LaoJie Hotpot

It‘s here for this cold weather. You must not miss the delicious shabu and grill on a cold day. The meat is fresh, clean, delicious, and quality. The staff is lovely and take good care of every move. He will always take care of you. Describe the beautiful, quiet, clean shop. And finally, you will be able to wash your mouth with delicious desserts that are not on the menu. Of course, it is another point that I will definitely have to come back to eat. And you guys miss and enjoy a good restaurant like this?

Great all-you-can-eat hotpot and BBQ spot in Chinatown. The restaurant is clean, spacious, and everyone gets their own individual pot, which makes it very hygienic. There are many soup bases to choose from, including tomato, mushroom, herbal, and spicy beef tallow. The Angus beef slices and beef tongue were tender and flavorful, perfect for hotpot. The BBQ skewers were excellent as well — garlic shrimp, garlic clams, steak ribs, and chicken wings were all cooked perfectly and full of flavor. They even had fresh live blue crab, which was a pleasant surprise. Service was friendly, food came out quickly, and the overall experience was great value for the price. Highly recommend this place for anyone looking for authentic Chinese hotpot and BBQ in Manhattan Chinatown.

Yesss please! So good and so much food for just $40ish. The broth was delicious and everything was served almost immediately. We went in toward the end of the night so not too busy. All staff was attentive.

We came here as a party of four to celebrate a birthday. All you can eat hotpot with unlimited meat options. There’s also seafood included in the menu as part of the all you can eat such as crab meat and shrimps. The sauce bar is enough but not as comprehensive as some other hot pot places. Drinks are charged separately. There’s a discount if you come here on your birthday.

Service is great. Hot pot and skewers are unfortunately very mid. The dessert soup is really yummy. Fair price tho, so I wouldn’t complain if I had to go back here.

Great experience! The meat here is of excellent quality — we ate quite a few plates. The service was very attentive. This is a really good AYCE restaurant.

Around 38 dollars without tax, tips per person I like the tomato soup but the spicy one is a bit salty, especially when the water is down. They have a variety of hotpot items. Seafood is decent, not fresh though. The crab meat is friable, good things is they have crab crackle. Mussles and clamps are chewy. Squid has weird taste. The beef is pretty nice. Vegetables decently fresh. Shrimp paste does not taste “shrimpy” and quite doughy like other types of balls. The complimentary mango puddy is quite nice, except for its sweetness ok higher side. The customer service is good. Attendants pay attention to table service, adding water, clean up the table, ask if we need more ordering. The food comes out pretty fast. The atmostphere is vibey, but sitting near the restroom entrance is quite annoying since the handryer is kinda loud. It’s my birthday but we come as a group of 2 only so no discount available.

This is the best hot pot restaurant in all of New York City. The staff are incredibly friendly and helpful; eating here felt like dining at home, which made me very happy. If you're craving hot pot, this is the best choice, bar none.

Time Went: 6pm on an average Wednesday Love me some good hotpot, and I've got to say this place doesn't disappoint. There are plenty of choices for dishes, and of all the meats we tried, the Angus beef was definitely our favorite. I went with a group of three, and they allowed us to have two flavors shared, which I went with the healthy herb and the went for their spicy broth (I'm not a big spicy girl). There is a table of a bunch of different sauces that you can put together and combine, and I loved this because I like grabbing chopped green onions and chopped garlic to throw into my broth. I also like mixing different sauces together to get a different kind of flavor profile. The hot pot place is pretty clean and the ventilation is decent. We used LaoJie as a place to surprise our friend for her birthday, and without us telling the staff, by looking at our birthday hats, they played the music around the restaurant to sing happy birthday to her. They also surprised her with a dessert and a gift! They have a birthday special here if you bring a certain amount of people (4 I think), the birthday person is free. I'm definitely going to come back for my birthday! One Fatal Flaw that almost made me knock this down a Star -- there was no bok choy on the menu at all!!! Buuuuuut other than that it's pretty solid. Prices weren't bad and they even give you big plastic bags to put your coats in, so they don't smell like hot pot. I didn't realize that so I didn't do it, but I will next time.

I've been such a loyal customer to 99 Favor Taste and Hometown, but my friends and I finally decided to try somewhere new. We came on a Sunday during lunch and were able to be seated right away. I really liked the interior decorations; even the hot pot bowls that they have are cool. They have individual hot pots, and I was surprised to see some pretty unique broth offerings. They have a lot of different options for hot pot ingredients too, and I was impressed by how fresh everything was. We went for the AYCE skewers as well, and they were so many different skewer options too. My only complaint is that some of the skewers were reallyyy overcooked. Like they were more like jerky than grilled meat. But the flavor was good at least! I loved the free dessert that they gave you. They also had some dessert options that you could order as part of the AYCE menu. Overall, this was a great experience and it might even replace my other normal AYCE hot pot go-tos!

Wonderful food, wonderful service. I came across this place on complete chance. My friends and I were heading back home from Chinatown and stopped to see if we could use LaoJie's restroom. There were 3 of us and we were unsure if they would even let us in, so we went one by one. Surprisingly, they were kind enough to let us use their restroom and immediately I was stunned by the interior and the smell of their food. I knew I had to come back. I've gone back 3 times since then and will continue to go and recommend it. Their hotpot is amazing and the servers have always been kind. I took my friend here for her first hotpot experience.

Visited LaoJie in Chinatown on a Saturday night and it was surprisingly empty, though we did go close to closing. We arrived around 10:45 p.m. and they closed at midnight. I ordered the bone broth soup, and our group went heavy on the meats since the server told us we had to place all meat orders right away because the kitchen closed at 11. Totally understandable, but it led to us ordering a lot. The portions here are much larger than most hot pot places, so we definitely over ordered, but we still got everything we needed. The meats such as brisket and pork were fresh and did not seem frozen. All the other items we tried such as meatballs, lobster balls, pork balls, and more were also pretty solid. I will admit I am not the biggest hot pot fan, but this spot was good and I would come back. Service was fine, nothing out of the ordinary. The space is big and the pricing is decent for New York. Our total came to 190 dollars including tip for four people.

I really wanted to like this place but a few things keep me from coming back. First the staff is nice. I made a rsvp over the phone easily and they gave me a bench since I preferred that. Ordering was fast and the food came quickly. They didn't bother explaining anything with what came out l, but I didn't expect that. The angus meat was a nice cut. I liked they had the fish roe fish balls. They had a large variety of leafy vegetables, which is nice because 99 favor only has like 2 options. The place is a little dirty. There were not many people there, but our first plate that came out had multiple pieces of hair in it. It was black hair and very obvious. I also saw a spider crawling around the sauce station. It is AYCE for only $37 so I guess I can't expect too much but it is just not that clean. So I am not returning.

Came for a friend's birthday! Make sure to come +/-3 days because otherwise birthday person won't get their free meal. The restaurant is filled with birthday celebrations, so you'll hear the bday song all around! Food was solid and sauces were pretty good! Honestly, my favorite part about this place is the dessert at the end, it's SOOOO good!!!

This is my favorite hot spot in the city (of the one's I've tried)! The wait is never longer than 20 minutes in my experience and they have a lot of variety of food to order from including fried food for AYCE hot pot! Top items: - Bone cylinder soup base (rich and warm, perfect soup base for me since it's not spicy) - Fish balls with fish roe (must get always!! So happy they have this) - Fatty beef - Fish fillet - Shrimp paste (essentially ground up shrimp and when cooked turns into a meatball kind of texture) Everything comes out so quickly and the portions are fairly small so you can order a good amount of items without feeling like you are going overboard. They also have a sauce bar which is included in the AYCE price! This is also a great place to go if you have a big group, I saw multiple tables seated for 6.

I came here for a dinner with friends the day before my birthday and was pleasantly surprised to find out that they give you free AYCE if it's within 3 days of your birthday! The interior of the restaurant is a bit more traditional and cozy with lots of booths for hot pots. You order with staff here and their service is fairly quick. You have the option to do individual hotpot or communal hotpot and my friends and I opted for the communal hotpot. We ordered a variety of meat, veggies, and other ingredients and everything was delicious. The veggies were fairly fresh and the meats were good quality for AYCE, and there were so many options to choose from. For the value, I think this is a great deal. And, at the end of the meal you can get free dessert (a pudding), AND if it's your birthday then you can get shaved ice and a free chopstick set!

This was the most uncomfortable meal I ever had. We came here with a party of 6 for dinner on a Wednesday night. There were plenty of seats and we were able to get a table right away. It was relatively dark in here as the lights were dim. Once we sat down and order the food, I noticed on one of the plate there was a baby roach. I told the staff and they address it very quickly. They gave a new plate, apologized and discounted our bill. Ordered our second plate of meat. As my dad picked it up ready to put the meat in his pot he saw a roach just running around the meat. The staff apologized again and took the plate away. Fast forward a little we saw another roach crawling beside the wall. They staff did offer to switch our table to the one behind but at this point I don't think it made a difference. Yes I would have left after the second siting of our little friends but because I came with my parents and they gave this place the benefit of the doubt.

As the year is coming to an end, my friend and I decided to wrap up 2024 with a bang...at none other than LaoJie Hot Pot (老街火锅吧) for AYCE hot pot in Lower East Side, Chinatown. We'd made a reservation for 4:30pm few days ago and saw that hardly anyone was there because it wasn't after work hours yet upon arrival. Huge plus that the reservation for a party of two is allowed w/o needing at least 4+ people in the group compared to other hot pot spots. Got greeted by the staff as we walked in right away. The Manhattan location is just like the Brooklyn locations (upstairs & downstairs) - very decently sized with retro-styled booths for larger parties and tables of four to fit smaller groups of 2-4 people. Chinatown Laojie Hot Pot is hands-down one of the best spots for hot pot in the area. People gathering to mix their own sauces in the self-serve sauce bar + the delicious aroma of simmering broths + a lively, welcoming vibe. The restaurant is clean and well-organized, which made the experience even better. LJHP's retro-style decorations are a feast for the eyes, welcoming diners to a mix of rich Chinese history down the memory lane. The vintage posters, cassette tapes, traditional red lanterns, dim lighting, and rustic wooden furniture help to create a cozy & authentic setting. Every corner is thoughtfully designed, making it as the perfect photo opps. Customers can really feel the charm of classic Chinese culture throughout the space. It's not just a meal--more like an experience! The menu is decently large, offering some of its fresh ingredients to cook in your choice of broth. My friend and I both chose the herbal soup base--as it had just the right amount of flavor w/o too much MSG. The angus beef and lamb slices were super fresh and the texture melted on our tongue; the vegetable (spinach + A-lettuce) options were pretty fresh as well. Overall, pretty good food + flavorful & not too salty broth. The highlight of the whole experience was definitely the free house-made fragrant mango milk tea pudding at the end for dessert. I wish they would sell that from the menu. Could eat at least a few bowls after hot pot. Service was quick and friendly, staff had checked in on us very often to refill broths in the pot and our water cups. Prices are reasonable even for dinner time considering the quality and portion sizes. They accept both cash/credit card now. If you're a hot pot lover, this place is a must-try! Good thing that we went there earlier--didn't get crowded until around 6pm when others started coming as we got ready to leave. There was even a party of 7 sitting in the front by the doorway at the waiting area. The Downsides + Improvements could be made: 1) Staff had forgotten some of our food options twice (only gave 2 pieces of sausages & no fried tofu skins) throughout the meal despite not being dinner rush hours. 2) Only two napkins were brought to our table, I'd to get up & search for a stack of napkins myself by the sauce bar. 3) Staff hadn't offered a plastic bag to put our jackets in to prevent from smelling like hot pot when we sat down at the table. Didn't know we could've asked the staff either beforehand until reading other Yelpers' reviews. Thank you for reading! That's it for now....

A new favorite of mine when it comes to hot pot. From ingredients to offerings to customer service, Lao Jie is my go to place for a warm hungry meal. The selection is expansive with ingredients that other all you can eat restaurants don't typically offer. Not only that their seafood (crab and large clams) is very fresh and appetizing as well as their wide selection of 6+ soup bases. At the end of it, they provider a unique jasmine yellow pudding that is "not too sweet" (code for just right sweetness). I would buy that as dessert to go. During dinner time, especially weekends they do get busy and so if you have reservations they start you immediately. Otherwise, the service and staff members are welcoming and attentive.

Forever my favorite hot pot restaurant in NY. For $36.98pp, you get AYCE hot pot with a huge variety of protein, veggies, seafood, noodles, and more. The service is also quick as everything is brought out soon after we ordered. Everyone gets individual hot pots, so you can choose whatever soup base you like. I usually enjoy the tomato, but ventured off with the dark chicken this time which was soothing. There's lot of great seafood options like crab, clams, and mussels to make your money's worth. We also ordered some drinks along with our dinner, which were tasty. At the end of the meal comes the best part --the rose milk tea pudding! Seriously one of the best desserts I've ever had and I always look forward to this here. Come for your birthday and you get to eat free with 3 paid guests too.

LaoJie has a great vibe and a decent price for their AYCE hotpot. There is a small room in the back too where it looks like you can fit a small party for a celebration. The meats were decent quality and they had a great selection - the lamb was my favorite. Overall a solid option for hot pot in Chinatown!

To-go spot for AYCE hotpot beside Hometown Hotpot a few blocks away. I've always made a reservation before coming here to avoid long wait times. The food here is great and they have many options for hotpot. I love the large variety they offer for all the meats and veggies. Also, if you go on your birthday it's discounted!! Side note: they provide a large bag for you to put your jackets in so they don't soak up the hotpot smell.

I've been going to the original 8th ave location since it opened in 2018, and it continues to be my favourite AYCE (all you can eat) hot pot spot across the city. The workers go out of their way to make your party feel welcome and accommodate different types of eaters (no pork, included). The portions are always super fresh and well presented, assuring you that they put the utmost care into the customer. There's usually old school Chinese/HK pop playing on the screens in the background which are routinely interrupted by their iconic "Happy Birthday" choruses, since you can eat free +/-1 day within your birthday. The sauce bar is also self-serve and stellar. The only reason I'm giving this location a 4 and not a 5 is because they charge more (~5/10$) and the quality was JUST slightly lesser quality, though still better than Hometown BBQ nearby (which is also superb).

Winter is amongst us so you know what that means.. Hotpot time!!! Was in between this and Hometown. So happy we decided to go with LaoJie. Had the herbal broth. It was very rich in flavor. AYCE spot. All the items we ordered was fresh. They refill your broth frequently. Service was friendly. Left with a full belly.

10/10 Talk about value - AYCE hotpot & skewers, you get so much for what you pay! We went on a Tuesday evening. $37 for AYCE hotpot or skewers, $43 for both. Although, I think the prices are lower on weekdays because the total bill came out to be $80 after taxes. Very big menu across apps, meats, seafoods, veggies, skewers, & sides. Spicy beef tallow & tomato broths were both tasty, made everything flavorful. Meats and veggies are all fresh and plated cleanly. Skewers were okay, they all had the same seasoning. There's a sauce station to make your dips too. The dessert which is rice pudding is such a nice way to end too! Something underrated, they give you plenty of utensils and plates. They gave us a stack of plates, a large cup for disposing skewer sticks & shells, a ladle for broth, slotted ladle to scoop food, and tongs. Service was very fast and attentive. They are quick-handed tho and they grabbed a couple of things that were half eaten so be sure to let them know if you want to keep something haha. Vibe is fun! They play some good Chinese music, I shazam'd a few times. The decor is fiery and woody. Overall this was amazing - great bang for your buck. Definitely coming back.

(Overall: A) - I greatly enjoyed this AYCE Hotpot place for under $50/pp. Before the meal started, the staff already made a great impression by providing a large plastic bag to wrap our jackets, which solved a longstanding mystery of how I can get rid of the hotpot/kbbq smell from my clothes. Their menu has an impressive array of choices to choose from, ranging from your classic cuts of proteins and cuts to some more adventurous such as aorta and tripe, loved by those born with this taste. There is a healthy array of vegetables and carbs, as well as a good selection of sweets and appetizers to round out the meal, which can be ordered by piece -- I really enjoyed the fried pumpkin. LaoJie was quite spacious and all of the food was presented nicely and seemed reasonably fresh. Good quality hotpot overall! Food: +1 Presentation: +1 Price: E Atmosphere: +1 Service: +1 Menu: +1 Overall: +5 A Insta/Beli/TikTok: @amei_eats

Delicious broth, great selection of sauces, and a well-stocked menu. We enjoyed the fish balls with roe, the thinly sliced beef and pork, the ginormous clams, and just the interior vibe. It was a bit too loud for us but otherwise we had a good time!

Came here on a cold weekend night, perfect for hot pot. The wait was about 1 hr, had plenty of time to explore and checkout Manhattan Chinatown and to empty some space for the all you can eat. So we ordered the all you can eat and we ordered multiple proteins, veggies, and fried buns. They were all fresh, delicious, and came out pretty quickly. I'd say the fatty beef was the most enjoyable and worth dish to order. All other proteins were good as well. I'd say this the meal was very worth it and the price is well deserved it considering it was all you can eat. Will definitely come back to this place again in the future for all you can eat as well : )

Great AYCE hotpot for $37 pre tax/tip! You get 2 hours here and that's enough time to overeat. Service was fast and our waiter didn't blink at the looong list of items we ordered over multiple rounds. Pretty comprehensive menu of meat/veg/seafood/noodles/etc and ingredients all looked fresh. The atmosphere was much nicer than other hotpot restaurants I've been to; there are red lanterns along the side and neat faux flames stretching across the main room. Note there are two floors, and we ended up in the basement which isn't bad, but ask to be seated on the main floor if possible. Do make a reservation in advance because the place was full (Friday evening). Our group of 4 split a tomato and bone broth pot and especially liked the shrimp paste, all the beef cuts, rice cakes, tong hao, napa cabbage, enoki mushrooms, and glass noodles. One of the highlights for me is the dessert that's included - a mango jasmine milk tea pudding that wasn't overly sweet and tasted amazing. Looking to make another visit here and recommend to anyone looking for good hotpot in the city!

Our family's favorite AYCE hotpot spot!! The service is always super fast and the staff are all friendly. The food quality is definitely worth the price and meat is fresh. Ambiance inside is good, one of the better decorated hotpot places. We've been here so many times our blood is probably 30% at this point.

This place always hits! Never a bad meal here. The seafood, beef and veggies always taste good and sauce bar has it all. Can't forget the dessert pudding here. So good!!!

We went here as a big group and the service was really bad. It took around 10 minutes to 15 minutes to call up an order of meat and my group of six (went with 12 people split into two groups) kept eating up all of the meat so quickly because of how little they provide and how much time they make us wait for the food. There was only one server available every 10 minutes for some reason, and it was just a waste of our time because we kept wondering where the food was. Brooklyn location was much more cheaper and the service was significantly better than this location. Complete opposite of the waiting times I had just described for the Manhattan location. It's crazy because it's raw meat getting served and it still took that long to arrive at the Manhattan location and it was just not that worth going here. We did go back to the Brooklyn location, just don't go to the Manhattan one. It's not quick for an AYCE and we never ate our worth (probably at least half because of how slow the service was and we just gave up waiting and left).

Great AYCE hot pot in Manhattan. As a 99 favors loyalist I'm won over. The vegetable quality is great and the meat quality is great. Fine sauce bar too. I haven't tried to skewers. Service is great, they're attentive and nice for a Chinese hot pot place. It looks really great inside and is a fun spot to take people, but the music is a little loud and whack, and would be super super super great if the AC was just colder.

I may be biased because I absolutely love hot pot with a passion. AYCE hot pot less than $40? Say less!! There were so many options, the quality was great, free sauces and dessert. We waited for 45 min on a Saturday night when we were quoted 1.5 hours. It's very vibey and lively in there. This is definitely going to be my go to hot pot spot. I am still dreaming of the food.

Bring your friends here for their birthday! Good bang for your buck AND you get "Happy Birthday" blasted for you AND they give you a goodie bag AND bday person eats for free Quality is definitely not high but you get what you pay for here. Still, lots of great options on the menu to choose from! A good casual spot to just have a good time with friends

Laojie Hotpot in Manhattan is serving up an unbeatable deal for all you can eat hotpot lovers! For just $37 you can indulge in their AYCE hotpot, and for only $44 enjoy both hotpot and delicious skewers BBQ! With a vast menu of fresh ingredients and mouthwatering BBQ delights, you'll never run out of options. They also got a great selection of broths to choose from! Plus , their interiors are super cool. Don't miss out on this amazing experience while you're in Chinatown, Manhattan. Head over to Lao jie hotpot and treat yourself! Follow @spinx17 for more NYC food adventures!

DELICIOUS FOR A GOOD PRICE!! The quality is so good, it's worth the price! I love a good AYCE spot Service was good, the server was really attentive! Casual spot, but cute decor :) Would come back

A great place for all-you-can-eat hotpot and BBQ! I went there with my friends for a quick dinner while we were in Manhattan. It was Sunday night, and we got in right away. Everything was fresh, with many selections of meats and veggies. The interior had cute traditional Chinese decor, creating a cozy atmosphere. The service was great and very accommodating. At the end, they offer a free milk tea pudding dessert, which was surprisingly good. It was refreshing, not too sweet, and we loved it so much. My friend even ate two bowls by herself! Lol. They also sell them. Highly recommend this place for those who love hotpot!

Great fun dinner on a chilly day! Came here for my birthday and they offer a free meal which is nice. I liked it's all you can eat and got to try the different fresh meats and vegetables in mushroom broth. Also got watermelon juice which was refreshing but the best was the dessert, it was a light pudding and had some tea infused in it, was so tasty! Service was good but they did forgot the vegetables in the beginning. They also sing happy birthday but I opted out since they sang it about 5 times before me, and they give a gift but had to ask for it.

Favorite AYCE hot pot! Great price, value, and quality of ingredients! Huge variety of meats and veggies, really fresh, and great sauce bar!

Laojie is one of those aesthetically themed restaurants, with lots of references to a more traditional Chinese vibe. The decor is pretty cool, and they have tables with both individual and table cooking spots. The AYCE for hotpot only is about $37pp ($45 w tip), which is reasonable for Manhattan prices. There's a 2 hour time limit that they keep track of. Pros: - Meat was pretty nice quality, not brought up frozen! - Their milk tea pudding was so good. We all had like 2 bowls! - Sauce bar, options for food were good - Broth was decent flavor wise - They take reservations pretty easily - Service was good about topping off our waters/broth quickly Cons: - The service was pretty off putting. They were really really strict about certain things, but hard to call over in other cases. We had a party of 10, and they would let us only do a max of 2 people not doing AYCE. For the people not doing AYCE, they'd watch super closely and threaten to charge if they saw them eating a piece of meat. - They didn't bring out any veggies until like 45 into the dinner, so it was a bit slow

Food 4.0/5.0 Service 3.5/5.0 Value 4.0/5.0 Decor 3.5/5.0 Overall 4.0/5.0 Decent AYCE hotpot/skewer chain. Prices are very reasonable and quality is okay. You largely get what you pay for with hot pot but fair to say this spot is on the efficient frontier.

This place HIT the spot. Yagurl was craving good asian food after being in europe. And earlier in the day, I had a very disappointing pad see ew so I was in dire need of my asian food fix. I came here after dance rehearsal and was ready to grub. Everything was so tasty! From the broth, meats, veggies and sauces. Decently priced too. It's also funny that they gave me the family sized pot instead of a small one. I bet people thought this skinny girl must've been a competitive eater!

Went here 7:45pm on a Saturday night and had a wait for 2 people for an hour. It's AYCE. You get to choose between communal or individual broth. I had the mushroom brother and my boyfriend had the spicy broth. Their sauce bar is standard. Restrooms are clean. Ingredients are fresh and they were quick to refill broth. They also had a milk tea flavored dessert that was nice to wrap things up.

This was my first time ever doing hot pot and it was so fun!! We came at 4:30 on a Sunday and there was no wait, and the restaurant stayed fairly empty. It is a really cool restaurant with a wall of fire and it's fairly big and clean. The tables with the stovetops on them are so cool. Everyone looked like they were having a good time. Our server was extremely attentive and helpful. I had never done hot pot before so I let my friend choose everything. The restaurant had so many options for broths, appetizers, meats, vegetables, anything you can imagine. Our server brought everything out super quickly. I tried so many new things which was awesome because it was all for one flat price. For about $40 each, plus tax and tip, we ate until our bellies were full, and then we were given pudding! Such a cool experience. I definitely want to come back here and try the skewers as well.

everything was pretty delicious! for my broth I got wintermelon and clam! it was my first time seeing a broth for hotpot like that and I was so overjoyed bc I love both wintermelon and clam :) we ordered a bunch of diff meats, Napa cabbage, enoki mushrooms, and fried bean curd! we also got fried mantou with condensed milk (not pictured) it's literally my favorite thing ever~ and they gave us a free shaved ice to share at the end + egg pudding (not pictured) service is pretty good! they refill your broth multiple times and come by for more orders. interior is sort of rustic. it's nice inside and not too loud. I was able to easily have a conversation with my table! and i was able to witness a birthday celebration (they go all out for that)

Bang for buck, this is probably one of the best values you'll find for hot pot in Manhattan. It's $35pp before tax/tip for AYCE hot pot, and you can either use a communal pot or individual pots. The veggies are super fresh and clean, the seafood is generous, and the meat is good quality. You can even order hot appetizers as part of the AYCE menu--the meat strips (fried pork) are surprisingly delicious, and we ended up getting several rounds of them. Throw in the quirky yet modern and elegant decor, and quick service, and you've at least justified making your hair and clothes stink.

I've been twice to this location already and it's definitely impressing me more than 99 Favors haha. After you place your order, everything comes out pretty fast, even despite the insane dinner rush time dining hours. They did miss some items, but no worries, we just ordered them again. We were ordering five plates of fatty beef at a time, multiple rounds, (we had a big group!) and they didn't even blink an eye ahah. Had a great time, the quality of the food is pretty good too. I ordered crab and there was so much roe and they weren't skimping out per order either!

There aren't many hotpot places with individual pots. So, since my friends and I like different things in our pots, we wanted our own. I got the pork bone broth as my soup base, and it was good. If I ever go again, I would choose something else like the spicy broth. I wasn't too pleased with the choices of items for the hotpot, but since it's ayce. The one thing that I liked was how they came around and collected your coats or whatever you would like to put inside a clear bag under your table. It helps your clothes stay clean and not smell like food. I may come back again in the near future when I'm in the area.

Lao jie is one of the best skewer / hotpot restaurants in lower Manhattan - it's hard NOT to recommend to anyone craving that skewer / hotpot combo in an AYCE style. Outside of its retro-grade aesthetics, I need to point out that when I went, Lao Jie's service was top-tier ! Waiters and waitresses were extremely attentive, always refilled water, and food came out relatively quickly. Fish tofu skewers were really additive, couldn't get enough of it! Overall, had a great time and I think the selection of food justifies the price. At the end of your meal, you can ask for as many amounts of "milk pudding", which was such a great way to end our dinner.

wasn't sure if it was an off-day for the waiter but the service was a bit horrible for us. We had a group of 6 and waited 10ish mins for our table on a Saturday evening. The waiter was in a foul mood or something was just rolling his eyes every time we wanted something; it got to the point where we tracked another waiter down instead. Even though this is an AYCE, we ordered alcohol.. guess that was too much work for him.!

This spot surpasses every competitor. Their menu layout made selection easy. Staff is genuinely pleasant and solves all concerns. Great food here doesn't require a big budget. This spot deserves your swift attention.

Girl at the front (hostess?) was extremely rude. I said the time wrong at first and she just rolls her eyes at me. Felt like I was begging her to let us eat there. I did make a reservation. The food was just meh. I got the herbal chicken soup base which was extremely forgettable. Took my friends to try this out for my birthday but won't be coming back here.

Pro tip: call ahead and they can put your name on the waitlist over the phone so you don't need to wait in person:-) I called in on Saturday night and only had to wait (from the comfort of my own home) for about an hour!! The service and value is pretty great here. Everyone was super nice, and the rounds of meat and other things we ordered came out very quickly. I tried the spicy broth, and it had great flavor. The meat quality was pretty good as well, very tender! I loved the variety and selection of vegetables and other topping you could put into the hotpot! There was honestly nothing I could think of that their menu was missing. They also give you a pudding and milk tea dessert that's soo refreshing after the hot soup! There's a basement as well with ~7 tables. The main level is definitely more decorated, but I didn't mind sitting downstairs at all. I will definitely be back, especially since it's getting colder now and hot pot just hits the spot.

Came here to warm up a freezing cold day and was extremely glad we did. Let me firstly say that I was just blown away by how good the service was! From getting help ordering, to automatic refills, to ninja-esque cleanup, it felt like there was always someone ready to help without feeling like you're being watched. As for the food, I've always had mixed feelings about the likes of hot pot and shabu, but my meal today has turned me into a believer again. We got half Mala and half herbal broth, and a mountain of meats, veggies, and skewers. Insane to me still that our entire meal was right around $100. I felt like a king! Meat quality was decent; I'm not expecting exquisite cuts of meat for an all you can eat, but I honestly was impressed by how good it was. The skewers were solid too, some better than others. I had one beef skewer that was perfectly cooked, and one beef skewer that was a bit dry. Our favorite one was the pork belly wrapped enoki! For the "cons" of our meal: the ambiance is a little strange and I couldn't really figure out what the theme was, particularly with the old tv's on the walls, but I'm guessing it's just retro themed? Honestly though, didn't care! The other thing is the sauce bar was just weirdly organized and we saw a dirty bowl mixed in with the clean ones. Lastly, I wanted a small bowl but everything besides the sauce dishes were plates, which is a little strange considering everything is dripping in broth, but it wasn't a huge deal. All in all, screaming deal for delicious all you can eat hot pot and skewers! If you're not particular about small details, I don't think there's anything to complain about here. I'll absolutely be back soon; it's looking like it'll be a cold winter!

Good service. Went at lunchtime. Was pretty empty at this time of day. I wish they have a lunchtime pricing as time is limited during the lunch hour. Other than that we enjoyed the place.

Another great experience at Lao Jie! Started eating at Lao Jie back in 2020 (or whenever it opened) so it's exciting to see the franchise grow into something more! Great and attentive service. Our waiter / waitress were making sure we had water and our soups were refilled every 20-30 minutes. Our (uncooked) food also came out fast. Really affordable considering the amount of food and services we have access to: sauce bar & unlimited meat , seafood, and veggies. The food has never been an issue for me since we (the customers) are cooking them for ourselves. They're so thoughtfully plated for us to enjoy with our eyes. I've always loved the theme they go for: vintage Chinese films / traditional scenes. This spot did not disappoint the legacy of Lao Jie Hot Pot!