YI ER CHUAN MALATANG（SPICY HOTPOT）

Really cute place with really good food. The byo hotpot bowl was awesome. The medium spice level was accurate. The boba tea was really good as well. I like the tablet ordering system, and the fact that you can choose what you want in your bowl and add extras. Very filling bowls even with the minumum 5 items.

We came in on a Wednesday evening and got relatively quick service. I highly suggest the creating your own Malatang soup — picking the broth and spice levels, to type of noodle and extra toppings. If you don’t know how much to get, aim around 3-5 toppings. I got beef x2, imitation crab, spinach, and enoki mushrooms. The bowl is big so I wasn’t able to finish it but I got very close! The prices are fair when it comes to the soup. U get a lot for what u pay for. The bathrooms are very small but clean. Overall solid food and would definitely come back for more!

The restaurant has been rebuilt with no changes, the service staff is a bit slow. The food is not to our taste, perhaps Americans are not familiar with this taste or Ma La I saw it in a hot pot and thought I'd take it out to dip and eat, but I already made a bowl. The food I ordered was almost all defrosted so it was not fresh and very bad like shrimp, mussel, fish, quail eggs, mushrooms, lotus roots,... Ordered Tomato soup but brought the wrong spicy soup. When the correct tomato soup came out, it still wasn't delicious. ….

Menu was very confusing, we had to ask a lot of questions, then we hear other guests asking the same questions, food is on the spicy end, so if you don’t really like spicy, make sure you ask for no spice. Portion size is very large for the combo meal, so it was good value. We thought we picked something ramen-like, but it was mostly dry, and we didn’t select the dry pot. Again, confusing menu, maybe show steps 1,2,3 would help. Food tasted good though.

Yi Er Chuan is owned by the same family that runs Szechuan Gourmet (one of our favorite Chinese restaurants of all time) so we were excited to give it a try. The food, however, was actually a bit hit or miss. The tomato hotpot base was jam packed with flavor and umami richness and was hands down one of the best I've ever tasted, the vegetables and shredded beef were fresh, and the portion sizes were great value for the money. On the other hand, the dried tofu and the scallion pancake had a slightly off flavor, as if they were cooked with old oil or stored improperly. Moreover, while the signature malatang soup base was nutty and sufficiently spicy and numbing (especially when ordered at the "extra spicy" level!), it was also lacking in depth of flavor, and was boring to eat after a while. Maybe it would have been improved by a dipping sauce. The restaurant interior was clean but otherwise unremarkable, the waitstaff were exceptionally prompt and friendly, and the online touchpad ordering system was super convenient. Overall, this would be a great restaurant to bring newbies to introduce them to the concept of hotpot (since you don't need to worry about doing your own cooking), and we would come back, but it doesn't take the place of the original Szechaun Gourmet or some of the other "do it all yourself" hotpot restaurants in town.

I came across this place many times and didn’t decide to pay a visit until today. I regret that I didn’t come earlier. This is really the best Malatang I’ve had in a very long time. The meal includes a wide variety of stuff that I like and there are many add ons to select. You can also select different flavors of soup base and of course the spicy level as well. I recommend the least spicy unless you’re really confident. Their price is very reasonable and portion is generous especially considering today’s restaurant prices. The interior design is modern and clean. You can order by phone or on the pad. I’ll definitely comeback again!

Totally delicious food with a calm vibe. I’ve been looking for more pescatarian places and this definitely worked for me. The portions are more than enough to have some to take home. The menu is a bit confusing so take up time and read it and ask questions. The atmosphere could be improved but it looks like they are working on it. All in all the good is worth it. I’m definitely going back.

This is simplified and ready to eat hotpot bowl, another kind of traditional hotpot which is very popular in China. Very good services and patient explanations of each dishes. Most of the dishes and spices are homemade. My friends love the food. Highly recommended!

A small spot in Asiatown that offers great food! I came here for the first time a few weeks ago. The restaurant has modern decor, and you order food via a tablet that's at each table. I'm a certified spice wimp, but I'm not opposed to the occasional spicy Szechuan-style meal as long as it's delicious. However, I wasn't feeling culinarily courageous that day, so I didn't get the titular malatang (I am open to trying it in the future though!). Instead, I got the braised beef noodle soup, and it was delicious. My big bowl came with a generous amount of noodles, bok choy, and a good portion of braised beef. The noodles had a great chew, and the beef was tender. The soup was also wonderful. It was flavorful and reminded me of a pho broth, though not as complex (however, it was just as comforting and great for a chilly day). My noodle soup left me stuffed, especially since I drank up every drop of that tasty broth and slurped up every single noodle. It was also reasonably priced - around $14 or $15. The service was also friendly and quick with water refills.

Please come support this small family business! Asiatown has huge road construction and I feel terrible that these business are still open but the construction is causing their business to either look closed or difficult to get to. The menu is here has a lot to offer from noodle soups to rice dishes and yummy soup dumplings. The portions are large and flavors are very authentic!!! We can't wait to return! Nothing fancy but good solid food.

I took my daughter and 2 of her floor mates out for dinner, and they chose to try this place. Not a fancy place by any means, but the food was good and very filling. Portions were huge. I was able to finish mine, but the girls were only able to eat half of their bowls. I had the spicy beef malatang, and it was plenty spicy for me, without having ordered the spiciest version! So, beware! Luckily, I was able to cool my mouth with a nice bottle of Sapporo Beer! Orders were done via a tablet given by the server, which was good, because I don't think she understood much of our English. Nonetheless, it's a good spot to try, if you're visiting Cleveland.

A spicy new hot pot experience from the owner of Szechuan Gourmet. If things look familiar inside, they've recycled the dining tables from Rising Grill but the stovetops are nonfunctional as this is not an interactive cook-your-own hot pot. The decor is mostly barebones and service is friendly but no frills - but the food speaks for itself. Our party of 5 was pushing the limits of seating capabilities. If you can squeeze people onto the banquettes and add chairs to the sides of the grill tables, you might be able to get maybe 6-7 per party, but no more than that. The menus can be a bit confusing, so you'll want to focus your attention on the paper menu that you'll mark your order on. Choose from a broth base, sauce base, or "dry" stir-fry style base and select your spice-level. Next, you can choose which proteins, carbs, and veggies to add in, but be warned this can add up money-wise pretty quick. If you suffer from choice paralysis, they have some recommended combos with set prices. Appetizers can also be ordered directly on the order sheet, but drinks you just have to let your server know about when they come to collect the sheets. Portions for the hot pots are no joke. Even on an empty stomach, you'll likely leave uncomfortably full unless you share with someone else. My mild mala spice level was perfect for me, while spice lovers still got a kick from the medium spicy. Each bowl was brimming with add ins, and the veggies really absorb the numbing mala flavor. Waitstaff made sure to come by every so often with more water and napkins for our runny noses. Appetizer-wise, the Taiwanese Sausage came out as a PIPING HOT pair and were big enough to split. Scallion Pancakes were fine.

I finally got to try the relatively new Yi Er Chuan Malatang Hot Pot (or just Malatang, which is spicy numbing hot soup). It is across the street from KoKo. Very tasty and will be back. Ordering is through a tablet, but multiple physical menus are provided as well. While they have a variety of "Street Food," appetizers, drinks, and desserts, their primary offering is "Hot Pot." Hot Pot can be ordered as 1) in broth, 2) in sauce, or 3) dry pot mix. Choose no spice, mild, medium or hot spice levels. For any, choose beef combo, lamb combo, spicy beef, seafood, or vegetarian. Also select type of noodle (egg, udon, sweet potato, instant, rice cake, wild vermicelli). Additional meats and veggies can be added-on. I got Dry Pot, Lamb combo (lamb, mini sausage, quail eggs, napa cabbage, puff tofu), medium spicy, udon noodles. It was Excellent and was sufficiently hot for me - in fact, I have been craving more. She got Broth Pot which was basically a hearty noodle soup. Seafood (Squid, mussels, fish, fishballs, napa Cabbage, bok choy), mild spice, and egg noodles. She really liked it and I enjoyed my sampling of hers as well. The Scallion Pancake was good also. The owner did a great job renovating the restaurant and upgrading the space. I'm looking forward to trying some other options like the skewer varieties and beef brisket noodle soup. Yay! A Great addition to AsiaTown! So much delicious.

This is a hidden gem that you should definitely check out. The food was incredible and the service was quick and friendly. Nothing like it anywhere else in Cleveland. You will not be disappointed!

Came to check out this new spot with my friends and was really impressed! They had some great authentic flavors and hearty soup. The ma la flavor was delicious; we ordered the medium and it had a great kick but was not overwhelming. The salt and pepper chicken + braised pork rice were delicious and authentic as well. The menu is a bit confusing, but they have an online ordering system I would recommend using as it's easy and quite straightforward. The staff are also super friendly and accommodating. Definitely come check this spot out!!

While unassuming from the outside, Yi Er completely blew us away with the taste, quantity and options available to us. They opened recently and we came on a Saturday afternoon to a pretty quiet restaurant. Staff were extremely present and accommodating to us, answering any questions we had. The menu had ample selection and it was very customizable, between whether you wanted soup or a dry pot, spice level and the items you wanted. I was thoroughly surprised by the flavor punch that hit me upon my first sip. Truly authentic and worth a visit!

My mom is a really picky eater and restaurant reviewer but she loved this place! We didn't go for what their actually known for--the mala hotpot BUT we did make a dent in their entire street food section so I feel like I got a good idea! The crispy salted chicken and rice dish, stir fried udon, braised pork over rice dish...all so amazing. The skewers were very well seasoned. The squid skewer looked great but was too overcooked. The menu didn't make it clear that each order of the squid only contained 1 piece, and I don't remember ordering 2 but that was kind of pricey. The lamb skewers were perfect though! The takeout containers were so big and fun. Our server was super friendly and warm. The portions were big and the dessert fruit and jelly was popular amongst my group but I thought it could have been improved with condensed milk and mini tapioca instead of the brown sugar jelly.

The food tastes very authentic and delicious! Big portions and the kebabs are also so well seasoned. The staff is very attentive.

We come from Chicago to celebrate nephew's birthday.The food is delicious and service is good.

I really enjoyed the Malatang. The food was really delicious. The service is good. Also be aware that the spice level is quite high even with the lowest spice. But it is really good!!!

The food is so so so good and yummy and great And a employee is Chinese she many not undersand much but she is so so sweet

First time went there. It's actually pretty good noodle dishes . You can either choose combination or pick your items to add to noodle. Good service too

I love Malatang and I cannot believe they opened one in Cleveland! It's fair priced, large portion, very authentic. They even have other dishes like popcorn chicken, skewers, and Taiwanese braised pork rice

We came on a Sunday around noon. Got seated right away. Similar to other establishments, you order on your phone and they also provide tablets to order from. However, this results in a bit of time when you ask for the server for assistance to the server coming to your table (over 5 min). We wanted to ask how much a Malatang serves as in my experience it's been a large bowl you share with the table, but we wanted to make sure. We ordered the lamb Malatang. It was good and flavorful; a solid Malatang. I would say it serves 2 adults. We asked for smaller bowls so that we can share the Malatang. They also offer other soups, we ordered a beef noodle soup - this serves 1 adult. We also got a scallion pancake. This was good but a bit greasy. The salted chicken was good. The cucumber salad stood out and was better than good. I believe it uses Schezwan peppers that gives it a savory kick without being too spicy. Overall the food is good and I would recommend the Malatang and Cucumber salad. Be patient in the service as it's very much a mom and pop shop.

Food is very tasty. Friendly staff. The soup is super delicious. Broth is so rich, its better than ramen broth. We had the malatang bowl and it was a lot of food. It's more a hotpot noodle bowl. So no misconception that you will be cooking your own food. The dessert jelly is out of the world. Super authentic. It's a little sweet and savory from toasted sesame.

If you know malaxiangguo in China, you can come here and feel like you are there! Very nice. Malaxiangguo is on the menu as "combo," and you can pick between many great ingredients, plus options for the style and level of spicy. When I specify the intense spicy mala, and dry pot style, I remember why this is so popular there! Super nice service too.