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岳麓山屋 - Yue Lu Shan Wu
Yue Lu Mountain Dining Place
With a tasteful, bright interior and walls anchored with large pieces of funky but subdued Chinese contemporary art work, this upscale Hunan establishment named after Yue lu mountain in Changsha, the capital of Hunan, is yet Yue Lu Shan is perhaps not the most traditional place in its preparation of Hunan cuisine, replacing some of the more adventurous ingredients (like frog legs) with pork, but the dishes are rich, flavorful and fiery hot. The salty la rou here was fragrant and balanced with leeks and peppers, the mountain tea tree mushrooms (茶树香菇) were nutty and new to us, and the steamed fat fish head (酱椒蒸鱼头 - jiang jiao zheng yu tou) was a true centerpiece, with the pickled green chilies on top lending a soft slow heat. The broth was mellow and savory sweet and you were able to enjoy it twice; once you’ve picked the fish clean, cooked noodles are added to the broth for you to enjoy as your zhu shi, or staple starch (though usually Hunan food is so sharply spicy that you’ve called for rice long before the noodles appear).
Surprisingly the most famous dish of Hunan cooking, the hong shao rou (or Mao’s braised pork belly), didn’t stand out. It was tender and a decent balance of meat and fat, but not caramelized enough to achieve maximum richness of flavor. The tart shredded celery (cold dish) was a great balance to the sharp spice of many of the other dishes.
酱椒蒸鱼头（胖头鱼） jiang jiao zheng yu tou: steamed split fat head fish in a savory sweet broth topped with minced green chilis |
