We recommend cooling desserts, traditional sweets and three food areas. Fresh desserts and packable gifts serve different purposes; the latter also appear in Shopping, so their buying advice is not repeated here.
Sweet, chewy and packable
- Brown-sugar iced rice balls
- Small chewy rice balls with brown-sugar ice and fermented glutinous rice. We recommend them after hotpot; ask about the fermented-rice ingredient if it matters for your diet.
- Handmade ciba
- Freshly fried ciba is crisp outside and soft inside, coated in soybean powder and brown-sugar syrup. Enjoy it freshly made for the best contrast of crisp coating and soft centre.
- Ciqikou Chen fried dough twists
- Crisp fried dough twists in flavours including salt-and-pepper, honey and mala. Easy to share or pack, but check the brand, ingredients, shelf life and packaging when buying.
- Hechuan walnut rice slices
- Thin, pale slices made with glutinous rice and walnuts, described as soft, fragrant and quick to melt in the mouth. Check the actual label for nuts and storage instructions.
Three food-street settings
- Bayi Road food street
- Near Jiefangbei, this is our convenient stop for hot-and-sour noodles, sweet rice balls and other snacks in one place. Its centrality also means a visitor-heavy setting.
- Guanyinqiao food street
- We present a lively local night-market atmosphere and good-value snacks, naming Dalianmao meat pies and Zhou Xiaoliang Dingjiapo potatoes. Confirm opening, stalls and queues on the day.
- Ciqikou ancient town
- Beyond fried dough twists, we recommend traditional snacks and shared dishes in a historic-town setting. Compare prices and packaging on the main street; a 'local specialty' label alone does not establish quality.
