WANG Yong is the dynamic but unassuming chef at Jin Sha. He loves travel and keeps an open mind in order to better experience and enjoy whatever comes his way. I first met Wang some 10 years ago when he visited the Four Seasons Singapore for a culinary promotion.
It’s very reassuring when a chef tells you he has learnt cooking from his mother since a young age. That kind of bedrock beats any skills learnt in a classroom or gleaned out of a television screen. The cooking should always be the celebrity, not the chef.
The West Lake in Hangzhou is China’s Number One domestic tourist attraction.
August is the most demanding time to visit.
Apart from the heat, summer is also when everyone is on holidays. Every pavement, walkway, path and road surrounding the fabled lake will be chock-a-block with tourists from within and outside China.
Jin Sha or ‘Golden Sand’ is situated inside the Four Seasons West Lake, one of the swankiest addresses in Hangzhou. Far from the madding crowd, there is no hustle and bustle in this retreat. No sound of traffic intrudes.
Jin Sha even has a miniature man-made lake in front of the terrace of the restaurant. It’s a great location to have a sundowner while contemplating Jiangnan cuisine, ‘Jiangnan’ denoting Jiangsu Province and Zhejiang Province of which Hangzhou is the capital.
Four Seasons Hangzhou at West Lake • 5 Lingyin Road
金沙厅• 灵隐路 5号杭州西子湖四季酒店
