Mengzi Food | To taste the cross-bridge rice noodles, just visit two markets!
Mengzi, Yunnan, you probably know more about the Mengzi Cross-Bridge Rice Noodles, right? I thought so too! With infinite expectations for Mengzi, we went on a spontaneous trip. The couple spent two days in Mengzi over the weekend, visiting three villages and tasting special rice noodles, experiencing one of the most distinctive leisure trips in the local area.
✅Taste Mengzi Cross-Bridge Rice Noodles:
We took a train from Kunming in the morning and arrived in Mengzi at around 12 noon. After checking into the Guanfang Hotel on the edge of Nanhu Lake and completing the formalities, we immediately rushed to eat Mengzi Cross-Bridge Rice Noodles.
Some of the better cross-bridge rice noodles in Mengzi city include "Wu Ji Liuxiang Chrysanthemum Cross-Bridge Rice Noodles", "Nanhu Xiangqiyuan" and "Huoshaofangzi Cross-Bridge Rice Noodles". The first one tastes better and is popular among locals and tourists. The environment of the second one is better, and it is said that tourists eat more. When we took an online taxi in Mengzi, after talking with the driver, we came to the same conclusion as the guide we looked up, and finally we chose to go to the first restaurant to taste the cross-bridge rice noodles.
When I arrived at the door of "Wu Ji Liuxiang Chrysanthemum Cross-Bridge Rice Noodles", I saw from afar many people queuing up to eat this cross-bridge rice noodles. On the way to the store, the taxi driver said: "They usually only need 15 yuan for a portion, and suggested that we try the 20 yuan one."
After arriving at the store, we ordered a 20-yuan serving of cross-bridge rice noodles, which included five kinds of meat (the type of meat was freely selectable) and quail eggs. We could choose the amount of rice noodles ourselves, but the meat, ingredients, and soup were all mixed together. Unlike Kunming or other places, the broth is very hot and you have to add the meat and ingredients into the broth one by one and then put in the rice noodles before you can eat it. Later I found out that orders of 38 yuan or more are for "one person, one meal", which means that the side dishes, meat, broth and rice noodles are all given to you separately.
Such a big bowl of cross-bridge rice noodles, I can sweat while savoring it slowly. There is indeed a lot of meat in it. If you order more, you won’t be able to finish it. The soup tastes pretty good too. Looking around, there are diners who come here because of its reputation. The spacious store is filled with tourists who come to eat Guoqiao Rice Noodles. Even the street outside the door is filled with people who come here to eat Guoqiao Rice Noodles. This cross-bridge rice noodle restaurant was also the filming location for the TV series "Three Meals, Four Seasons".
📌Food location: The intersection of Jinhua Road and Fuchun Road, Mengzi City (near Nanhu Lake).
✅Visit Dashuzhai Night Market:
Mengzi Dashuzhai Night Market is a great place for local delicacies. When traveling to Mengzi, it is recommended that you go to Dashuzhai Night Market at night to make your trip to Mengzi worthwhile.
We visited Bisezhai Station during the day and then headed out to explore the "Dashuzhai Night Market" and taste delicious food at night. It is about 3 kilometers from the hotel to the night market. We walked and looked at the street scenes of Mengzi, passing the "Honghe Avenue" overpass. The wide and clean road felt quite spectacular.
When we arrived at Dashuzhai Night Market, we saw several streets brightly lit, crowded with tourists, and endless food stalls. We seldom go to night markets and don’t like to eat too much at night, but this time we were overwhelmed by the delicious food.
I found an empty seat and ordered a serving of "Xin'an Dipped Rice Noodle Rolls". After eating, I walked around and found that there was a long queue for "Datun Pig Intestines". After tasting it, I felt that the pig intestines were indeed delicious. Have a cup of freshly fried fruit juice and a bottle of "handmade tamarind juice" and drink them while walking around. I also discovered "Vietnamese Rice Noodle Rolls", six pieces for 12 yuan, and found an empty seat to sit and eat slowly. Later, we encountered many delicious foods, but since we couldn’t eat them all, we could only feast our eyes on them. It felt like the whole village was selling food, and we returned to the hotel satisfied after having a full meal.
📌Night market location: Guanlan Road next to Honghe Avenue, Mengzi City.
✅Experience the seaside market:
Going to the market on Sunday morning! This is a very distinctive local market, and it is a big market that is only held every Sunday.
As soon as we reached the "Xuezi Road" intersection of Mengzi No. 2 Middle School near the South Lake, we saw many locals returning with large and small bags of purchased items. Walking slowly along the street, you will see vendors selling vegetables, fruits, snacks, Chinese herbal medicines and various wild vegetables along the way.
Haibianzhai Flower Market was probably named after the flowers it sold, but nowadays there are hardly any shops selling flowers. We tried the 2 yuan flower rice, ate freshly made glutinous rice balls, and bought some Chinese medicinal herbs and blueberries that we were familiar with. Mengzi is rich in fruits such as blueberries, loquats and pomegranates, which are relatively cheap locally.
📌Market location: near "Xuezi Road" of Mengzi No. 2 Middle School on the edge of Nanhu Lake.
✅Taste Zhuanghu beef rice noodles:
At noon, go and taste the beef rice noodles. Zhuanghu Beef Rice Noodles is located on an inconspicuous street and has a constant stream of diners. This halal restaurant doesn't seem to be open in the afternoon or evening, so we decided to go there at noon.
We learned earlier that this restaurant is delicious and plentiful, so we ordered a portion of rice noodles for 15 yuan. The store prepares the ingredients and meat, and you can get your own rice noodles with unlimited refills, which is great! The soup is rich and fresh, the rice noodles are smooth, and the ingredients and meat are sufficient. I am full after eating two servings of rice noodles.
During the tasting process, I felt that the boss was warm and hospitable. We said we don’t know which combination tastes good? He would actively recommend it to us, and also said that the rice noodles could be refilled as much as you wanted, and if you felt it was not soft enough, you could just cook it again in the soup pot.
📌Food location: "Junshan Lane" near Nanhu Lake, close to the state hospital.