Hotpot Express
6456 Antelope Rd, Citrus Heights, CA, 95621
Hotpot Express Menu
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Visit below restaurant in Citrus Heights for healthy meals suggestion.
Visit below restaurant in Citrus Heights for healthy meals suggestion.
Visit below restaurant in Citrus Heights for healthy meals suggestion.
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Address :
6456 Antelope Rd
Citrus Heights, CA, 95621 - Phone (916) 735-8512
- Website https://hotpot-express.com/
- Click To Get Directions
Opening Hours
- Tue
Specialities
- Takes Reservations : Yes
Delivery : No
Take-out : Yes
Accepts Credit Cards : Yes
Good For : Lunch
Parking : Private Lot
Bike Parking : Yes
Good for Kids : Yes
Good for Groups : Yes
Attire : Casual
Ambience : Casual
Noise Level : Average
Alcohol : Beer & Wine Only
Outdoor Seating : No
Has TV : Yes
Waiter Service : Yes
Caters : No
WE SERVE THE FOLLOWING STATES
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Tiana G.
Very yummy. My first hot pot experience. Lots of dishes to choose from to add to the soup. We all really liked the house soup. Udon noodles were great. The fish ball and mussels were my favorite. Staff was attentive and very nice. Would definitely return.
(5)Grace R.
My review is solely based on their nab vam (dessert). I had a craving and didn't want to drive to South Sac. I was gravely disappointed. The tapioca were not cooked thoroughly they were still hard in the middle. The coconut milk was extra fatty and it just lacked any real goodness. It certainly made me question if any of their other food is worth a fair shot. To make matters worse, it was $4!!! What a rip off. Next time, I'll take the extra time and pay the extra gas to go get some real nab vam.
(1)Ron T.
One the hot new restaurant need to be check out. The house special was a bomb. Definitely coming back soon.
(5)Brenda V.
An amazing local and authentic restaurant. I'm glad this place opened up in my neighborhood. Papaya is really really good! All their food looks exactly like how it does in the pictures, not deceiving at all!
(5)Cheryl E.
Excellent food. Just happened to walk in as passing by. Service was outstanding. Very friendly and attentive. Would recommend this restaurant nestled among fast food restaurants.
(5)K B.
Love their broth flavors. Great little place with friendly and helpful staff. Absolutely will be back!
(5)Valerie T.
We wanted to try everything, but somehow we missed the tum som. Other than that, I think we got it all. Everything was so good, the broth was awesome! The ambiance was perfect. A must try... if you're looking for something hot & tasty!
(5)Tutu F.
This is an awesome place! Great hot pot soup. Variety of different things. Fridges full of meats and veggies u pick out bring to the table and cook in ur very own hot pot :) they also have papaya salad, kapoon, pho :) mmm place is a bit small, but food and customer service makes up for it.
(4)Linda S.
The boyfriend and I decided to check it out after our friend told us about it..I looked it up here on yelp and saw all these good reviews so we came here for dinner..we did the hot pot!! N OMG food was amazing!! The best I've ever had and I don't please that easy when it comes to food!! Definitely will be coming back!! I highly recommend it!!!
(5)Carloutta H.
Love that it's only down the street. My girl & I can walk to get her nam vam fix. The nam vam is eh, okay. For the price, I was expecting something more special. Let's say it's something I can make at home. The kapoon is good. I only say good, because if you've ever had it from the best of Thai EssanCuisine, it's not up to par. But for the distance, I'd go there again. Can't wait to try hot pot though. Waiting for more people (adults) to join me... I have my kids and husband but they don't eat spicy and I want it spicy so I have to wait. :(
(4)Jimmy M.
Ive been here a bunch of times, I absolutely love the way they make the Kasoy, Its always an order when i come in and the kalunfen is tasty as well. The reason for the 4 instead of 5 stars, id like to see more options in the menu.
(4)Devona Y.
Did not get to try the hot pot yet but we did get to try the pho and the kapoon. Both were very good. Service was good and fast. One problem that was pointed out by my friend was thay our waitress didn't ask us if we wanted anything to drink. But overall nice experience will definitely be back to try the hot pot when the weather cools down.
(5)krystal T.
Loved this place so much my husband and I decided to bring our friends here and it was closed! Please tell me this place is still open! Gave this place 5 stars cause the selection was great and the broth was uh-mazing! We even told the server who seemed like the owner that their broth is way better than the hot pot place in downtown Sac.
(5)Christine N.
Just finished eating and I was pleasantly surprised that they have papaya salad! It was sooo good! Luckily I ordered the mild bc it still has a kick to it! Spicy, but not burn your lips spicy! Also liked that it was self serve.. So it was quick and easy to order. I would suggest mixing up the veggie plates tho. I mean.. No one wants too much of one thing. Still a great meal tho.
(5)RYan H.
This is a really good place clean inside very friendly food was goood. you'll have to get your meats and such from the refrigerator by the register broth was really tastefull will be visiting again ..
(4)Cod 1.
Saw this place and had to try it out. The atmosphere was good, everyone was helpful and the prices was good. The hotpot was great, it was in my top three hotpot experiences. Good people, good price and great food!!!! Looks like I found a new spot for my hotpot cravings.
(5)Janay S.
This is the BEST Hot Pot you will ever have. I can't rave enough about how delicious and savory the beef broth is. There are soooo many additions to add to your soup. I loved the lobster balls and udon the best. Don't forget to get have some Sake Bombs. Everything is very well priced, store is super clean, and service is top notch.
(5)Silver M.
Short review: Food is good I recommended the House Special regular soup base. All the veggies and meat/other ingredients are fresh. Prices are fair on ingredients. They could do with a bigger variety of veggies, more selections of meats, but outside of that you should enjoy yourself. The atmosphere is good, music videos, and it seems family friendly. If you've got a large group, you may have to wait if it's busy, seating is limited. Overall: I like it, I'd come back again.
(4)Scott T.
Absolutely outstanding food and incredible customer service. This place is family run and operated. It gets five stars because they don't use MSG in their broth. This is very uncommon, considering most Asian restaurants use MSG, An unhealthy accent food additive.
(5)Rachel C.
Went here at 7pm tonight (Thursday). There were no lights on and the place was closed when their hours say they're open. Wasted my time driving out there and left totally disappointed.
(1)Barbara E.
The absolute best flavor of any food I've ever had. Service is excellent. Friendly people working treat you like you are with your best friend. The house special hotpot is amazing and the selection of vegetables and meat are plentiful. Looking forward to next visit so I can try the Pho. ....
(5)AJ D.
This place is good. Close hotpot place by my house and I am glad that it is. Awesome food and I can't wait to return I will hopefully be back real soon. If you like hotpot and don't want to travel to southsac check this place out
(5)Heather P.
Must try hot pot spot! The hot pot is reasonably priced compared to other places. I recommend the house special broth with the pepper sauce on the side. The workers are very friendly and the location is conveniently located off the freeway. Definitely will be back to try the kapoon and other dishes on the menu.
(5)Hope F.
OMG this Hotpot Express restaurant is awesome!! They have the best customer service and the best food here. I love their hotpot broth it has the most favors!! And the papaya salad is on point one of THE BEST I ever had nice and spicy hmmmm... Iam definitely returning back soon for more yummy food!!
(5)Erica R.
Try the HOTPOT beef broth! It's the bomb! Owners are friendly and it's all about that broth!
(5)richard s.
My third stop in search of Iu Mien owned businesses: Hotpot express. 7pm. Pretty slow, we are the only ones here. And at 7:30pm, we were lucky and honored to have members of Kumbaung band join us. It's not an all you can eat place, but instead small portions of various meats and vegetables and noodles are wrapped up in color-coded plates and displayed in a big cooler/refrigerator. You help yourself to whatever you like and get charged per plate, according to color. You cook your food in different flavored broths at your table. They also have kasoy, Kapoon, papaya salad, namwan, and kalieng fen. The food was good, tho a little pricey, but service was excellent.
(4)Stacy T.
I'm from Sacramento and been looking for a good Hotpot place, and this is the best for the money.!! Everything is tasteful and the customer service is awesome. The Hotpot is self serve which makes it so easy. We also tried the papaya salad it was spicy and taste authentic Laos style. It was good. Definitely I'll be back..
(5)Cheska D.
I love shabu shabu that's why when this place open in antelope area I was so excited to try it. They have plate color price ranges $2.95, 3.95, 4.+. Depends on what type of ingredients u want to put. I love the combination of soup ( beef & spicy) i believe the soup base is around $5.00 . I tried their thai tea and it's good too. I just love this place...
(5)The Critic 1.
I thought this place would have good kapoon but unfortunately not. It was very oily and just no flavor. I had to add fish sauce, chili paste and even ate the slice of jalapeño! It was also lukewarm and it had too much bamboo shoots. Their pho also lacked flavor and taste to me. The meatballs are cut in small pieces. One meatball was sliced into four pieces. I felt like I wasted time and gas to come out here. No way will I be back.
(2)Kurt C.
STEP 1: Choose a soup base - House Special *a bit on the spicy side - Beef (Regular or Spicy) - Chicken (Regular or Spicy) - Vegetarian (Regular or Spicy) STEP 2: Choose plates from fridge Noodles, meat, dessert...self-serve, so no need to wait or ask for a server to refill your bowl or sides! STEP 3: Cook in hotpot (split in two for different broths) and enjoy! Green plates are $2.95, orange plates are $3.95, and yellow plates are $4.95. They add up quickly so keep count! Sometimes those eyes can eat more than your stomach can handle, especially because they offer such a variety here. Quail eggs, dumplings (pork, beef, and crab), mussel, pork meat loaf w/ pork skins, tripe, Italian meatballs, fried pork, cooked fried chicken...the list goes on ~ We went crazy with their beef, crab meat, fish & lobster balls, shrimp, shiitake & enoki mushrooms, siomai, and udon noodles. They weren't all spectacular, but they were good. The beef was a little dry and bland, the pork too plain, and the smoked sausages salty. I did like the two broths we ordered: the house special and the spicy beef. Overall, it was an okay meal.
(3)Ashley C.
Wow why isn't this place more well known?! We decided to postpone our San Jose trip and drive a little less (still a 45 minute drive) over to Citrus Heights to try out this new spot. I LOVE the concept of just choosing which meats, veggies, noodles, and extras that you want in your soup. You have 7 choices for soup bases - house special, and a regular or spicy version of beef broth, chicken broth and veggie broth. The server informed us that the pot has a divider so we could get another soup base ($3 extra) so we went for it - house special and spicy beef broth. Unfortunately we didn't know the house special was spicy too so we had two spicy broths but it was all delicious. The ingredients are divided by green, orange, and yellow plates. We tried many things: udon noodles, flat rice noodles, beef, shrimp, lobster balls, crab, Napa cabbage, sausage, crab siumai, fish cake. My favorite was definitely the crab siumai..I could probably eat two plates by myself (I probably will next time). Our total overall came to about $60. Bad thing about this place - you have to keep track of your plates yourself if you want to make sure you're charged correctly. Also, basically you don't know how much you're spending until you get that check! Oops! But it's basically the same price that you'd pay at an AYCE shabu house. Another downside is the meat wasn't as high quality. We tried the beef and it was a little on the thick side. The chicken and pork looked like it was cut thinner but I didn't have any room to try it. I definitely want to come back but probably won't soon since it's so far. But I'll keep it in mind when I am craving a customizable hotpot experience!
(4)Britney M.
The guy working there was really nice and helpful, as it was our first time doing a hot pot, he had to explain how things worked. Broth was pretty good on its own. We got a hot pot and added a divider so the bf could have meat and I could have tofu. They are reasonably priced, just be careful, it's easy to start going overboard and throwing a ton of stuff in. I feel like this will be my go to soup place once the weather finally cools off.
(5)Alfie C.
This was our first time here and I can't even begin to describe what a pleasant experience we had. The host was very polite, accommodating and took the time to explain everything considering. They serve soups to order as well as hot pot option. My wife opted for the Kasoy soup to order. It's a Mien noodle soup that incorporates similar ingredients as Pho, including a ground pork mix as an additive. I opted for the Hot Pot with the House Special. This broth is very flavorful with some a sour and spicy flavor. It reminds me of Tom Kha Kai without the coconut milk. I added baby bok choy, mushrooms, egg noodle, egg and pork. This combination was perfect. My daughter chose the beef broth with pork, pork rinds, and tofu. We also had Thai Iced Tea, which in have to say was the best I've tested. Besides the great food the service again was exceptional. We were treated like values customers and we will definitely be coming back. Tonight was slow but on the weekends this place is jam packed! Thank going or the great service!
(5)Ginger M.
Yum! We had the hot pot and my kids loved it. Don't forget the 3 color drink. It's the best one I've had in Sac.
(5)Wendy K.
Coming from the bay area, and being a hot pot advocate, I wouldn't call this top-notch hot pot, but it definitely made my day coming back from Tahoe and have some warm fresh food in my system. It's conveniently located really close to I-80. It's clean, friendly, and new. I liked the vegetarian broth that was flavorful. The vegetables were relatively fresh. I didn't like what I saw in the meat section (looked a bit frozen) so I went all vegetarian and it was fine. Some things were a bit strange there, but weren't really deal breakers: - The papaya salad was a bit weird - it was half papaya salad with tomatoes, and half fresh shredded cabbage. But it was decently tasty. - I thought it was a bit strange to see pho offered there, but happy to see a small menu which indicates that they focus on delivering good food instead of a big menu. - The serving bowls were strangely huge like pho bowls instead of normal hot pot dipping bowls that are smaller and easier to eat with and drink soup from. I hope they're successful since it's such a good idea to have hot pot after a snow-filled weekend in Tahoe!
(4)Stephanie Y.
I love hot pot and my bf is mien so he wanted to come out and support..unfortunately I don't think we'll ever be back. Not only is it a very far drive for us, but it was pretty overpriced. $2 for 2 broths--was surprised we had to pay for that. My bf liked the house broth (similar to Tom yum but a little different) but I much preferred the beef broth. You pick your own plates from the fridge thing and price is according to the color of the plate. We got tofu, Napa cabbage, pork, udon noodles, and I think one other plate..all the plates are pretty stingy so basically it was expensive and we left still kinda hungry :( poor value.
(3)MJ S.
If you're driving on the 80 between Reno and the Bay Area and you have an hour to spare, this is a good spot for a meal. You choose your two soup bases first, which you can choose from house special (tom yum), beef, chicken, or vegetable. The beef, chicken, or vegetable can either be regular or spicy. Then you walk to the fridge and choose your dishes of veggies, meats, noodles, dumplings, etc., which are color-coded based on prices of $2.95, $3.95, and $4.95. We weren't a fan of the fish balls with roe in it, which squirts out when you bite into it (it's a texture thing), but we enjoyed everything else! Choose wisely or you may end up with more than what you can finish and a hefty bill! Sanjo (sp?) is very welcoming and interacts well with his customers.
(4)Joann P.
This Place never disappoints! Love their Kasoy! So fulfilling and full of flavors. My friend always order the Klanfun. It's like this tofu tecture like dish. All I know it's made out of lime stone and it's definitely an acquired taste. I would definitely come back. Next time will try the hotpot.
(4)Jonathan H.
[This review is based purely off of the hot pot] Man, me and my girlfriend DESPERATELY wanted to love this place. Ever since HL Hot Pot in South Sac closed (for our money, one of the best Hot Pot places in California), we've been searching for a replacement. We saw the amazing reviews for this one, and the next night we found ourselves here. We drove 35 minutes to eat here...it wasn't exactly worth the trip. With a nice atmosphere and nice service, the overall clunkiness of the experience, lack of decent options, and somewhat small portions take away from what could've been a great visit. But this place has GREAT potential, and we liked a lot from it -- the broths and the whole "self-serve" aspect especially. This place has serious potential. Atmosphere: 3.8/5 -- Situated in a slightly cramped shopping center, it's nestled snugly next to a nail salon with a taco bell right across the way. Not exactly premium digs, but we easily found a parking spot. -- The inside is pretty nice; newly remodeled I'm sure. It was shiny, so I like that. It was also clean, which you would think nowadays is a given, but you'd be surprised. -- It's pretty small. Like, 6 tables and 1 giant table small. Service: 4/5 -- When we got there, there was only 1 visible employee doing everything. He was really nice and helpful, but you could tell this was a little too much on his plate at times. -- When he did help us, you could tell he genuinely wanted you to have a great experience. Huge (+) plus! -- The self service aspect is really cool, and we both really loved the concept. Basically, there's three tiers of plates you can choose from: Green $2.95 --- Vegetables, noodles, tofu (and chicken ) Yellow $3.95 --- Meats, fish balls, etc Red $4.95 ------ Seafood, higher quality meats Pretty simple, right? And color coordination makes everything easier too, which was kind of like their version of a self-checkout line. Nice. Food: 3/5 -- There was lots of potential, again. I'll start out with the positives... + + The broths we got (house special and spicy beef) were delicious, and pretty intense. The spicy is pretty spicy. Be warned that these two are very similar. Also, both of them were inherently Thai broths. We weren't really aware that this was more of a Thai hotpot place, but the menu suggests that. + Shiitake mushrooms were part of the green plates, which is saying something because usually they're not included in hot pot or very expensive. + Meat was good quality, and the vegetables were serviceable. (-- --) The dipping sauces were....not very good. Two ladies behind us seemed to enjoy, but neither of us did. One was some weird Asian take on thousand islands, and it just seems totally mismatched with hotpot. The other was some overly spicy lime/chile sauce. That's it. They have the basic others (soy sauce, Sriracha, hoisin). NO GARLIC? GREEN ONIONS? [*apparently I've learned through another review this is Mongolian hotpot, so maybe this is normal] (--) Not a huge selection on veggies at all, I was disappointed. Basic cabbage, bok choy, broccoli, cucumbers...and that's kind of it. Was looking for watercress, spinach, etc. (--) The set up at the table was just...clunky. Something just kind of seemed off. This place did just open not too long ago, so I get it. The bowl was kind of the wrong bowl, the sauces were annoying, and I think it just needed work. -- Some things that we liked: Rice noodles (gave us so much more than the udon noodles plate), shiitake(!), lobster balls, and enoki. -- The seafood "medley" (frozen assorted seafood combination) was pretty gross, and it was $5. -- The plates that were available to us looked nothing like the plates from when this plate opened, so we were upset about that. Smaller portions and less options :( Price: 3.5/5 -- The prices are a little steep than the aforementioned HL Hot Pot (R.I.P.), but we got a check of $31 for 2, which we could definitely slim down next time. -- Drinks are pretty expensive, with no refills for drinks. Thai tea for $3.50? Yikes. -- The meats are pretty expensive here for the small portions, which would've been okay, but there were little vegetable options. -- Not too bad, as the system helps you visually see how much you'll be charged. TIPS: -- Tell him the broth (or two for an extra $3) you want right when you sit down. That way you can just get up and choose your food! -- Rice noodle value is better than udon noodle value -- Stay away from the medley, please. This place could be great, but it's not yet. I don't think we'll make the drive up here unless it improves, but I feel like it will in time.
(3)Robyn M.
I really wanted to like this place more but honestly I think it's a little over priced for what it is. It's A big pot of Pho that's it and you can pick the ingredients you want to add. I don't eat much meat so my pot consisted of tofu, noodles, veggies and mushrooms. The other pot had a little more meat. It came to about $15/$16 per person. If you eat at any other pho place you would know that's a little high. On a positive note the flavors of the broths were good and I liked the selection of ingredients. I Only had one concern, while eating for about an hour and a half there were no other customers. A couple people came in for take out but since their take out menu was so limited they left. What happens to the food sitting in the fridge? How fresh are the dishes? I think it's a cool concept and I love shabu but not sure if this is the best location for this place. Hope they can make it.
(3)jeff k.
When I walked in to this place it was empty. Completely empty. I was hesitant to sit down after not seeing anyone in there but the waitress. Not wanting to go to another place we decided to sit and eat. The service was great. Probably because no one else was there to need anything from the employee. We went with the house soup base which was flavorful. They brought over some dipping sauces. One with thai chilis and the other some kind of mayo sauce. The Thai chilis were good. On to the plates. There were 3 prices for the variety of plates. Each plate contained meats, tofu, veggies and noodles. Most of the plates were good. The bad thing about some of the plates was that a quarter of the choices were pre-frozen. Overall, the dining experience was OK. Would I go back??/ Probably not. Would prefer to spend a little more for shabu.
(3)Lynn X.
Came here with a girlfriend last Friday from Elk Grove to try out this place. We had hot pot, papaya salad and Kalunfen. The spicy beef broth was yummy... I couldn't get enough of it. Papaya was good but a little salty for my taste. Kalunfen was also good too. I ordered one to go. One of the owners, Sancho was very friendly. Great customer service. He came by few times to check up on us and make sure everything was good, which it was. The only down part about this place is that you have to drive far, especially coming from Elk Grove. And some of the side dishes, I think it was a little too pricey. Other than that, will definitely coming back again when I'm near by.
(4)Stephanie E.
My mom and I have never been to a place where you can order hot pots. We just went last night and it was so much fun. The people are so nice there. We told them we drove all the way from Elk Grove and they treated us great! My mom had the beef broth and I had the house pot and you get to pick out what plates you want depending on what you like. They are all color coded so we knew how much each plate was. Every thing was yummy! We were not able to stop eating because there were so many choices and new foods that we have not tried. We also did a Sake Bomb and had no idea what it was so the employee there helped us with it and it was really fun. It took us 30 minutes to get there but we are going back next pay day for sure!
(5)Emily C.
The hotpot broth is so plain.I couldn't believe it! Even the pepper is plain. I haven't been back since they first opened.
(1)Kristie S.
Hot pot review: too expensive. You pick two broths. There is a fridge with items on colored plates ranging from $3-$5 that add up QUICK. Everything necessary to enjoy a decent hot pot meal is broken down into tiny little portions on tiny plates with big price tags. A plate with 4 lobster balls is $5. A tiny square of vermicelli noodle is $3. They sell a package of 8 squares for $1! To enjoy a decent meal for two, you will spend too much. My cousin & I also got the kalung fen which was good. The papaya salad is tasty as well but you could tell the papaya itself was already preshredded because it was soggy & the papaya sauce wouldn't cling to it. Our bill for the hot pot, kalung fen, papaya salad & two thai teas was $60! The food is good but unfortunately not worth it for the price they charge. Although I live very close, I'd much rather drive downtown to Heat Shabu where I can leave feeling like I got my money's worth. I'm sad to say I won't be returning here.
(3)Adrienne S.
Environment: This is a nice spot for a date or a place to eat with friends. Not really family though, they have loud music so it gives off more of a chill vibe. Food: I went today with my cousin. We shared a bowl of kapoon ($7.95), klangfen ($3.25) and thamsom ($7.95). They have very good portions. The only thing I'd say I didn't like was the price of their Thai tea ($3.50). Somewhat pricy to me compared to other places that I've bought it at and it was served in a long, slim glass. Ice took the space of over half the cup so I really didn't get any to drink and there are no free refills. Service: I went around the afternoon (3pm). It was completely empty when we went in -- slow. Our server was a pregnant lady and she was very friendly. :) I'll definitely be returning to give their hot pot a try.
(4)Stephanie K.
Loved this place! It was an awesome experience and I could see it being perfect for a cold winter night to warm up with. I enjoyed adding what I wanted to our hot pot base and seeing it cook and then enjoying the pleasant flavors of veggies, meats and the broth. If you like pho, this is like a step up and more customized. Just be careful, the little plates can add up.
(4)danyle w.
This place has the most exceptional customer service. They are so nice and welcoming. Their hotpot is good, I enjoy that you can pick what veggies and meats you want to add to your soup. there is something for everybody. The broth is okay, I wish there was a tan tan men/more variety for broths. I've also had their pho which isn't bad. I wish they had appetizers, like chicken wings. I'll continue to come back to this location though because the customer service is so exceptional.
(4)Jamie L.
Service: excellent Food: great (based on hot pot) Cleanliness: excellent Outcome: will be back!!! Hope to come back to an even bigger selection of hot pot dishes to choose from. Also need to try their kapoon!
(5)Sarena S.
This place was one of the best dining experiences in my life. From the food, ambiance, and customer service I could give this place a million stars if I could :) First, the food, amazing beef broth and being able to pick exactly what you want from fresh ingredients makes this exactly what you want in a comforting bowl of soup. Had it on a rainy, cold day which made it 1000x better. Ambiance, being able to cook the food on your table, while all the broth and smells are wafting in your face makes this amazing. They play pretty cool music too. Last, the customer service is what made me fall in love with this restaurant. I was not expecting their friendly greeting and fast service. When the waitress came to my table they were making small talk and were very polite. When they asked if it was my first time eating hot pot, they were welcoming and willing to show me how to eat it. No judgement!!! What seemed like the manager at the time had come to see if everything was ok, I had asked how they normally eat the shrimps with the shell still on, he showed me that you pull off the head and chomp down on the body of the shrimp, she'll and all. So when I attempted it, I ripped the head off and juice squirted all over me and even on the wall! I felt horrible that I dirtied their wall, but the man ran to get a towel and made sure I was ok. He wasn't mad or angry and I didn't feel judged by making a rookie mistake. :) DEFINITELY WILL BE BACK!
(5)Amy F.
So this is the first hot pot restaurant that I know of that opened in the North side of Sacramento. Going into the shop I thought it wouldn't be a good, legit hot pot restaurant however it is! I enjoyed the food very much! I came here with a group of friends and we tried their hot pot along with other entrees that they offered. They had 4 different types of soup I believe. We tried they're house special soup, spicy beef soup and spicy chicken. All of the soups were very tasty and not spicy at all even though we order "spicy". My favorite was the spicy chicken soup. I was surprised that it was so good bc I thought it would just taste like plain chicken bouillon soup but it didn't. The meats weren't as tender as I would like it to be however the veggies were delicious in the soup broths. They have a huge fridge stocked with assorted veggies, meats, and meatballs/fishballs. Each produce is color coordinated on a plate to determine the price. I would definitely come back here again on another cold day when im craving hot pot. Service was good and they were friendly however they seemed pretty new at serving and ambience was very laid back with cool music in the background. Pros: alot of assorted veggies, I mean alot!!! Bok choy, asparagus, bamboo, spinach, enoki.... goes on Cons: dipping sauces served with meal was terrible, one tasted like 1000 island and other one was too oily!
(4)Christina C.
My family from the Bay Area and mine came here for the first time last night. The food was awesome!!! The service was spectacular!! Our server was so accommodating. We will definitely go back with the read of my family next time we are near
(5)Tri V.
I came in here craving a bowl of kasoy since I haven't had one in so long. We ordered Kasoy, Kapoon, and sake bombs. The food was delicious and hit the spot. Nothing better than followed with a sake bomb. They had dishes for the hotpot displayed on the refrigerator. The dishes are priced so you can grab whatever you want. Hotpot made easy! Service was great and will definitely be returning.
(5)Jazmine T.
This place serves the best soup broth!! My boyfriend loves the regular chicken broth and we always come back for it. I love the house special and I would definitely recommend it to first timers. They serve their soup fresh and all the ingredients are chosen carefully. Even if you have little ingredients, the soup is what we go for. I used to go all the way to sacramento for good hot pot, and now I just have to drive 5 mins to get to one. Hospitality is very good! They are very friendly. I've been here for 5 times these past few months and theyve always been so nice. Recently, my boyfriend and I spent only 25 and it was very worth it! Love the lobster ball!! Definitely will keep coming back, especially for this cold season, this place is perfect for it!
(5)Mizterious S.
I've been here three times, I'm not a hot pot food type of person so I can't speak for that but I have had the kapoon twice and klanfun each time. The only thing I would suggest is more broth on the kapoon, both times I've had it, the noodles soaked up the broth. My sister told me that's how it's made to eat back in the country...I guess..LOL. Anyways, I stopped by there today and noticed they were now making kasoy. I took the order to go and OMG, the broth was soooo good! I could eat it without adding anything else but I love spicy so I have to put a bunch of chili garlic oil and of course hoisin and siracha. I will for sure come back for the kasoy! The klanfun is okay, the pepper is not as spicy as how I like it so I end up having to ask for extra pepper sauce each time.
(4)Beverly B.
We have come here a few times. My girls normally don't like soup (even if they get to make it with me). This is the exception. They LOVE it here. The broth is amazing and it is fun to choose your plates and make the soup on your table. It's nice that there are two sides to the pot. Husband likes it spicy. He can spice up his side and leave ours alone . It's a fun experience and the food is good too. Definitely recommend hotpot express.
(5)Li M.
This is my go-to place when I'm craving for noodle soup, love their " kasoy", and papaya salad ! Quickly done and fresh! Excellent service!! Definitely come back for more !!
(5)Bella R.
The ka soy is the best item at this restaurant. If you dine there I recommend you try that!
(5)Elusive O.
Thanks, but no thanks. First and last time. The broth was bland and seemed like it was from a package out of a ramen bag. Those colored plates are waaaaaaaaaaaaay over priced for what it is. $5 for about 5 slices of chewy beef. Enoki mushroom, $3 for about 1/3 of a $.99 package from the market. $3 for two strands of green onion, couple pieces of yellow onion and 3 grape tomatoes. The steam rice was hard and tasted undercooked, brother was added before i can eat it, which needed fish sauce because the broth lacked much needed flavor. The papaya was pretty good, but that was about it. The break down of the receipt was hard to understand, as majority of the itemized receipt said "other"... I didn't even bother asking what they were. Paid the bill and never again. If I want hot pot, I rather go to Heat Shabu in downtown and pay $30 for all you can eat.
(2)Nancy T.
This place has only been open for 2 weeks and my friends already knows the staffs here from coming so often. People here are very friendly; they come by to check on us often in case we were out of something or needed something else. The broth is delicious and the idea of going up to one of the fridges at anytime to grab what you want is genius!!! Definitely unique to the area and strongly suggest trying it out. Great portion sizes and price!!! Anaiyah is the best server! Poncho and Jennifer were also very helpful!!!
(5)Alison S.
Hands down, the most delishhhh place in sac! Must try the kapoon! The best place to eat papaya salad!
(5)Aj M.
The pho combination is on point. Really really good broth. Great service and I walked out happy. Will be back again.
(5)Anfernee L.
This place is great! Delicious food! Great customer service and their thai tea is on point! Will be back soon!
(5)Linda L.
Customer Service review: Excellent! The staff are super nice and friendly. Hot Pot review: A-Ok. I had better else where... Will not go back for hotpot but I will go back for the other food. Papaya salad review: Excellent! A bit salty for me but that's because Ive cut back on my salt. Kaopoon review: Excellent! again a bit salty for me but it's my taste bug. Namwan: Excellent! Yummy... I will be back for more... I would like to try their Pho and other food on the menu.
(4)A L.
Super yummy spicy beef broth. I also tried the papaya salad, because everyone was raving about it on here. It was good. It wasn't the best papaya salad I've ever had, but not bad at all. My favorite hotpot items were the quail eggs, tendon and pork meatballs. The only downfall to this place was the price of some of their items. Four piece of lettuce for $3.95? C'mon....I feel they should set the price of their veggies and rice noodles to a lower price. We spent over $80 for two people. The food was great and the restaurant was nice and clean. I only wish it wasn't so pricey.
(4)MariLou D.
I really enjoyed this place, this is the closest hot pot to is now, and I have to say it didn't disappoint. Hotpot was amazing, service was amazing. Hopefully I'lll be back to get some of their other dishes that they offer besides the hot pot. My only qualm is that my egg noodles turned out a bit flour-y, so I hope it was just an accidental batch or something. I would probably just try the udon the next time. I would say though it can get a little pricy if you have more than 2+ people in your group, just because of the portions (more individual sized) and the cost for the portions. The ambiance was nice too, kind of modern. So overall, I would give it an A-, I wish I could give it more than a 4, but it's kind of in the middle for me, and it would be better if they tweaked a couple things like portion size or options for bigger groups so it's more group-friendly as it can get costly.
(4)Bee X.
I really wanted to like this place but the food did not taste good at all which was a big disappointment. Being that my husband and I weren't hot pot fans, we opted for pho, khao poob, and Papaya instead. It's the only reason we visited this place. Both pho and khao poob tasted very bland. No flavor to it at all. Khao poob did not have that rich coconut flavor infused with curry with the right amount of chicken stock/salt and herbs that's makes it good. I eat a lot of khao poob and this by far rates at the very bottom. I had to add quite a few drops of fish sauce and pepper just to be able to eat it. Papaya was too salty, it could use more sugar and lime to balance the flavor. My husband did not like his pho at all for similar reasons I had with Khao poob. With what we order above plus two drinks cost $32. Which was quite pricey, could've bought the same food elsewhere for cheaper. Sad to say the only thing that tasted good were the drinks.
(2)Patrick N.
Expensive for what you get... I do not recommend this restaurant. There are so many good Chinese, Vietnamese, Thai restaurants out there that put this place last on my list...
(1)LJ H.
I came here with my parents for dinner. I wanted to try out a new hot pot restaurant and thought about giving this place a shot. I really like the way it was set up. You pick your broth, then you go to the fridge and start picking out what you want. They charge you by the cost of the color of the dish. It starts at $2.99 and goes up to $4.99. They had a good variety of dishes. I would definitly come back here again!
(4)Raeme K.
We took the kids last Friday night for dinner and we had never had a "hotpot" experience before. It's excellent! The kids kept saying that it was their new favorite spot. The broth was very flavorful and I like that there was a divider in the pot so that we could make two different styles. Two of the girls hate onions and love crab so they had their own side. It worked out well. Sancho (sp?) was very helpful in explaining the process and very personable. All in all it was a wonderful experience and we will recommend it to our friends and family.
(5)Mike V.
Good food and friendly staff! Discovered this place while searching for some Vietnamese food and surprised their was a hot pot place in antelope. I'm used to having hot pot in the Bay Area so this was nice not having to travel far.
(4)Cali K.
Saw this new business open on yelp and decided to give them a try. I must make a disclaimer that I'm originally from San Francisco and very familiar with hotpot restaurants... That being said this place was good for Sacramento. I had the house broth which was good until they refilled my broth with water and totally destroyed the flavor. They did have a good selection of veggie and meats that were already prewrapp... I didn't like the fact they don't offer free refilled on sodas I mean come on who does that... and likewise for steam rice... I paid $10 for two bowls of rice.... I could have brought my own bag of rice.... The sevice was good the waitress made to check on us.... I doubt I'd return I'll just keep searching....
(2)Feng V.
The only good place to get hot pot now that HL Hot Pot closed down. The price is fair and hot pot is good. Looking to come back soon.
(5)Ann F.
Wide selection of add-ins! Reasonably priced too! Did the dual bowl of the house special and the regular beef broth, both were tasty!! And the papaya salad did not disappoint!
(5)Harrybobo L.
If you are new to the "hot pot" concept then this place may excite you with their covered plates in the refrigerator and capacitance burner and cauldron of soup. However if you are accustomed to the Taiwan/Chongqing style hot pot then you will be disappointed. This is Mongolian style hot pot which means a few "Tom Yum" style soups and only two dipping sauces (Taiwan BBQ shrimp sauce/ and a sweet/soup yellow mustard) It is a bit on the expensive side; we had three meat dishes, one fish cake sticks dish and the rest vegetables and it cost about $25...a far cry from Chongqing style hot pot with lots of meat, seafood and fresh hand spun noodles with more dipping sauces than you can shake a stick at!!!!! A far drive just for Laotian owned hot pot. A word of advice skip the hot pot and order a la carte; kapoon noodles, papaya salad and larrb!
(3)Jennifer D.
Tried this place today for dinner and it was absolutely delicious. I ordered the kapoon and it was amazing. The customer service was great, I look forward to going back and trying the hot pot.
(4)Howard C.
If you are considering driving out of your way for almost an hr like i did to this place, i suggest you Just buy some beef or chicken broth and a pot and some raw food and cook them on your own,because its so not worth it. Because 1) their food is not fresh 2)its a fake chinese style hotpot restaurant, they dont even have any sauce for you to dip your food in besides hot sauce.....what!? 3)they say u can choose up to 2 flavors for the broth, but they dont tell u or say so on the menu that by picking 2 broth they will charge u an $3 + extra depending on what u picked. 4)most importantly, their food is way over priced considering how little of food is given in each colored plate. Their price is Way beyond any hot pot restaurants that i visited in the bay area. 5) for the price that they are charging( even more pricy than cheesecake factory ) they should at least have some decent interior decoration,lightning, etc...... But no, when u go inside the restaurant, it feels very cheap and ghetto. To put it in comparison, Panda express undeniably has better dinning environment than this hotpot place. That is just sad because panda express is fast food and their food only cost $7 comparing to this pricy place of at least $20+ for each person. Also, i want to point out that some of the high star reviews on here might be doubtful. The owner gives you 10% discount if you write a review for their place on yelp and show it to her. So...... I imagine people probably just gave them a good rating for the sake of obtaining that 10% discount.
(2)Cristina D.
I've wanted to try Hotpot Express for awhile now. A few weeks ago we were able to have a date night w/o the kids, so I told the hubby we were trying something new. I haven't had hotpot since I was a teen living in the bay area. We LOVED this place! The food was great, veggies, seafood and the meats were all very fresh. The spicy broth was actually spicy and had wonderful flavor. I saw the reviews for the Papaya Salad, which I've never had before, and I decided to give it a try and I'm so glad I did! Since trying it, I've tried another place by my work and their Papaya salad was not as good or flavorful (this is supposed to but the best Thai place in sac) definitely didn't compare to Hotpot. Our server was great and a lot of fun. Can't wait to go back. Our kids love soup, so I know they'll get a kick out of picking their own ingredients.
(5)Nichole G.
Best broth I've ever tried! Definitely going back over and over again! Love it! I'm a picky Eater and was shocked how much I liked it. I would eat there every day if I could..
(5)Earl H.
Its definitely not Pho! I gave it a second star cause the broth was tasty.
(2)Kayla C.
This place was really good! I tried Kapoon for the first time and it tastes so yummy. We also had the hotpot with chicken, beef and pork. It was amazing! This place is close to home and the service is really great as well! Cheap, convenient and tasty just how we like it!!
(5)Steve N.
Be sure to call before you go. Got there on a Thursday evening at 6:00. There was a sign on the door: "Sorry, closed today"
(1)Jessica B.
I came across this place in search for somewhere to eat for dinner, I was craving kasoy. Although, I ended up ordering the hot pot instead and it was a good choice that I did. Our server, I believe his name is Sanjo ( sorry if I spelled it wrong) he was awesome. He suggest the house special broth, I would make that suggestion as well. They have a huge fridge, self served vegetables, noodles, chicken, pork, mushrooms and so on. I was pretty excited that I got choose from a variety of meats, noodles, seafood, and veggies and put them in my special broth. The broth was delicious, spicy and it made my mouth water. It was pretty busy when we walked in and still received great customer service. The portion was perfect I would even say it was plenty. I was very satisfied with the service, restaurant is clean, and the servers are friendly. I would definitely come back and highly recommend this place. And dinner did not cost me an arm and leg, very reasonable prices : )
(4)Derren H.
Its an hour and a half drive for me. But when I'm there I can't wait to start eating. Go and grab all the little dishes of food and mixed them in the pot. Wait 5 mins and food is cook. And if you full? but you want a little more. Go grab it. Over all, pretty cheap. Cost more then a bowl of noodles. But less then a buffet restaurant. Will be coming back if I head that way.
(5)K L.
Great food ! Taste awesome! Loved their papaya and kapoon ! The house broth was very tasty def recommend
(5)Pusha P.
HERE's an HONEST REVIEW from a person who's not just friends and associates of the owners establishment to boost ratings, and just likes to try out new food: New to restaurant dining concept to Sac, but not to the Asian food scene. HPX located off the freeway strip on Antelope rd strip mall. The restaurant is small, but just enough size for group dining. Plates are designated by color and so is the price. Items include raw assorted meats, beef ribeye, chicken, beef flanks, etc.. the plates you select is SELF-SERVE, so you are please to grab any meats and vegetables you want to cook in your broths. You select 3 types of broth, but any extra will cost you additional, $2.00. This type of ordering is different from the ones I've been used to order off the menu. The plates are wrapped in clear film, (doesn't really seem fresh when it's wrapped like that), and feels awkward to open each plate up at the table. One aspect, that I like about the food is the broth. The spicy house special is on point, however the ingredients can use some work. The portions could be more generous, as I found myself going back in forth a lot. Overall, I hope they work out the kinks of the menu a bit and offer more items (more vegetable variety, (watercress, baby bok choy, spinach, ong choy, etc...) more portions on the noodles... the owners were helpful and attentive, as you can see they want you to enjoy the experience. For people outside the asian foodie of "hot-pot" it would be nice if they had more instructions for people to simplify the proper eating procedures.... Pro: Hot Pot Style concept, Great for big groups, House Spicy Broth is on point, friendly staff Cons: More variety in ingredients, more portions for the lesser priced items (noodles, veges) questionable freshness of the raw item plates.
(3)Judy C.
My sister was visiting from out of town so we wanted to try something new for lunch. My brother in law really likes hot pot and I remember hearing about this place from a friend so we tried it out. It's was just an okay experience. Being from San Francisco, we've had much better hot pot for much cheaper. Total bill for four, over 100 before tip. The broth was very good for the hot pot because it tasted like a Thai spice soup like tom yum or something. You pick the ingredients you want to cook in the hot pot from a refrigerator. Kind of worries you because you don't know how long those ingredients have been sitting in that fridge. Additionally, there weren't a lot of options and the one item which was this stuffed egg that we all liked they were sold out. The tofu was also very sour after we cooked it. The cabbage had little black spots all over it which was weird even after we cooked it so we all didn't eat that. The meats and the noodles however were good in the broth. We also tried the dessert which had red tapioca, jelly, basil and some other stuff which was okay. However, service was great. The gal was attentive and nice. Overall, not sure if we would come back for the hot pot specifically because it seemed kind of expensive for what it is but we might want to try their noodle soup options instead. If you haven't tried hot pot, it's a nice thing to try for the experience. Good soup and great service.
(4)Jamila C.
I really enjoyed this place. The staff was very friendly. They had great customer service and attentive to our needs. My table ordered the house special broth at medium level. I really loved the broth! I wish I went here a week ago when I was under the weather because this would have brought up my spirit. I love picking out what I would want in my hotpot. The place is very clean as well. I know I'll be a frequent customer. Oh how I wish this place would be open until late at night! That would be the only thing I would hope for in the future!
(5)