Sichuan style hotpot should kill all germs effectively...The only food that got me ill in China so far are raw oysters. And I believe not to be the only FT'er with that experience...

You sure aren't!

Make sure that if you use chopsticks to put the raw meat, such as beef, into the pot...dip the ends of the sticks back into the pot to sterilize them as they might pick up some bacteria from the raw meat. Better yet just pickup the
plate and dump the meat in the pot.

Raw oysters in China? You guys certainly are brave!

About Sichuan chili hot pots. I didn't see it during my last two trips recently, but some years ago my dad has seen chili hot pot restaurants (very low-end, only locals) that you SHARE the pot with strangers. In fact, who knows if they ever change the pot...

As an oyster enthusiast in Shanghai, I'm not too worried about eating them at a few spots in town i trust (Laris, Osteria, Creperie). I know how, when, and where they get them.

I won't eat them at local restaurants, and stay away from the Sunday Brunch oysters at all hotels (including 5*).

In Hong Kong, the oyster bar at the Sheraton is safe.

Just my two cents on oysters in China...

I'll try to address the rest of your post in the morning, but I feel compelled to call you out on the Sheraton HK (very bad experience).

Morning edit: In addition to the Sheraton HK, I've been burned at the Portman and the Makati Shangri-la. As such, I've grown to only trust oysters that come from high volume purchasing operations (e.g. Legal Seafoods, M&S), where economies of scale permit expensive test protocols. That having been said, I should disclaim that my stomach is much more sensitive than average wrt oysters. Others needn't be quite as anal.

My guess is you were just unlucky with the Sheraton HK, i've been there a few times and their selection is always good and fresh.

As for the Portman (can't speak for the Makati Shangri-la), and assuming you're talking about their brunch oysters, that'd be something i'd stay away from, as stated in my previous post. Last time i went (but that was 3 years ago), they were definitely beyond fresh. Shanghai's Shangri-la stopped serving them at Yi Cafe a few years ago, but again, they never looked/smelled good, so never tried them. The only time i tried oysters in a hotel in Shanghai was for the oyster shucking world record attempt at the Hilton a few years ago. Freshly flown in from Washington and France.

Another good place for oysters in HK is a little cafe in the IFC mall, 3rd or 4th floor, forgot the name, but very fresh.

i have always had great food in China and my husband loves mushrooms and eats them almost every day. All over the eastern section of China he travels and eats mushrooms. He buys them at the local markets in Shanghai all the time.

Only problem ever I found with digestive issues might have been with the ice in 5* hotels. Would not try ice anywhere else.

Anyone who eats raw oysters not from New Orleans from the gulf is just asking for problems. Of course this could change tomorrow depending on the oil spill.

:confused: What kind of remark is this? I have been eating oysters for at least 25 years, and I'm pretty sure that not one single of them came from the Gulf of Mexico. And I'm still alive...

Potential problems with oysters have to do with their conversation and freshness, not with their origins.

I generally prefer seafood, including oysters, from cold water environments.

My own dark oyster experience is from Qingdao. We had lunch with our local agent and the CEO of a major real estate company. Both gentlemen are born and bred there and would not have it any other way than include raw bits as starters. It was supposed to be the best beachfront place in town, after all..;)

Myself and a Chinese female collegue were pretty much out for the rest of the day. In the evening, we did join the dinner with a big table of Qingdao VIPs and did somehow survive with copious amouts of "white wine".

The strong stuff probably killed about everything lingering in my stomach and next day returning back south was quite ok already. :)

If you eat raw oysters on Yunxiao Lu in Qingdao its best to find a restaurant that has a big bottle of snake wine (shéjǐu). A few shots of that will kill off just about anything.

Ah, I love shejiu -- wine that tastes meaty. :)

This summer I will catch a couple rattlesnakes and put them into vodka.
I think that would rival the Chinese stuff.

Paranoia is everywhere. My next-door neighbor in France recently went on a holiday trip to Italy. He took all food with him for himself and his family in oder to avoid contamination from the filthy Italians. They carried their own cooker also. One cannot be too safe! He has never been to China.