Yichang’s culinary innovation: Tradition with a trendy twist

By Hu Yikai.

Yichang’s culinary scene is reinventing itself with bold twists, including fish-filled baozi, dine-in supermarkets, and theatrical dining experiences, to meet evolving consumer tastes for health, creativity, and immersion.


Baozi Reinvented：
Master chef Yu Zixiang, with 30 years of baozi-making expertise, fills translucent-skinned “fish xiaolongbao” (soup dumplings) with a delicate blend of flaky fish and melt-in-your-mouth aspic. Each bun features exactly 18 pleats, resulting in a perfect, paper-thin wrapper.
Local industry leader Shen Bin states, “Winning appetites means innovating with native ingredients.” Tourist Tang Jie from Guangxi adds, “It’s uniquely Yichang—fresh yet deeply flavorful.”


Supermarket Canteen Concept:
At Yasi Supermarket in Wuyue Plaza, grocery aisles lead directly to live cooking stations serving baozi and Hubei-style “small bowl dishes. This hybrid model attracts about 3,000 diners daily and has increased foot traffic by 30 percent, according to operations director Huang Lingli. “Transparency and convenience drive loyalty,” she said.

Theatrical Dining Experience:
Yansha·Yunxi Banquet combines food and culture in an immersive setting. Diners enjoy a theatrical atmosphere with servers in traditional Hanfu robes, live classical music, and interactive workshops, including calligraphy lessons and poetry games. During festivals like Mid-Autumn and Dragon Boat, the venue hosts hands-on workshops for making pastries, lacquer fans, and scented sachets, receiving rave reviews.
Since opening, the banquet hall has maintained a weekend occupancy rate exceeding 95 percent, often hosting up to eight banquets simultaneously each day. “These immersive scenes whet customers’ appetites,” says operations director Yuan Linjie.

Yang Chunyan and Wang Fei contributed to this story.