Luke F.
Yelp
Thinly sliced raw fatty beef, dipped into a simmering bowl of Szechuan spicy broth (both pepper and mala spice)... I swirl it for 10 seconds or so then let it rest on my sauce of choice - sesame paste sauce, or chili garlic oil sauce. I'll eat it, along with noodle or rice, a qail egg perhaps. My mouth explodes with flavor. Every time.
Hot pot, hot pot. In my gastronomical journey through life, Chinese hot pot is possibly my greatest encounter.
And locally, it's Le Pot.
Best broth bases
- mala spicy, pork bone, and Tom yum are endorsed by me and my girlfriend
Great foodstuffs
- qual egg, udon noodles, good fatty beef, crab sticks, good old cabbage, tofu, bean curd, enoki mushroom etc
- Lamb and pork are alright at this location, could be better
Great sauce bar, as I can assemble my staples
- Sauce 1: black vinegar, chili oil with flake, garlic oil with garlic, sesame oil, scallions, cilantro (about equal parts and adjust); season with sugar, salt and soy sauce if desired
- Sauce 2: lots of sesame paste, and leave as is or maybe add scallions, chili oil, sesame seed **I do wish they had chive paste**
- Sauce 3: Oyster sauce, soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, cilantro, green onion, black vinegar
Value
- it's like 30-35 dollars a person here.
- I often leave more satisfied here than I do after a "fancy" night on the north loop
What's missing
- ambiance is okay
- I do like a huge communal pot
- Chive flower paste
- Pork and lamb could be better
- Broths are good, but I like the Chicago restaurants best
Local hot pot honorable mentions
- the place at Asia Mall with the electric rack innovation
- Legendary Spice - you are free to grab a tray and raid their fridges/freezers for whatever meat, vegetable, etc you want. But the borth wasn't as good. Overall, it's rather expensive but quality is in some ways lower than Le Pot.
- J Pot - Korean bbq and hot pot. The Chinese flavors were not as authentic, broths not as good to me, but wow having Korean bbq and hot pot at the same time! It's a decent value too.