Xining's main night market runs along a covered lane off Nanli Street in the Chengzhong district, operating from around 6pm until midnight during summer months and more intermittently in the colder seasons. The stalls offer a cross-section of Xining's food cultures: grilled lamb skewers (yangrou chuan) seasoned with cumin in the Muslim style; cold noodles with sesame sauce and chilli (liang pi); whole roasted flatbreads (naan) split and filled with lamb; and various preparations of offal that the local clientele favours.
The atmosphere is convivial and the stalls are clean by night-market standards. Prices are very low — you can eat extremely well for 30 to 50 yuan. The market is most crowded on warm summer evenings; come with a reasonable appetite and be prepared to move from stall to stall rather than settling in one place.