Xi’an Famous Foods

by Celia Sin-Tien Cheng
July 30, 2010

SAVORY CUMIN LAMB HAND-PULLED NOODLES
81 St. Mark’s Pl
(1st & 2nd Aves)
New York, NY 10003
212-786-2068

Celia Sin-Tien Cheng

Xi’an Famous Foods (the name sounds kitschy, but it’s a literal translation from the Chinese) has branched out into the mainstream and opened a fourth location in Manhattan on St. Mark’s Place between First and Second Avenues. And judging from the endless queues all day long, it’s a success!

Xi’an, formerly known as Chang an, is part of Shaanxi province in northwestern China. The cuisine from this former capital of China is rather unique, combining Chinese cooking with Muslim and other traditions. The flavor profiles tend towards Uighur cuisine — one of my favorites, as it’s the perfect cross between Chinese and Turkish cuisines. And as in Uighur cooking, lamb is the predominant meat, but Shaanxi cooks also tend to use more Chinese spices.

Photos of the menu items are posted both outside and inside of the restaurant. With just a mere sliver of a restaurant space (seats along one side of the left wall and a few two-seater tables on the right), it’s mainly a take out business. There will almost certainly be a queue to place your order, and then maybe an even longer wait for your food.

Lengthy descriptions of each dish can be found on MenuPages, which is helpful since the literally translated dish names can be baffling and sound unappetizing. For example, one dish’s name translates to “spicy and tingly lamb face salad.” But here’s the description: “Definitely one of our more unique dishes that are to be both enjoyed and experienced. The lamb face meat is composed of muscles and soft tendons, and has quite a medley of textures. It is dressed with vegetables, our house sauces, and tingly Chinese pepper.”

Two of my favorite dishes are the savory cumin lamb noodles and the liang pi (cold noodles). The cumin lamb noodles are served either dry or in a broth. The cumin tones down the pungency of the lamb, creating its own unique essence. Chinese chili peppers give it a kick and diced celery pieces create texture in each bite. Plus there’s really nothing better than hand-pulled noodles; long, wide and thick, they are springy and a delight to savor.

Liang pi are plain wheat starch sheets cut down into thick noodles, topped with cilantro, bean sprouts and pieces of gluten, and dressed with Xi’an’s spicy sauces. The mixture is nice and refreshing for a summer day, though it’s got a strong kick and may leave you reeling from the heat.

I must admit that the restaurant itself is not the most pleasant place to enjoy Xi’an’s richly flavored meat and noodle dishes. Since it’s all self-serve, the tables are infrequently cleaned and are visibly greasy. And the long queue can feel confining; it’s definitely not a claustrophobia-friendly space. After my first dinner experience at Xi’an, I decided that it’s best to take-out the food to enjoy at home. The only difficulty is that after such a long wait, one is tempted to just tear right into the bag. But believe me, it’s worth the wait. The photo above is taken from home — it wouldn’t look so pretty otherwise.

This Chinese eatery has another two locations in Flushing and one in Manhattan’s Chinatown. And at around only $5 per dish, the price is right.

Also in Chinese, East Village, Lamb, Meat, Noodles