Xin Rong Ji 新荣记 @ Hangzhou

They are fast becoming the Joel Robuchon of China, with every one of their branches getting the Michelin recognition. And this latest star in Hangzhou shines the brightest with the location.

Located in the west of Hangzhou and occupying about 10 sq.km, Xixi Wetland Park is the first National Wetland Park in China. With peaceful environment and beautiful waterscapes, it attracts lots of tourists from nearby Shanghai as a weekend getaway destination to be closer to nature. And nestled inside one of the enclaves around the wetland is Xin Rong Ji.

Taizhou cuisine wasn’t particularly well-regarded outside of its home city, a city of six million in Zhejiang, until Xin Rong Ji 新榮記 turns into arguably the most celebrated high-end chain in China with twelve Michelin stars in the latest edition of China guides. Founded by Zhang Yong 張勇 in 1995 as a humble casual eatery in Taizhou’s Linhai 臨海, they can now afford to spend for top locations, like this one in Hangzhou.

The Xin Rong Ji restaurants eschew advertising gimmicks, food fads, flashy cooking techniques and star chefs and just rely on very good ingredients that are cooked expertly and accurately. So I was expecting a lot after my experiences in Hong Kong and Shanghai.

餐前水果、杏仁饼、餐前小食 Fruits, Almond Crisps, Appetisers

Once we settled down and ordered our meal, the appetisers and other snacks were served. The strawberries were locally farmed and amazingly sweet.

The appetisers in these Chinese restaurants really needed to be upgraded to be more like the amuse bouche in French restaurants.

溏心皮蛋 风干辣椒 Century Egg with Pickled Jalapeño

First dish, a very simple appetiser of century egg with pickled jalapeño dressed with rose vinegar. There’s no rose in the vinegar, it was named so because of the slightly reddish colour in the 5 yo vinegar.

荠菜花胶黄鱼羹 Shephard’s Purse with Fish Maw and Yellow Croaker Soup

Taizhou cuisine emphasises the natural flavours of ingredients, so dishes are only sparingly seasoned with aromatics. The shepherd’s purse 荠菜 heralds in springtime. The soup simply let the sweetness of the yellow croaker and the texture of the fish maw to come through.

I wished they could put in more shepherd’s purse. I felt there was too little of it.

脆皮妙龄鸽 Crispy Skin Pigeon

Unlike most other roast pigeons that I had in Guangdong and Hong Kong, which were braised and then deep fried, the pigeon here was roasted in the oven and there wasn’t a single speck of extra fats under the skin. The 19-day young pigeon has been roasted beautifully, very juicy and tender. Marinated well, it was so great in taste I almost felt like licking my fingers when finished.

黄金脆带鱼 Pan Fried Belt Fish

When it was served, I could already see that it was good. The pan-fried belt fish was perfectly crispy and very light in the mouth. There was not a single drop of extra grease anywhere.

白灼望潮 Poached Webfoot Octopus

The quality of produce here is everything, with a bountiful selection of fresh seafood from East Sea shipped in every day used in dishes. The ink-filled webfoot octopus was one of the crunchiest I ever had, simply boiled and served with a specially concocted soy sauce.

奄仔蟹烧小土豆 Virgin Crab Stewed with Baby Potatoes

In many respects, Xin Rong Ji may be credited with being the first farm to table restaurant amongst higher end Chinese dining establishments, and this was demonstrated in this dish. The potatoes came from its own farm nearby and the crab was bred in nearby waterways.

奄仔蟹 Yanzhaixie is a female marsh crab that has not mated, and it was original found in Hong Kong and Macau. They managed to breed this and the best time to harvest them is March. Each crab was filled with creamy roe (the first time these crabs produce the roe as they sexually mature) and the soft-shell made them very good eats.

葱油川豆 Fava Bean with Scallion Soy Sauce

As we waited for the rest of the dishes to be prepared, a complementary dish was given to us. And it was not just some tidbits. The fave beans were cooked with a scallion soy sauce and each bean was packed with lots of flavours and the right bite.

杭椒竹笋 Sautéed Bamboo Shoots with Sheep Horn Peppers

Sheep horn peppers 羊角椒, also known as 杭椒 Hangzhou peppers, are an easily found capsicum variety that has little or no heat. It pairs very well with the winter bamboo shoots 冬笋, providing some bite to otherwise singular tasting shoots.

乡村咸饭 Village Savoury Claypot Rice

This next dish was a must-order than appeared at every table in the restaurant. The 五常大米 Wuchang rice was cooked in the claypot, leaving a nice layer of burnt rice on the bottom. The waitress said everyone came for that burnt rice for the smokey and crusty goodness.

The waitress took the pot away and tossed everything in the pot to reveal cabbage, bamboo shoots, Chinese sausages and baby taro. There’s also the fragrance of pork lard and soy sauce.

This “small” portion of the claypot rice was ¥198 (~SGD 40) and can feed 4-5 persons. There were plenty of fillings in the rice, but I felt it could do with more soy sauce.

鱼子酱拼臭豆腐 Stinky Tofu with Caviar

After course with the best CP value came the one with the least. Stinky tofu is a street food that would usually cost less than ¥10. The extra caviar added on the crispy tofu was ¥268, but it did not really enhanced the taste of the tofu. Such was the example of over-the-top crap these Michelin restaurants tried.

However the stinky tofu with the house made 豆瓣酱fermented bean sauce was really good. Next time I would just order the tofu without the caviar, which is a more reasonable ¥48.

餐后水果 、茉莉绿茶 Fruits, Jasmine Tea

I was so sorry that we were one of the last table in the restaurant and yet the kitchen had to prepare our freshly made desserts only now as we placed the order for them. As we waited, they pulled out some freshly made jasmine tea and giant blueberries, as well as another serving of almond crisps.

手剥鸡头米 杏汁蛋白 Almond Milk, Egg White, Gorgon Fruit

Gorgon fruit 芡实 is the dried kernel of a ripe seed of the prickly waterlily. It is locally known as “chicken head rice” 鸡头米 because the shell looked a chicken head before cracking it apart for the kernel. And when in season (during autumn), the fresh gorgon fruit is sort after as an ingredient in soup, stir-fry and desserts

A dense almond soup that was freshly made incorporated with a good proportion of egg white and gorgon fruits in there. A nice treat that was served warm, not too sweet and full of the nutty almond taste.

焦糖姜汁炖蛋 Caramelised Egg Custard with Ginger Juice

This came really late and I could see why it took more time. The ginger caramel whiffed through the air when the lid was opened. I was mistaken that there was meat in the egg custard, but it was actually walnuts. It really gave me the illusion of my homemade steamed egg if not for the ginger caramel.

The service was overall very good, with the staff attentive, managing well the pace for dishes to serve, as well as frequent changing of plates and pouring tea. I noticed in the review some had said the booking system was broken and the food crazily expensive. I was so thankful to the Manager in this outlet, Ms Han, for going all out to get me my table without a reservation after trying three hours on the phone trying to get through.

Expect to pay a premium for everything, but you don’t necessarily have to break the bank to afford a meal at Xin Rong Ji in China as there are many competitors out there waiting to dethrone them. Unusually for a medium-sized chain, though, there is no English website, no online menus and all reservations have to be made by phone. Still worth a trip if you can get a table.

Xin Rong Ji 新荣记 (Hangzhou)
余杭区天目山路西溪国家湿地公园西区大众休憩村5号
Tel : +86 571 8886 3777

Visited Mar 2024

Michelin Hangzhou Guide 1 Star 2023 (Inaugural)