China Fine Dining

[liuzhou]

A very interesting article by Fuchsia Dunlop on Lan Guijun's restaurant, "Yu Zhi Lan" in Chengdu, Sichuan.

 

Also on why China is "terra incognita" to most food lovers.

Edited August 24, 2014 by liuzhou (log)

[Duvel]

Excellent article, thanks !

[Anna N]

Thank you. Most interesting. So wish there were accompanying photos.

[liuzhou]

Thank you. Most interesting. So wish there were accompanying photos.

 

Next time I go I will take my camera! Might be a while though. I need to save up, first.

Edited August 24, 2014 by liuzhou (log)

[rotuts]

what would a restaurant meal like this cost ?

 

other 'average' but good food restaurants .

 

in a local paper they have a 'cheap eats' article from time to time.

 

smaller restaurants w no fuss but excellent food was what i was thinking for # 2, vs ***.

 

thanks

Edited August 24, 2014 by rotuts (log)

[liuzhou]

what would a restaurant meal like this cost ?

 

other 'average' but good food restaurants .

 

 

As the article says, "By Chengdu standards, dining at Yu Zhi Lan is extremely expensive"

 

My eating friend and I regularly eat out in good restaurants for around 200 to 300元. In this place I'd expect to pay up to 2,000.元.

Edited August 24, 2014 by liuzhou (log)

[dcarch]

As the article says, "By Chengdu standards, dining at Yu Zhi Lan is extremely expensive"

 

My eating friend and I regularly eat out in good restaurants for around 200 to 300元. In this place I'd expect to pay up to 2,000.元.

 

Wine, as I understand, is not a typical part of meals.

 

Do they have a wine list?

 

dcarch

[liuzhou]

I don' t know. I would be surprised, though. As you rightly surmise, wine is not a usual dinner accompaniment in China. 

[takadi]

To comment on the article, many uses of the word "international", including here, is usually code for "western". High end "haute" cuisine has always existed in China, it's just that they don't fit what the western elite defines as "high end" . The fact that the only two cities in China to even make a blip on the map are the former colonies of Macau and Hong Kong and of all the restaurants in those cities, the French one makes the list, says everything
 

[liuzhou]

To comment on the article, many uses of the word "international", including here, is usually code for "western". High end "haute" cuisine has always existed in China, it's just that they don't fit what the western elite defines as "high end" . The fact that the only two cities in China to even make a blip on the map are the former colonies of Macau and Hong Kong and of all the restaurants in those cities, the French one makes the list, says everything

 

 

A point she makes much more eloquently.

[takadi]

Except I think she tries to convince herself that this isn't an attempt at "kowtowing" to more western conventions...but in fact that's why it's even worth mentioning in in the first place. Why make comparisons to the French Laundry if this isn't a step in that direction? It's more or less the same high-end food that has been made in China for millenia but through a lens more palatable to the western elite....or rather, a new chinese elite that is becoming more westernized and expecting more western presentation

Edited August 24, 2014 by takadi (log)

[Anna N]

Except I think she tries to convince herself that this isn't an attempt at "kowtowing" to more western conventions...but in fact that's why it's even worth mentioning in in the first place. Why make comparisons to the French Laundry if this isn't a step in that direction? It's more or less the same high-end food that has been made in China for millenia but through a lens more palatable to the western elite....or rather, a new chinese elite that is becoming more westernized and expecting more western presentation

Except I think she tries to convince herself that this isn't an attempt at "kowtowing" to more western conventions...but in fact that's why it's even worth mentioning in in the first place. Why make comparisons to the French Laundry if this isn't a step in that direction? It's more or less the same high-end food that has been made in China for millenia but through a lens more palatable to the western elite....or rather, a new chinese elite that is becoming more westernized and expecting more western presentation

We all need context from which to judge the unfamiliar. I don't think that equates to kowtowing. I cannot grasp Chinese haute cuisine in a vacuum. Mention of the French Laundry establishes the context for me. YMMV