Naitang guoziyu (milk-broth fish hotpot)
Nǎitāng Guōziyú · say it: “nigh-tahng gwor-dzuh-yü”
- Spice
- Not spicy
- Typical price
- ¥88–158
- Dietary
The banquet dish with a Tang dynasty pedigree: fresh fish poached tableside in a copper hotpot of pale "milk" broth — so named for its color, made from bones simmered to opacity, no dairy involved. It's Shaanxi's answer to fine-dining theater: the copper pot arrives hissing, the fish cooks in the broth at your table, and the soup you finish with is the point. Expect ¥88–158 as a banquet-course item.
How to eat it
A table dish, not a solo order — it belongs to the banquet sequence alongside gourd chicken and wenban yaosi, with the broth drunk as the closer. Eat the fish first while it's just-cooked, then ladle the soup; white pepper and chives season at the table. The dish lives at old-school Shaanxi banquet restaurants — order by name, 奶汤锅子鱼 (nǎitāng guōziyú), or point at a neighboring table's copper pot.
Where to try it
Classic Shaanxi banquet restaurants
The same tier that serves gourd chicken — the historic banquet repertoire places; call ahead if you want it, as the milk broth takes hours.
Banquet halls in the Muslim-Quarter-adjacent old city
Several old-city banquet halls run the full classic menu; lunch bookings make the tableside pot an unhurried show.
Read the guide