Kong Yi Ji (孔乙己) is a traditional Chinese restaurant serving up Zhejiang cuisine, specifically, dishes from Shaoxing. They’re known for their Shaoxing “Deng” chicken, pork belly with preserved vegetables, Shaoxing wine, and hairy crab dishes.
About Kong Yi Ji
The brand has been around since 1999. There are a few locations, but perhaps the most popular (especially for tourists) is the original, located next to the Temple of Confucius (文庙) in Huangpu district. All of the locations have private rooms.
Kong Yi Ji is modelled after a famed restaurant in Shaoxing called Xiangheng Tavern, now part of the Xianheng Hotel. It is also named after a short story by Chinese modern literary author Lu Xun, who frequented the old Xiangheng Tavern. (There is a statue of the novel’s character at all the restaurants.)
Hairy Crab at Kong Yi Ji
That said, it is crab season! Kong Yi Ji is well-known for their crab dishes, which are available all year round. Come hairy crab season, they pull out all the stops, steaming up crabs shipped directly from Taihu Lake.
Female crabs are currently in season (9th lunar month) and, at the time of writing, are ¥158 each at Kong Yi Ji, as pricing fluctuates annually.
The female crabs proved to be massive and filled with tons of roe, served with the requisite vinegar, sugar, and ginger sauce to dip. If you’re really into hairy crab, it is recommended to call and pre-order.
Shaoxing Wine
Shaoxing wine is the go-to pairing for crab in Chinese cuisine. It’s a rice wine that has been likened to French vin jaune that tastes sweet, and depending on the age, has a hint of vinegar and a light floral palate. Kong Yi Ji has a curated selection of Shaoxing wine and a tasting set of five cups, each one a different stage of fermentation from raw (unfermented) to 30 years.
Shaoxing Cuisine
Other crab and crab roe topped dishes include ones served over tofu, shrimp, and stir-fried snow pea leaves. They even have little Crab Dumplings in broth. All are delicious. The Crab & Roe with Shrimp was particularly excellent, as the shrimp quality is superior, and are fresh and bouncy.
And yes, they deshell all the crabs by hand themselves.
Crab aside, one of their most popular dishes is the Shaoxing “Deng” Chicken. “Deng” refers to capon chickens (meaning they’ve been castrated), which yields better tasting birds that are meaty, taut, and tender. They serve it “white cut” (poached) with a dipping sauce of soy sauce, garlic and ginger.
Another signature dish is the Mei Gan Cai Kou Rou, braised pork belly with mustard greens. Mei Gan Cai is a specialty of Shaoxing, made by preserving mustard greens with salt.
The pork belly is braised then steamed with rehydrated mustard greens that have been fried with aromatics. The result is a gelatinous, wobbly serving of pork imbued with the savory flavors and fragrance of the greens. It is a dish that begs for rice.
Other recommended dishes include Fried Yellow Croaker, flaky fish encased in a light batter speckled with seaweed, and Bamboo Shoots, served in a delicious soup with salted pork. The Braised Intestines were good too.
Cold appetizers run the gamut from century egg to spicy clams to Shaoxing-style braised meats. The Hand Shredded Eggplant was a favorite, a cold dish of steamed eggplant soaking up a sweet-savory soy sauce with tons of raw garlic and chopped century egg. And the eggplant dish is only 9 kuai? Whoa!
In Summary
Solid restaurant. Picture menus, but no English, except for the Shaoxing wine pages. Looks good? Point and order.
It is an early dining establishment, so don’t expect them to stay open much later than stated.
Kong Yi Ji 孔乙己
Click here for the Huangpu location
Click here for the Changning location
