There is an old saying in China, one should eat well in breakfast, eat enough in lunch and eat less in supper. Though the Cantonese having morning tea becomes a culture, but having morning tea in Yangzhou is really imperial-like experience.
Huaiyang cuisine originates from Yangzhou and already has a history dating back 2000 years ago. Great taste and beautiful color, that’s why during emperor Qian Long southern inspection tours, the emperor stayed here on six occasions.
For Yangzhou morning tea, we should hold a dinner attitude, different from Cantonese early morning tea. Meat dishes and pickled vegetables are followed by the traditional breakfast, soup steamed buns, five-dice steamed buns, smashed bean bun, shao-mai, multiple layer oil cake, plain noodle……, it likes a table banquet, people can not help wolf down, after the breakfast, they are so full they can hardly move.
At first glance, the food may be completely ordinary, but the recipe’s full details is extremely exquisite. Steam Bun Stuffed with Juicy Crab Spawn & Pork display the essence of Yangzhou morning tea. The good soup steamed buns skin is so thin that it looks like paper, the broth flow from soup steamed buns like water rushing down a stream, fresh crab spawn, lift soup steamed buns directly and see the crab soup inside rolling. As we eat, we first open the window, mindfully, then drink the soup. After we suck the broth, we start to eat slowly bread crust and minced meat. The food on the table is seasonal, and often the main attraction is hairy crabs, which are at their largest and richest with roe during autumn.
Mentioned QuYuan Teahouse located in the Yangzhou guesthouse, almost no one do not know.
QuYuan was originally the residence for salt merchants, Emperor Qianlong to Yangzhou four times to pay a visit to here, Garden name was given by Emperor Qianlong.
Due to historic reasons, pavilion of mist and rain, CongGui pavilion and ChengBi Tower, the only three remaining of QuYuan buildings.
QuYuan has the functions of Western restaurant, coffeehouse, tea house and so on today, people taste the exquisite Huaiyang Cuisine in QuYuan restaurant and amaze Yangzhou chefs with their excellent cooking skills.
QuYuan tea house has a long history of nearly 200 years, and is the first Huaiyang Cuisine and Reserve Tasting restaurant in Yangzhou, the restaurant, which specializes in Huaiyang’s breakfast, luncheon and supper, cooks the most traditional Huaiyang Cuisine, continuously explores and reappears Huaiyang classic dishes in memory.
Almost all breakfast can be served in 10 minutes, let a person be salivating. We order a set meal, when we wait for Chinese dim sum to arrive, let’s try bean curd strips first. Steamed bean curd strips and cooking bean curd strips are two supreme dried bean curd. Each kind of bean curd strips has a different function, cooking bean curd strips has a stronger flavour and eaten as side dish, steamed bean curd strips is bland in taste and eaten as a snack.
We go and join boat banquets morning tea prevailed in local waters of Yangzhou, the boat rides from the east dike pier of Slender West Lake, passes through some well-known scenic spots in Slender West Lake, goes back to the east dike pier of Slender West Lake, about 1 hour trip. The custom-made breakfast comes from nearby hundred-year-old store Yechun, the waiter delivers the steaming breakfast on board. The boat moves through the water, people is walking in a picture, beautiful scenery, delicious food, beautiful woman, give pleasure to the beholder, eating breakfast here can be a feast for the eyes as well as the tastebuds.
Our breakfast will be over once we have finished our tea. There is good tea in Yangzhou, the tea is called “Lvyangchun”, corresponding with the best colour, the most beautiful plant and the most beautiful season in Slender West Lake.