I Went to China’s Capital of Bad Food??

I've been living and vlogging here in China for over 10 years now, and if there's one thing I've learned, it's nothing sparks a friendly debate quite like food. Take tofu pudding for example. Should it be sweet, salty or spicy? Trust me, Chinese netizens have a lot to say on that topic. Or the good old, which region of China truly is spiciest? Not to mention, which region in China has the best barbecue? These are debates I have had with friends around a dinner table for hours on end. And that's because when it comes to food here in China, people have very, very strong opinions. But one thing I thought we could all universally agree on is that Hangzhou is a food desert. I mean, sure, it's beautiful. I'm here in Hangzhou now. It is such a gorgeous city. And in my opinion, it's one of the most livable cities in China. But when it comes to the food, the general consensus seems to be it kind of sucks. But a conversation I had recently with one of my most knowledgeable foodie friends, Yu Jia, aka the official translator of Fuchsia Dunlop's cookbooks into Chinese, has me rethinking everything I thought I knew about Hangzhou cuisine. I know Hangzhou has a reputation of a food desert. I'm not willing to see that. Maybe the reason that it's called a desert is because it's not like Chengdu. You can't really, you know, have a very bad experience when you come here with no plan and just casually eat. But if it's called a desert, you have to really look for, really work hard to look for an oasis. So today with Yu Jia's help, I'm on the hunt for the oasis in the desert that is the Hangzhou food scene. Hangzhou is a meeting point of the north and the south. Really the noodles are good there. Pianchuan. It's a noodle you'll see advertised everywhere here in Hangzhou. It's definitely not hard to find, but we're visiting Yu Jia's go-to spot right here. I will be very, very honest. I am here to try, but I don't have an agenda. And I'd also like to say a big thank you to the man behind the camera, my videographer for today. Yay! Mask it up. Thank you for being here. But I guess old habits die hard, guys. I literally immediately switched to filming myself. Sorry, Dierk. It's made from tofu. Ah, tofu. Yeah. But then why do they call it goose? I don't know. Wow, check this out. So you can see it's quite layered there. You can definitely see that it's tofu. You know what, it actually smells like roast goose. I've had a lot of roast goose in my time. It's very close. The texture is still a bit tofu-y, but what I like is it's got this kind of a crispy outer layer which reminds me of the goose skin. And the flavor, it's got that sweet and salty flavor profile that you would get with goose. This is great. If you're a vegetarian or vegan and you're intrigued to know what roast goose tastes like, I feel like you should try this. As you guys already know by now, Dierk's a big tofu guy and this got his thumbs up, especially when drenched in chili oil. Something you should know about Dierk is he likes chili oil with everything. Especially with vegetarian roast goose. Okay, Hangzhou, we're off to a good start. Okay, now for the dish I came here for, the noodles. Big bowl of noodles. I don't really know what to expect here. Yujia mentioned something about North meets South here in Hangzhou. During Song dynasty, the capital came from the North to the South. Northern style noodle to Hangzhou. So these are wheat noodles. Try the broth first. It's kind of a bit, it's salty and pickly. And a bit like corn. It's got a pickly... Dierk is laughing behind the camera, what are you laughing at? I'm laughing at your pickly. I need to confirm whether it's pickly or not. You know how this smells a little bit? It smells like a dish from my hometown called green coal. Please do me one favour. Put this one picture of my home dish here right now. Because this is exactly how green coal tastes. I want to be honest here. Because yes, I'm here to try and prove that Hangzhou isn't a food desert. But this also isn't my favourite bowl of noodles I've had. I think just because there's no one flavour that's like sticking out to me. Except for that pickled mustard root or pickled cabbage. I'm not sure exactly what this is. One thing's for sure, Dierk is loving it. To be honest, people from my hometown, if they come to Hangzhou and they have this dish, amazing. It's cabbage flavour. And it's the cabbage that my hometown is known for. But we serve it not in like a noodle dish. We serve it with pinkle. Hello from the future. I thought I would pause this video right here because I have a very unique opportunity to actually try green coal and pinkle for myself because literally 24 hours ago, I arrived in Berlin. So I thought I would add this segment to the video. It's also the reason why this video is a few days late because I wanted to film this and add it to the video before sending it out. So as you watch this video, literally yesterday I arrived in Berlin and wow, was it a first day. I did so many things, include buy the bike I'm currently riding. I would like you guys to all meet the new woman in my life, Peggy Su. I love her very much. It's been only a few hours, but she handles great. So what's her name? Peggy Su. But like, how did you come up with this? It was actually Dierk's parents that came up with the name. This is not sponsored. I bought this bike and I've absolutely specced it out. But the brand is Pegasus. So your mom said, oh, why not Peggy? And then your dad said, why not Peggy Su? So now it's Peggy Su. And yeah, I've made some mods. This is probably going to be my favorite feature. I have added a rear vision mirror for my bike so I can see when there are cars or other bikes coming. To see whether I'm still behind you, protecting you. I use it a lot. From the cars. And I don't know why I don't see more people doing this. Originally, I wanted to get both sides, but the family vetoed. They said. Here in Deutschland, Rechtsverkehr. You only need to have a look on your left side. So I'm still figuring out whether I need another one or not. Another modification. Foam seat. Memory foam seat. Because, oh my gosh, the seat was so hard. So now it's nice and soft. It's very, very soft, especially if you compare this to my seat. Look at Dierk's seat. It's so small and hard. Can I show them your pants? My pants? Of course. Pros and cons to each bike. The pros of Dierk's is it's very fast, but the con is he really only has one potential outfit when he wears it, which is his Pampers pants, which is basically these bike pants with this with this very nice. It's got some cushioning. It's nice and soft. Whereas I can wear whatever I want because I have Peggy Sue. My first bite of food here was a Franzbrötchen, my favorite pastry with basically cinnamon. Yeah, it's so good. It's great. It's the best I had for lunch. Obviously, Döner Berlin is arguably or not even arguably. It's like Döner capital. So good. And of course, Grünkohl, the dish that Dierk thought the Hangzhou noodles reminded him of. The reason why I'm putting this segment into this video right now is to show you guys what actually Grünkohl tastes like. I have to say thank you for putting this in. Yeah, I mean, yeah, it's a specialty from my hometown. I really appreciate you promoting the region. And the first thing that I found interesting is you kept saying that it tastes like cabbage, cabbage, cabbage. But yeah, this is kale. Yeah, it's kale. So it's true. Yeah. So it's basically like a kale stew. You start with putting the sausage inside with this magic paste that you find here in Berlin called Schmalz. Yeah, it's made from the fat of the pig. And then basically you add lots of kale. Yes. And I'm intrigued to see. As I said before, it's a traditional dish from my hometown or my home area. How does it smell? Riecht sehr gut. I like that it brings a bit of smokiness from the sausage. Yes. Pinkel. Yes. So pinkel is just a kind of sausage. Pinkel is a sausage. Yeah, it's I think usually it's sometimes I need to check with my mother. My mother is sitting on the couch. Like geräuchert. Yeah, like smoked. How do you eat Grünkohl? Yeah, easy here. Warte, ich zeig dir. Bisschen Grünkohl. Sieht gut aus, ne? Ja. Das ist der Pinkel. Die Wurst. Ja. I like it. Is gut? Yeah, I like it. It tastes very different to what we had in Hong Kong. Oh, really? Yeah. For me, it's very similar. It's kale. It's smoky, sour, zesty kale. This is also very important. Spicy mustard. Die Wurst. Bisschen Senf drauf. Guck. Pinkel. It's like smoky sausage. Yeah, very good. Actually, I would love this with rice. Mit Reis? Oder? Mit Kartoffeln. Mit Kartoffeln? Oh! Have you seen the facial expression? The reaction of your mother was like, absolutely not. What are you saying? That's why we have the potatoes here. Guys, I have arrived in Germany. And then you mix it with the Grünkohl. Gut, ne? Schmeckt. It's also very nice. Does not need to be rice. It can also be Kartoffel. I was also nervous to try it because it's a dish in Hangzhou that I didn't love. And you said it reminded you of this dish. And I'm trying it with your mother sitting right in front of me seeing what I think of it. So I have to be very careful. But I have to truly say, hand on heart, this is really, really good. Hands down, banger dish. Thumbs up. The Hangzhou dish, for me, lacked a little bit of any one specific flavor. I think if you brought a bit of that smokiness into that Hangzhou noodle, it would work better for me. But from what I understand from my friends in Hangzhou and people who like this dish, they enjoy the delicate nature of it. And maybe it's just not my thing, but... For me, it's a 10 out of 10. So this is actually Dirk's first time coming to Hangzhou. Any first impressions? It has this green vibe, you know? Like there's a lot of trees. It's a very nice pathway that we're now on. It's like right next to the river. And you can see left and right, trees everywhere. I feel like green is definitely a color I associate with Hangzhou, especially because you've also got Longjing tea here. And if you ever go to the Longjing tea fields, it's like fluorescent green. And yesterday I saw the... What is it called again? The West Lake? Yeah. Man, amazing. And on the banks of West Lake, you have a lot of very interesting things to see. Most notably, I have never seen such tame squirrels. Look at him. Look, he's just grabbing on by his little toes. And they have these sticks here. These little selfie sticks with little snacks on the end. And they just beat him. Make the jump. From the West Lake to West Lake Sour Fish, it's time for another dish you'll see restaurants selling everywhere here. But the restaurants around the West Lake just ruined its reputation. A lot of them taste very bad. If you overuse the vinegar, it will be over sour. I have a place to recommend, it's the Bao Zhong Bao. It's really a very old style Hangzhou restaurant where old foodies go there. You'll meet a lot of old people. Hello. This is very good. I have to say, I mean, you mentioned before that Hangzhou is kind of a food desert, right? But I have to say, for a food desert, for a restaurant having like three Michelin stars in 23, 24, 25, I mean, that's a statement, right? We can see said fish in the window. So I guess, you know, it's fresh. At this restaurant, they swap the traditional grass carp for ziyu. It's a fish prized for its cleaner, more delicate flavor. It's also worth noting that despite the name of this dish, Westlake Vinegar Fish, the fish actually is not from Westlake itself. Commercial fishing has long been prohibited here, so the dish keeps its name as a nod to its birthplace. Oh, my God. It looks really good. As soon as it arrives on the table, it has a very strong sour, like vinegary smell. It's vinegar, right? Vinegar. Yeah, you can really smell that. Oh, it has my mouth watering. And I think, is that garlic? I think they also put garlic on top, right? But just try it a bit. It's ginger and it's very spicy. Mm, that's good. And so meaty. I just bit into this bit of meat and I just, no bones, just bite marks into it. It has so little taste of its own, that fish. It almost reminds me a bit of sashimi. And that sauce, it's somehow vinegary, slightly sweet and gingery all at the same time. It's the perfect sauce because you don't really get sick of it. It's not too sweet that you max out at a certain point. It's not too sour that you max out at a certain point. It's the perfect balance of everything. There's so much nice-looking sauce. I feel like you should mix it with a little bit of rice. What do you think? Oh, you know what? I think that must go well. I feel like you're really, really right here. I'm obsessed. This is what I've come in Hangzhou for. This dish is freaking so good. 10 out of 10 would come again. Hangzhou is not a food desert, even just for this dish. For snacks, I have this really good place called Huixin Xiaochidian. It's a nice place for some dumplings. And also you see what they have, they have chow mein. Should we get some chow mein? Wack bang, yeah. Did you just say wack bang? And I do feel like Hangzhou, what it does really well is the aesthetic. Like the coffee stores here are so beautiful. The streets are gorgeous, tree-lined. It's a very aesthetically pleasing city. I don't think I've seen a snack shop, like a wonton shop, this pretty. If I would ever open a wonton store in Berlin, for example, I would go for this kind of a design. It's amazing. And also, did you see the view? Like on the other side, you can watch people outside. You know, a little bit of hundun, a little bit of people watching is perfect. It's the perfect activity for 2 p.m. on a Thursday. So we've gone for two things. First, the salted egg wontons that they're famous for. They look amazing. Fat. And also some chow mein, because Derek's in his chow mein era, guys. Look at these cuties. I think I want to have mine with vinegar. Okay. Do you want some vinegar? I already have prepared my own signature. And I've never had a wonton quite like this before. As well as that soft, delicate pork, you've also got salted egg inside, which adds this extra creamy dimension. And it's crumbly. And it's kind of the same egg that you find in a mooncake. Now let's try the chow mein. That's the beauty of chow mein. You grab them by the neck, like a kitten. Oh my God. And then you dip it in the oil. That's good. Look how gorgeous and thin the wrapper is there. To be honest, I like these chow mein. I like that even better than that. Me too. Super rich. It goes really well with vinegar, I have to say. Also with my chili sauce. You want to try one with my chili sauce? That is good. Yeah? You just need a few ingredients. All you need is just a little bit of chili oil. You have a little bit of garlic on top. Finishing touch is soy sauce. And that's it. I saw many people having these noodles. They look like just plain noodles. Oh, what kind? Can I see? Don't even pretend you can make that. Mien. Oh, you got tong you ban mien. And so what I'm going to do, I'm going to have my special sauce and then I'm going to pour it over and have them. You'll find this noodle a lot in this region. It's scallion oil tossed noodles. And first we're just going to try it as is. Very mild. I like that every noodle has like a nice glaze on the outside from the oil. So it's quite a nice savory kind of thing. But I do think that it's going to taste really good with that chili oil. Yeah? Really good. You did good. One thing that Yujia really, really encouraged me to get when we come to Hangzhou are the lotus seeds. I've tasted my sweetest lotus seeds in Hangzhou. The fresh lotus seeds. I don't think I've ever had a fresh lotus seed before. I think it's Hangzhou people's sunflower seeds. This is how you eat it. This is the key ingredient. Oh, cool. Okay, okay. What a cool little portable snack. You just have the lotus head and then you just kind of get your fingers in there and you break it open. And then you have this, which you need to peel one more layer off. Looks like that inside. I thought they would be bitter for some reason, but they're not bitter at all. They're very mild. Almost a little bit creamy. They don't have too much of a taste. Maybe slightly salty. Also, this reminds me of the super hero that looks like a lotus guy, no? You know him? Yeah, yeah. And his nose is basically this. Smells like grass. But I was like, I always admire how, like, you find so many ways to describe it. But for me, it's like, there's no taste. There's nothing. It's just a plain seed. Yeah, it's delicate. There's no taste. I don't know what to say. Like, I'm a little bit overwhelmed, but yeah. Overwhelmed? It's nice. You're underwhelmed, I think. Underwhelmed, yeah. My parents also got to try this lotus seed for the first time in Kunming recently. So I thought I'd get them to weigh in on its taste too. It's nothing but with nuance. That's what I said, right? Dad mostly just chewed and looked into space with some final touching thoughts. Thank you. Anyway, stay tuned for our epic Yunnan series coming soon. For now, we're off to our last stop on today's Hangzhou is not a food desert food adventure, and we're about to try a Hangzhou classic, but with a twist. We're having the fried stinky tofu the city is famous for, but we're also gonna try it raw. Oh. Yeah, it definitely has that funk to it. So this is raw stinky tofu. And I've been instructed to pair it with this very garlicky soy dipping sauce. The breath of deliciousness. It's great. I like it. The sauce is amazing. It's so funny with stinky tofu that the smell that you get doesn't exactly translate to the taste that you get. You can taste the funkiness, but I'd say it's more akin to the cheesiness, like, you know, that age cheesy kind of vibe. If you like the aftertaste, you call it, right? If you do like this, you can get the taste of what it smells but if you just chew it and you eat it, it's quite neutral. I guess that's also why you need the sauce. Now let's try the classic version. It's the same as the tofu we've just had, but just deep fried. And this time we pair it with this sour, more acidic glaze and zesty chili sauce. You can almost eat it like chicken nuggets from McDonald's. That's how I'm seeing it. This is like my chicken nugget and this is my sweet and sour sauce. I like that this one, you've got that crispy outside, soft inside and a bit of saltiness. I really like the bit of chili in there. Also this black sauce is a bit on the sour or acidic side. So it's kind of bringing together a little bit more flavor elements. The only thing that I haven't actively enjoyed today were the noodles and you loved those. So I'm trying to think in the conclusion to this video, is Hangzhou a food desert or not? Obviously we've only been to four or five places. So I mean, cannot make a definitive answer but I really enjoyed everything. Number one for me would definitely be that fish. One of the best fish dishes I think I've had. Number two for me would be this and number three I think would be the roast, the fake roast goose. That was so fun and special. For me, number one is definitely, and I'm surprised, these noodles that we had in the beginning because it gave me childhood vibes. Number two is my own dish, my own creation, the duck noodles. They were really good. Then if I need a number three, I would go for this beauty here. What my recommendation is, put your expected vaccine low or rare and just enjoy the trip. If you go there thinking it's gonna be a food desert and you already have a low base of expectations, it can only go up from there. Hangzhou is not a food desert. If you'd like to experience China with Yu Jia, she's actually gonna be hosting one of my group tours in January next year. You can grab a spot on that tour at the link in my bio. But as always, thank you for watching. Don't forget to like, comment and subscribe and make sure you're following Yu Jia on her platforms as well. See you next time. Goodbye from Hangzhou but I'm actually in Chengdu. Bye.