With Bellevue’s Sizzling Pot King, Spicy Hunan Cuisine Finally Arrives | Eater Seattle

"In Bellevue I found Sizzling Pot King to be a lively, casual outpost that brings contemporary Hunan cooking north from its California roots. Co-owner Dun Newton Liu (originally from Sichuan) explains the menu reflects Hunan’s chile-forward identity — using chiles pickled, salted, ground into pastes, dried, and infused in oils — and the region’s preference for vinegar as the balancing “kicker,” plus regional herbs like perilla. Seasonal, vegetable-forward preparations are evident: I tried smoked pork belly with winter bamboo shoots (and was told charcuterie in any form is a must-order), crispy-yet-creamy “magic tofu,” and delicate golden pumpkin cakes. The restaurant’s dry pot is a notable, more modern/fusion element that lets you customize meats (including beef tongue and bullfrogs), vegetables, and heat, built on a complex sauce made with 10–15 Chinese herbs; while not exactly a traditional Hunan dry pot, it captures the cuisine’s essence of bold, sour-salty spiciness in a way that feels authentic yet contemporary." - Jay Friedman