Skip to content
A little preparation. A much better adventure.Independent travel advice · Made for China

A taste of Dali

Huotang Yinxiang Wild Mushroom Courtyard Hotpot

火塘印象·野生菌庭院火锅

A courtyard wild-mushroom hotpot house in Dali Old Town, with the mushrooms brought in daily in season and shown to you on a platter before they go into the pot. Yunnan's mushroom season runs roughly June to September; outside it, expect cultivated and dried varieties instead.

¥70–95 per person≈ US$10Dali Old Town (大理古城)

Why come here

A place worth making time for

No award on the Ctrip ranking, but rated 5.0 on Ctrip's Dali City list for its seasonal direct-supply wild mushroom platters

The house favourites

What to order

Point at the Chinese. Staff will understand it even where the menu has no English at all.

  • Wild mushroom hotpot (野生菌火锅)
  • Seasonal mushroom platter (野生菌拼盘)
  • Grilled skewers (烧烤)

What it actually tastes like

Wild mushrooms must be boiled right through before you eat them, and the staff will set a timer or tell you when the pot is safe — do not jump the gun. See the Kunming entries for why this matters.

Allergens in this kitchen

soygluten/wheatsesame

This is the kitchen, not one dish. Woks, fryers, blanching water and utensils are shared in almost every Chinese restaurant, so for a serious allergy treat the whole premises as the unit rather than ordering around it.