Pingyao's food is Shanxi cooking — noodles, vinegar, and hearty peasant dishes that have been refined into something quite distinctive. The local specialty is Pingyao beef (平遥牛肉, Píngyáo niúròu): beef cured and spiced using a recipe that reportedly dates to the Tang dynasty, then thinly sliced and served cold or added to noodle soups. You will see it sold everywhere in the old city, in vacuum-sealed packages for taking home and in restaurants as a main ingredient.
Hand-pulled noodles (刀削面, dāo xiāo miàn — knife-cut noodles) and cat-ear pasta (猫耳朵, māo ěr duǒ) are the staple noodle dishes, typically served in rich braised meat sauces or with vinegar-spiked broth. Shanxi people consume more vinegar per capita than anywhere else in China, and the local Shanxi aged vinegar gives the cooking a characteristic tartness.
The main street (Ming Qing Jie) is lined with tourist restaurants; prices are moderate and quality reasonable. The lanes off the main street have smaller local operations that are slightly cheaper and often better. Look for restaurants with photos of dishes outside — pointing still works if you don't read Chinese menus.