzhou, be sure to experience it, especially the Slender West Lake branch, with its unique location and high-quality service, an experience you deserve! This full table of dishes is absolutely worth it. The hairy crab, needless to say, is rich and flavorful, so aromatic that it sticks to your mouth. The marinated goose head is hearty and flavorful, perfect for leisurely conversation and enjoyment. Drunken shrimp, soft pouch, and river shrimp form a perfect combination of river delicacies, with traditional cooking methods reflecting the heritage of culture. The Eight Treasure Calabash Duck, with the most auspicious meaning, is in its best form in terms of shape, color, taste, and meaning, providing great satisfaction with every bite. This grand feast in Yangzhou truly lives up to its reputation! The Qu Yuan Tea House, which has a long queue every morning, is a must-visit. How can one come to Yangzhou and miss Qu Yuan? The extra-large salt merchant’s five-ingredient bun at Qu Yuan is exceptional, and the crab roe soup dumplings are in season. The small green vegetables in the emerald dumplings have always been to my liking because I love how the sweet green vegetables from Jiangnan are made into fillings for buns or dumplings and wonton skins, providing a refreshing beauty. The rice balls at Qu Yuan are also adorned with caviar, the golden osmanthus sweet dumplings are sweet and refreshing, and the double-yolk duck eggs from Gaoyou are never absent.
The Jin Jing Terrace by the Slender West Lake where we are seated is the second-ranked independent pavilion in Quyuan. Celebrities from all walks of life and business tycoons have tasted morning tea here. Leisurely and elegant garden, a portrayal of Yangzhou’s morning tea culture! In addition to Quyuan, the famous morning tea shops in Yangzhou also include Fuchun Tea House and Yechun Tea House. To check in every delicious morning tea in Yangzhou, we must try them all. A bowl of Wensi tofu soup with crab roe added as a buff makes me extremely fresh. A DuangDuang shaking Fuchun crab roe soup dumpling makes me poke it endlessly. A cup of fragrant Kuilongzhu tea makes me keep drinking. In the Fuchun Hall of Fuchun Tea House, feel the refreshments carefully prepared for us by Master Zhang, the intangible cultural heritage inheritor. The 138-year-history Fuchun Tea House is also a must-visit morning tea restaurant recommendation in Yangzhou. It’s worth recommending to you with many pictures. Pastries in the shape of little rabbits and pears in front of us are all newly created by the masters of Fuchun Tea House under the leadership of Master Zhang. It is said that in different stores of Fuchun Tea House, there will be such creative and uncommon pastries distributed, so there is a feeling of treasure hunting. Traditional appetizers like fried fish, shredded dried tofu, and pickled cucumbers are also carefully crafted by Fuchun. Just talking about it may not be able to describe it, but when we eat it, we will indeed have amazing taste and flavor. I hope you can come and experience it yourself. For lunch, we change to another Fuchun and come to the old store of Fuchun Tea House on Desheng Bridge, the place where Fuchun really started. Experience the Huaiyang cuisine of Fuchun Tea House. What amazes me in this meal is the crab roe lion’s head in a small bowl for each person. The whole bowl is filled with fragrant golden crab roe and fatty broth. The lion’s head with large pieces of visible crab roe embedded in it is even more tempting. I quickly scoop up a spoonful and can’t wait to put it in my mouth. Really, it is soft, smooth, fragrant, glutinous and melts in the mouth instantly. Only the fragrance remains in the mouth. This dish is extremely delicious. Traditional dishes like Yangzhou fried rice, fried fish slices in fermented glutinous rice wine sauce, shredded dried tofu cooked in thick soup, cured meat and drunken shrimp are all exquisitely presented and taste rich and profound. Truly, a century-old Fuchun makes delicious dishes and welcomes guests from all over the world. Awesome! There is also a heavyweight famous morning tea shop in Yangzhou, that is Yechun Tea House. Every time I come to Yangzhou, the Yechun Imperial Wharf Store is a must-visit. Here was the wharf where emperors of the Qing Dynasty boarded and disembarked. The Yechun Imperial Wharf Store is also favored by gourmets for its beautiful garden and unique location by the canal. In recent years, I have come to Yechun every year when I come to Yangzhou. I also witnessed Yechun’s continuous innovation on the basis of traditional Yangzhou morning tea and tried a new path integrating Cantonese morning tea elements. Judging from the full house of guests every day, it’s not difficult to see that Yechun’s choice is very successful.
The riverside private rooms are the perfect choice for enjoying the scenery and having morning tea. The utensils at Yechun restaurant are predominantly red, and the traditional small steamers are quite charming. Delicacies such as steamed buns and siu mai are smaller in size but when served in a full basket, they appear abundant and are ideal for sharing among family or friends. The restaurant also offers the option to invite a resident singer to perform impromptu melodies, adding a touch of flavor and elegance to the morning tea experience. This made our morning tea so enjoyable that we chose Yechun for lunch as well. A group of sunlight passing through the window lattices and shining on the dishes creates a warm and natural ambiance, proving once again that natural light is the most enchanting! The dishes at Yechun are visually appealing, delicious, and reasonably priced, making it a perfect spot for family or friends to gather. Sitting in the elevated pavilion by the Grand Canal at the Yudakou branch, basking in the sun while sipping tea and enjoying a meal is incredibly pleasant. The garden courtyard features the upcoming red of maple trees and the ongoing golden hues of ginkgo trees. Yangzhou’s autumn colors are blooming even in winter, adding a touch of romance!
Apart from the culinary delights, Yangzhou is also renowned for its beautiful scenery. Autumn arrives later here than in the north. The city of Yangzhou is currently in the midst of its most vibrant colors with ginkgo and maple trees. The breeze by the Slender West Lake is refreshing, and the towering trees near the Five Pavilion Bridge and White Pagoda present a colorful spectacle for visitors. The blue sky, clear waters, gray tiles, and white walls, along with the red bridges and waterfowl gliding by, form a picturesque scene of the Jiangnan region. If you enjoy boating, it is a must to embark from the south gate of Slender West Lake and experience the luxury of the former salt merchant mansions along the banks. Pass by the Red Bridge near Xu Garden, where the delicate and elegant Xiaojinshan is worth a short visit. Upon reboarding the boat, the view opens up to reveal the Five Pavilion Bridge and White Pagoda in the distance, with the Fishing Platform right beside you. This pavilion on the peninsula伸进湖面 is particularly photogenic for check-in photos. As you pass through the largest arch of the Five Pavilion Bridge, bask in the warmth of the sunlight on your skin. The final destination, Xi Chun Tai, and the renowned Twenty-Four Bridges often mentioned in ancient poems, are now in sight. This is not just an ordinary boat ride but an immersive journey back in time,对照ing the scenes described in ancient poems. To truly appreciate the charm of Slender West Lake, which has been celebrated by poets of the past, you must embark with poetry in mind.
The Daming Temple and Song Jia City by the Slender West Lake are also highly recommended for a visit. Daming Temple is where the renowned monk Jianzhen once practiced, and Ping Shan Hall within the temple was constructed during the tenure of the great literary figure Ouyang Xiu as the prefect of Yangzhou. Various scholars, including Su Shi, have visited and left their calligraphic marks. The Qiling Pagoda in the temple stands tall, offering a panoramic view of the entire Slender West Lake from its summit.
As a city with a millennium of history, Song Jia City has been transformed into a leisure park with intact city walls. The ginkgo avenue here is a must-visit spot for autumn appreciation in Yangzhou, spanning hundreds of meters and offering the purest essence of the season. Surrounded by water systems, you can also witness the crimson bald cypress and various waterfowl, making one envious of the vast green lung within the ancient city that Yangzhou residents enjoy. For those seeking to immerse in the autumnal atmosphere of the canal and the ancient city, a visit to Tianning Temple and Shi Kefa Memorial Hall is essential. This is where the oldest ginkgo tree in the city stands. Tianning Temple, once the imperial palace of the Qing Dynasty emperors in Yangzhou, boasts red walls and glazed tiles, with deep and layered courtyards, exuding grandeur. The gardens in Shi Kefa Memorial Hall are also exceptional, featuring multi-layered courtyards that invite a leisurely exploration. Speaking of gardens, the Ge Garden, one of the Four Great Gardens of China, is also in Yangzhou and should not be missed. This garden, famous for its bamboo, is particularly captivating for its Four Seasons Garden, where even the owner, who loves the evergreen bamboo, cannot resist the beauty of different colors in each season. The spring flowers are beautiful, and the autumn colors are unparalleled. Thus, beside the stacked rocks and artificial mountains in the eastern corner of the Four Seasons Garden, there are planted numerous red maple trees. In the setting sun, the Ge Garden is bathed in warm light that passes through the crimson maple leaves, casting light spots among the pavilions, creating a flickering play of light and shadow, and a strong sense of autumn. At this moment, one needs a short table, a set of tea utensils, and a pot of hot tea, to sit opposite a friend, chatting and laughing amidst the steaming aroma of tea. How does this scene feel? If we talk about more exquisite gardens, the He Garden is my favorite. Forget about the skyscrapers, the broken stone and blue forest, the floating lotus leaves and the moon, the setting sun and the rosy clouds, the He Garden, also known as ‘Ji Xiao Manor’, is the first garden of the late Qing Dynasty. It has been the filming location for many movies and TV series and is a popular spot for tourists who love traditional costumes to take photos. During my short visit, I managed to capture many beautiful men and women, truly a sight to behold. So, who says you can only visit Yangzhou in the misty rain of March? Yangzhou in winter is indeed full of autumn colors. Here, I find more colors I love and a poetic sense of scene. However, no matter how much I praise Yangzhou, it is not as good as you coming to see it for yourself. It’s a crisp autumn day with light breezes and clear skies, come to Yangzhou for a morning tea, or a table of Huaiyang cuisine, stroll leisurely, enjoy the scenery of Slender West Lake, gardens, ancient city, and alleys, appreciate the autumn scenery, how pleasant. Yangzhou is a great place, full of poetic charm, waiting for you.
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