Chinese sup kambing

went down to try this mutton soup place. this place was popular with both the blue-collar and office worker crowd. so much so that the last time I came during lunch time, I couldn't even find an empty seat!
the place is nothing to shout about, a typical grimy and small Beijing makan joint. what was interesting was the mutton soup simmering in a large copper cauldron about a metre across. the food was quite cheap (by S'pore standards). a bowl of mutton soup costs RMB8 (about S$1.6), the locals usually order mutton soup with "tang hoon" (transparent bean flour vermicelli). to go along with the soup, locals will order "shao bing" (bread-like oven-toasted buns) at RMB1 (about S$0.20) each. for me, I didn't fancy the shao bing.
I tried mutton soup with normal wheat noodles. reminded me of a less spicy version of our Indian muslim sup kambing, but the cumin and coriander was still discernable. actually, quite different from our chinese mutton soup with chinese herbs. northern Chinese food used more mutton than pork. probably has something to do with the nomadic culture and different lifestock common in the north.