Zhaotong is influenced by Yunnan Province, Guangxi Province, Hubei Province, Guizhou Province, and Sichuan Province.

Zhaotong presents a variety of food styles, including sour, sweet, salty, spicy, and a mixture of five flavors, such as Zhaotong sauce, Luohan bamboo shoots and other delicacies.

Its food not only has strong Yunnan characteristics, but is also influenced by Guangxi, Hubei, Guizhou and Sichuan provinces.

Historically, Zhaotong has been an important gateway from Yunnan Province to Sichuan and Guizhou provinces. It is an important channel for Central Plains culture to enter Yunnan. It is one of the three cradles of Yunnan culture. It is the hub of China's famous "Southern Silk Road" and is known as

Known as "the key to southern Yunnan and the throat to Western Shu", it is an important channel for Yunnan to connect the Yangtze River Economic Belt and the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Zone. It is a two-way corridor from the mainland to South Asia, Southeast Asia and Yunnan to the mainland.