The Food Post

It has been said that an army travels on its stomach, and that is certainly true for this group.  Some people eat to live, treating food as fuel.  But our family lives to eat.  Given a choice between a museum or a memorable meal, I (Matt) will always choose the meal.  And ever since I Iived in Japan, I have had a particular affinity for Asian food. 

Hotel food is seldom noted for its excellence, but that can not be said for the breakfast buffet at our hotel.  Included with the cost of our room, this buffet combines traditional western favorites like eggs, bacon and pastries with savory dishes from China.  

Peter especially loves all of the fresh fruit, including the dragon fruit (white with black seeds). I love all of the juices, especially the fresh watermelon juice.

The buffet also has some favorites from Japan, including cold soba noodles, sushi and miso soup.

Without a doubt my favorite item on the buffet is the salted duck eggs. I've never had a hardboiled egg quite like these with a texture that is almost creamy.

There is also an array of gyoza and dumplings, in addition to sausage and bacon (of course). 

Congee is a traditional breakfast porridge that is eaten by many Chinese every day.  I've yet to try it but will do so tomorrow when we have our last breakfast before leaving for Guangzhou.  

They also serve a variety of steamed buns, stuffed with barbecue pork and other fillings, in addition to traditional steamed dumplings.  

There is also an array of hot dishes that changes every day, including a variety of stir fried vegetables, tofu and noodles.  

But without a doubt, the star of the show and Allie's favorite is the noodle station.  There you select greens and dumplings and the chef boils them with handmade noodles and then adds a savory broth. You can then select from a wide variety of toppings including chili oil, chili sauce, szechuan pickles, and garlic, among many others.  The resulting creation is as good as the best ramen I ever had in Japan.

We also went back for dinner last night and I had the best duck ever. Roasted to perfection with crispy skin, it was served with mooshu style pancakes, sliced vegetables and a salty bean paste that was perfect.  Allie had grilled squid on a stick that she said was excellent.  We can only hope that the China Hotel in Guangzhou has anything half as good!