Fish is the foundation of Qiandao Lake cooking, and the reservoir's clarity produces fish of unusual quality — grass carp, mandarin fish, and bighead carp with firm flesh and a clean flavour that comes from cold, clear water rather than the murkier conditions of lowland fish farms. The standard preparation is steamed whole fish with a light ginger and scallion dressing, and the quality difference between reservoir fish and farmed fish is immediately apparent.
The lakeside restaurants in Chunan and the smaller settlements around the shore cook the fish simply and well, with preserved bamboo shoots (a regional specialty from the surrounding hills), dried shrimp, and fermented tofu as accompaniments. Prices are modest by Hangzhou standards. For the most direct experience, several guesthouses on the smaller inhabited islands serve home-cooked fish meals from fish they catch themselves, and eating on an island terrace above the clear water is a better setting than any restaurant in Chunan.