Jin Sha Unveils a Culinary Journey through the Seasons at Four Seasons Hotel Hangzhou at West Lake

In celebration of Mid-Autumn Festival, one of China’s most important holidays, Chef Wang Yong and his team invite guests to an exquisite seasonal feast at Jin Sha at Four Seasons Hotel Hangzhou at West Lake, where they will embark on a gastronomic journey inspired by the legendary cuisine of the Yangtze River Delta. Centred around the cuisine of Jiangsu and Zhejiang, the culinary journey that guests will embark on starts right at their feet – at Hangzhou’s West Lake. The menu goes on to pay homage to other centres of culinary delight clustered around the Yangtze River Delta: Shaoxing, Xiaoshan, Suzhou, Wenzhou, Taizhou, and Ningbo, to mention a few. As much as the menu is a journey through history, it is also one of geography, introducing delicacies from the region’s many lakes, forests and mountains as well as the sea. The clever inclusion of ingredients originating in other parts of China results in a menu extraordinary in its geographic and cultural reach, one capable of further enhancing the already rich traditions of Jiangsu and Zhejiang cuisine and finding a perfect balance between heritage and innovation.

The creative direction behind each of the banquet’s ten dishes is drawn from the concepts of “belonging” and “locality.” It integrates the importance of seasonality in ancient Chinese life and food and uses the change of seasons, in this case, from summer to fall, as a backdrop from which Chef Wang and his team draw both inspiration and ingredients. Watershield from West Lake, dried rice dregs from Shaoxing, white radish from Xiaoshan – all these ingredients native to Jiangnan are skillfully transformed into unique delicacies by Chef Wang and his team. Each dish is both a memory of summer and a taste of autumn days ahead, and every offering is capable of awakening the senses to the beauty of the four seasons and their transformations.

Appetizers

• West Lake Watershield and Sea Urchin Jelly with Lotus Root and Pine Oil - Watershield is a local specialty of Jiangnan, found growing throughout West Lake. To this, Chef Wang adds sea urchin, lotus root, lotus root mousse, and pine oil for an uncommonly smooth taste, with flashes of sweetness from the sea urchin and tantalizing aromas from the pine oil. Embellished with purple Bodinier’s beautyberries, the dish paints an elegant picture bursting with seasonal beauty.
• Yellow Wine Marinated Geoduck Clam - Dishes made with rice dregs have long been considered summer delicacies in Jiangsu and Zhejiang. In the region of Shaoxing, rice dregs are divided into two categories, dry and wet, and this particular dish makes use of dry rice dregs and their associated culinary techniques. Fermented rice dregs are strained and then placed on top of the ingredients, allowing a natural infusion of their aroma. The geoduck clam is then slow-cooked at a low temperature to maintain its consistency, and the rice dregs further enhance the dish’s umami flavour.
• Double-Boiled Aged Preserved Vegetable Soup with River Shrimp - Xiaoshan’s white radishes come in both fresh and aged varieties, and this dish uses the one-year-aged variety for freshness and the two-year-aged variety for a rich aroma and a touch of sourness. Chef Wang makes a paste from river shrimp, into which he carefully stuffs the white radish, giving this clear soup an amazingly full and satisfying umami flavour.  

Main Courses

• Steamed Pumpkin Blossom Stuffed with Pork, Water Chestnut, Hairy Crab Meat, Dried Scallop, and Yellow Wine Vinasse Sauce - The pumpkin’s fresh flowers are an especially delicious summer treat. At first glance, this dish seems to use a pickling method commonly seen in the north of China, but in fact it finds its inspiration in a dish enjoyed in Suzhou in the summer that features an enticing combination of diced bamboo shoots, scallops, mushrooms and pork belly. Chef Wang’s skillful hands remaster this traditional recipe by stuffing a summer pumpkin blossom with a tantalizing mix of minced pork belly, hairy crab meat, and scallops. A pickled sauce made from yellow wine provides both visual harmony and gustatory perfection.
• Pancake Rolled with Crisp Fritter, Bombay Duck, Sea Sedge, Lettuce and Caviar - Inspired by a friend’s joking suggestion, Chef Wang began to seriously contemplate the compatibility of caviar and crisp fritters. Jin Sha serves an upgraded version of this popular snack, adding crispy Bombay duck, sea sedge in the style of Zhejiang and Jiangsu, and caviar. The ingredients offer a delightful combination of saltiness and crispness in each bite, with the hot sauce adding an extra zing to the delicate taste.
• Crispy Pigeon Leg Stuffed with Fish Maw and Ganba Mushroom - The ganba mushroom, one of Yunnan’s rare edible wild varieties, is the king of taste. Chef Wang stir-fries this delicacy with fish maw before stuffing the fragrant mixture into a browned-to-perfection pigeon leg. With each bite, the ganba mushrooms’ rich aroma is released, and the fish maw adds just the right amount of juiciness. The finishing touch is a sprinkle of sansho pepper, one of Japan’s most iconic spices, which adds another layer of taste and aroma to a dish already bursting with flavour.
• Braised Fish Skin with Ginger and Broccoli - Fish skin is traditionally harvested from costly groupers weighing between 300 and 400 kilograms. Chef Wang’s method of cooking with fish skin draws its inspiration from the popular southern Fujian dish of ginger duck and uses a method of reduction before pan frying that gives the skin a gelatinous texture without greasiness. Minced ginger is added between the layers of the skin, and it is topped with fried ginger slices for a taste that fills the senses with each bite.
• Fried Rice with Chanterelle Mushroom, Chicken, Mashed Ginger, and Scallion Oil - For this dish, Chef Wang has chosen both fresh chanterelle and termite mushrooms. Golden-hued chanterelles introduce their special texture, and termite mushrooms bring freshness and sweetness to the mix. Carefully selected capons from Hangzhou are prepared by a steaming method. Slices of the steamed chicken are placed atop the cooking rice, where they remain until the rice is fully cooked. In the finished dish, the mushrooms, chicken fat, and grated ginger come together in a tour de force of taste and aroma.

Desserts

• Crystalline Pineapple Cake with Mung Bean - For Chef Wang, pineapple is the fruit that best represents the tastes of summer. In this dish, he first boils down the pineapple to a thick sauce. Taking inspiration from the traditional mung bean cakes enjoyed across Jiangnan, the chef uses arrowroot flour to create a semi-translucent gelatinous skin in which he wraps the pineapple sauce.
• Birds Nest Pineapple Dew with Chinese Liquor - A last-minute addition by Chef Wang, this dessert’s lightly sweet and sour tastes of pineapple blend perfectly with the refreshing moistness of the bird’s nest, and the addition of maotai liquor further enhances the richness of the dish.

This remarkable culinary experience, crafted by Chef Wang Yong and his team, offers an unforgettable journey through Jiangsu and Zhejiang’s rich culinary heritage. Join in the experience this Mid-Autumn Festival for an evening of tradition, innovation, and exceptional flavour.

About Jin Sha

Jin Sha at Four Seasons Hotel Hangzhou at West Lake, designed in a traditional Song dynasty architectural style, features a stunning landscaped garden. In addition to the main dining hall, there are eleven private dining rooms furnished in classical Chinese style amid ponds and manicured gardens. Jin Sha offers outstanding traditional Zhejiang flavours masterfully prepared by Chef Wang Yong. With unbounded passion and vision, he makes use of the finest local and seasonal ingredients to present a modern culinary interpretation of authentic Zhejiang flavours.

The Michelin Guide, an internationally recognized food and beverage evaluation, released its first edition in Hangzhou in 2023. Jin Sha earned one Michelin star and successfully retained this honour in 2024. Jin Sha has received three diamonds from the Black Pearl Restaurant Guide for seven consecutive years, beginning in 2018. In 2023, it was ranked #59 on the 51-100 list of Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants. It has also consistently achieved outstanding results and ranked high on the Trip.com Global Elite Restaurant List, receiving the prestigious "Black Diamond" honour in 2021 and winning it for three consecutive years since 2022.