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November 24, 2016

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Home » City specials » Hangzhou

Eateries where classic breakfast is still on the menu

IN Marcel Proust’s epic “In Search of Lost Time” a piece of Madeleine cake dipped in tea inspires a torrent of involuntary memory for the novel’s narrator.

Replace this food combo with youtiao (fried dough sticks) dipped in doujiang (soy bean milk), and many Chinese will likely be carried away by similar reveries of the past.

Decades ago, when the country’s economy was just starting to build steam, fried youtiao and refreshing doujiang were sold by street vendors across China. The sight of a pan of bubbling oil and the scent of deep-fried flour was almost always guaranteed to draw a hungry crowd.

Before everyone’s eyes were glued to their smartphones, the skillful hands of these snack purveyors passed for a morning’s entertainment. Often vendors would work in pairs, with one kneading, rolling, twisting and cutting dough while another handled the frying and plucked each golden stick from the bubbling oil at just the right moment.

A complete breakfast included not just a hot, crispy youtiao, but also a fresh shaobing (seasame seed cake) with some doujiang to wash it down. Such simple meals were enough to warm the heart and the stomach at the start of a busy day.

Today though, these traditional vendors are becoming harder and harder to find. There are many reasons for this, one of them being sheer economics. For many, there’s just not enough money to be made from selling these simple, low-margin items.

In Hangzhou, Ye Jun and his wife Jiang Wenxian are among the few who still persist in the classic breakfast trade. Their store, Youbu Soy Bean Milk on Chenghuang Pailou Lane, has been running for 23 years.

“Many things have changed during the past 20 years,” said Ye, who added that his first orders could come as early as 4am.

“Seemingly people are lazier today, except us,” he said.

Ye, Jiang and their family get up at 2:30am every morning to prepare for work. Ye makes youtiao, his wife makes doujiang, and their parents and other relatives make wontons, banmian (noodles served with soy sauce), and fried zongzi (fried rice pudding).

Customers usually start pouring in around 7am and the family works steadily into the afternoon.

Ye believes he makes about 1,000 youtiao each day. His right hand bears the mark of his trade; it’s darker and more callused than the left through years of exposure to oil and smoke.

On a typical work day, the eatery also sells around 500 bowls of doujiang, 500 shaobing, and over 100 orders of rice puddings. On weekends, these numbers could be much higher.

During peak hours, the shop is packed with people. But no matter how crowded things get, Jiang shuffles through the throng with ease as she serves her customers.

“Whose sweet milk?” she calls out,

“Here,” a customer responds, drawing Jiang with a ladle of milk and a bowl of sugar.

The couple learned the skills of their trade in their native Youbu Town. Nestled in Lanxi, a city in Zhejiang Province, the town is known for its morning tea culture. Even today in Lanxi, it’s not uncommon to see crowds of older residents filling popular breakfast spots.

But the decline of youtiao establishments in Hangzhou has been a blessing for Ye and his family. They now enjoy a larger share of the market, and some of their customers drive in from the suburbs just for a taste of this familiar morning tradition.

There are still a few other stalwarts clinging to the Chinese breakfast trade around the city. Here’s a look at some of the places worth trying.

Youbu Soy Bean Milk

Youtiao, doujiang, and fried zongzi are highly recommended. The youtiao are best eaten warm and fresh.

Address: 108 Chenghuang Pailou Lane

Baomei Snack Restaurant

This restaurant sells typical Hangzhou dim sum such as shengjianbao (fried dumplings) and wontons. The shengjianbao here are smaller than those found in Shanghai, and the crust is thinner. Owner Zhao Baomei says she uses her grandfather’s secret recipe. Each shengjianbao costs 0.6 yuan (8 US cents), and many customers buy dozens at a time, so be patient when you are in the line.

Address: 108 Chengtou Lane

A-Long Lamb Soup

A-Long has been owned and operated by Han Yulong for 26 years. Its best-selling breakfast items are fried lamb dumplings and fried beef buns with a golden, crispy crust. As the shop’s name suggests, the lamb soup is also a standout. Han makes a huge pot of fresh soup every morning with goat head and lamb meat. Different organ meat, like stomach and lungs, can be added by request.

Address: 32 Xinyifang St

Hunters

This place in Binjiang District isn’t exactly a traditional breakfast booth. It looks like a cafe yet sells youtiao, doujiang, banmian and Chinese porridge. So far, it’s been a big hit with the white-collar types that work in the area. The youtiao are not fried on the spot, but heated in an oven before they are served.

Address: 2-625 Weiye Rd




 

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