Food in Xi’an is built on wheat and lamb. Noodles, flatbreads and dumplings take the place rice holds further south, and the city’s Hui Muslim community has shaped much of its street food. Meals are cheap and filling; most visitors eat their best meals at simple places with one specialty and plastic stools.
Where to eat
The Muslim Quarter. The streets behind the Drum Tower are the obvious start. Beiyuanmen, the main street, is crowded and prices run higher. Xiyangshi and Dapiyuan, the lanes off it, have more long-running restaurants that focus on one or two dishes. See the Muslim Quarter guide for how the streets fit together.
Sajinqiao. West of the main Muslim Quarter streets, this is where many residents buy breakfast and snacks. It is less crowded than Beiyuanmen and easy to reach on Metro Line 6.
Yongxingfang. A food street in a Tang-style setting near the east side of the city wall, gathering snacks from around Shaanxi province, with occasional folk performances. It suits a first evening when you want to try many things at once.
Near your hotel. Ordinary noodle shops are on almost every street. A busy one with a short menu on the wall is usually a safe choice. A common local lunch is roujiamo, liangpi and a bottle of Bingfeng orange soda.
How ordering works
In noodle and snack shops you usually order and pay at the counter first, then sit and wait for your number or for the food to arrive. Menus are often only in Chinese; photos on the wall, or a translation app, help. Our apps and internet guide covers the apps worth installing.
At a paomo restaurant you are handed a bowl and one or two flatbreads. Tear the bread by hand into small, even pieces, about the size of a fingernail, then hand the bowl back to the kitchen to be simmered in lamb broth. Allow time; it is a sit-down meal.
Food sold by weight, such as dried fruit, nuts and some sweets, is priced per jin (500 g). Confirm the price and quantity before the seller cuts or bags it.
Spice
Xi’an food is more about chili oil, vinegar and garlic than numbing heat. Chili is often added at the end, so you can ask for less. “Bú yào là” (不要辣) means “not spicy” and “shǎo là” (少辣) means “a little spicy.” Many tables have chili oil and vinegar so you can adjust it yourself.
Dietary needs
Halal. Restaurants in the Muslim Quarter are halal and serve no pork. Outside the quarter, pork is common, including in some roujiamo.
Vegetarian. Liangpi is usually meat-free, and noodle shops can make biangbiang noodles with a vegetable topping if you ask for the 素 (sù) version. Broths are usually meat-based, so soups are hard to avoid meat in.
Gluten. Wheat is in most local staples, from noodles to flatbreads. Gluten-free eating here takes real planning; carry a written note in Chinese.
Allergies. Chili oil, sesame and nuts turn up in sauces and sweets. A short note in Chinese is more reliable than pointing.
Paying
Alipay and WeChat Pay are used almost everywhere, and small stalls rarely handle cash with ease. Larger sit-down restaurants may take foreign Visa or Mastercard, but stalls generally do not. Carry some cash as a backup. The paying in China guide explains how to link a foreign card to Alipay or WeChat Pay before you arrive.
Many small stalls do not offer napkins, so bring tissues.
Checked on 29 October 2026.
