Ling Long Ge

When Ling Long Ge isn't serving hairy crabs from the legendary Yangcheng Lake, it imports them straight from a freshwater lake in Denmark. That's the secret to how the restaurant keeps fresh crab on its menu year round.

Versus downing your crabs in a large, noisy dining room, patrons at Ling Long Ge can enjoy diner at many of the restaurants beautifully decorated private rooms, where the sounds of pipa or erhu are the only noise filtering in.

The numerous private rooms also allow some discretion while fumbling open dozens of tiny crab legs.

Some of the best dishes on the menu: xiefen (crab roe) and the sautéed crab roe is a classic here. For a starter go for the crab meat and roe jellied in aspic broth. It melts in your mouth.

There are two other must-have items that aren’t to be missed. First is the the dan dan mian, which comes with an entire bowl of crab roe and meat to accompany it. Simply pile the crab onto your noodles and wait for the island of roe to soak into the ground sesame sauce and toasted chili oil.

The other is yin yang fried pastries, which are made with half lotus, half curried crab filling. Ling Long Ge's menu is extensive to say the least, and you're always in good hands.