ShangHai Restaurant+ZhangLiang Spicy Hot Pot 张亮麻辣烫

Absolutely love this restaurant! Simon is the best and always serves us delicious food! The pork soup dumplings and the general Tso chicken are great! Can’t go wrong with anything here!

I love the dry pot and pork soup dumplings. Vegetables taste good too! Clean environment, authentic food! Cute playful area to get free candy next to the drink fridge.

This was our first time trying a restaurant like this, and we truly loved the experience. From the moment we walked in, the environment felt warm and casual. The restaurant isn’t very large, but it has a modern and interactive setup that makes the visit unique and enjoyable. One of the staff members was especially friendly and helpful. She kindly explained how the ordering process worked, which was very helpful since it was all new to us. Once we understood how things were done, we went over to see the large selection of fresh ingredients. That’s when the fun really began. You get to hand-pick everything you want to include in your bowl. We picked a variety of items like lo mein, squid, mushrooms, tofu, bok choy, and more. At first, I thought we might have gone overboard with the mix, but to our surprise, everything came together perfectly after they cooked it. The process is simple: choose your ingredients, they weigh your bowl (you pay by the pound), then you choose your soup base or sauce and they cook everything for you. We chose the Mala Xiangguo flavor, which had just the right amount of spice and bold flavor. It was delicious, full of depth, and cooked perfectly. Every bite had a balance of heat and umami that made us want to go back for more. The dining area was clean, organized, and well-lit, creating a comfortable place to enjoy the meal. There is space in the front with outdoor seating tables, which is perfect if you want to enjoy the fresh air or relax on a nice day. It’s a great option for anyone looking to enjoy a flavorful meal with a bit of sunshine. Overall, this was more than just a meal; it was a fun experience. Watching your own selections come together in a delicious dish makes it feel personal and satisfying. We’re definitely planning to come back soon, and next time, we’ll bring a few friends along to share the experience.

Casual Szechuan hot pot spot on Main St It’s changed from its previous restaurant so if you’ve come here before it’s worth another look. Basic selection of standard Rice/Noodle dishes if you want to order a la cart from the menu vs the build your own soup. Would come again.

I am so happy that Simon is back and with him is the traditional Szechuan menu! We have been eating at Shanghai since it opened. The food is fresh, authentic, light and overall very good. Simon greets us warmly each and every time we visit. I highly recommend!! Thank you for bringing Simon back.

This new Fort Lee restaurant offers a unique combo of Malatang dry pot and Shanghai cuisine. Here’s what we got: Dry Pot: 4/5 A fantastic, flavorful "build your own" dry pot. This was the highlight of our meal and a strong competitor to other spots in the area. Soup Dumplings: 3.5/5 The soup inside was good, but the skin was a bit too thick, which detracted from the experience. Double-Cooked Pork: 2.5/5 Unfortunately, this dish was a letdown. The pork was tough and very overcooked, not what you'd expect. Eggplant Dish: 2/5 My least favorite dish. The flavor was overly sweet, and the eggplant was burnt to the point where the skin was inedible. Overall, the Malatang is good and worth a visit. I’d suggest sticking to the dry pot and giving the other menu items a pass

The beef bone broth was very flavorful. The ingredients are fresh. Their sauce bar gives very high quality chili oil, pepper oil, and vinegar. The cilantro and green scallions were very fresh as well. Highly recommend!

Zhang Liang is the best restaurant in the Fort Lee area. Extremely affordable and you get A LOT of food. Meat and veggie quality is top notch and the soups are homemade every morning by the staff. They still have all their menu options from when they were Shang Hai too so you can still get their renowned soup dumplings. Run, don’t walk, to Zhang Liang!

ZhangLiang is specifically known for **Malatang**, which is distinct from traditional Chinese hot pot. 1. **Self-Service Selection:** You grab a bowl and tongs at the entrance. You then walk along a large refrigerated counter filled with a massive variety of raw ingredients. 2. **The Ingredients:** The selection is vast and includes: * **Meats:** Thinly sliced beef, lamb, chicken, luncheon meat, meatballs (fish, beef, squid), sausages. * **Seafood:** Shrimp, squid, fish cakes, crab sticks, mussels. * **Vegetables:** Bok choy, napa cabbage, spinach, corn, mushrooms, lotus root, potatoes, tofu skin, seaweed knots. * **Noodles & Starches:** A critical component! Choose from instant noodles, udon, wide sweet potato noodles, glass noodles, and more. 3. **Weigh and Pay:** You take your loaded bowl to the counter where it's weighed. You pay by weight (the price is for the raw ingredients). You then choose your: **Broth Flavor/Spice Level:** This is the key to Malatang. You can choose from a range of broths, typically from Non-Spicy (e.g., Bone Broth, Tomato) to extremely spicy (e.g., "Malala" level). **Additional toppings:** You can often add extras like cilantro, scallions, garlic, sesame paste, and chili oil on the side. 4. **They Cook It For You:** Unlike DIY hot pot, the kitchen takes your bowl and cooks all your ingredients together in your chosen broth. It's brought to your table in a large bowl, ready to eat. **Customization:** You have complete control over what goes into your meal, from ingredients to spice level. **Flavorful Broth:** The broths are rich, aromatic, and deeply flavorful. The spicy numbing broth (featuring Sichuan peppercorns) is a fan favorite. **Value and Speed:** It's generally very affordable for the amount of food you get, and it's much quicker than a traditional 1-2 hour hot pot session. **Busy at Peak Times:** Expect a line, especially on weekend evenings. The wait is usually moving quickly, but be prepared. **Casual Atmosphere:** It's a fast-casual restaurant--order at the counter, grab a number, and they bring the food to you. The decor is modern and clean. **Crowd-Pleaser:** It's a great spot for a quick, satisfying, and delicious meal with friends or even alone. **Go Early or Off-Peak:** To avoid the longest lines, try going for a late lunch or an early dinner on weekdays. **Don't Skip the Noodles:** The wide sweet potato noodles or instant noodles are classic choices that absorb the broth perfectly. **Balance Your Bowl:** It's easy to get carried away. Remember that heavy items like meatballs and potatoes will add weight (and cost) quickly compared to leafy greens.

Went to Zhangliang to try their dry pot. Like the other malatang restaurants in the area, you choose your ingredients, place them in a bowl, have it weighed, and choose how you want them to cook it. The restaurant is small, but clean. I went with dry pot, spice level 3 of 5. Flavor was similar to other spots in the area, but somehow cheaper. I like that they have more options than just dry pot and hotpot. They also have different broth options like tomato or mushroom. I especially liked the flavor of the mushroom broth. I'd come here if i were in the mood for soup, but i prefer other places for dry pot.

Shabu shabu style place. Pick out what you want, weigh it, pick your broth and they cook it in the back for you. Decent selection.

A comfy and quick eating spot if you want hotpot but not the entire setup. The cashier was super friendly and even remembered old customers when they were still a dumpling restaurant. You pick all your ingredients and it came out in like 5 minutes. I got the bone broth and I was worried it would be too plain but the soup was so flavorful. One of the best broths I've had for a spot like this. Would love to come back and try more flavors!

Quick service and my personal favorite of Mala Tang! There are a few soup-based and dry pot based style to choose from which is definitely a breath of fresh air since most if not all other Mala Tang restaurants only offer a single dry/soup-based style. I'm speaking from someone who doesn't usually like Mala Tang. Even my wife and son love it so that's a huge plus. 2nd time in a week already and pretty sure my wife will be getting this for her WFH lunch since it's walking distance for us.

Great food and service with ease of picking your own items and portions. Definitely plan to come back!

Authentic hotpot, delicious food, fresh ingredients, great ambience, definitely recommend!