The hosts offered vermicelli cooked in duck-blood soup and other delicacies to James Soong Chu-yu as he sat down yesterday to dine with local officials.
The kitchen of a luxury hotel used 30 ducks to create the rich broth, one of 23 dishes prepared for the banquet.
'We're very proud. All the seats are full tonight,' said an attendant working at the Zhuangyuan Lou hotel restaurant in Nanjing .
The menu included finely sliced homemade bean curd boiled in a broth rendered from 30 range-fed chickens, and 'XO' sauce made from more than 20 types of seafood.
Mindful of Mr Soong's background, chefs provided several seafood dishes - plentiful in Taiwan - and chilli sauce for seasoning since the politician originally hails from Hunan province, known for its spicy food.
Although the dishes of Nanjing and Jiangsu province are not as famous as Peking duck or regional cuisines like Sichuan, chefs whipped up several noteworthy offerings, including dumplings with crab and fried beef dumplings.