Where to find the Best Hot Pot in town
We have compiled a list of top 5 Hot Pot restaurants in the lower mainland.
Personal Hot Pot
Gokudo Shabu Shabu Hot Pot Burnaby
I think Gokudo Shabu Shabu Hot Pot carried their business culture to their new Burnaby location quite well. However, the solution to get 2 groups of two people sitting in a 4 person table was very poorly done. Gokudo Shabu Shabu is still the cheap alternative to a self cook hot pot, hence the constant line up in front. I would still come here for hot pot, but you are picky about your dining experience then Gokudo Shabu Shabu is not for you.
Boiling Point Personal Hot Pot Franchise in Burnaby
To be honest, I don’t know why Boiling Point has such a long line up. Sometimes, I just feel like going there especially when the weather gets cold. This establishment really gives me the feeling that they treat everything like an assembly line. The soup has lots of taste, and that’s what Boiling Point is good at, but it’s obvious they come from artificial flavouring. There is evidence showing the ingredients are not fresh, and everything is overcooked except the raw egg in the pot. Every hot pot is so packed with ingredients that there’s no room for things to cook properly, so the gel fueled flame’s only purpose is to keep things warm. That being said, I guess what attracts customers the most is their competitive price as a hot pot. If you want to get a hot pot for less than $20, your options are probably limited to Boiling Point, and food court hot pot.
Yunshang Rice Noodle House at Crystal Mall
Yunshang Rice Noodle serves most of its main course in hot clay pot. It’s a warm comfort food alternative to hot pot in this cold weather. The food doesn’t taste that special. Our visit cost us about approximately $19 per person. For the same price, there are better rice noodle options.
Macao Doulao All You Can Eat Personal Hotpot in Burnaby
I think Macao Doulao has pretty good all you can eat option if you are only looking for normal, non-extravagant ingredients. The price tag of $28.88 is a little misleading because you also have to add the $4.99 soup and $1.99 condiment access fee. The all you can eat option will cost $36 per person, minimum. This is very cheap considering the amount of meat we’ve had, but do know that the meat has lower quality.
No. 1 Beef Noodle House Taiwanese Cuisine in Burnaby
We arrived at No1 Beef Noodle House and realized their new menu looks very similar to Myst Asian Fusion on Kingsway. Then I found out the owners of these two restaurants are brothers. I am very troubled by how they added the Northern Chinese dumplings and cold flat noodles on their menu. Seriously, what is Northern Chinese food items doing in an authentic Taiwanese restaurant’s menu? I’m not sure if this is the first step of No1 Beef Noodle House turning into a do-it-all Taiwanese Cafe. In terms of food, the items we ordered still has good Taiwanese flavour. The mini lamb hotpot still tastes as good as before. I hope they continue to strive in the things they are good at, and not sway too far from their origin.
QianDao hotpot in Surrey
QianDao hotpot is a nice hotpot establishment in Surrey T&T Supermarket. This restaurant offers natural and refreshing broth base for you to cook your raw food. The broth was very enjoyable before you move on to cooking. Once the cooking starts, this advantage diminishes as not much of the broth’s flavour gets carried to the food especially with the sauce from the condiment station. Service wise, the staff came to refill the broth at least 4 times but only came to refill the tea once at the end of our meal. This is likely to be a business decision to sell more drinks. The meat is pretty fresh but the assorted balls are expensive for what they are. Our visit cost us $40 per person with the majority of the cost coming from the broth. The combo can get you a cheaper meal. However, judging from the other customer’s order, they don’t not look like a good deal. Overall, QianDao has quality, but the cost is also pretty high.
Newly Opened Northern Chinese Style Hotpot in Richmond
Our visit to Beijing Hotpot cost us $47 per person after tax. It is expensive but it is also in line with most of the hotpot restaurants with similar quality. I like how wed on’t need to pay extra to access a comprehensive condiment bar. The portion for both meat and veggies are larger than Dolar Shop. There is not much choice for the broth, but the excellent sauce made up for it. They really paid attention in the designing the detail to set the mood, and I have no problem recommending this hotpot restaurant.
Best Japanese Individual Hot Pot in Vancouver
Nabebugyo Hot Pot Cuisine focuses on an individual hot pot experience similar to the ones in Japan. Business strategy or not, I admire them for taking an opposite approach to the tips culture. The 4 pieces of meat per meal are a little less, but I am not sure how many pieces of meat are fair to ask for a $14 meal. Ultimately, Nabebugyo Hot Pot serve different styles of hot pot and ramen that taste authentic. This is probably the only place where you can get to have a hot pot meal for less than $15 in Vancouver.
