Zhongwei is a Muslim city, which means hand-pulled noodles with lamb broth are the foundation of everyday eating and pork is essentially absent. The noodles here — lamian — are pulled to order, stretched and folded until they reach the right thickness, then dropped into boiling stock with slow-cooked lamb, chilli oil, and a scattering of green onion. A bowl costs five to ten yuan at a street stall and is better than most things you will eat in more expensive restaurants.
The central covered market off Gulou Street has the best concentration of small Hui restaurants and street food stalls. Look for stalls selling niurou (beef) versions of the same noodle dish, hand-made mantou steamed buns stuffed with lamb and onion, and sesame flatbreads baked against the inner wall of a clay tandoor. Zhongwei has no food streets set up for tourists — the eating is straightforwardly local.