Chong Qing Lao Zao is a never-to-be-forgotten absolutely amazing hot pot restaurant…read more I will offer my own extensive comments at the end ... But the Eater review of Chong Qing Lao Zao absolutely nails it. * * * Eater sez: Fans start lining up well before the wooden doors swing open at noon, eventually to walk through corridors that lead them to a bi-level dining area that evokes an old Chinese village, complete with a water wheel, koi, and a faux fire at the foot of each table. One private section is elevated on stilts. Chongqing Lao Zao stands out from the high concentration of nearby hot pot spots -- Hai Di Lao, Liuyishou, 99 Favor Taste. * * * Samuel C sez: a) Like many hot pot restaurants, there are lots of exotic ingredients including all parts of many animals. I did lots of those included thousand layer tripe and beef liver coated in egg. At this restaurant, simple is actually better than exotic. The most famous boiling oil (there are nine to choose from) is a scorchingly hot Chongqing drowning in hot peppers concoction. The oil is hot as blazes in both senses of the word. The simpler the ingredient we put in the oil, the better the results were. Plain old Chinese Cabbage was to die for. Plain old ramen noodles and plain old fish cake became superstars in the hot oil. Thousand layer tripe, not so much. b) Shiitakes are not such a plain ingredient. They become ultimate gourmet delights in the hot oil. c) All the tables around us were ordering some form of Wagyu beef roll. Or rather all the Chinese tables were ordering Wagyu beef rolls. The Anglos were more random. I suspect the Chinese customers were on to something. d) It is tempting to order tons and tons and tons of ingredients for your hotpot because they look so damm good. In practice, three hot pot dipping items per person plus a side dish for the table will leave you waddling out of the restaurant barely able to walk. If that means you just have to come here multiple times to get all the good stuff, Well ... multiple times is not such a dumb idea. e) You definitely want at least one side dish. We ordered a Fried Sesame Bread with Chinese green onions inside. That was the best thing on the table ... On a day when there were a zillion amazing things on the table. The Chinese tables often ordered a fried rice with spicy organs inside. I strongly suspect that fried rice is well worth doing as well. f) They make their own rice wine which is sweet and very milky. They sell it by the jar. You want a whole jar of it. If your table has sake lovers in multiple, you will want several jars of it. g) The room decoration is magical between the sturdy oaken village-gate door, to the waterwheel inside to the stairs and levels and platforms which make you feel like you are in a mountain village. The room would have made this a destination experience even if the food had been mediocre. That the raw ingredients, the prepared dishes, the wine and the boiling oil were amazing sends Chong Qing Lao Zao over the top. * * * Does Yelp offer an eight star rating? If it starts one, Chong Qing Lao Zao would be first in line to get the eight star rating. Even with all the amazing restaurants in Flushing's Chinatown, This is one experience you do not want to miss.

They don't take reservations. You need to go and get on the wait list. The text they send you says…read morethat when your called, you have 3 hours to show up... after waiting an hour, we didn't want to risk losing the resy. We choose to sit on the tatami mats, so shoes come off. The tell you to go get your sauces, but don't tell you that there's a $2 charge for them. We got the meeting spicy broth and the mushroom broth. The spicy broth was covered completely in dried red peppers. It definitely infused the food with spice. The broth themselves weren't amazing. They were fine. Their homemade rice wine on the other hand is absolutely delicious. I would go back for that alone. Their snacks, the fried broad beans, and seeds were very good. The cabbage was also delicious and fresh. The duck tongue was absolutely delicious, as were the beef balls. All the mushrooms were very good. The beef tongue was eh... the premium lamb was better. The taro balls took a very long time to cook.. the glass noodles disintegrated in the broth. Overall, the ambiance is what made the meal great, it was cozy and pretty. The broth, the meat were okay. Glad I tried it, but there are better spots for the food hot pot... just not as good of an ambiance as here.

The food was excellent, the staff was excellent, and even the little mini food side quests were…read moreexcellent. The ambiance was adorable and made the whole experience even better. Special shoutout to our waiter -- we absolutely loved him! He made the visit feel extra welcoming and fun. 100% worth having the Chubby membership if you come here or to any Chubby restaurant Coming back soon!

Good value if you have the membership. You save on pricing and can earn points with each meal,…read moreredeemable for rewards like a free drink or specialty dish. If you get the membership (currently $28/year), it pays off after 2 visits and you get 3000 points (worth a free meal) on your birthday. I got the Gold menu (the middle option), which was enough variety for me. Honestly after a few plates of meat, they all start to taste the same so it doesn't matter what cut of wagyu you're eating. There is a buffet of vegetables and side dishes that you can help yourself to, along with a soda machine and a watered-down tea machine. Nothing too impressive here. Overall, worth visiting if you have the membership and you really know your different cuts of wagyu. Otherwise, if you just want AYCE hot pot, there are plenty of other places in Flushing.

It's perfectly 3 star -- price, service, etc…read more Good is the self-service offering of dessert. Also the options and quality is decent. Good place for a group / not crowded

Located in the old Dolar shop location, Nan hot pot offers chongqing style hot pot. We opted to do…read morethe yin yang pot and picked f mala soup base for one side and pork broth for the other. We asked for less spicy and it was still above what we could handle so we scooped out some of the spicy oil. For the menu, you can order off the iPad. We got an assortment of beef, veggies, shrimp paste and some hot items like fried chicken cartilage and fried pork. Typical to your hot pot restaurants, there's a sauce bar and also apps, fruits and dessert. Service here is top notch. Very attentive.

The food at Haidilao was amazing! My friends and I came to flushing, and once we arrived the…read moreservice immediately helped us out once we arrived.

Great service, served by Iris who is nice and sweet! Food was delicious as well, carefully taught…read moreon how to order and usage, thank you!

With so many hot pot locations in Flushing, this AYCE location is still one of my favorites that I…read morehave been to. It looked like this place only does 1 large pot per table compared to individual pots. You can split the broth up to 3 types. We got the 2-broth split pot with "Liu House Special Soup Base" and "Tomato Soup Base", both were above my expectation in flavor. They have a sauce station that you make yourself and prepped food that is ready to eat such as edamame and seaweed salad. Also, a drink station with water, orange juice, passion fruit juice and iced tea. Everything is ordered on the tablet that is at the table and the staff there are very observing since every time we have an empty plate/dish they would come back and remove it from our table. It came out to $53 per person with tax and tip for an AYCE location that serves higher than average ingredients. Overall I would come back again since I enjoyed it a lot and it is well maintained. Visited 4/25/25 Food- 10/10 Cleanliness- 10/10 Staff- 10/10

I was looking for a hot pot restaurant that has an AYCE option in Flushing and found Liuyishou…read more - Three-Flavor Soup Base -- we chose 1/3 premium beef tallow at medium spice level for me + 1/3 mild spice level without beef tallow + 1/3 pork bone broth for my friend I was surprised that the price of the broth is additional to the AYCE price. The broth at medium spice level was flavorful and they had a good selection of meat, seafood and vegetables. Overall, the food and service were good.

Greatest tomato hot pot base ever, great beef. Good discounts, fresh food, and have students or ids…read moreto get discounts. Great for families that are trying to get their money's worth for great food. The service here is great. The staff helped make shrimp balls in the soup. Be sure to expect a great experience from Nanshan hot pot! The mood was great, I was so shocked to taste how good the soup base is. The ambiance was great! when you are done and want a dessert, dont worry there is a great dessert section with jelly and boba. I forgot that there is so much ice cream. 3 flavors. Definitely check this place out!

This is probably my favorite hot pot spot - you order everything on a tablet, can choose up to 3…read moredifferent soup bases. And as someone who doesn't eat much red meat, they have a lot of seafood and vegetarian options. They have a mushroom set which I was hesitant to try, but they were actually all so interesting texture wise! If you sign up for their membership and put money in your account, you get membership pricing for everything you order and various discounts (last time I went I got 50% off soup!). I love their cold bar which you can mix up your own sauces, cold veggie appetizers, as well as a dessert bar with herbal jelly and silken tofu which you can mix with coconut milk or milk tea. The cold/dessert bar is a flat fee that is charged per person. Seating is nice and spacious.

Spring Shabu Shabu is still my favorite hot pot spot of all time. Yes, I said it!…read more It's clean, spacious, and well-maintained, which is honestly rare to find in Flushing. On top of that, they even have authentic Dole Whip, so you don't have to wait in line at Disneyland to enjoy it! I've been coming to Spring Shabu Shabu since they first opened years ago, and they have never disappointed me. If you're looking for a huge variety of freshly made noodles, fish cakes, vegetables, and other hot pot essentials, this is the place to be. Although it's AYCE (all-you-can-eat), meats, seafood, and drinks are not included. Honestly, with all the options available at the buffet, it's more than enough for me. The fresh ramen is usually my noodle of choice, but there are so many great unique flavors that you really can't go wrong. Today, I tried the chili garlic and curry noodles, and both were delicious. The curry flavor was light and subtle, but you can definitely taste it when eaten on its own. The chili garlic noodles had a nice kick that I really enjoyed. If you're new to hot pot, this is a great place to start. Everyone gets their own individual pot and can choose their own broth. My family and I prefer not to share because we all enjoy different ingredients and flavors, so having a personal pot allows everyone to customize their meal. I love spicy food, so I always order the Mala broth. The service here is excellent. Special shoutout to Wendy and Jamaica for always being so friendly, attentive, and welcoming. My family and I truly appreciate your hospitality every time we visit. Is it loud? Yes, but not "concert loud." The atmosphere is lively, the music is great, and it's very family-friendly. It's also perfect for large parties and gatherings since there's a separate private room near the entrance. Tips for First-Time Visitors: Most of the parking spaces in the front large lot have been blocked off, so give yourself extra time to find parking around Flushing. Make sure everyone in your party is present since the entire group must be present to be seated. Once seated, place your order first, then head to the buffet area to grab your food. Don't forget to stop by the sauce station near the entrance and create your own dipping sauce! Finally, save room for dessert! Soft serve ice cream: Matcha, vanilla, lactose free vanilla and the famous Dole Whip! Choice of cup or cone. Bottom line: Spring Shabu Shabu continues to be my favorite hot pot restaurant. Great food, excellent service, and a fun atmosphere so stop by and give it try!

I haven't been here for about three years now and so much has changed, and not for the better. We…read morecame around 6:30pm as a party of four (3 adults and 1 infant) on a Friday and were quickly seated, which was different in years past where we had to wait. Pricing has increased since the last time we were here which is understandable with the increase in cost. They do not validate parking anymore. Waitress had greeted us and asked for the soups right away since we had been here before. We had requested if we can get a pot of plain water for the baby so that we can boil stuff without any sodium. She said sorry that will have to cost extra. But then I referred back to their ad that children under 3 eats free. And the whole explanation was yes but they could not have their own pot. She says this is just company policy and that it's not my decision. A few minutes later she came back and said I talked to management and they said it was ok for you to have a pot of plain water. After this, she doesn't come back to check in on us or ask for any refills on the soup and had to flag her down. Plates were slow to be cleared. Food - in the past we loved the fresh noodles here, but not anymore. Maybe it's due to less people, but the noodles are old and stay clumped up together. Everything else was pretty typical with the vegetables and the various types of fish balls. I don't think we will be returning here anytime soon. There are so many hot pot places to go to that are higher quality and better service. It's sad because they were once so popular, but I don't think they have adapted to the changing restaurant options in flushing.

price - pay for what you eat!…read more food - 5/5 service - 5/5 ambiance - 5/5 I had the chance to check out shoo Loong Kan as I was checking out the store in tangram mall and Im so glad that I did! once I stepped into the restaurant, the workers were so friendly and welcoming. they brought us to our table and even gave a toy to our baby on the house! I love how attentive they were! the foods were also super yummy. I can tell that all of their dishes were of really high quality, especially the meats! I can definitely taste and feel the meat flavors just melting in my mouth. the ambiance inside was so amazing as well! it feels like I just stepped inside modern day china and dined like them too! definitely check this place out when you have the chance!

Literally felt like I walked into China. I like the historical decor…read more Food: Fresh scallops, fresh meat, and assorted side dishes. I like the idea of unlimited side dishes and desserts (with an additional price). The service was okay, the waitresses were able to answer our questions about price ranges. But, 1. Why am I asked to wait before seating when I made a reservation? 2. Workers didn't pay much attention to our table, especially when we needed to more soup base. Probably because we didn't order as much food. ‍ (Additional info: this place is not ACYE, therefore, you pay by the price of each item)

Lowkey some of the best hot pot I've had in the US…read more Really good food, service, and environment. All the employees were so friendly and attentive. Great portion size and quality. There's also a great student discount deal going on from 6/1-9/30. I'll definitely be back! Highly recommend it.

NYC's Only Beijing-Style Copper Hotpot!…read more Experience old Beijing right here in Flushing. From thinly sliced premium meats to a wide selection of traditional hotpot favorites--everything here feels like stepping straight into Beijing. Definitely a must-try. Check out my reels on IG for details. F0ll0w me @foodie.elite on IG and TikTok for more great finds!

As I sit here and watch my hot pot boil, I might as well review. $26.99 all you can eat Monday to…read moreFriday. How can you beat that? Food is great. Service is attentive. A make your own sauce bar? The best. Also who doesn't love a cozy booth over a steaming pot of soup? A definite must try. This is my second time here and I can say its great.

Food: 4/5 - three different tiers with the most expensive one costing $48pp after tip&tax. We got…read morethe premium tier for more variety. You can only get a few meats once but overall lots of meat options to choose from, more so than other AYCE I think. The buffet for the first/second tier was more limited but still lots of veggies/noods/fish balls and misc. to choose from. Service: 4/5 - fast and efficient. They took our order before we even sat down fully and picked up our plates the moment we took the last item off of it Ambiance: 4/5 - spacious and clean. I was surprised by how packed the place was by late dinner time when we were leaving (8pm) on a weekday