Short answer
Xinjiang food is the best reason to spend a day in Urumqi. It is Central Asian cooking rather than Chinese cooking in the eastern sense: lamb above everything, wheat instead of rice in most meals, cumin and chilli on the grill, and almost no pork anywhere because the Uyghur and Hui communities are Muslim. If you like grilled meat and fresh bread, this is the best eating in China.
Five dishes cover the essentials: dapanji (big plate chicken), lamb skewers, polo (the rice dish with lamb and carrots), naan, and laghman (hand-pulled noodles). All five are cheap. A street meal runs ¥20-50 per person and a sit-down dinner with meat runs ¥50-100.
The easiest place to start is the Grand Bazaar at Erdaoqiao and the lanes around it, where the menus are in pictures and the vendors are used to visitors. Ordering with a translation app and a pointed finger works fine everywhere else.
The five dishes to order first
| Dish | Chinese | What it is | Typical price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dapanji | 大盘鸡 | Big plate chicken: chicken braised with potato, pepper and chilli, served with thick belt noodles underneath | ¥60-120 per plate, feeds 2-3 |
| Lamb skewers | 羊肉串 | Cumin, chilli and salt on lamb or beef, grilled over charcoal and eaten off the stick | ¥5-10 per skewer |
| Polo / zhuafan | 抓饭 | Rice steamed with lamb, carrot and onion, sometimes with raisins and apricots | ¥15-35 per portion |
| Naan | 馕 | Round flatbread baked against the wall of a clay tandoor oven | ¥5-15 each |
| Laghman / liatiaozi | 拉条子 | Hand-pulled wheat noodles, usually stir-fried with lamb, pepper, tomato and onion | ¥20-40 per plate |
Prices vary by neighbourhood and by how close you are to the bazaar. These are normal city restaurant prices, not tourist-stall prices.
Dapanji: big plate chicken
Dapanji is the dish most associated with modern Xinjiang cooking, and it is the one to order with a group. A chicken is chopped and braised with potatoes, green and red peppers and dried chilli in a heavy sauce, then served in a wide pan with thick hand-rolled belt noodles buried underneath. You eat the chicken first, then the noodles soak up the sauce.
One plate feeds two hungry people or three moderate ones, so it is not a dish to order alongside four other things. It arrived on the scene in the 1990s and spread across the country, but the version here is the original. It is usually mildly to moderately spicy, so ask for 不辣 if you need to, though it is better with some heat.
Lamb skewers: the point of the city
Xinjiang lamb skewers, 羊肉串, are the food Urumqi does better than anywhere else in China. The cut matters: good skewers put a piece of fat between pieces of lean lamb, so the fat bastes the meat as it cooks. Seasoning is just salt, cumin and chilli powder, and you eat it straight off the stick.
Where to find them: the streets around the Grand Bazaar and Erdaoqiao, and most side streets after about six in the evening. Look for the smoke and the queue of locals. A skewer costs ¥5-10 and most people order five or six.
Polo, naan and the everyday staples
Polo (抓饭, also called zhuafan or pilaf)
Rice cooked with lamb, slivered carrots and onions in oil, sometimes with raisins and dried apricots added. The name means "hand rice" because it was traditionally eaten with the fingers, though everyone uses a spoon now. It is the everyday lunch dish and one of the cheapest proper meals in the city at ¥15-35. The good versions are rich and slightly sweet from the carrots, and a bowl of plain yoghurt alongside cuts the oil.
Naan (馕)
Round flatbread with a dimpled centre, baked against the inner wall of a tandoor. It is the region's staple carbohydrate, sold from street ovens all day, and a fresh one out of the oven is a different food from the packaged version. Costs ¥5-15. Buy one to eat with skewers, and take a couple for a long train or a mountain day because it keeps for days.
Laghman (拉条子)
Hand-pulled wheat noodles, thicker and chewier than the noodles you get in eastern China, served either stir-fried with lamb and vegetables or as a plain base under a saucy topping. Around ¥20-40. This is the dish to order when you want a proper sit-down lunch rather than street food, and it is usually mild.
And the rest
- Roast buns (烤包子, samsa) are lamb and onion filled pastries baked in the tandoor. Around
¥6-18. Excellent with tea. - Lamb soup (羊肉汤) with noodles or bread, around
¥20-55. The thing to eat on a cold morning. - Yoghurt (酸奶) is thick, often homemade and sometimes salted, around
¥8-25. The salty version surprises people who expect sweet. - Milk tea (奶茶) here means the salty Central Asian kind, served with meals rather than as a dessert drink. Around
¥5-18. - Melon and grapes. Xinjiang fruit earns its reputation. Late summer and autumn melons and grapes are the best value food in the city, sold by the slice or the kilo.
Where to eat
| Area | What it is good for | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Grand Bazaar and Erdaoqiao | Skewers, roast buns, dried fruit, big sit-down Uyghur restaurants | Metro Line 1 to Erdaoqiao. Easiest area for a first meal, some English or picture menus |
| Nanchang Road and Wuyi Road area | Night food streets with grills, noodles and snacks | Busy from around 19:00. Point-and-order territory |
| Xibei Road near the museum | Everyday lunch spots for polo and laghman | Convenient if you are doing the museum |
| Hotel restaurants and chains | Air-conditioned comfort, English menus, higher prices | Useful on a first night when you are tired |
Timing matters more than location. Lunch runs roughly 12:00 to 14:00 and dinner from about 19:00, and Uyghur restaurants serving polo often sell out by mid-afternoon. Local businesses sometimes run two hours behind Beijing time, so a late dinner is normal here.
Dietary notes
- Almost everything is halal, so pork is rare. Uyghur and Hui restaurants are Muslim-owned, and you will see Arabic script and 清真 signs on the door. This makes Xinjiang the easiest part of China to eat in if you avoid pork.
- Lamb is the default meat and beef is common. Chicken shows up mostly in dapanji and skewers.
- Vegetarians have a harder time than in eastern China. The cuisine is built on meat and bread. You will find cold vegetable dishes, tomato and pepper stir-fries, aubergine, and naan with yoghurt, but a full vegetarian meal takes hunting. Ask for 素的 (vegetarian) and be specific.
- Spice levels are moderate by Chinese standards. The heat comes from cumin and chilli powder rather than Sichuan pepper, so it is warming rather than numbing. Skewers are dusted with chilli by default, so say 不要辣 (no chilli) if you want it plain.
- Alcohol is limited in Uyghur restaurants because of halal practice. If you want beer with dinner, look for Chinese-run places, and note that a drink with a meal is not the local habit.
- Tap water is not drinkable. Bottled water is everywhere and cheap, and restaurants will bring hot water or tea by default.
What it costs
| Meal | Typical cost per person |
|---|---|
| Street breakfast: naan, tea, a bun | ¥10-20 |
| Polo or laghman lunch | ¥20-40 |
| Skewers and naan dinner | ¥30-60 |
| Sit-down Uyghur dinner with meat | ¥50-100 |
| Dapanji shared between two | ¥60-120 for the plate |
| Thick yoghurt or a melon | ¥8-25 |
Payment is by Alipay or WeChat Pay in almost every restaurant, so bind a foreign card and verify your passport in the app before you travel. Small street stalls and older vendors may prefer cash, so carry a couple of hundred yuan in small notes. Tipping is not expected and not practised.
Frequently asked questions
What is dapanji and how spicy is it?
Dapanji means "big plate chicken." A chopped chicken is braised with potatoes, peppers and dried chilli, then served in a wide pan over thick hand-rolled belt noodles. It is usually mildly to moderately spicy, feeds two to three people, and costs roughly ¥60-120 for the plate. Ask for 不辣 if you want it mild, though it is better with some heat.
Is Xinjiang food halal? Can I eat here if I avoid pork?
Most of it, yes. Uyghur and Hui restaurants are Muslim-owned and show 清真 signs, and pork is rare across the region. Lamb, beef and chicken are the standard meats. This makes Xinjiang the easiest part of China to eat in if you avoid pork, though you should still confirm with the restaurant if it matters strictly.
Is there vegetarian food in Urumqi?
Some, but it takes effort. The cuisine is built on lamb and bread, so expect cold vegetable dishes, tomato and pepper stir-fries, aubergine, naan and yoghurt rather than dedicated vegetarian menus. Ask for 素的 and be specific about what you do not eat.
How do I order without speaking Chinese?
Use a translation app with camera mode on the menu, or point at what another table has. The Grand Bazaar area and larger Uyghur restaurants often have picture menus, which solves it entirely. Writing the dish names down before you go also works, since you can just show the characters.
What does naan cost, and can I take it travelling?
¥5-15 for a fresh one from a street oven. It keeps well for days without refrigeration, which is why it is the classic food to carry on a long train or a mountain day. Buy two.
Where is the best place to eat on a first night in Urumqi?
The Grand Bazaar at Erdaoqiao and the lanes around it. Metro Line 1 goes there directly, there are big Uyghur restaurants with picture menus and English signage alongside street skewers and bakeries, and it is busy and well lit into the evening. Get there around 19:00.
Related reading
Dish descriptions follow Uyghur and Xinjiang cuisine references and on-the-ground food guides for Urumqi. Price ranges are typical city restaurant prices gathered from multiple 2026 Urumqi food listings and are quoted as approximate. Halal practice, spice levels and stall availability vary by restaurant, so confirm directly when it matters.