Hai Di Lao Hot Pot (海底捞火锅) @ Clarke Quay, Singapore (Rating: 3.5/5)

We are sourcing for a different food place where we can have a family gathering. At some point, we are looking for something else besides Cantonese, Western, Italian, Korean, and etc. We need something different and refreshing until someone suggested Hai Di Lao Hot Pot (海底捞火锅) at Clarke Quay.

Founded in 1994, the company has owned 72 restaurant chains in 15 cities nationwide, including Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Nanjing and many more. It opened the first overseas chain in Singapore. It serves Sichuan Hotpot with a wide selection of meat, vegetables, and sauces. Whilst waiting for food, you can enjoy the free services such as complimentary drinks, manicure and snacks too.

We decided to go for a food tasting experience at the restaurant. When we arrived at half past three in the afternoon, the restaurant was still crowded with people. The customer turnover was very high. We could see that new customers strolled in every hour. When the elevator door opened to the restaurant, we were immediately greeted by their friendly and cheery staff. Then we were ushered to our table. A service staff was attended to us. As it was our first time, she gave us a quick introduction of the restaurant and how to make orders. What was fun and interesting was that we ordered our food from an iPad. There were a wide selection of food to choose from. We were given an apron and hot wet towel to refresh up. Before we started eating, we were already amazed by their attentive service with little touch points that touched you.  

The high tech way of ordering food.

Though they have a variety of flavoured hot pot, we chose the Sichuan Spicy broth (麻辣). I was prepared to have my lips swollen like two pieces of sausages and tongue numb.

The beautiful ambience and decor.

There were many different kinds of sauces but I took only four kinds. They are Beef Sauce (top), Korean Chilli Sauce (left), Sesame Sauce (right), and Featured Chilli Sauce (bottom). Among the four sauces, I like the featured chilli sauce, korean chilli sauce, sesame sauce and lastly, beef sauce in the order of my liking. The featured chilli sauce had a tint to lemony taste, spicy hot and then a little sweetness. It blended well with most of the dishes we ordered. As for the korean chilli sauce, I prefer to eat it with the beef balls (撒尿牛肉丸). The korean chilli sauce tasted something like the When the food became too spicy, a refreshing dip with sesame sauce was good too.

We ordered a wide range of food:

• Crispy meat (酥肉)
• Black Angus Beef (安格斯黑牛肉)
• HaiDiLao Flavoured Beef (捞派滑牛肉)
• Mutton Slices (羊肉卷)
• Black Pork (黑猪肉)
• Steamed Buns (金银馒头)
• Beef Balls (撒尿牛肉丸)
• Tofu Slices (豆腐皮)
• Sliced bean curd (腐竹)
• Thin Vermicelli (细粉丝)
• Sweet Potato Broad Noodles (红薯宽粉)
• Coriander (香菜)

Sweet Potato (红薯宽粉) was a very interesting broad noodles. It was like a stick when raw. When you cooked it, it became soft and translucent. It was chewy and delicious.

The Sichuan Spicy Broth was spicy and yet, delicious. However, after some time, the rich broth could taste a little overbearing. So, rest your stomach for a while before continuing.

The Crispy meat (酥肉) tasted like chicken cutlet. You must not eat it on its own. It must be cooked in the spicy broth. Coriander (香菜) came like a potted plant. We thought that it was just a few pieces of coriander. It was too much for us.

The Steamed Buns (金银馒头) were delicious when you dipped into the sweetened milk. In the bamboo container, you could see it that there were both steamed and fried buns.

Look at the marbled meat, all the meat were fresh. When cooked, it was tender and juicy.

 

After your meal, you can freshen up for free. You can ask the service staff for the following:

• Cologne
• Hair Brush
• Toothpaste/ Tooth Brush
• Denture cleaner
• Razor Blade, etc.

 How can you beat such 5-star service?!

Address: 3D River Valley Road, #02-04, Clarke Quay

Price: $$

Rating: 3.5/5