Chongqing Hot Pot

I’ve been wanting to try authentic Chinese hot pot forever and finally found a place that was delicious and not in the belly of LA. Staff was really helpful with ordering (it’s all on your phone) and the food was incredible. Not a meal to rush through, I was there with my friend for around 90min. The sauce station is amazing and genuinely feels like there’s no “bad” combination as all the flavors just work together so well. For sure give this a try

First time trying hot pot. The server was super nice and took thier time to explain the menu and how to order. You can choose 2 diffrent broths with spice levels.or just one pot. Then you add meat and veggies. They have a sauce bar which was fun to creat mix or just choose from there.

Pasadena No.1 Hotpot. Everyone should try it. The special Hunan beef noodle is also delicious. Good for taking photo, special decoration restaurant.

Great space for hot pot! Definitely recommend sitting outside if possible. Also perfect for date night. The food was presented great. Everything is very well thought out & adventurous. Definitely recommend the pork bone soup base. Very friendly & helpful staff. Also, FREE sauce bar!!! Many different sesame sauce varieties. The bean curd sauce & black bean chili oil were our favorites. The only thing was the beer wasn't cold enough. Otherwise, a perfect night we're excited to do again soon.

An absolute flavor explosion! This is the most authentic Chongqing mala hot pot I've had outside of China. The numbing Sichuan peppercorns and spicy broth are an addictive combination. Be prepared to sweat and fall in love! Totally worth the wait

This is a top notch hot pot restaurant with great quality, amazing selection and fantastic service. They even have a dancer perform during dinner which was awesome. Lots of condiments to make your sauce your way, and tons of little snacks as well. If you are a fan of hot pot you will be a fan of this place, it does hot pot right.

I’m not gonna lie, I was afraid in the beginning because it was my first experience eating food that will cook in the table lol, but I loved it, and it was a great experience. Would definitely try again and recommend you trying it too. Can’t wait to have more Chinese food experience.

+6

The spicy base taste is very original and food is fresh. A lot snacks you can choose as well. Not easy to find parking space but you can park in the garage by first two hours $1 next to Moom 48 Thai.

We came here for the very first meal of Dragon Year. It was a fantastic experience, cool vibe, top quality, amazing sauce bar and snack! My favorite hotpot restaurant evaaa!

+6

Best hot pot in LA. Nice portion of meat plate. Various and quality dishes. Most important, best service! One of their staff pass me a new spoon once he saw I used mine to cut raw minced shrimp. That’s really heart warming. Also like their decorations with old movies poster and traditional signs, really fun.

Great menu options; not just a basic hot pot place. Amazing interior. From the decor down to small details like plates and utensils, this place is cool! The sauce bar has small snacks and is better than most other places. Will definitely be visiting here regularly!

The best Hotpot I have ever had in Pasadena. It was my first time to dine here but it really impressed me a lot! Combo soup with medium spicy broth and pork broth is classic and tasty. If you are a spicy-lover, this will be the must-try for you. We ordered beef tongue, Beef Bone Marrow Zi Bu, Popcorn Fried PorkSpicy Beef, shrimp ball, green veggie, tofu, yam, mushroom and so on. All of them are very good but watercress and duck blood are especially highly recommended. As a person who loves duck blood so much, the item absolutely hit the spot. The texture was super smooth and tasty. Bravo! It’s my first time to have watercress and I have to say it’s way better than I expected. I will definitely come again for it. The dish is very special that I have barely seen this in other hotpot restaurants. The tiny bitter taste of the veggie suited really well with the pork broth that will make you wanna keep having another bite. We also tried the desserts, leeches and Zanba. They are our perfect ending for the meal. Overall, I will list Yaomei as one of my top hotpot restaurants in LA. The food was amazing for sure and their service was awesome that the food came out really fast and we felt being well taken care of by our server. P.S. I saw that people complaining about parking in the reviews but there were a couple of street parking spots when we were there on Friday night and there was a huge parking structure near the restaurant with a distance of only 3 minutes by walk, which offer 90 minutes free parking with $5 flat rate per hour. I believe that parking is not a problem at all.

Great experience. Helpful waitstaff as I'd not been to this type of restaurant before. And delicious food. Even some entertainment that I won't spoil by telling you, just go. It is a great place. Worth going imo

+6

What a great experience! My bf and I popped in here for a quick lunch today and we were not disappointed. It was our first time so the waitress was incredibly helpful and patient with us. We got the combo base with miso and pork Bono. Both delicious! Plus the mushroom combo plate, Fatty Beef, and Pork belly. We barely finished it and had to take the egg fried rice home. Overall, this might be a better spot for dinner because of how much food you get, but we had a blast for lunch!!! Would definitely go again, especially on a double date

I know we’re all obsessed with super spicy tallow hot pot now, but this isn’t Sancheng lameizi or Laomatou. This is Chongqing Yaomei in old town Pasadena. The concept is pretty much the same, you order your soup bases, I went with bone broth and the spicy tallow, of course. Grab your unlimited appetizers and make your own sauces from the self-serve bar. Then order all your ingredients from your phone. Presentation? A1 here. Bonus points because the server will help you mix the egg into the beef, this makes the beef SO tender. EXTRA bonus points because the server brought me his own sauce concoction, which was soo sweet of him. And they even do grilled skewers in their outdoor patio. Thanks for reading! ^-^

A surprisingly good Chinese hotpot experience, excelling in variety, quality, and not as salty or sweet as some Americanized places. Would recommend for anyone looking for variety of dishes and an immersive experience with a dine-in hotpot setting!

Spicy, sizzling, and full of flavor 🔥🍲 Chong Qing Yao Mei is the spot for hot pot lovers in Pasadena! We went with the Combo Soup Base (rich beef oil + comforting bone broth) and loaded up on meats, seafood, and veggies. Don’t skip the sauce bar and the side bar for cold dishes + desserts 🥢✨ We even tried the crispy fried chitlins 👀 And yes… they’ve got skewers + outdoor dining too!

Delicious and fun. You have traditional performance here at night time and the food is very authentic ( at least for Pasadena ). The BBQ is even better tasting than the professional BBQ restaurant.

A super causal but fun place for friends. I ended up coming in for lunch and didn’t wait to be seated. The service was really quick and ordering via the QR code made things really convenient. The beef oil broth was spicy and delicious, I ended up opting for only the one since it was so good. I recommend the mushrooms and spicy beef. But you can’t go wrong!

Grab a group of friends and enjoy some hotpot here! Lovely restaurant with indoor and outdoor seating options, metered street parking out front. You pick your soup base(s) and whatever you want (by the serving). Tell them what soup you want and order the rest from the app. Ingredients come out quickly and are fresh/high quality. There’s a sauce bar so you can create your own. There’s some snacks too but don’t fill up! The hotpot is the star of the show. Though we did come in on a random Sunday night and were surprised by an actual marital arts dancing show! Staff is very friendly and helpful. Definitely err on the side of caution with the spice—hot is VERY HOT here. We still had to get our soup toned down after ordering the mild. Overall was a great splurge, would recommend and would definitely come back!

The Service: Their service is quick & super attentive. Absolutely "A+" customer service! All the staffs are very knowledgeable about the menu. They gave great recommendations. The Restaurant: LOVE LOVE LOVE their decoration! It totally reminds me of the olden days in China. The lantern, the neon sign, the posters on the wall, etc. It looks like in a movie set! Lots of great photo ops. Get your camera ready! BTW, they have a private room in case you have a big party. The Food: YES, very authentic! Some of the items on the menu that I have never seen in other hotpot places. Well~ you know Chinese do eat some exotic food, if you are up for the challenge, you got to try it here! There are varieties of different flavors of the soup base. If you are vegetarian, there are LOTS of vegetables to choose from. Their meats are super fresh, thinly sliced so it cooks quickly. Also, they plate their food beautifully, perfect for my Instagram post! You can't eat hot pot without dipping sauce, right? Guess what? They have a sauce "bar". You create & mix your own sauce to your liking. The Parking: There is a paid small parking lot right next to the restaurant. Street metered parking in front of the restaurant as well. If you don't mind walking just a little bit, there are plenty of street metered parking on the bridge (on Green St.). Even better.... once you pass the bridge, residential area parking on the street (FREE!)

It’s an amazing place with authentic Chinese spicy hotpot in Pasadena. For us who lives in Glendale, it’s the best spot to go to :) Their decor is very fun, chill, and themed. Food is great with fresh ingredients and incredible flavors. The staff is very friendly and does they best job to help. There is a small parking right next to the restaurant. We paid $10 for 6 hours. Highly recommended!

Fresh ingredients in a Chinese 80s type of feel. Loved all the ingredients but especially the lamb, beef, shrimp balls, and mixed tofu. They also have a sauce station that also serves free unlimited appetizers and unlimited desserts. The combo soup is likely best so you get the best of both worlds

Sherry

I know we’re all obsessed with super spicy tallow hot pot now, but this isn’t Sancheng lameizi or Laomatou. This is Chongqing Yaomei in old town Pasadena. The concept is pretty much the same, you order your soup bases, I went with bone broth and the spicy tallow, of course. Grab your unlimited appetizers and make your own sauces from the self-serve bar. Then order all your ingredients from your phone. Presentation? A1 here. Bonus points because the server will help you mix the egg into the beef, this makes the beef SO tender. EXTRA bonus points because the server brought me his own sauce concoction, which was soo sweet of him. And they even do grilled skewers in their outdoor patio. Thanks for reading! ^-^

El Hovik

A surprisingly good Chinese hotpot experience, excelling in variety, quality, and not as salty or sweet as some Americanized places. Would recommend for anyone looking for variety of dishes and an immersive experience with a dine-in hotpot setting!

Diana Chang

Spicy, sizzling, and full of flavor 🔥🍲 Chong Qing Yao Mei is the spot for hot pot lovers in Pasadena! We went with the Combo Soup Base (rich beef oil + comforting bone broth) and loaded up on meats, seafood, and veggies. Don’t skip the sauce bar and the side bar for cold dishes + desserts 🥢✨ We even tried the crispy fried chitlins 👀 And yes… they’ve got skewers + outdoor dining too!

lynn Yu

Delicious and fun. You have traditional performance here at night time and the food is very authentic ( at least for Pasadena ). The BBQ is even better tasting than the professional BBQ restaurant.

Lauren Donahoe

A super causal but fun place for friends. I ended up coming in for lunch and didn’t wait to be seated. The service was really quick and ordering via the QR code made things really convenient. The beef oil broth was spicy and delicious, I ended up opting for only the one since it was so good. I recommend the mushrooms and spicy beef. But you can’t go wrong!

Ying Liang

Grab a group of friends and enjoy some hotpot here! Lovely restaurant with indoor and outdoor seating options, metered street parking out front. You pick your soup base(s) and whatever you want (by the serving). Tell them what soup you want and order the rest from the app. Ingredients come out quickly and are fresh/high quality. There’s a sauce bar so you can create your own. There’s some snacks too but don’t fill up! The hotpot is the star of the show. Though we did come in on a random Sunday night and were surprised by an actual marital arts dancing show! Staff is very friendly and helpful. Definitely err on the side of caution with the spice—hot is VERY HOT here. We still had to get our soup toned down after ordering the mild. Overall was a great splurge, would recommend and would definitely come back!

I Love Food Coma

The Service: Their service is quick & super attentive. Absolutely "A+" customer service! All the staffs are very knowledgeable about the menu. They gave great recommendations. The Restaurant: LOVE LOVE LOVE their decoration! It totally reminds me of the olden days in China. The lantern, the neon sign, the posters on the wall, etc. It looks like in a movie set! Lots of great photo ops. Get your camera ready! BTW, they have a private room in case you have a big party. The Food: YES, very authentic! Some of the items on the menu that I have never seen in other hotpot places. Well~ you know Chinese do eat some exotic food, if you are up for the challenge, you got to try it here! There are varieties of different flavors of the soup base. If you are vegetarian, there are LOTS of vegetables to choose from. Their meats are super fresh, thinly sliced so it cooks quickly. Also, they plate their food beautifully, perfect for my Instagram post! You can't eat hot pot without dipping sauce, right? Guess what? They have a sauce "bar". You create & mix your own sauce to your liking. The Parking: There is a paid small parking lot right next to the restaurant. Street metered parking in front of the restaurant as well. If you don't mind walking just a little bit, there are plenty of street metered parking on the bridge (on Green St.). Even better.... once you pass the bridge, residential area parking on the street (FREE!)

CeeCee Peng

It’s an amazing place with authentic Chinese spicy hotpot in Pasadena. For us who lives in Glendale, it’s the best spot to go to :) Their decor is very fun, chill, and themed. Food is great with fresh ingredients and incredible flavors. The staff is very friendly and does they best job to help. There is a small parking right next to the restaurant. We paid $10 for 6 hours. Highly recommended!

Jeff Tong

Fresh ingredients in a Chinese 80s type of feel. Loved all the ingredients but especially the lamb, beef, shrimp balls, and mixed tofu. They also have a sauce station that also serves free unlimited appetizers and unlimited desserts. The combo soup is likely best so you get the best of both worlds

I tried Chong Qing YaoMei Hotpot and really liked it. The soup base was rich and spicy, and the food tasted fresh. There were a lot of meat and vegetable options to pick from, so it was easy to find things I liked. The restaurant was clean and the staff were nice. The prices were fair for the amount of food you get. Overall it was a good hotpot spot and I would go again.

The atmosphere alone is worth a visit—the retro 1930’s China decor makes the space feel immersive and unique. The hot pot was amazing, rich, and full of depth, and the skewers were packed with bold flavor and spice. Everything tasted fresh and well-seasoned, and it’s the kind of meal you want to take your time with and enjoy. If you’re into interactive dining, spicy food, and a fun vibe, this place is a must. Definitely one of my favorite spots in Pasadena.

I went here for the first time on a Tuesday night. They have a physical menu and an online menu. My friend and I ordered a bunch of thin slices of meat. Lamb and beef. We tried pig brain, I did not like it. My favorites were the lamb slices. I also tossed in a block of udon noodles into the broth. The combination of chewy udon with lamb was phenomenal. We also ordered plenty of vegetables but some of their names I don't know. I let my friend mix in the sauces to make one whole sauce. It was a sweet sauce. The service was really good. They were always checking on us. The waitress was very helpful with our questions.

I went to Chongqing Yaomei Hot Pot and their beef bone marrow was incredibly rich and flavorful. The lotus root was perfectly crunchy and soaked up the spicy broth really well. The broth itself was bold, numbing, and packed with authentic Sichuan flavors. The restaurant has a lively vibe, making it a great spot to enjoy a hearty meal with friends.

The Chongqing hot pot here hits just right—rich, numbing-spicy broth that tastes homemade, not overly greasy. The ingredients felt fresh, especially the lamb slices and wide noodles, which soaked up the flavor perfectly. Service was friendly and attentive; our server refilled the broth promptly and gave quick recommendations. Would 100% recommend for authentic, satisfying hot pot!

Chong Qing Yao Mei in Pasadena takes hot pot to the next level with bold, flavorful broths like rich beef oil, bone, and miso, plus a huge variety of fresh meats, seafood, and unique items such as bone marrow, yam noodles, and mentaiko fish balls. The sauce bar and unlimited side dishes add to the experience, while the new charcoal-grilled skewers—especially the beef and pork—are perfect with drinks. The atmosphere is lively yet casual, with fun touches like Chinese music, mahjong tables, and even live performances, and both indoor and outdoor seating are available. With quick service, convenient app ordering, and friendly staff, it’s an ideal spot for groups of friends to enjoy a flavorful and memorable hot pot night.

Fred Garcia

I went here for the first time on a Tuesday night. They have a physical menu and an online menu. My friend and I ordered a bunch of thin slices of meat. Lamb and beef. We tried pig brain, I did not like it. My favorites were the lamb slices. I also tossed in a block of udon noodles into the broth. The combination of chewy udon with lamb was phenomenal. We also ordered plenty of vegetables but some of their names I don't know. I let my friend mix in the sauces to make one whole sauce. It was a sweet sauce. The service was really good. They were always checking on us. The waitress was very helpful with our questions.

will Dany

An absolute flavor explosion! This is the most authentic Chongqing mala hot pot I've had outside of China. The numbing Sichuan peppercorns and spicy broth are an addictive combination. Be prepared to sweat and fall in love! Totally worth the wait

Cathy yi

The Chongqing hot pot here hits just right—rich, numbing-spicy broth that tastes homemade, not overly greasy. The ingredients felt fresh, especially the lamb slices and wide noodles, which soaked up the flavor perfectly. Service was friendly and attentive; our server refilled the broth promptly and gave quick recommendations. Would 100% recommend for authentic, satisfying hot pot!

Yueyao Zhou (Aria)

Chong Qing Yao Mei in Pasadena takes hot pot to the next level with bold, flavorful broths like rich beef oil, bone, and miso, plus a huge variety of fresh meats, seafood, and unique items such as bone marrow, yam noodles, and mentaiko fish balls. The sauce bar and unlimited side dishes add to the experience, while the new charcoal-grilled skewers—especially the beef and pork—are perfect with drinks. The atmosphere is lively yet casual, with fun touches like Chinese music, mahjong tables, and even live performances, and both indoor and outdoor seating are available. With quick service, convenient app ordering, and friendly staff, it’s an ideal spot for groups of friends to enjoy a flavorful and memorable hot pot night.

Qiaoen Huang

I went to Chongqing Yaomei Hot Pot and their beef bone marrow was incredibly rich and flavorful. The lotus root was perfectly crunchy and soaked up the spicy broth really well. The broth itself was bold, numbing, and packed with authentic Sichuan flavors. The restaurant has a lively vibe, making it a great spot to enjoy a hearty meal with friends.

Girl's day out, cause I'm too tired for a girls' night out now a today's hahaha 😆 So the plan was to go to a completely different place, but being that it was a Sunday, the wait for some bar type food was a no-go. So we decided to go for some hot pot cause the weather was just PERFECT for it. My friends first time too trying hotpot. She gave it 2 thumbs up, so for sure, she will definitely be going to hotpot places now. Anywhooooo, the place was a few steps to the left, literally, and when we got there, we were sat immediately. The ordering process was explained to us, and we ordered.... by far, the best bone broth I've ever had 🙌 and let me tell you, we ordered maybe 6 dishes of meats and veggies, and by the end of it, we were both full, the total was about $80ish, AMAZING. On top of that, I also ordered a biscoff milk tea. It was so damn good! 🤤

This was my first Chinese hotpot experience. We checked in with the online Yelp waiting list via tablet at the front of the restaurant, and it took us about 30 mins to be seated. The vibes inside felt like I was transported in a different world. However, I felt the outdoor area could be a bit cleaner. After we were seated, we selected two broths: bone broth and medium spicy special broth. Our favorite of the two was medium spicy, but both flavors were delicious and flavorful. The positives: the fatty beef was delicious! Fish balls and woodear mushrooms were tasty as well. There are many options to use at their self-serve sauce bar. Service was good; we utilized the bell by our seat to request extra water from time to time. Staffs offered if we wanted to do any takeout, so we packed our fried mantou and even got some extra condensed milk on the side too. As for my other thoughts, I tried the plum juice for the first time. Because it tasted more like barbeque sauce than a fruit juice, I was put off. Also, the fried bread was brought cold instead of warm. It was my first time trying these, so I'm not sure if this is how it's supposed to be. Anyway, all in all, not bad experience!

The pork bone and mushroom combo broth are full of umami flavors. The fatty beef, marbled beef, pork belly, marinated pork, rose shrimp, mushroom and meatball platters and greens are fresh. The butterfly shrimp not so much. The sauce and snack bar has plenty to offer including sesame balls. Skip the fried pork.

+4

Went with a group of friends and we were seated right away for dinner around 8p. They have a QR code that you scan to get to the menu and order everything you want online and they will bring it out to your table. The place has a nice general bar for add-ons / fillers like green onions and sauces and that’s at the front of the restaurant. Unfortunate where we sat it was quite stuffy and the fan didn’t seem to work nor the overhead exhaust. But we carried on! The soup bases were yummy, and we enjoyed all the stuff we ordered including all the veggies (all looked clean) and meats were well presented. The workers did come around every so often to refill the soups if we were running low. FYI - just don’t sit outside if your sensitive to smoke since lots of people tend to smoke in the patio area.

Viviana H

Went with a group of friends and we were seated right away for dinner around 8p. They have a QR code that you scan to get to the menu and order everything you want online and they will bring it out to your table. The place has a nice general bar for add-ons / fillers like green onions and sauces and that’s at the front of the restaurant. Unfortunate where we sat it was quite stuffy and the fan didn’t seem to work nor the overhead exhaust. But we carried on! The soup bases were yummy, and we enjoyed all the stuff we ordered including all the veggies (all looked clean) and meats were well presented. The workers did come around every so often to refill the soups if we were running low. FYI - just don’t sit outside if your sensitive to smoke since lots of people tend to smoke in the patio area.

Pauline

This was my first Chinese hotpot experience. We checked in with the online Yelp waiting list via tablet at the front of the restaurant, and it took us about 30 mins to be seated. The vibes inside felt like I was transported in a different world. However, I felt the outdoor area could be a bit cleaner. After we were seated, we selected two broths: bone broth and medium spicy special broth. Our favorite of the two was medium spicy, but both flavors were delicious and flavorful. The positives: the fatty beef was delicious! Fish balls and woodear mushrooms were tasty as well. There are many options to use at their self-serve sauce bar. Service was good; we utilized the bell by our seat to request extra water from time to time. Staffs offered if we wanted to do any takeout, so we packed our fried mantou and even got some extra condensed milk on the side too. As for my other thoughts, I tried the plum juice for the first time. Because it tasted more like barbeque sauce than a fruit juice, I was put off. Also, the fried bread was brought cold instead of warm. It was my first time trying these, so I'm not sure if this is how it's supposed to be. Anyway, all in all, not bad experience!

Came here with a big group & we had made reservations ahead of time. The food is ok. There’s a wide variety of foods to suit different tastes. With the split pot your able to choose from a variety of soup bases & a plethora of add ins. Each table shares a pot & there is a self serve sauce station. The service was attentive & you also get a mini show from the Chinese quick change dancer. The only thing that left a bad taste was when they added the 20% tip. No where did it state there would be added gratuity for a big party. Though the way the server said it in mandarin was that they selected 20% to leads me to believe that they had a POS system where someone should be able to select 15%, 18%, 20% etc. What if we wanted to tip 25%? I don’t recommend this place & won’t coming back.

+4

Not bad, but 3/4 of us had explosive diarrhea after, and we're used to hot pot. Must have been something on the salad bar.

I went there with my friends. We ordered the regular Chinese hot pot dishes, and the price on the website was around $120. However, the restaurant charged us an additional $20 in tax and $20 for tips. I didn’t quite understand how that worked, because I thought tips were supposed to be optional and discussed with customers first. In the end, it turned out to be quite expensive. As a Sichuan native and a lifelong hot pot lover, I think the food was okay but not particularly impressive to me. That said, the staff were very friendly, and the atmosphere and overall environment were clean, tidy, and welcoming.

Dorian Zane (Jacob)

I went there with my friends. We ordered the regular Chinese hot pot dishes, and the price on the website was around $120. However, the restaurant charged us an additional $20 in tax and $20 for tips. I didn’t quite understand how that worked, because I thought tips were supposed to be optional and discussed with customers first. In the end, it turned out to be quite expensive. As a Sichuan native and a lifelong hot pot lover, I think the food was okay but not particularly impressive to me. That said, the staff were very friendly, and the atmosphere and overall environment were clean, tidy, and welcoming.

When I walked in with my friends I had high expectations. I liked the decorations and the soup and meat were good at first, except for the fried tofu and fried bread which were both dry. However, we found three small cockroaches in the soup which made us lose our appetite. The waiter gave us the options to either refund the soup base and let us continue eating it, or replace the soup without a refund. We expected for the waiter to give us a partial refund for some of the foods we bought since we still had so much food left, or at least replace the foods and soup all together. In the end we just stopped eating and were refunded $10 from the entire $100 meal.

I used to love this hot pot place and came back because I had such great memories from before. Unfortunately, this visit was a huge disappointment. They now charge around $6.99 per person just to access the sauce and salad bar—which I’ve never seen at any other hot pot restaurant. It felt ridiculous, especially since there wasn’t much to choose from. There were also some basic issues with the experience: no tongs were provided for handling the raw meat, which is a hygiene concern, and the seats were creaky and uncomfortable. To make matters worse, one of my friends ended up getting food poisoning after eating here and was sick in bed for three days. It’s really sad because I used to enjoy this place, but after this experience, I won’t be coming back. P.s Honestly, I think Haidilao is a much better option in comparison.

Sasha M

I used to love this hot pot place and came back because I had such great memories from before. Unfortunately, this visit was a huge disappointment. They now charge around $6.99 per person just to access the sauce and salad bar—which I’ve never seen at any other hot pot restaurant. It felt ridiculous, especially since there wasn’t much to choose from. There were also some basic issues with the experience: no tongs were provided for handling the raw meat, which is a hygiene concern, and the seats were creaky and uncomfortable. To make matters worse, one of my friends ended up getting food poisoning after eating here and was sick in bed for three days. It’s really sad because I used to enjoy this place, but after this experience, I won’t be coming back. P.s Honestly, I think Haidilao is a much better option in comparison.

First of all, the employee who I assume is the skewer cook is unbelievably rude. We walked into the restaurant and there wasn’t a single server or host in sight. We literally stood there for five minutes with zero acknowledgment. Finally, this guy in the restaurant uniform walks by, so I tell him we need a table for two. His entire response? “I’m not a waiter.” That’s it. No “Let me find someone for you,” no directing us to the right person — just a grumpy, dismissive brush-off. Sorry for assuming someone wearing the restaurant uniform might actually help customers. Apparently that was too much to ask. Later I found out he’s the skewer cook, and honestly his attitude matches the food: cocky and careless. It was raining, and there were puddles right inside the entrance. The whole place felt neglected — extra tables and chairs piled around, a musty, borderline moldy smell in the air, and generally a grimy vibe. Not exactly an appetizing way to start a meal. The food itself? Mediocre at best. And the skewers — the ones made by Mr. “I’m Not a Waiter” — were nothing but chunks of fat. I actually felt nauseous afterward - wanted to vomit. With all the hot pot options in LA, there’s absolutely no reason for me to ever come back here. If I had to see that cook again, I’d probably lose my appetite on the spot. Hard pass.

Katherine K

First of all, the employee who I assume is the skewer cook is unbelievably rude. We walked into the restaurant and there wasn’t a single server or host in sight. We literally stood there for five minutes with zero acknowledgment. Finally, this guy in the restaurant uniform walks by, so I tell him we need a table for two. His entire response? “I’m not a waiter.” That’s it. No “Let me find someone for you,” no directing us to the right person — just a grumpy, dismissive brush-off. Sorry for assuming someone wearing the restaurant uniform might actually help customers. Apparently that was too much to ask. Later I found out he’s the skewer cook, and honestly his attitude matches the food: cocky and careless. It was raining, and there were puddles right inside the entrance. The whole place felt neglected — extra tables and chairs piled around, a musty, borderline moldy smell in the air, and generally a grimy vibe. Not exactly an appetizing way to start a meal. The food itself? Mediocre at best. And the skewers — the ones made by Mr. “I’m Not a Waiter” — were nothing but chunks of fat. I actually felt nauseous afterward - wanted to vomit. With all the hot pot options in LA, there’s absolutely no reason for me to ever come back here. If I had to see that cook again, I’d probably lose my appetite on the spot. Hard pass.

tl;dr: this restaurant does not care about their customers and does not value their customers time. The food tastes bland, and the manager is just rude. I'm pretty sure they're in violation of some health and safety regulations. See pictures posted. Review time: We arrived within ten minutes of our reservation but we were told our table was not ready yet. Ok, so our party of ten waited. And waited. And waited. All we got from the staff was, "the customers before us are almost done, but don't want to leave." About forty minutes passed and the plot thickens. We found out that the party before us were seated only half an hour before our reservation. The restaurant was adamant that they don't take reservations after 6:30pm but we were not notified of this. So either they lied about the table before us almost finishing their dinner, or they are just throwing out company policies that were not made clear when we made the reservation. If we had known these policies before hand, we would not have wasted so much time waiting on a lie. Frankly, we believe they just wanted to make more money and don't care about their customers at all. We tried making our point clear that 1) the whole point of us making a reservation was for us to get a table when we arrived, 2) we weren't told that they don't take reservations, to which we were met with a "fed-up" attitude from the manager. This really just shows that they do not care about their customer and don't value their customers' time. Eventually our party split was seated on separate tables and frankly the food was not that good. The hotpot broth was just spicy and was poorly seasoned. Overall, it was one of the worst dining experiences I have ever had. In addition, I didn't not see a health and safety rating displayed in their facility but whatever it is, I rate it should be lower than what is current. One of their servers was on duty wearing slippers and another employee who works in the kitchen was wearing a tank top. You can see him pushing a cart as he comes out of the kitchen. Also, the platters they serve meat on has some sort of mold growing on it. Think twice before you choose to dine here.

+1

We had an extremely disappointing follow-up experience. I'm sharing our story of losing an item here in the hope that the restaurant will address and improve its management. Our child accidentally left a beloved water bottle at the restaurant after our meal yesterday. Upon realizing this, we immediately tried calling the restaurant's published phone number multiple times during business hours, but the line was consistently unanswered (we tried calling no less than 10 times). As we couldn't get through by phone, we made a special trip back to the restaurant the next day. However, what was even more unacceptable was that upon arriving, the staff simply told us it was "nowhere to be found" or "they hadn't seen it." There was no proactive assistance in searching for it (e.g., checking with colleagues from other shifts, looking in a lost and found area), nor did they show any sense of apology or responsibility. A child's water bottle might not be valuable, but it was dear to our child. This indifferent handling left us feeling very upset. We understand that the primary responsibility for losing the item lies with us, and that the restaurant can be busy. However, the value of a great restaurant lies not only in its food but also in its ability to provide timely help and supportive service when problems occur. Regrettably, this restaurant's performance in this aspect was completely unsatisfactory. This incident has significantly diminished our impression of this establishment.

qiao hou

We had an extremely disappointing follow-up experience. I'm sharing our story of losing an item here in the hope that the restaurant will address and improve its management. Our child accidentally left a beloved water bottle at the restaurant after our meal yesterday. Upon realizing this, we immediately tried calling the restaurant's published phone number multiple times during business hours, but the line was consistently unanswered (we tried calling no less than 10 times). As we couldn't get through by phone, we made a special trip back to the restaurant the next day. However, what was even more unacceptable was that upon arriving, the staff simply told us it was "nowhere to be found" or "they hadn't seen it." There was no proactive assistance in searching for it (e.g., checking with colleagues from other shifts, looking in a lost and found area), nor did they show any sense of apology or responsibility. A child's water bottle might not be valuable, but it was dear to our child. This indifferent handling left us feeling very upset. We understand that the primary responsibility for losing the item lies with us, and that the restaurant can be busy. However, the value of a great restaurant lies not only in its food but also in its ability to provide timely help and supportive service when problems occur. Regrettably, this restaurant's performance in this aspect was completely unsatisfactory. This incident has significantly diminished our impression of this establishment.