Taste all of Zhoushan's food and experience the authentic fishing village flavors of the East China Sea

Zhoushan isn't just about beautiful islands—the food is worth mentioning too. Local dishes use the simplest cooking methods to lock in the ocean's natural freshness. Don't miss the seafood noodles. The broth is slow-simmered with fresh fish bones, shrimp shells, and assorted small seafood until it turns milky white and clear. The signature island dish, swimming crab, has plump meat and rich roe. Steamed, it keeps its original flavor; marinated raw with red roe, it fills your mouth with savory goodness and goes perfectly with rice. Handmade fish balls are bouncy and tender, and fishermen's rice cakes are savory and flavorful. Simply boiled small seafood dipped in a little soy sauce is delicious. Street-side seafood stalls offer a huge variety—yellow croaker with pickled greens, smoked fish, and stir-fried seafood noodles are all local classics. Salt-and-pepper mantis shrimp, scallion oil shrimp, wind-dried eel, Bombay duck, fermented hairtail, and oysters each have their own distinct flavor. Seaweed cakes, sweet potato noodle soup, sea anemone bean noodles, drunken shrimp and crab, island pastries, and Mount Putuo vegetarian meals are all highly distinctive. Seasonal seafood changes throughout the year, so there's no need to hunt for trendy restaurants—any random street-side shop will serve you authentic island flavors.