Xi'an: Lunch at Hai Di Lao Hot Pot

We had two reasons to invite Timo and Mr. Wong to be our guests at lunch on the last day of our tour.

First, we're lovely people. More important, we were tired of mediocre tourist food and Timo knew it.

Timo chose a branch of Hai Di Lao Hot Pot, the restaurant Trip Advisor rates at Number Two for this city of eight million people.

Timo ordered on the iPad menu and explained everything to us. We first made up our own little dipping sauces from a large selection of ingredients. The staff poured two kinds of broth or stock into the cooking pot in the middle of the table, one mild and one spicy,  and we started to cook.

The cost of this feast? US $50.