Where to find the best hotpot restaurants in Melbourne
It was not your normal hot pot broth taste which is generally a good stock with added flavours from the meats you boil in it, in little mini mesh baskets hanging off the sides of the pot. I could taste subtlety of flavours and from all accounts, my friend was also salivating and giving her stir fry high praise. We have vowed to come back again and again, as it'll always be different each time, depending on the combinations of ingredients you've picked. Plus the choice of spending what you want is a big drawcard. Though be warned, with so many delicious choices, you could be opting for a heavier meal than you realise.
With its wooden panels and faux brick interiors reminiscent of a Chinese tea house, Xiaolongkan ("little dragon" in Mandarin) is a hot pot chain from China with 900 stores worldwide. It has two outposts in Sydney, located in Chinatown and Burwood. The condiment station is not as well stocked as other Chinese hot pot malatang near me, joints, but the complimentary soft serve after your meal is a sweet touch. One Pot also serves hot pot versions of Korean kimchi soup, Thai tom yum and Japanese miso. "We're always trying to bring the true taste of Hong Kong and Hong Kong culture to Sydney ... our chicken pot is perfect in the winter," she says.
Da Long Yi has amassed a cult following around the world with Asian megastars like G-Dragon and Fan Bingbing endorsing their Chengdu style hot pot. We've done the hard work for you and hunted down eight Melbourne spots that are heating up the hot pot scene. All that's left is to decide which one you'll dive into first. They also have Collagen Bone Broth, Sichuan Hot and Sour and Pickled Mustard to choose from. You have a choice of Not Spicy, Mild, Hot, Fire Hot and Dragon Hot.
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Unlike other hot pot broths, the soup here is light enough to be slurped on its own or enjoyed in a bowl with some of their thick wide noodles. One Pot is the only Taiwanese hot pot restaurant in Sydney, and as with Korean hot pots, it serves individual pots with all the ingredients submerged in the soup base – all you need to do is bring the pot to the boil. You can choose what type of carb and protein for most of the dishes.
Get them precooked, or there’s an easy DIY option to heat up and prep at home. If you feel like a break from Melbourne’s huge choice of Sichuan-style spots, this is the place for you. Choose between Jiyu’s signature sweet and sour tom yum soup or creamy Thai coconut broth – if you’re feeling indecisive, you can also opt for the two-in-one split pot which offers a taste of each.
We make this mostly with pineapples and green chillies, but peaches, plums or green tomatoes work really well, too. If you are using pineapple, save the skins for pineapple skin syrup. A cold refreshing beer is the perfect thing to go with our dishes.
Seafood reigns supreme here with street food-style menu options like spicy stir-fried pips, oysters or Thai seafood fried rice. For dessert, munch on the cutest rabbit-shaped pannacotta or try one of Thailand’s most beloved dishes – mango sticky rice. Then, you’ll get an individual pot filled with the broth of your choice, which means it’s time to grab any of the ingredients on the conveyor belt. With a selection of abalone, black-truffle prawn balls, mushroom parcels and fresh tofu, it’s an all-you-can-cook adventure. If you’re still feeling a bit peckish, there are even ready-to-eat dishes on the train, with options like spicy cold noodles, fresh oysters and plates of sushi and sashimi. An array of dipping ingredients – meat, seafood, vegetables and noodles – are cooked together in a vat of soup.
Even dessert is soup-ified, with a sweet Chinese-style soup made of brown sugar jelly, red bean, sultanas and goji berries. Broths are defined by a punch-in-mouth, numbing flavour from Sichuan chillies, known as mala. Butter adds an oily richness to the base, with sesame oil the preferred dipping sauce to curb heat.
Korean-style hot pots arrive at the table with all of the ingredients already immersed in the vessel – just turn on the flame and slowly bring it to the boil. The ox knee hot pot has luscious pieces of tendon and cartilage floating in a beef stock, with the pure beef taste only achieved through hours of cooking. Another popular hot pot is the traditional spicy potato and pork neck bone, which has the meat falling from the bone into a fiery red soup. Underscored by a medium-weight miso broth, the ishikari nabe looks as though it were conceptualised by an early-’70s interior designer on a long creative leash, but is one of the most substantial and satisfying pots in the city.
Their all-you-can-eat specials range from $35 to $50 per person. Scan the wall to choose cult-status instant noodles, sausage, kimchi and more meaty delights to add to your feast. In this exercise, we’ve plucked out six of the city’s most impressive hot pots from across East Asia and indexed them by country and frenzy factor, with five representing frenzy AF.
If luxury hot pot is your scene, The Dolar Shop in Chinatown provides a premium experience for diners. Originating from Macau, the city of casinos and high rollers a short ferry ride from Hong Kong, this hot pot specialist also screams excess with its ingredients and service. The chicken is cooked in the pot first, braised in a chilli spice mix with the red shallots, red onions and lotus root. You eat some of the braised chicken and then, when you're ready for soup, the broth is added.