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Category: Chinese
Neighborhoods: Chinatown, Lower East SideGrand St (B, D)
East Broadway (F)
Canal Street (J, M, Z, N, Q, R, W, 6)
"This is THE Dim Sum place to go! Sunday is traditionally when families would get together and go out for dim sum so this place get packed…" read more »
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So we got here at 7:15 and fortunately, had made reservations for 7:30. This place got packed and to sit the 5 in our group it seems like it was almost necessary to make the reservation if we didn't want to wait an hour or two.
Although I did not eat anything else but the half and half hot pot, there were a lot of Chinese folks in there enjoying their meals. So lets get to our meal...
We got half hot and half chicken broth pot with beef and pork. We also got some broccoli, Chinese mushroom, wheat noodles, fried tofu, and celery. All of this was just what we needed, it hit the spot perfectly. We also got an assortment of sauces, i gotta say the garlic chili sauce was simple, but Amazing!! Highly recommended.
Going through the soup, my friend asked for a refill of the chicken broth, they gladly added more, but the second time around they filled it with just water; perhaps a sign of them kicking us out?! We paid and left (note: CASH ONLY)
We all enjoyed our meal and it was very affordable. We didn't drink any beer since we were hitting up a sake bar right after.
On a side note, my fiance said the bathroom was beyond disgusting... but the meal was great.
People thought this was:
As i look through the negative reviews here, i am struck with just how clueless some people are when it comes to food in China-town.
A) if it looks clean and pretty - then it's a tourist's spot and you pay for the decor and NOT the food
B) if you're looking for presentation (seriously who needs garnish on their raw meat?) then this is not the place - i'm sorry if they don't make pretty flowers out of the shaved meat - go to Vegas if you want that crap
C) you order the specialty of the house - (again why would you go to a steak house and expect good tofu?)
D)Are people really grousing over being charged for sauce? i mean really? do you understand basic business practices? If you are paying nothing then you are getting nothing. The "sauces" you get free in most Chinese places are brown salt water and watered down apricot jam with vinegar - if that's what you want - then go to Uncle Ling Lings and point to the picture on the wall.....
The sauces here are AMAZING (i suggest the fermented tofu, the Spicy Soy, the hot oil and well most of them) Also DO try the pickled cabage, the duck tongue, the squid, beef, and the tofu skin! NIIIIICE!
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Ok so - it took me forever to make sure this was the right Sezhwan place (the map shows it on the… Read more »
I admit, I have masochistic tendencies.
A hotpot dinner at Grand Sichuan is the equivalent of the ultimate masochistic experience. My tongue is still tingling from the aftermath of the chili broth drenched vegetables and protein. The color of my skin is slowly turning back to normal. I can inhale and exhale without my eyes watering.
After many endorsements, I decided to try the infamous Sichuan hotpot. What the hey, I can always use a good sinus clearing. I did not anticipate the fiery inferno that would ensue. The boiling vat of chili peppers and peppercorns looks like a pot of death. One sip of the broth sent my senses into a frenzy, fire alarms going off.
We dunked our assortment (Chinese cabbage, dried tofu, golden tip mushrooms, clear noodles, beef slices) into this vat o' death and let them cook for a few minutes. We ordered the Sha Cha sauce and soy sauce and sesame as dunking sauces. We would soon use them in an attempt to mask the spiciness.
The meal was delicious. I can not lie. While it was probably one of the spiciest things I have ever consumed, it was worth the experience.
I'm so sorry gastro-intestinal system. After the copious amounts of alcohol consumption plus today's hell broth shitshow, I have put you through alot.
Next on the menu: DETOX.
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i have a love/hate relationship with this place. love because i love hot pot. hate because the service here makes me wish i just went home to eat hot pot. we got seated at 8:15 on a thursday night (a 45 minute wait for the 12 of us.. acceptable) but then we sat down and waited another 30 minutes before our hotpot base was given to us, and it wasn't because we weren't asking for it! after the initial 30 minute wait the food came pretty fast but honestly, we were all perplexed, why does it take so long to prepare foods that they don't even have to cook?
they were very accommodating when we brought a cake to share for a friends birthday, but by that time we had all waited for so long we just wanted to go home. next time i'll probably just hit up all the chinatown stores and buy hot pot meats/vegies and prepare it in my own house. a lot cheaper and a lot faster too.
First off, let me begin by saying that I went on Wednesday night for dinner and I'm going again on Saturday! The BEST chinese I've had in LOOOONG time.
You have to get what their known for, the hot pot. Get half spicy and half regular. Basically it's chicken broth heated in a pot and placed in the middle of the table. The pot has a burner below so it stays hot. A divider splits the spicy broth from the regular broth.
You order sides of meat, veggies, seafood, noodles, & tofu that you want to cook in the broth. Besides being fun to cook, it's amazing to eat. You should also get some sides that you don't have to cook like the hot oil dumplings and the yang chow fried rice. Honestly the best fried rice I've ever had. Tons of flavor and everything in it was fresh and tender. The dumplings were spicy and exploded with more flavor.
Now back to the hot pot b/c let's face it you have to talk about what their known for. If you like spicy, you're going to love this broth. Comes with ALOT of peppers floating around the top and peppercorns throughout. The entire table was sweating, noses were running, eyes were watering, and lots of beer was consumed. Man, can't wait to do it again...
If you go, tell me what you think.
People thought this was:
The hot pot is ok+, but too little space. Can't compare to Little Sheep.
I keep getting dragged here not realizing what it is and then seeing the place and groaning. I have yet to have anything here that I really like and a really un-fresh poorly made fish that made me sick. (I didnt want to order the fish cause theyre not known for seafood, but my friend insisted). The other dishes I've had are standard or below average.
They are best known for decent (cause so few people have it in manhattan) but incredibly overpriced hotpot (Canned enoki? Extra charges for typically free sauces?) so I'd much rather get the super cheap shabu shabu at Quickly even though its not super authentic they have unlimited condiments, toppings (scallion/cilantro), and eggs. Given you cook everything yourself and the key is fresh ingredients - which are cheap and plentiful in chinatown! - this place is very meh
I would never recommend this place to anyone. The convenient location to the bus stop is the most likely reason how these thieves can get away with the sorry excuse to say they offer hotpot.
It seems like the people that gave it good reviews - need to visit Flushing. Now, in many ways Flushing has better restaurants, but Chinatown has always been a good second runner up and better in some areas - and... it's Chinatown - there is no excuse to mess up Hot Pot.
The prices for the food was almost to the point of extortion. I judge the value of food by presentation, quantity, quality. Every meat dish for the meal came in a pile of meat. Literally - a pile! Like it came off of the cold cuts section of Wal-mart - thin slices over each other. Getting the meat off each other was a task I never thought was so hard to do. Other places decorate a nice big plate with the meat and spread it out so that you can easily pick up the meat with your chopsticks.
The quality - wasn't bad. I will give it that - but the other two fields just didn't cut it.
Oh and the sauce - the staple of Hot Pot - they charge $1.5 for a small container of sauce. The same stuff you expect to get for free (soy sauce, haosin sauce, oyster sauce, hot sauce) - you pay for? Are you kidding me?
Topped off with the dirtiest and sketchiest looking restaurant that looks like they haven't cleaned in a while - and then I wonder why Chinese restaurants have a bad name.
This place is not normal. It has a target audience and that is not the people who live there. It is targeted to fleece unsuspecting bus travelers who come and wait for the bus. Fung Wah bus customers go there while they are waiting to pick up something to eat. Other than that - I see no value, and only a sorry excuse to be a restaurant.
DON'T GO HERE! (To be honest however, I don't know where else you can get hot pot in Ctown - closest I know is Pho 32 in St. Marks - never been but the one in Flushing is impeccable).
People thought this was:
Who knew "hot potting" could be so much fun. Go with a group and you will have a blast. I recommend the divided pot with chicken on one side and the spicy on the other. The sauces, oh the sauces, are a great addition. I loved the hot oil sauce. I cannot say enough good things about cooking noodles in the different sides of the pot. But I do warn you, the spicy is truly that...SPICY. It will not burn you but like jalapeno spicy but it will clear your sinus' for days! I could not stop thinking about the meal the next day!
This place charges everyday even the dipping sauce. They over priced the hot pot and the food is not even up to the standard. I went to this place for my friend's birthday. She is lazy to come to Flushing to have hot pot therefore she Yelped. She chose this restaurant and this is the worst hot pot place i have ever been to. They charge a lot for a tiny dish. The restaurant and restroom is not clean. The equipment they used are not professional at all. (like the one you might use at home if u r poor). It's very dangerous because they use a portable gas cooker which supposed to use for outdoor only. Don't waste your money to go to this restaurant. btw, the table they use are bad for groups because you will be far far away from the hotpot which u always have to stand up to get anything. Cheap owner don't even wanna spend any money to make it work.
oh, since the food is shitty, so i just went home to get some Chinese take out on the way home. I barely remember when is the last time i have to do that.
The sallow cheeks and strikingly small stature of the Sichuanese do not betray the culinary peculiarity associated with the region - a penchant for extremely spicy, mouth-numbing food; notably, the infamous Sichuan hotpot.
If you're a newbie to the concept, here's the idea-
On the right half of a metal basin sits an igneous cauldron of mephestous, red oil and lard, bubbling and foaming like rabid, predatory jaws. The left side is filled with 'the chaser', clear chicken broth into which some sparse-looking herbs are tossed in for flavor.
Your meal, bland and ecru-hued, will consist of cabbage blooms, raw tofu, sprigs of mushrooms and bean sprouts, gluton cakes and heavy udon. These morsels will be ceremoniously sacrificed into the volcanic pit, surfacing momentarily; bloodied, before going limp and falling back into the hot pot's molten depths. You wait for the food to cook, and begin chop-sticking steaming, zombified bits of fibrous carrion into your mouth.
Soon, eating will be a solely perfunctory activity. Your eyes, nose and brow will run; your throat and mouth will transcend, and feel no pain. Affording your system the courtesy of water will be unnecessary.
This was my first experience with hotpot since returning to the States from China. It brought back some harrowing, some good memories. There's a sort of madness that sets in as your stomach slowly becomes a vat of hot oil and fire, and you may, as I did, lose your mind and begin to enjoy this intense and fascinating dining experience.
People thought this was:
This hot pot has Sichuan Peppercorns and millions upon millions of red chilis bobbing in the fiery red broth. Ummmm. Guaranteed bathroom problems later, but I am willing to deal with that when it comes.
Not bad pricing, and the food seems fresh. no brown or gray meat. No wilted veggies.
I wish they could use a tea sifter for the peppercorns. They get all caught up in the food and add this unexpected crunch to everything that i wasn't a big fan of.
I'm just happy that I didn't have to get on a plane the next morning. Not sure who I should feel sorry for, my roommate or the person sitting next to him on the 6hour 8am flight to SFO.
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The SPICY broth is actually really, really, mouth burning, face red SPICY!
I'm a dipper so I loved this spot for chinese "melting pot." You can choose between two broths, spicy or plain. We picked both but the spicy, again, was always too much for me.
You order what you'd like to cook and then they bring over the soup and FIRE AWAY!
There's lot to choose from but remember each item adds up. We got extra dipping sauces (peanut and garlic) but they were really unecessary because the soup the food cooks in make it flavorful enough.
So in conclusion - stear clear of the spicy if you don't like REAL spicy, don't get extra dipping sauces, and order the dumpings.
People thought this was:
Pros: They have duck tongue, duck feet, cow stomach, cow tripe, pig intestine, pig blood, and a host of other things.
Cons: You end up eating duck tongue, duck feet, cow stomach, cow tripe, pig intestine, pig blood, and a host of other things.
*Note that this is only a con for a period of about an hour in the early afternoon of the day after your meal.
btw, they are cool with you bringing your own wine.
The perfect meal for a mid-sized group of friends!
Get the split spicy/plain pot(s) when you order! In short, the concept is: you throw thinly slices meats, veggies, and other delicacies into a simmering pot, where they absorb the flavor and cook.
The spicy is usually VERY HOT, but I've found that it ranges. or maybe whatever shred of a soul I had is gone after frequenting this place one too many times.
And of course, wash it down with Tsingtao beer!
I recommend going with 6-10 people. I've been with larger groups (once, 21 people) and I find that 6-10 is the sweet spot so far as cost, amount of food, and table space are concerned.
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UPDATE 7/26/09: Knocking off a star due to our last experience. The waiter actually asked us to leave because there was a group waiting for our table and we were chatting for a whole five minutes after paying our check. Unbelievable.
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We ate here last night and requested a full bowl of ma la hot pot, none of that half and half wussy business. After my first bite of spinach which was soaked with the ma la stock, my mouth immediately caught fire and in the midst of my gasping my friend waved the waiter over to bring us some water. He brought us 3 - there were 5 of us. I eyed her water desperately but held back from drinking it. I wasn't about to back down from my original "make it super spicy" demand to the waiter. Not now.
1 fishball, 3 pieces of meat, and a few more pieces of cabbage later, I broke and fumbled for the nearest cup of water I could see through the sweat that was dripping down my forhead. Yes as you can imagine this was a very humbling experience for me.
Oh, a useful review you ask? The veggies were fresh and the meat was the standard stuff you can buy frozen. My friend got the spicy beef noodle soup which was excellent. I enjoyed the ma la hotpot immensely. We won't talk about the aftermath today.
People thought this was:
The meat is pretty reasonably priced for the portions and quality, but with veggies priced at $3-5 per serving, it can add up. The best way to handle this is to go not with 2 people, but with 6. That way you can get a greater variety of hotpot ingredients and spread out the cost between a bunch of people. We usually get out around $12-15 per person.
I like the half spicy, half mild hotpot, and I always scoop all the sichuan peppers out from the spicy side at the beginning, before adding any ingredients. This way, I reduce the risk of inadvertently popping one of those hell-raisers into my mouth alongside a seemingly innocuous piece of cabbage.
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this place gives you pain....in the best way possible. and meals just become oh so more exciting when you get to cook your own food. yes! the first time i came here with 3 other friends, we managed to rack up a bill equaling to $88. ouch. hence, the 3 stars because while i do enjoy this place, i do not enjoy being ripped off by them overcharging us for the various meat and veggie items on their menu. i am well aware this is chinatown and charging us $6 for cabbage that you got for less than $2 is not cool. nor is charging $2 for sauce. we've figured out now that ordering 4 items is plenty if we're trying to stay within budget.
also, be prepared for the weird stoned feel after eating here. i always get this weird haze of euphoria in my head and stomach, probably due to the heat of the spicy hellbroth side of the pot. but i like to make it all feel better by going to pinkberry afterwards. yum.
So disappointed by this place. I live in ctown so this is the only place for sichuan cuisine. Next time, when i'm in the mood for sichuan, I am def going to flushing for some good sichuan food. I like szechuan gourment on 37th ave, the best. So what's not good about this place. It charges for every single thing, the meats are reasonable, $7.95 a plate. but cellophane noodles for $5.95!! come on, do i look like a sucker, I can get that in the supermarket for 50 cents?? =) 1000% mark up?? pahleesse!
and dipping sauces for $2? come on!!! thats ridiculous!
i def would not recommend this place to my friends. oh yea, and the spicy hot pot soup base was just ok, i've def had better!!
Hot pot townnnn. I have been craving hot pot, wow, for like 3 years now, so I was really excited to go to this place. Their hot pot is the jam as long as you keep it real and only get the pepper broth. The key is not only using the mouth numbing red peppers but also tons of those little spicy pepper corns. Mmmmmmmmm.
Unfortunately, we got seated in the dungeon downstairs so we didn't get the best service from our ever changing rotation of waitstaff. The food however was amazing and mouth destroying. The best part was when it made my friend cry little the big baby he is and throw in the towel mid-way through the meal. Ahhh excellent.
A little tip for those of you in groups with vegetarians/vegans and omnivores, you can get the pot split into 2 sides.
My biggest qualm, which others have touched on, is that it's pretty overpriced. It's not quite right to complain that they charge you $3.50 for ~$0.50 of vegetables because there's no base cost for the hotpot itself, but yeah.... $3.50 for ~$0.50 of vegetables, and they don't even cook it for you. Will be searching around Chinatown for cheaper options, but Grand Sichuan's hotpot still rules.
Bonus ridiculous thing overheard while dining in the Dungeon:
"GPS is great, but it still hasn't managed to find my dignity."
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We really should have ordered hot pot. I mean -- everyone else had a huge pot of meat and fun in front of them.... why didn't we? Ugh. Drunk, eager to try favorites from GS Chelsea and GC St Marks, whatever the reason -- we stuck to the traditional. And it was okay.
Wontons in hot oil - solid, tough, and far more spicy than I expected... unpleasantly spicy. Probably wouldn't order again.
Fried dumplings -- freshly made, but far more dough than necessary. Less taste than necessary, as well.
Chicken with hot peppers - from the description, it sounded like a version of other Grand Sichuans' Chong Qing Chicken. Here, the chicken and dried red peppers were sparse, and instead, the plate was flooded with water chestnuts. Which looked just like the chicken, but tasted not nearly as nice. I felt robbed.
Smoked Tea Duck - has this been called "smoked tea duck fat & bones," it would have been just what I'd ordered. really tasty, what little meat there was.
I'll stick with the other Grand Sichuan's in the future. Or probably order Hot Pot. Which we should have done in the first place.
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If only this place were BYOV: Bring Your Own Veggies. I'll pay $5-7 for a plate of lamb or even tofu skin, sure, but for a plate of napa cabbage (when only a block away said vegetable can be gotten freshly for $0.50/pound)? Fie.
That said, the hot pot here is the best meal in Manhattan on a cold, leisurely winter's night. Just don't get seated in the front section (about 6 tables), because you'll freeze every time someone opens the door -- an experience incessantly counterproductive to your choice of hot food.
My absolute favorite hot-pot ingredient here is the beef tendon -- smoky, salty, and, once hot-potted, SUBLIME.
Expect $25-30 per head for hot pot, incl. tax & tips.
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2.5 stars.
We did hot pot here previously and I just wasn't impressed. I think the soup base is critical in a hot pot meal and the soup here just didn't do it for me (we had both the spicy and non-spicy soups). The variety of food offering is fine, nothing fantastic though. I left rather disappointed although I was really full from the meal.
I've recently discovered Little Lamb in Flushing... now THAT's what I call a good hot pot meal...
Hot pot at Grand Sichuan is my death row meal.
I recommend not wussing out by going with the chicken broth. Pony up and stick with the giant bubbling witch's brew of 40 billion angry red chilis, doing a synchronized swim with pissed off sichuan peppercorns ready to do damage to both your body and soul. Oh, it hurts sooooo gooood.
I'll typically bring along some sweat bands and wear a black shirt, and make sure I clear my schedule for the evening in case I become laden with sweat - and I'll usually require a nap afterword after chasing the spice with about 7 $3 tsingtao beers.
But don't mistake, it is worth every deliciously agonizing second.
People thought this was:
It's not as good as it used to be when I first started going here back in 2006.
They no longer serve dumplings and wontons.
-1 star.
For their sauces, I like their garlic sauce the best.
I like to finish off the meal with an order of noodles.
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New York's Best Hot Pot (Spiceee)!
Stevin G.'s review is hilarious! It should be a Yelp - Review of…
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Garlic sauce is definitely yummy, went here on November 19, 2008 with a close friend and we are definite fans of the garlic sauce...we ordered a plate of wontons, beef, chinese vegetables, chinese cabbage, fried tofu and the half spicy and half chicken soup
The spicy soup was too oily and way too spicy even for my friend and she's korean.
Next time we will only opt for the chicken soup. Total came out to 20 bucks a person, not bad
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HOTPOT is a burning thing...and it makes your tastebuds sing
bound by a Sichuan desire...I fell in to a ring of fire...
I cooked food in a burning pot of fire
It went down down down
And the temperature got higher
And it burns, burns, burns
HOTPOT of fire, HOTPOT of fire
Well, I know this place wasn't spicy enough for Jack L., but lemme tell ya, every time I come here I go into a capsaicin coma and suffer serious aftershocks the next day. That said, every now and then I need my dose of heat, and hot pot is the way to go.
Definitely start off with the wontons in spicy oil, they're heavenly, soft little things swimming in red oil and scallions. So delicious I could eat these til kingdom come. I'd also recommend the cold spicy noodles (dan dan noodles are good, but these are better--they have a ground sesame seed sauce to balance out the crunchy hot spices with smooth, light sweetness)
As for the hot pot, we've tried a lot of stuff here, including some of the stranger items. Everything is pretty good, the meats are all those shaved rolls of meat I used to pile into my bowl at my local suburban Mongolian BBQ (what the hell happened to those places?). The beef tendon is always a nice, gummy treat. One time we got the duck tongue--it's pretty tasty, kind of tastes like chicken skin, just watch out for the little tongue bone inside (who knew?). Last time we got the sweet intestine. Didn't know what we were getting into here but it turned out to be quite good, sort of just tasted like a meatier squid, and it looks like it too.
As for vegetables, we like to get the Chinese greens, the cabbage, the tofu skin, the Chinese mushrooms. The eggplant is good too. I've always wanted to get the cilantro but never seem to get around to that.
I love the sha-cha dipping sauce with its charred chili grounds inside, I could probably drink that stuff if I knew it wouldn't throw me into intestinal paralysis for a month.
Last thing--definitely order a tsing-tao to start off. Or several. The guy who brings them to your table is a stud and he opens each beer with the bottlecap of another beer. It's pretty awesome, and he does this faster than anyone I've ever seen.
..And it burns, burns, burns
HOTPOT of fire, HOTPOT of fire
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I'm afraid it'll hurt coming out. Other than that, delish.
Katie and I craved some hot pot tonight and figured we'd go in for the spicy broth. Wow, when Stevin G. numbered the angry red chilis in the 40 billion range, he was totally wrong. It's more like 100 billion.
We got: wheat noodles, Chinese mushrooms, eggplant, tofu, tofu skins, Chinese cabbage, bamboo shoots, sha cha and peanut sauces. Wholly satisfying. We also got the dan dan noodles appetizer because we were huuungry, and the sauce was very tasty (there's meat in it though, so beware, vegetarians).
The servers here are also really on top of the water refilling, maybe because Katie and I both looked like we were working in a boiler room. Our tab came out to $42 before tip, but we were both super duper full...so of course we headed over to Chinatown Ice Cream Factory... egg custard and red bean ice cream zomg.
People thought this was:
The grandest of all Grand Sichuans.. Wonderful food, typical crowded Chinatown Spot.. Tables are every where, people are crammed in to tiny spaces.. Some of the food highlights..
This is Sichuan Food, so yeh, you can get basic AmerO-Chinese Dishes but, thats not where its at.. Go for the spicy food here..
Cold dishes we started out with Beef Tendon.. A lot more smokey, less oily, and cleaner then the other branches.. The use of sesame also brings out a nuttiness.
Dan Dan Noodles were fantastic.. Again, not drenched in sauce, wonderful spice, great chew on the noodles, and not more sesame flavor through oil and seeds..
Garlic Cucumbers were fresh cold cucumbers that were sitting in a simple sauce.. Really added a refreshing fresh crunch break from the scorching other starters..
I enjoy a lot of the entrees but my absolute highlight is the sliced fish in Sichuan Sauce.. Lots of pepper, lots of flavor, perfeclty, normally, cooked fish filets.. This dish starts out benign but, by the end you are sneezing, sweating, and burning.. Not really the prettiest picture but, fuck it.. You are crammed into this little space, while people are rushing by you carrying pots of boiling water..
This isnt Jean Georges there Dorothy, this is Chinatown.. Now protect your food, watch your back, and get down into it..
Best Sichuan on the Isla.
Best hot pot in the city. Their broth is just fantastic, the best in the city, and one of the best I've had outside of China. Of course, it goes without saying that you have to like spicy food to enjoy the hot pot at a Sichuan place.
Also highly recommended are their dumplings for cooking in the hotpot. They are simply sublime.
One time I came here and the entire place was filled so they seated my party downstairs in what looked to be the restaurant's office. It was a total fire death trap. We were all ready to bolt up the stairs the moment someone knocked over the stove in that cramped little room. Totally worth it though.
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Maybe i didn't have the right dish....should i have gone for the hot pot?
I ordered the braised string beans, shrimp with bean curd, and beef chow fen. The noodles were very oily.....VERY oily. The string beans were well seasoned and topped with delicious toasted garlic, but was also very oily. The shrimp with bean curd came with small shrimps, but they included a lot of shrimp in the dish. I'm not sure if it's the way it always is or if they went a little overboard with a certain seasoning, but the dish had a tiny hint of bitterness.
I was very unimpressed with the restaurant. I left feeling a bit nauseous. Although the individual servers were very nice, they didn't do much when it came to service. There was only one other table there and i had to request for water every time, i had to ask for rice, and the servers spent most of their time people watching.
I'm very surprised this restaurant was zagat rated and has such high rating on yelp. i may consider giving it one more try and trying the hot pot.
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MR says...
MRS says... what can i say? its H O T * P O T...
chinese cabbage
tofu
mushrooms
fish balls
beef
chicken
chinese sausage
spinach
noodles
lamb
tofu skin (my favorite)
for S A U C E
*garlic sauce
*garlic in oil
*peanut sauce
this place was listed as one of the best chinese restaurant in NYChinatown. i believe it was printed in a tourist guidebook. i was going to give 5star but got a little discourage because the strainer was not carefully washed. it has some leftover food grime. we had it replaced but same issue. oh well, the boiling broth/soup stock will kill the bacteria (wink!)
CASH ONLY please!!!
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Not fresh, and the restaurant looks somewhat dirty.
Perhaps I came too early (late afternoon) but the restaurant was empty and the employees were just hanging around and chatting.
Best hotpot in the States that I've had so far is Little Sheep Mongolian Hot Pot in Fremont, CA.
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Okay, so I've done the hot pot thing before and to be honest I was only slightly impressed. There's nothing bad to say about my first experience, but it just didn't thrill me. So when a friend suggested it again, I thought sure why not, let's give it a whirl. Well, whatever was lacking (mostly flavor) from my first experience this trip to a Chinatown gem made up for everything.
It was a chilly New York evening and not only was I slightly suspicious of this cook your own meal deal, I was starving. STARVING. When we walked into the restaurant, which by the way has the most beautiful view of the Manhattan Bridge, it was packed. Pots were steaming, people where mingling, and there was no room for us. The man behind the counter looked at us like we were mad for not making a reservation, but quickly our angle swooped in and corrected him. Yes, there was a table for the 6 of us... downstairs. Heading down the narrow stairs I thought surely this is a trick. There's the kitchen, the bathrooms, a dark hall. We're being punished for under estimating the wonders of the pot. But to my surprise there was a table in a small room, which must have been converted from storage, with 2 other tables, both filled with diners as well. It was lacking character and looked like an afterthought, but it was much quieter than upstairs and we had a nice round table that facilitated a hearty and boisterous dinner conversation.
To start we ordered soup and an appetizer. I had the Spicy and Sour soup, a friend had the Wonton Soup, and we all shared Sichaun Wontons in red oil. They were all delicious. My soup was full of good Chinese greens, bamboo shoots, and tofu and had a wonderful balance of the spicy and sour flavors. The first step in the night to opening my sinuses. The wonton soup was not lacking in wontons. They were huge and plenty. The wontons in red oil were spicy, a good indication of what was to come, and my only complaint was that they might have been a little too oily. Our server was patient, as we had to wait for all the guest, and helpful when it came to choosing our meals. When everyone arrived we placed our order. The table was half and half: meat eaters to veggies. All of us were satisfied. We ordered 6 vegetables to share. My favorites would have to be: Chinese greens, Chinese mushrooms, eggplant, and Chinese cabbage. The vegetarians at the table ordered both regular tofu and fried tofu. I only tried the fried and it was very well done, slightly crispy with a good center consistency if you were careful not to cook it in the pot for too long. On the meat side we ordered beef, wontons, and fish balls. I will go ahead and say pass on the fish balls unless you like fishy, chewy things. I do not. But the beef and wontons were really great. Our table was piled with so many plates it was hard to make sense of it all, but here's the trick. You need no sense, just pick and dip.
Now about the pot. THIS was it. A pot full of bubbling red chilies, whole chilies, and oil and spice. It was the spiciest, most flavorful, wonderful goodness I have eaten in a long time. We were all literally shedding layers of clothing and compelled to order more beers, just to combat the powerful force that was inside our mouths. One friend, quite the Nancy, had such a hard time with the spice that he resorted to eating a raw eggplant. As I said, the eggplant was amazing, but I meant cooked... in the pot... not raw. We had no problem eating everything and the veggie side ended up ordering extra to fill their tummies. The whole affair was truly enjoyable, one of the best evenings I've had in a while. I will of course give credit to the company I kept, but this wonderful pot of magic was surely a part.
When finally we had to give our mouths a break, everyone looked supremely satiated. Well except for the Nancy naysayer, and even then he agreed it was a great meal but that a bowl of white rice might have been helpful. So if spicy is not your thing then maybe a different hot pot is out there for you, but if you want a thrill take a chance at Grand Sichaun. But make a reservation first. When we left at 9:45 the place was still packed and everyone was smiling. I will note that the service was good, but keep in mind it's no apple-bee's-in-your-face-right-by-your-side kinda place. You might have to wait a few minutes for your next beer or order of Chinese greens, but who really wants someone in their way when they're cooking? Not I. They let you do your thing and boy is it quite a thing.
5 thrilling stars for great food, great service, and a fantastic restaurant.
People thought this was:
Happy Chinese New Year! take 2!
9 of us gathered here for hot pot and boy was it good, but not as good as my grandma's! ;) We got 2 pots, each half spicy and half chicken broth, and ordered a ton of food and beer. Overall we were very happy with our food, and quick service. I would have been happier if we were able to make our own sauces...
Not sure why, but when they wrote down our reservation, they didn't write the name down. So when we got there our table was given away. We figured it out, and was seated before another large waiting party...who promptly left when they saw us being seated. They need to organize their res system.
People thought this was:
Ummm, they seated us in the basement. To be honest, they asked us if we wanted to sit in the basement first -- but we sure as hell didn't know what that meant. Then they led the four of us through the maze of noisy tables in the main dining room, down some stairs in the back, and into a large room that had 'office' written on the door. It was an office. With a desk and futon and two dinner tables placed in the middle of the room The other dinner table was taken by a large group of asian tourists, which ensured that there wasn't dead silence in the room during dinner. It was strange to say the least, but we just rolled with the punches and i'm glad we did.
A chinese friend dragged us here to get hotpot and it turned out to be really fun and delicious, even if i did burn myself when i grabbed onto the HOTpot.
After we finished communicating our order, the waitress recommended/required we ordered 6 more hotpot items, which seemed strange (pressure selling?) but ended up being a very good call as we had just the right amount of food.
The interesting thing about the hotpot broth is that it gets better as the meal goes on -- the items cooked in it give the broth more flavor and it also becomes more concentrated as some of the water boils away. By the end, i was ready to pick it up and drink straight from the hotpot..but i had already learned my lesson about touching the pot.
Not including our drinks and the tip, the bill came to $77 for 4, so figure about $22 each.
People thought this was:
1.5 stars.
A friend and I were craving for hot pot, and we went to Grand Sichuan International because it is closer to where we live. After a so so meal, rude service, and less than satisfying dining experience, I have decided not to come back to this restaurant again.
The soup stock tasted very powder-mix-ish. We ordered beef, seafood, and lots of vegetables. I noticed some beef slices were covered with mysterious black specks (not sure if they were cigarette ashes or metal shavings) and asked the waitress to replace it. She did, and a while later, she brought out a less-quality plate of beef "shavings", not slices, consist of mostly fat. For fear of getting even worse treatment, or additional unwanted foreign organic matters, we decided to accept this plate.
The only good thing I would say about this place is that the beer was cold and the portions big. In any case, I have concluded that Little Lamb in Flushing is a much better place for hot pot. I would not hesitate to take the long subway ride to Flushing or even cab when I have the hot pot craving next time.
People thought this was:
Everything was red and spicy basically...ma po tofu, beef, whole fish, Jja-jjang myun, even the american broccoli! i think i saw some spam w/ hotpot...yikes!
Decor: large parties go downstairs - looks like a mahjong parlor or some1's living room - kinda grimey
People thought this was:
Grand Sick One.
Place is great--for a Law and Order Crime Scene.
Exposed wires. Ripped up carpet. Men eating out of a giant pot. Raw meat dripping off one of the dining tables.
Zagat, I ask you, is anything sacred? :( "Highest rating for food among Chinese restaurants by Zagat survey in 1999-2007."
Then this contradiction, that I think got lost in translation. "1 star awarded" by NY Times in October 1997.
The veggie fried rice is kinda nice, kinda dry; fresh scrambled egg on top of a trough of white rice and canned peas and carrots.
Grand Sichuan was the closest place I could find on the block near the Fung Wah bus to Boston, though yes, I'm lazy, there are plenty of great places to eat in Chinatown near by..
I might be ignorant to this particular cuisine but my "sweet stick rice ball soup" dessert, more like a desert, looked and tasted and smelled like it had sand in it. Cloudy water with pasty tasteless sand dumplings. It reminded my of Rockaway and the creatures I would capture and let go in a similar plastic pail.
I ate my Grand Sichuan on the Fung Wah, cursed and threw most of it because I was seriously frightened of that dessert.
I will not die this way on the Fung Wah!
And what is up with the digital clock/time bomb on the wall that shows milliseconds. I don't need my fast food thaat fast and I'm certainly not counting down New Year's here. There could be some good authentic food here too but I'm just so very scared.
Pluses. A view of the traffic before the stately Manhattan bridge. Cheeeapp food.
People thought this was:
The Grand Sichuan International Hot Pot Experience
or
How I Ended Up in the Bathroom, Drinking Out of the Faucet
Planning a trip up to nyc, my friend suggested going out to try Hot Pot on saturday night. This sounded like a great idea.
Little did I know, this was the beginning of the end for me.
We hurried out of the cold into the warm, bustling restaurant. Immediately I regretted our decision not to call about reservations. Every table was packed and we were a party of six. My fears were quickly founded as I inquired about a table and was hustled back out the door without a reservation. We joined another party out on the street and out of luck, both groups trying to figure out their next move, our dreams of hot pot dashed. Suddenly a woman emerged, beckoning all of us to come with her. Down a flight of stairs into an obviously converted storage room with a few tables. It was quieter and most importantly, there was room! We sat down and despite only having half our party, got down to business- fried wantons, spicy'n'sour soup, wanton soup and Tsingtoas all around. Both the soups were delicious and so were the wantons in a spicy red oil. As the rest of our group arrived, I explained how I had just begun to appreciate spicy food during the past year. Needless to say, I was really in for it.
We quickly got our order together, going for a full pot of the spicy stuff, but split half and half for the veggies and carnivores. Each of us ordered a vegetable for the table, plus some meats (fish balls, beef and wontons), tofu and noodles. The service, while not always available since we were relegated to backroomdownstairstown was always quick once we got our orders in. The stove was burnin, the hot pot was bubblin and our table was full of beers and plates of food. Great stuff.
Then it began. Food was dumped in like wild, debates were raging about how long each item should be cooked for. Those first bites were great- delicious but damn spicy. Kept shoveling things in- it was all delicious. But hot. Hothothot. The beef and wantons were great choices, the fish balls were a little too fishy and chewy. All of the veggies were good and so was the fried tofu.
Unfortunately, about halfway through the meal, my mouth went on strike. Despite my best efforts to cool my mouth down by drinking all the beer in the restaurant, I couldn't handle it. After a trip to the bathroom, I washed my hands and searched my still watering eyes in the mirror. I needed to know, did I have any dignity left? No. No I didn't. I cupped my hands and drank water from the fountain.
It didn't really help either.
Overall, great stuff. Five stars if you love spicy food. For everyone else, go half and half, so you can mix up food from the spicy pot with the chicken broth. Maybe a side white rice. Just something to balance out the hothot pot so you don't end up like me.
People thought this was:
Peking Duck Lunch Special
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