Jindalai Cold Noodles (金达莱冷面), Hailan Road

Jindalai Cold Noodles (金达莱冷面) is a cold noodle house on Hailan Road in Yanji, the capital of the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in Jilin province, China. It is described as a six-generation brand, and it serves the signature dish of the prefecture's ethnic Korean community: lengmian (冷面), chewy buckwheat noodles served in a sweet-and-sour iced broth. The buckwheat noodles (荞麦冷面) are the core item, and the spicy cold noodles (辣冷面) and beef with cold noodles are the common variations. Yanbian cold noodles differ from the Pyongyang and Hamhung styles in their sweeter, tangier broth and the chewiness of the noodles, which are often served with sliced beef, pickled vegetables, a boiled egg and fruit slices. Cold noodles are eaten year-round in Yanji, including in winter, and are often finished with a bowl of the noodle water. The dining room is plain and fast-moving, a typical Korean-Chinese noodle shop with no dress code and a moderate noise level at the lunch peak. Drinks are tea, soft drinks and beer, and there is no wine programme. Prices are very low: roughly CNY 20-35 (USD 3-5) per person, making it an easy first stop for visitors to the prefecture. Hailan Road is in the city centre, near the main commercial streets, so the restaurant is convenient for a lunch between sightseeing stops. Reservations are not taken; it is walk-in, and queues form at weekend lunch and holiday periods. Hours are listed as roughly 10:00AM-9:00PM daily, and visitors should check Dianping for current hours. Because there is little to choose between formats beyond the toppings, ordering one bowl per person is customary.