Hangzhou Jasmine Hotel

Jade-coloured archways, silk-clad panels and organic light fixtures evoke a classical Hangzhou garden with a stylised touch. Similarly, the seasoned fine dining kitchen team adds novel twists to Ningbo classics. Marinated raw crab in a spicy sour sauce boasts briny sweetness, gelatinous texture and buttery roe. Crispy skin pigeon leg is deboned and stuffed with the bird’s breast; Sichuan pepper cuts through the richness.

This shop may lack a snazzy decor, and nobody gets a table to themselves, but there are always queues eager to be cooked for by the self-proclaimed "noodle king". The signature tomato sauce noodles with scrambled eggs are tangy and appetising, best enjoyed with a sprinkle of pork cracklings. All made-to-order, the delicious toppings are served piping hot – try the deep-fried carp. Those with a big appetite can even get extra noodles for free.

The owner, who hails from Shaoxing, insists on driving back to his hometown every other day to source the freshest ingredients for his restaurant – which explains why the menu is handwritten on a white board and different every day. That said, the must-try stinky tofu is a permanent fixture: made with 20-plus-year-old fermenting brine from his family, it has rich deep flavours that complement the lamb brain it is steamed with. Try the river fish, too.

It's a bit out of the way, but that doesn't stop diners from coming here in droves for authentic Shaoxing dishes. The menu is written daily on the whiteboard. All ingredients are seasonal and shipped from Shaoxing. The free-range chicken marinated in aged distillers' grains has firm, flavoursome flesh with a hint of wine aromas. The stinky duo, or stinky tofu with fermented amaranth stems, exudes a stench that you'll either love or hate!

This restaurant on a shopping street, with a main dining space on the lower floor and private rooms upstairs, can be tricky to find. Diners come for authentic Ningbo cooking, such as drunken mud whelks, braised vegetables and stir-fried clams in board bean paste with salted potherb mustard greens. Live fish and seafood shipped daily from Zhoushan, Ninghai and Wenzhou are also popular; the steamed river eel in ginger juice has to be pre-ordered.

This bustling spot serves barbecue in Texan, Brazilian and Argentinian styles. With a wood-fired smokery and ovens on site, the place exudes intoxicating smells. Try slow-smoked beef brisket, either grain-fed from the U.S. or grass-fed from New Zealand: the former is richer, the latter leaner. Pronounced smoky notes complement the beef perfectly. Grilled pineapple in banana walnut sauce for dessert cuts through the richness. The wine list is worth exploring.

Adjacent to Xiangji Temple, this Jiangnan-style villa stands in a manicured garden with a bamboo grove, a rockery and water features. There are no à la carte options and diners pre-order either the classic or seasonal set menu. Nationwide sourced produce is deftly finessed with Chinese and Western techniques into dishes with potential health benefits. Their winter melon and glasswort soup is slowed cooked for two hours and nicely perfumed in pine nut oil.