The Muslim Quarter Food Lanes, Xi'an

Beiyuanmen runs north from the Drum Tower and is the lane everyone is sent to, hung with red lanterns and lined with stalls hammering, frying and shouting. The better eating is one street over, in Xiyangshi, Dapiyuan and Huajue Lane, where the Hui families who have lived and traded here for centuries serve an older and shorter list. Roujiamo, stewed meat chopped and stuffed into a griddled bun. Paomo, a dense flatbread you tear into your own bowl by hand before mutton broth is poured over it. Liangpi, cold wheat-starch noodles in sesame and chilli. Biang biang belt noodles, lamb over charcoal, persimmon cakes fried in autumn. The Great Mosque stands in the middle of the quarter.

What you actually see

• Roujiamo - chopped stewed meat pressed into a griddled flatbread, eaten walking.
• Yangrou paomo - bread torn into your own bowl by hand, then filled with mutton broth.
• Liangpi - cold wheat-starch noodles with sesame paste, chilli oil and vinegar.
• The side lanes - Xiyangshi and Huajue Lane, quieter and cheaper than the main street.

When to go

Stalls run from late morning until late at night, and the quarter is at its most intense from about six onwards. Go earlier if you want to move at your own pace. Spring and autumn are comfortable, while Xi'an summers are hot and the narrow lanes hold the heat. Persimmon cakes are an autumn item only.

Honest expectations

Beiyuanmen is a shoulder-to-shoulder crush most evenings, much of what is sold there is aimed at photographs rather than appetite, and prices run roughly double the streets behind. Quality is inconsistent stall to stall. Tearing bread for paomo properly takes twenty minutes and is not optional. Hygiene varies and the lanes are greasy underfoot.

Nearby

The Drum and Bell towers stand at the entrance to the quarter, and the city wall is a short walk.