The Fire Palace is a very well-known old Hunan restaurant in Changsha, and it is also a gathering place for Hunan snacks in the hearts of tourists. Fire Palace prides itself on being "the first brand of Hunan cuisine in China", and has opened branches in recent years, and now there is only one in Xi'an, which is located in Wanhe City, Hujiamiao.
The dishes of the Fire Palace are extremely rich, with more than 100 dishes including Hunan snacks, farmhouse stir-fry, river fresh seafood, Xiangxi cured meat, cold vegetable soup pot and seasonal vegetable staple food. The Fire Palace brings together classic dishes from all over Hunan, such as Changsha-style shrimp, Dongting fish head, Hengyang stinky osmanthus fish, Xiangxi Babao duck, etc., which can be called the Hunan cuisine museum in Xi'an, and diners can taste the flavors of Hunan. In addition to Hunan cuisine, Fire Palace also offers salmon sashimi, oily noodles, Hakka appetizers and other dishes.
Although there are many styles of dishes in the store, they are not proficient in all of them, and the level is uneven. Among them, stinky tofu and eight-treasure duck are the most outstanding. Stinky tofu is a well-known Hunan snack that people love and hate for its stinky smell and aroma. Stinky tofu is generally marinated and then fried. The compound hydrogen sulfide produced during the fermentation of brine has a pungent odor, and it is from this that the "smell" of stinky tofu comes from. After marinating, the amino acids made by breaking down the protein rich in tofu have a delicious taste. In addition, during frying, the plant lactic acid bacteria in the brine react with the tea oil used for frying, and the aroma is compelling. Smelling and eating is the uniqueness of stinky tofu. The stinky tofu in the Fire Palace is fragrant and crispy, charred on the outside and tender on the inside, and is fuller and more aromatic than the street tofu. Fire Palace separates stinky tofu from spicy sauce, and does not follow the tradition of cutting open the tofu and pouring in the condiments. Diners are advised to poke open stinky tofu and pour it into the sauce, which tastes more delicious than simply dipping the sauce.
If stinky tofu has limited acceptance due to its unique taste, then Babao duck is praised by almost everyone. Babao duck is a native duck marinated for several hours with eight kinds of spices, and has a mellow aroma. When presented to the table, the duck is intact, the skin is bright orange butter, the color is attractive, and the soup is bubbling and appetizing. Babao duck is eye-catching, and the taste is good, the duck meat is crispy, the chopsticks poke, the meat will be deboned, dipped in a thick salty sauce, the entrance is soft, and the aroma overflows in the mouth. Other signature dishes are less than satisfactory, such as the shallot oil baba, which is supposed to be crispy, is too soft, and the stinky cinnamon fish lacks aroma.
As the name suggests, the décor of the Fire Palace is dominated by bright red tones, and a large stove is placed at the door. The store has a large space and a loose layout, and an aquarium is placed in the middle, where crayfish, sea bass, soft-shelled turtle, cinnamon fish, etc. are cultivated, which confirms the freshness of the ingredients. The staff has an average service attitude, is not proactive enough, and has little understanding of the dishes, making it difficult to introduce recommendations to diners.
