With all the good foods that are showing up in Hangzhou these days, we at MORE sometimes wonder what's left. Are we eventually going to get a Medieval Times theme restaurant, complete with staged jousting, sword-fighting, and live animal shows? God, we hope so. Until then, we're just going to have to accept the fact that the culinary scene in China is still in its adolescence, and by that we mean we'll have to sit through a lot more meals featuring Western cuisine done by experienced and creative Chefs, ingredients that are carefully chosen for their seasonal attributes as well as their aesthetic appeal, and menus that need to offer dishes that please the palate with balance and flavor. One such place is the buffet at the Wyndham Grand Plaza Royale. There are rows of delicacies awaiting your inspection here, sitarting with a dessert section that anything but demure. Amazing treats like cheesecake, miniature tartlets with pastry cream, and chocolate in a number of items, including a fondue, can be found here. Further down the line is an expanse of courses that will encourage heaping platefuls of everything from classic Chinese dim sum, to a perfectly-cooked herb-encrusted medium rare strip loin, and don’t miss the Japanese station that offers sushi, sashimi, and deceptively fiery little finger bowls of rice wine vinegar with lotus root and Sichuan pepper. Further still, you are within...

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Those who don't love sushi, sashimi, and the various other bits of Japanese cuisine puzzle us. Sure, we're hip to the less-than-stellar history between this country and that one, and we know that everyone who first encountered a piece of raw salmon made a funny face before ending up hopelessly addicted, but let's face it; the Japanese make the best cameras, and they make some amazing things happen with little pieces of fresh fish. The fun doesn't stop there as we find ourselves slurping away at bowls of udon noodles, and raising tiny earthenware cups of warm sake to our friends, before getting down to the serious business of tearing into a steaming heap of sukiyaki. The MORE crew was lucky enough to be invited to try the fare at Jusenkazen Japanese Restaurant, near the top of the Friendship Hotel on Pinghai Road, to see what they have to offer in the way of authentic Japanese cuisine. For starters, Chef “Shige” Imamura is Japanese, which doesn't get much more authentic than that. He's been in China for less than a year, and his cool demeanor combined with his rugged yet boyish good looks will undoubtedly be a huge influence on the girls, while his ability to prepare exquisite dishes will keep the guys...

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