Beijing:
A posh Shanghai restaurant is offering meals made from processed elephant dung for “authentic” flavour. Known for its environmentally conscious food, an upscale restaurant called Canopia offers a variety of creative meals like tree leaves, ice cubes covered in honey, and a dessert creatively created from sterilised and dried elephant dung.
The upscale eatery has drawn significant attention for its jungle dining experience, sparking controversy and divided public opinion, the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported.
The price of a sumptuous 15-course rainforest-themed meal costs 3,888 yuan (around Rs 47,000), without beverages.
According to Jiupai News, the two founders — one from France and the other from China’s Blang ethnic group — spent seven years studying the verdant rainforests of Yunnan province before “bringing the rainforest” to Shanghai.
Popular food blogger Mixue’s Culinary Notes shared a bizarre video of her dining experience at Canopia with the caption: “Shanghai’s New Restaurant Pushes the Limits of Crazy” on RedNote.
A waitress explains the idea of “ecological fusion cuisine” while guests pluck a leaf directly off a potted plant, soak it in sauce, and eat it raw, according to the SCMP report. A video is also circulating on Facebook.
The diners are then exposed to a variety of unusual foods. They must suck pollen and honey off of ice cubes as part of one such meal.
The meal ends with the visually striking dessert known as “Flowers Inserted into Elephant Dung.” It was “creatively” made using an elephant dung base that resembles crispy crumbs and is garnished with honey sorbet, fruit jam, pollen, and aromatic perfume.
The visitors are also asked to ascend a staircase for a “tour” to completely immerse themselves in the “dung dessert,” the SCMP reported. They can also choose their favourite fruit jam and herbal perfume.
Another dish at the eatery is a bowl of “black goo,” painstakingly prepared to mimic the strong aroma of the parasitic Rafflesia flower, famous for its unpleasant fragrance.
Despite being cleaned and disinfected, it remains unknown if elephant dung desserts comply with China’s Food Hygiene Law, which stipulates that food must be non-toxic, harmless, and meet nutritional standards.
In January, the Nanchong Market Regulation Administration in Sichuan province busted a restaurant in Sichuan, China, for reusing soup leftover oil by combining it with fresh oil to make more hotpot soup, known as “saliva oil.”