The owner of this Yunnan restaurant is not native to China’s far west. He was sent there as a zhiqing, or Rusticated Youth of China, one of many young city dwellers exiled to rural areas during the Cultural Revolution to be “educated from living in rural poverty.” One thing he did learn was authentic Yunnan cuisine.
The pan-fried goats’ cheese (an artisanal
product of the Bai and Sani minorities) is golden, crumbly and delicious and would give a decent
chevre a run for its money. Order purposefully, though – the fuwuyuan brought ours wrapped around
expensive truffle-like pine mushrooms, then tried to charge us RMB 168 for the pleasure.
Absolutely everyone here orders the signature of poached tilapia fish – it’s healthy, generously
portioned and served with two types of dipping sauce: one piquantly fermented, the other all ma and la. The lines between Yunnan and Sichuan cuisine can get a little fuzzy, which should be all the pretext you need to order koushui ji (mouth-picnicwatering chicken) – soft, cool and fabulously spicy. Bulk up on carbs with a portion of steamed pineapple sticky rice, a staple of the Dai people, and some of the best grains in town. If you’re a “side of fries” person, supersize your table with ganbian yangyu si, a pizza-proportioned cake of shredded potato fried up like Swiss rosti with a dusting of salt.
Location
Contact
No event here now.