FIVE ZEN5ES 中国元素餐厅

Written by Naomi and Javier

At the south end of Dayanta, is the Westin hotel. It’s a beautiful modern black building with red windows surrounded by Xi’an’s most popular sightseeing area so you can take a very beautiful walk after eating. Living in Xi’an, we have no need to stay in a hotel but we thought we had to check out what it has to offer inside. As totally-way-in-love-with-hotpot kind of people, we were told the Westin had five star hotpot which is more than a step above than your typical you-hate-yourself-when-you’re-done kind of hotpot.
The restaurant is located on the south side of the hotel so it might be difficult to find alone but just go to the front desk and ask and they will be very kind and help you. The restaurant itself has a very high class feeling without being overly pretentious. The high ceilings are decorated with modern art. The lighting is very comfortable but not terribly dim. Naomi’s favorite part was the high back chairs which make you feel like you’re sitting on a throne. The menu is bilingual but some of the items might be hard to recognize (like the scientific names for mushrooms).
Previously, we had only eaten spicy-fiery-burn-your-face Sichuan and Chongqing hotpot. This time, we took the server’s recommendation and tried the non-spicy chicken white broth. They have a buffet of more than two dozen condiments to make your dipping sauce. To eat in our hotpot, we tried some classic hotpot favorites like several kinds of mushrooms, cabbage, sliced mutton, fatty beef slices, bamboo, tofu skin, and an assorted vegetable platter.  Our favorites were some of the items we’d never tried before in hotpot: lobster, squid, shrimp and loofah—which cooked quickly to perfection in the mild broth.  We usually huff and puff our way through the fiery journey of hotpot but this time we could eat ourselves full without having to stop for water breaks.  (We did still ask for cold water which created for the wait staff the usual run around to try to find ice for the strange laowais.  But they did deliver!) We also enjoyed a local premium tea, Wuzixianhao, a mild aromatic green tea. 
This is truly a 5 star hot pot experience.  If you’re looking for a fancy date, to woo potential business partners, or to impress some connections, this is the place.  The service was excellent and the food was all beautifully prepared and served.
Pro: Seafood in hotpot!  Mmmm!
Con:The staff didn’t speak a lot of English so be sure to go there with a few Chinese friends!
Price Per Person: 200-400RMB
秘制肚包鸡火锅,仅此独有在‘元素’
中国元素餐厅厨师长邀你共享火锅大餐,务求让你的味觉获得前所未有的体验。秘制配方熬制的肚包鸡汤底,汤味醇香浓厚,鸡肉鲜嫩可口。极品海鲜空运,现选现做。进口的澳洲和牛,安格斯牛肉现场炮制;纯手工的肉丸,持续拍打30分钟至泥状保持肉质的均匀鲜滑,腌制后再捶打40分钟,确保你入口的每个瞬间都立刻享受Q弹爽滑。同时菜单上提供清爽多样的新鲜蔬菜,以及多种锅底酱料为了满足不同口味的你。另外厨师长特别准备儿童套餐,关注小朋友的营养膳食。五星级的火锅味道,不一样的滋味在此释放。
2月14日正式上市
每天
午餐:11:30 –14:00
晚餐:17:00 –22:00
Average Price per person                                           /人均消费: 200-400 RMB
Address /地址:
No.66 Ci En Road,Qujiang New District
( 曲江新区慈恩路66号 )
Tel /电话: 029-6893 8366
Hours /时间: 11:30am – 2:30pm
5:30pm-10:00pm