Restaurant: Hopo Fusion Style Hotpot
Location: 20 Gibson Drive, Unit 111A, Markham, ON L3R 0M7
Price Range: $$
[wp-review id=”5391″]
For me or most people, winter means it’s hot pot season! The concept of hot pot is simple and I’m sure most of you are aware of it already. You set a pot of simmering broth on a portable burner and surround it with plates or meats/seafood/vegetables, all prepped and ready to be cooked in the broth!
Usually for hot pot you would share it with a group of people, however at Hopo, all the pots are individual and they aren’t AYCE. Each pot contains pre-arranged assortments of items and I believe you can’t substitute them out, and you can also add most toppings for an extra $1-2 each.
Right: jujube soda
T and myself ordered the soda as the giveaway prize included two pots and drinks as well! The soda was not too sweet, really refreshing and much needed to tone down the spiciness from the soup.
The Malaysian Laksa soup base was a bit more watered down than what I expected, but it was still quite aromatic from the coconut milk and various spices. The soup was slightly sour and had a nice kick of spiciness to it! All the ingredients in both pots are nicely soaked with the flavors from the soup. I was also quite confused as our hot pots was served with both rice and noodle, however from online reviews, some were served without rice – so definitely check with the server!
I opted for the tom yum soup and the broth was just like any other ones I have had in the city. It didn’t have that depth of flavors from an authentic tom yum kung, it honestly tasted just like a tomato soup with lime. I also noticed that at some point, the pot tilted slightly to one side as there wasn’t anything to balance it at the bottom, other than a candle to warm the soup.
Regarding the pricing, it’s around $14-16 per person for each individual pot. A lot of hot pot places are AYCE but they range around $20-30 per person. Thus I’d say that this place is fairly priced given that each portion can fill the average person, but if you are like my friend who eats a lot, the portion here will definitely not be enough for you. The overall service was average and the server actually gave me a slight attitude for using a free coupon (from a giveaway) for my meal…
Disclaimer: While the food was free as I won coupons from an Instagram giveaway, I am not obliged to publish a review on the business. All opinions/thoughts are my own. For more information about my review policy, please click here.