YangZhou

This hotel restaurant originally served Cantonese fare but later switched to Huaiyang cuisine. Just like its counterparts around the world, the well-appointed room is done out in modern Chinese style. The kitchen is helmed by a formally trained young chef, who expresses his creative take on Huaiyang traditions in his "new three heads": mugwort lion's head pork balls, pig's head terrine with finger lime and fermented sour soup with deboned fish head.

This long-standing restaurant in Yangzhou enjoys a stellar reputation among foodies from near and far for its Huaiyang cuisine. It has moved many times over the decades, before settling in this nondescript alley in 2023. Home-style classics are its strong suit, such as blanched shredded dried tofu in a savoury sauce drizzled with sesame oil. The sautéed pork intestine is loaded with wok hei and the meat is tender while the sauce is mildly tart.