Local Halal Food in China: Dalian Muslim Restaurants, Dumplings and Seafood
Reposted from the web
Summary: This Dalian local halal food guide follows the original second food map, with Muslim restaurants, dumplings, seafood, addresses, and photos kept in order. It is written for readers searching for practical halal food in China coastal cities.
Last year I wrote about a halal trip to Dalian during the Qingming Festival. This year, I used a business trip as an excuse to visit Dalian for halal food again. Last year I ate at Yiding Restaurant.
Dongshengxiang, Tongqing Hui Muslim Restaurant, and Huixiangyuan Beef Tendon Soup (niujintang).
These are all local halal eateries in Dalian, but Yiding Restaurant
is reportedly closed, so fellow Muslims (dosti) should take note so you don't make a wasted trip.
Early Hui Muslims in Dalian mostly came from Tianjin, Cangzhou, and Dezhou. They moved to Dalian during the late Qing Dynasty as part of the migration to Northeast China. The first mosque in Dalian was built in 1922. Back then, halal restaurants in Dalian mainly served lamb soup (yangtang) and baked flatbread (huoshao). Larger restaurants included Dongshengyuan, Xishengyuan, Defayuan, and Baolelou, but none of these exist today.
1. Northwest Ma's Halal Beef Ramen (Youhao Road Branch)
People in Dalian love ramen, and since there are many Japanese people in Dalian who also love ramen, ramen shops are everywhere. Most are not halal, though the cooking style is similar to Northwest ramen. This Northwest Ma's shop is near the Dalian Railway Station and stays open until late at night.
You can tell it is run by Muslims (dosti) from Qinghai. They do not allow smoking or alcohol. I ordered a portion of cold noodles, and it tasted great.
Address: No. 44 Youhao Road (near Trade World)
2. Haicheng Ma's Meat Pie
Also not far from Dalian Railway Station, this meat pie shop is tucked away in a residential area with a strong local vibe. There is only one person in the shop who does both the cooking and the serving. Haicheng is a county-level city in Anshan, Liaoning Province, and the owner is a Hui Muslim from Haicheng. The shop mainly serves beef pies and beef soup.
The menu only has these items, all of which are home-style dishes from Northeast Hui Muslims.
The beef pie is like this: the outside looks pan-fried, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside.
The pie costs five yuan each. One person can eat two, paired with a bowl of beef soup.
The beef soup has big chunks of beef. The soup is fresh and the meat is tender; it tastes quite good.
The mixed beef tripe is a cold dish. The white tripe is washed very clean and has no gamey smell at all.
Address: No. 1-3, No. 38 Xincheng Lane, Zhanbei Street.
3. Yulelou Restaurant.
Yulelou can currently be considered the best halal restaurant in Dalian. It has two branches in Dalian, mainly serving Dalian-style home-cooked stir-fries and seafood. Yulelou opened in the 1980s and invited Chef Ma Zhanling, who used to work at Baolelou, to lead the kitchen. Under Master Ma's guidance, Yulelou later trained a group of famous chefs who know how to cook halal dishes.
Yulelou's menu lists the main ingredients for every dish. The menu focuses on traditional Northeast halal dishes, along with some snacks.
The mixed three shredded vegetables (ban sansi) come in a very large portion. When ordering in the Northeast, be sure not to order too much, or you won't be able to finish it.
The mixed seafood (hai zaban) features sea cucumber, squid, clam meat, and shrimp. Liaoning sea cucumber is very nourishing.
Lamb skewers (yangrou chuan) are a delicacy in the Northeast that cannot be ignored. Northeast lamb does not have a strong gamey smell.
Soft-fried meat (ruanzharou) is made with beef. It is a home-style dish from Northeast China that you eat with dipping sauce, and it goes perfectly with rice.
Address: No. 229 Huabei Road (Huabei Road Branch).
4. Northeast Halal Dumpling Restaurant.
There is a halal dumpling restaurant in the storefronts at the square in front of Dalian Railway Station, run by Hui Muslims from Mudanjiang.
The shop sells train tickets and stores luggage. The owner is very friendly and keeps calling customers 'dost' (a term for friend).
The shop mainly serves Northeast home-style dishes, mostly dumplings with various fillings, along with stir-fried dishes.
It has been open for over three years. I heard there is another old halal dumpling shop nearby called Lao Ma Dumpling Restaurant that has been open for over twenty years above the train station, but since the elderly owners passed away (wuchang), the taste is not as good as before.
Because I was in a hurry, I bought some to go. I tried mackerel filling, beef filling, and mixed seafood filling dumplings, plus Northeast big sheet jelly noodles (dalapi), stir-fried chives with squid, and stir-stir-fried meat chunks (liurouduan). The owner gave me a free cold dish.
Address: First-floor storefront at the square in front of Dalian Railway Station, near the Bohai Pearl Hotel.
5. Yutai Hui Muslim Restaurant.
The character 'Tai' on the sign looks like 'Qin', but it is definitely called Yutai Hui Muslim Restaurant. It has branches, and another one is very close to the Yulelou Huabei Road branch.
They mainly serve Dalian-style home cooking. It is a very popular shop, and the landlady is quite warm, which is something you can generally feel when eating in the Northeast.
I ordered the signature lamb offal soup (yangza tang). The broth is milky white and served plain, so you need to add your own salt and seasonings.
Spicy mixed beef offal (mala ban) is a specialty of Fushun. It is made mainly with beef offal and is not very spicy, which makes it a favorite for everyone.
I had the sweet and sour stir-fried meat (guobaorou) again. It is not easy to find the savory version of this dish anymore.
Beef steamed dumplings (shaomai) are a must-eat staple every time I visit Northeast China. They have thin skins and large fillings, look like little buns, and taste delicious.
Address: No. 29 Baiyun Street, Zhongshan District (Taoyuan Branch).
Scenery
Dalian is in its peak tourist season right now. The weather is hot, which is perfect for swimming at the beach. You can see an aircraft carrier under construction in the distance from the Dalian Shipyard.
Feed the seagulls at Music Square and go for a ride on a sailboat.
Feel the sea breeze and watch the sunrise along the shore at Haizhiyun.
July and August are the perfect months to visit Dalian. You can head to the Daheishi Scenic Area beach. There are not many tourists at Daheishi, as it is mostly visited by locals. The water is clean and the scenery is beautiful, a tip a local Dalian resident shared with me.
Previous post: Qingming Festival halal tour in Dalian.
Summary: This Dalian local halal food guide follows the original second food map, with Muslim restaurants, dumplings, seafood, addresses, and photos kept in order. It is written for readers searching for practical halal food in China coastal cities.
Last year I wrote about a halal trip to Dalian during the Qingming Festival. This year, I used a business trip as an excuse to visit Dalian for halal food again. Last year I ate at Yiding Restaurant.
Dongshengxiang, Tongqing Hui Muslim Restaurant, and Huixiangyuan Beef Tendon Soup (niujintang).
These are all local halal eateries in Dalian, but Yiding Restaurant
is reportedly closed, so fellow Muslims (dosti) should take note so you don't make a wasted trip.
Early Hui Muslims in Dalian mostly came from Tianjin, Cangzhou, and Dezhou. They moved to Dalian during the late Qing Dynasty as part of the migration to Northeast China. The first mosque in Dalian was built in 1922. Back then, halal restaurants in Dalian mainly served lamb soup (yangtang) and baked flatbread (huoshao). Larger restaurants included Dongshengyuan, Xishengyuan, Defayuan, and Baolelou, but none of these exist today.
1. Northwest Ma's Halal Beef Ramen (Youhao Road Branch)
People in Dalian love ramen, and since there are many Japanese people in Dalian who also love ramen, ramen shops are everywhere. Most are not halal, though the cooking style is similar to Northwest ramen. This Northwest Ma's shop is near the Dalian Railway Station and stays open until late at night.
You can tell it is run by Muslims (dosti) from Qinghai. They do not allow smoking or alcohol. I ordered a portion of cold noodles, and it tasted great.
Address: No. 44 Youhao Road (near Trade World)
2. Haicheng Ma's Meat Pie
Also not far from Dalian Railway Station, this meat pie shop is tucked away in a residential area with a strong local vibe. There is only one person in the shop who does both the cooking and the serving. Haicheng is a county-level city in Anshan, Liaoning Province, and the owner is a Hui Muslim from Haicheng. The shop mainly serves beef pies and beef soup.
The menu only has these items, all of which are home-style dishes from Northeast Hui Muslims.
The beef pie is like this: the outside looks pan-fried, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside.
The pie costs five yuan each. One person can eat two, paired with a bowl of beef soup.
The beef soup has big chunks of beef. The soup is fresh and the meat is tender; it tastes quite good.
The mixed beef tripe is a cold dish. The white tripe is washed very clean and has no gamey smell at all.
Address: No. 1-3, No. 38 Xincheng Lane, Zhanbei Street.
3. Yulelou Restaurant.
Yulelou can currently be considered the best halal restaurant in Dalian. It has two branches in Dalian, mainly serving Dalian-style home-cooked stir-fries and seafood. Yulelou opened in the 1980s and invited Chef Ma Zhanling, who used to work at Baolelou, to lead the kitchen. Under Master Ma's guidance, Yulelou later trained a group of famous chefs who know how to cook halal dishes.
Yulelou's menu lists the main ingredients for every dish. The menu focuses on traditional Northeast halal dishes, along with some snacks.
The mixed three shredded vegetables (ban sansi) come in a very large portion. When ordering in the Northeast, be sure not to order too much, or you won't be able to finish it.
The mixed seafood (hai zaban) features sea cucumber, squid, clam meat, and shrimp. Liaoning sea cucumber is very nourishing.
Lamb skewers (yangrou chuan) are a delicacy in the Northeast that cannot be ignored. Northeast lamb does not have a strong gamey smell.
Soft-fried meat (ruanzharou) is made with beef. It is a home-style dish from Northeast China that you eat with dipping sauce, and it goes perfectly with rice.
Address: No. 229 Huabei Road (Huabei Road Branch).
4. Northeast Halal Dumpling Restaurant.
There is a halal dumpling restaurant in the storefronts at the square in front of Dalian Railway Station, run by Hui Muslims from Mudanjiang.
The shop sells train tickets and stores luggage. The owner is very friendly and keeps calling customers 'dost' (a term for friend).
The shop mainly serves Northeast home-style dishes, mostly dumplings with various fillings, along with stir-fried dishes.
It has been open for over three years. I heard there is another old halal dumpling shop nearby called Lao Ma Dumpling Restaurant that has been open for over twenty years above the train station, but since the elderly owners passed away (wuchang), the taste is not as good as before.
Because I was in a hurry, I bought some to go. I tried mackerel filling, beef filling, and mixed seafood filling dumplings, plus Northeast big sheet jelly noodles (dalapi), stir-fried chives with squid, and stir-stir-fried meat chunks (liurouduan). The owner gave me a free cold dish.
Address: First-floor storefront at the square in front of Dalian Railway Station, near the Bohai Pearl Hotel.
5. Yutai Hui Muslim Restaurant.
The character 'Tai' on the sign looks like 'Qin', but it is definitely called Yutai Hui Muslim Restaurant. It has branches, and another one is very close to the Yulelou Huabei Road branch.
They mainly serve Dalian-style home cooking. It is a very popular shop, and the landlady is quite warm, which is something you can generally feel when eating in the Northeast.
I ordered the signature lamb offal soup (yangza tang). The broth is milky white and served plain, so you need to add your own salt and seasonings.
Spicy mixed beef offal (mala ban) is a specialty of Fushun. It is made mainly with beef offal and is not very spicy, which makes it a favorite for everyone.
I had the sweet and sour stir-fried meat (guobaorou) again. It is not easy to find the savory version of this dish anymore.
Beef steamed dumplings (shaomai) are a must-eat staple every time I visit Northeast China. They have thin skins and large fillings, look like little buns, and taste delicious.
Address: No. 29 Baiyun Street, Zhongshan District (Taoyuan Branch).
Scenery
Dalian is in its peak tourist season right now. The weather is hot, which is perfect for swimming at the beach. You can see an aircraft carrier under construction in the distance from the Dalian Shipyard.
Feed the seagulls at Music Square and go for a ride on a sailboat.
Feel the sea breeze and watch the sunrise along the shore at Haizhiyun.
July and August are the perfect months to visit Dalian. You can head to the Daheishi Scenic Area beach. There are not many tourists at Daheishi, as it is mostly visited by locals. The water is clean and the scenery is beautiful, a tip a local Dalian resident shared with me.
Previous post: Qingming Festival halal tour in Dalian.
