Changsha has a late-night eating culture of unusual intensity. From ten in the evening until two or three in the morning, the streets around Pozi Street, Jiefang West Road, and the university areas fill with stalls and small restaurants selling crayfish (in season, June to September), grilled skewers, spicy cold noodles, and various fried and fermented preparations. The city's entertainment culture and its young population have produced a snacking scene that operates at full pitch long after other provincial capitals have gone to sleep.
Crayfish season deserves special mention: from June through September, Hunan-style spiced crayfish (mala xiaolongxia) are ubiquitous, sold by weight from buckets of bright orange shellfish at stalls and simple restaurants. The preparation is intensely spiced — far more aggressively than the Shanghai or Wuhan versions — and eating a kilogram of crayfish with cold beer on a hot summer night in Changsha is one of the pleasures of the city. Expect to pay ¥40–80 per 500 grams depending on size and season.