Zhen Pin Xuan (真品轩)

Zhen Pin Xuan (真品轩) is a Su-style restaurant at 249 Pingjiang Road in the Gusu District of Suzhou, Jiangsu, China, known for steamed whitefish and other lake and river dishes. Pingjiang Road follows a historic canal through the northeastern old town and is one of the city's most walked streets, lined with tea houses, craft shops and small restaurants in restored Qing-era buildings. Zhen Pin Xuan sits on the northern stretch of the road, and its menu reflects the surrounding Taihu region, where lake fish, aquatic plants and seasonal produce define the local table. The cuisine is Suzhou or Su-style cooking, which favours clean flavours, light seasoning and the natural sweetness of fresh fish, shrimp and vegetables, and this restaurant leans toward steamed and lightly cooked lake fish rather than heavy banquet dishes. No Michelin listing or chef lineage is attached. The specialty is steamed lake fish, and steamed whitefish, a fish associated with Taihu, is the dish most often named. Water shield soup, a delicate soup made with the slippery leaves of an aquatic plant traditionally eaten in the Jiangnan region, appears as another signature, and osmanthus sweet dishes provide a fragrant finish that draws on the flower most associated with Suzhou desserts. Visitors seeking an example of the light, seasonal side of Su cooking will find it here. The dining room is traditional in style and calm compared with the busy banquet halls near Guanqian Street, though tour groups and weekend crowds can fill Pingjiang Road. Dress is casual, and the drinks are tea, beer and local spirits, with no notable wine programme. Reservations can be made through Dianping (大众点评) or Meituan by searching 真品轩, and booking ahead is sensible on weekends, public holidays and at dinner. The restaurant is listed as open daily from about 11AM to 9PM. Prices are moderate, so a meal of steamed fish, soup and a vegetable dish for two costs well below a banquet-house dinner.