Cool food that's slightly drunk(2)

Because only limited tuofeng can be obtained from each pig, not every diner will be lucky enough to savor it.

"Because of the limited production, supply is always short," says Lu Yong, manager of the restaurant.

As the demand for take-away food continues to rise, Zhuang Yuan Lou started to offer a home delivery service in October 2013.

"This is why we are looking to expand our outlet network in different locations," said Mao Wanjuan, financial director of the restaurant.

According to Mao, their goal is to have a branch in each district. Although the recipe has remained almost unchanged over the years, Lu says, as people become increasingly concerned about healthy food, they are gradually making zao food with less salt.

"We declare our products contain zero additives," says Mao.

Ningbo cuisine

The history of the restaurant dates back to 1937, when Zhejiang native Lin Zhongxiu acquired a restaurant located at Caojiadu, an area where the Jing'an, Putuo and Changning districts meet.

Lin hired a group of local chefs as well as ones from Ningbo in Zhejiang province, which was Lin's hometown, and began serving dishes with both local and Ningbo flavors when he reopened the restaurant in 1938, keeping its name unchanged as Zhuang Yuan Lou.

Other creative dishes offered by the restaurant include stir-fried yellow fin tuna rolls and fried red glutinous rice. The boned fish, preserved in zao sauce first, is quickly boiled into rolls. The rolled fish has a fresh and palatable taste, with the distinctive zao flavor lingering on the tongue. The fried sticky rice is a winter dish, but it is also a good accompaniment for the cool zao food on hot summer days.

IF YOU GO

Address: 460 Gubei Road

Home delivery hotline: 400-877-9773