Never have I ever… had hot pot this often. *takes a shot* But that’s not necessarily a bad thing, especially if hot pot is at Morals Village in Empire Centre. Back with the Chopsticks Fest crew, we hit up what I can only describe as the Rolls Royce of hot pot.
Can’t do hot pot without dipping sauces! The staff prepped some for us ahead of time, but there was an open ingredient station for those who wanted to make their own.
Since we had double the number of people than usual, we got to try out a wider variety of soup bases. They ranged from Pork Rib Soup to Butter Spicy Style to Beauty in the Golden House. The last one featured a chicken on top of a winter melon, simmering in parsley, goji berry and pork. After we were done with the hot pot, they used the broth to make a rice dish. It was an interesting concept, but I don’t know how I feel about having the soup that was used to cook all the meat and stuff.
Onto the main goodies. Wagyu Short Rib Beef. Yep. For hot pot. I’ve never had wagyu beef before, but I could definitely get used to it :P It’s gonna be tough going back to regular beef after this.
The presentation was pretty spiffy too with some mystical dry ice.
All the meats were actually high-quality (i.e. Angus AAA) and fresh.
This was an interesting dish made of deep fried Chinese donut, shrimp paste and roe eggs. I thought they were meant to be eaten as is, but actually they’re supposed to be dunked in the broth. It softened the donut to a soft, chewy texture with some buoyancy from the shrimp.
All the balls were made in-house without any use of artificial ingredients. They had good bounce and flavour.
Have you ever had abalone for hot pot? Me neither. The Deluxe Seafood platter not only featured abalone, but also BC crab, prawn, oyster and grouper.
It took a while, but I got a plate of hand-made noodles, which were sooooooo delicious. I was hardcore craving some carbs to go with all this meat. The noodles had a good texture and soaked up the broth it was cooked in.
Quail eggs! For those who like smaller eggs so they can feel giant.
Every hot pot needs Deep Fried Buns with Condensed Milk. Every. Hot. Pot.
To learn more about Chopstick Fest that’s starting October 15th, check out www.chopstickfest.com. Think Dine Out Vancouver, but showcasing Chinese cuisine.
Disclaimer: my meal was complementary, but all opinions are my own.