Hailar's restaurant strip on Zhongyang Street and the surrounding blocks contains the best concentration of Mongolian hotpot restaurants in the city. The format is different from the Sichuan hotpot you might encounter in southern China — the broth is clear and lightly seasoned (often just lamb bone stock with scallions), and the lamb slices are thin-cut from local grassland-raised sheep, dipped raw into the simmering stock and eaten with sesame paste and fermented tofu. The emphasis is on the quality of the meat rather than on the complexity of the sauce.
The better restaurants on this strip also serve roasted whole lamb by pre-order and hand-torn lamb as a regular menu item. The dairy accompaniments — milk tea, fresh yogurt, and fried milk skin — are typically served at the start of the meal rather than as dessert. Prices are lower than comparable meals in Beijing or other major cities; a full hotpot meal for two with drinks costs around 150 to 200 yuan at the better establishments.