If you hate crowds than I would not recommend going to Haidilao
Hot Pot for dinner on a weekend. It’s packed and you’ll likely still have to
wait even with a reservation. Even simple tasks like getting dipping sauces at
the condiment station can be a test of patience.
Instead, visit for a weekday lunch and you’ll be treated to
an oasis of calm. Simply walk-in and you’re seated. In no time you’ll have a bowl
of intricately made sauce (soy sauce, crushed garlic, cilantro, green onion, a
touch of sesame oil, and mushroom chili sauce is my combo) and are ready to
boil away.
Additionally, their lunch combos are also a great
deal. Starting at $39.90 for two people and up to $79.80 for four people, each
person gets a choice of a protein (sliced beef, lamb or pork; marinated chicken
or lamb; basa fish; or prawns), a grain (steamed rice, noodles, or iced
tangyuan in rice wine), and a pre-selected platter of accompaniments.
With dinner, every item is priced separately but the lunch
combo includes a choice of two broths for the table (normally $5-$6 per base), access
to the condiment and snack station (normally $3.99 per person), and even
unlimited prune or passionfruit juice (typically sold by the pitcher).
Not all the proteins are sized alike. Their sliced beef is
sufficient two, but you’ll likely want two orders for any more people. Yet,
with eight shrimps their prawns should be enough for any sized table.
I enjoy the individual platters, which contained items like quail
eggs, imitation crab, enoki mushroom, napa cabbage, romaine lettuce, potato
slices, yam vermicelli, skin of bean curd, konjac noodle bundles, fish ball
with crab roe, and an egg bundle. Keep in mind that each person gets one of the
pictured platters so it’s A LOT of food. You’ll leave stuffed or with takeout.
They still offer snacks like pickled radish, fruit slices,
and edamame at the condiment station.
Plus, they also have a self-serve dessert station where you
can make a shaved ice creation topped with a mixture of boba, jellies, and
other ingredients.
My go to dessert for finishing the meal is a bowl of their
Chinese porridge made from red beans and rice, topped with grass jelly, a bit
of their brown sugar syrup, and vanilla ice cream (you’ll need to ask one from
the servers).
Haidilao is known for their service, and they’re adequately
staffed at lunch to ensure we’re attended to the broth is refilled at regular
intervals and they still offer to peel your shrimp. Having visited during
weekday lunch it’s a luxurious experience with no seating limits and no crowds.
It’s so lovely that I’m not sure dinner is ever in the cards again.
Address: 1571 Sandhurst Circle
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Gastro World's Grading System
- Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
- 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
- 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
- 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
- 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
- 10 - absolute perfection!
Is That It? I Want More!
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