Despite the sweltering hot weather in Singapore, the one thing that we can all unanimously agree on is how lovely it feels to gather around a hot pot with our loved ones whilst dunking slices of meat and assorted raw ingredients into a pot of steaming hot broth.

Singapore has an abundance of hot pot restaurants, with many of them sprouting long queues that can last hours on end. With that, the real question is; are the queues at some of these places worth joining? Or is it just another overrated hot pot restaurant that doesn’t warrant the long wait?

If you’re looking for the answer to that question, we have here a list of our 8 favourite hot pot restaurants in Singapore that we feel are worth the long, snaking queues.

Photo Credit: Beauty In A Pot

BEAUTY IN THE POT

This place is one of the more well-known places on the list due to the fact that they open till 6am in the morning, which is great for the hungry insomniac.

What makes this place stand out from the rest are their rich, collagen-based soup bases that are great for the skin, body and soul. When they said you’ll be getting beauty in a pot, they meant it!

OneKM Mall
11 Tanjong Katong Road, #02-21
Singapore 437157
Tel: +65 6284 8820
Daily: 11.30am – 6am
Nearest Station: Paya Lebar

CAPTAIN K 

Popular for its multi-tiered seafood tower, Captain K is the place to be at if you love having fresh seafood in your hot pot. Here, they do not compromise on the quality and quantity of their meat so you can be assured that you are getting the best hotpot experience.

We also love how this place is open till 1am on weekends, allowing us to indulge in hot pot goodness after a round of drinks.

122 Middle Road, #01-00
Midland House
Singapore 188970
Tel: +65 6255 5744
Mon: 5.30pm – 11m
Tue to Thu & Sun: 11.30am – 3pm, 5.30pm – 11pm
Fri & Sat: 11.30am – 3pm, 5pm – 1am
Nearest Station: Bugis

HAI DI LAO 

The most highly rated on this list has to be Hai Di Lao that is famous for its 2-3-hour-long queues. Despite being deemed as overrated, we feel that it is worth the hype. The service here is incredible and they never fail to serve up fresh, quality food.

We also love how they have such a wide range of ingredients and broths that leave us spoilt for choice. Even though the queues can get pretty ridiculous, we feel that it is worth the occasional indulgence.

313 Somerset
313 Orchard Road, #04-23/24
Singapore 238895
Tel: +65 6835 7227
Daily: 10.30am – 6am
Nearest Station: Somerset

HUA TING STEAMBOAT 

This underrated hot pot restaurant serves up a pretty impressive spread at affordable prices. We love how flexible it is here and you can opt for one of their set menus or go all out with their extensive a la carte selection.

Located in the heart of Orchard Road at Claymore Connect, this place is easily accessible and great if you happen to be in town.

Claypot Connect
Mezzanine level #01-08, 442 Orchard Road
Singapore 238879
Tel: +65 6739 6628
Daily: 11.30am – 2.30pm, 5.30pm – 10.30pm
Nearest Station: Stevens/Somerset

JINJI TEOCHEW STEAMBOAT 

This no-frills Teochew steamboat restaurant is our go-to place for an affordable, authentic Teochew hot pot feast. The wall is plastered with photos of celebrities who have tried and loved the food here, so you know you’re in for the good stuff when you dine here.

What is reassuring and somewhat amusing is how the owner promises that if the food is not tasty, they will refund you back every cent.

176-178 Joo Chiat Road
Singapore 427447
Tel: +65 6348 8924
Tue to Sun: 12pm – 2.30pm
Mon to Sun: 5pm – 11pm
Nearest Station: Paya Lebar

Photo Credit: Li Ji Chuan Chuan Xiang

LI JI CHUAN CHUAN XIANG

Li Ji Chuan Chuan Xiang serves a variety of delicious dishes which they carefully prepared using the freshest ingredients but the key thing they are known for is their unique coconut broth hot pot. Opened until 5.30am daily, they’re a decent joint to head to after a night of tippling at the bars just next door.

76 Prinsep Street,
Singapore 188663
Tel: +65 6251 7717
Daily: 12pm – 5.30am
Nearest Station: Dhoby Ghaut / Bencoolen

PARADISE HOT POT

For an affordable, authentic Hong Kong-style steamboat experience, you should check out Paradise One Pot. Here, they too offer up individual hot pots with your desired broth.

We love how there are a whopping 14 different soup bases here for you to choose from as well as an extensive array of a la carte items for you to dunk into that steamy, hot soup.

CompassOne Mall #03-05,
1 Seng Kang Square
Singapore 545078
Tel: +65 6386 4838
Mon to Fri: 11.15am – 10pm
Sat & Sun: 10.30am – 10pm
Nearest Station: Seng Kang

SPICE WORLD HOT POT

If you’re looking for a more extravagant (and overly dramatic) hot pot experience, then Spice World Hot Pot is the place for you. Here, they serve up dishes with authentic Sichuan flavours that will satisfy your hot pot and spicy food cravings at the same time.

We absolutely adore their quirky decor as well as their unique dishes such as their adorable Teddy Bear Spicy Butter and their Premium Barbie Wagyu Beef.

Clarke Quey #01-06/07 3B
River Valley Road
Singapore 179021
Sun to Thu: 10.30am – 4am
Fri to Sat: 10.30am – 6am
Nearest Station: Fort Canning

If you haven’t already heard of Spice World Hotpot, maybe the image of Barbie in a dress made of meat, or a little spicy butter sculpture of Hello Kitty or a Teddy Bear would jolt your memories. Making headlines earlier this year, Spice World Hotpot serves up authentic Sichuan flavour that’s equal parts mind-numbingly hot and incredibly mouth-watering.

While some might say the decor of the place might be incredibly over the top, the almost overwhelmingly ornate interior and dishes makes for that perfect touch of extra, regardless of a dinner occasion or just to settle some post-clubbing cravings.

Widely known for their adorable Teddy Bear Spicy Butter (S$9.90) soup base, you get to begin your meal by watching the cute little mascot disintegrate into its own juices. There are only limited mascots available each day, so we’d suggest pre-ordering them when you make your reservations.

Before you get to indulging on the main hot pot, why not consider some of their cooked dishes as well?

Their Deep Fried Pork Slices (S$12.90) was rather flavourful without being dry, as most cooked pork run the risk of doing so. Another satisfying appetiser would also be their Glutinous Rice Cake with Brown Sugar (S$7.90)

 Despite some of us being particularly squeamish towards eating any form of internal organs, we bit the bullet and took a bite of their Pig’s Brain (S$15.90) and to our surprise, it was devoid of any particular foul or weird taste we were expecting, but instead tasted like a creamy version of the soup it was cooked in.

Other innards also include Air Flown Beef Tripe (S$15.90) and Fresh Aorta (S$16.90) — pig arteries, for the uninitiated — all of which are freshly sourced and painstakingly prepared before being air-flown over to best maintain quality and freshness.

What people normally come in for, too, is their Premium Barbie Wagyu Beef (S$38.90) — a Barbie doll wrapped in thin slices of beef akin to Lady Gaga’s meat dress.

Our favourite though definitely had to be their One Meter Mutton Slices (S$28.90), its heady game meat flavour complementing the umami of the broth.

Whether you’d prefer freshly mixed Shrimp Paste (S$18.90) scooped into little balls in front of you, Pork Belly Balls (S$12.90) served on a stairway to heaven, Tiger Prawns (S$14.90) strung up in a bouquet or even Quail Eggs (S$5.90) presented to you in a basket laid upon a labourer’s shoulders, there’s definitely something for everyone.

While it seems rather gimmicky at first, the quality of the ingredients and dishes served makes the presentation just the cherry on top.

If you’re ever in the area, or even if you’re not, we’d definitely recommend making a trip down just for them. After all, Sichuan-style hot pot doesn’t get much more legitimate than this.

Spice World HotPot
River Valley Road
Clarke Quay #01-06/07 3B
Singapore 179021
Sun to Thurs: 10.30am – 4am
Fri to Sun: 10.30am – 6am
Nearest Station: Fort Canning

Sunny Singapore has seen a recent slew of hot pot restaurants as of late which can only confirm one thing—that we Singaporeans are absolutely crazy about it. In fact, before colossal brand Hai Di Lao made hot pot trendy again, steamboat dinners used to be limited to family reunions during festive occasions. But the philosophy behind it stays the same—the act of bringing people closer together through the cooking and sharing of food from a communal pot.

But while restaurants such as Hai Di Lao and Beauty In The Pot remain at the top of the hot pot rankings, especially so for their array of tasty soup bases, fresh ingredients and out-of-this-world service, prices there are not necessarily affordable. Thankfully, we have cheaper alternatives such as Shi Li Fang that offer hot pot meals with an equally extensive range of fresh ingredients without compromising on the quality whatsoever.

Affordable prices, reasonable service and food that tastes just as good as their bigger counterparts? Count us in!

BIZARRE DECOR THAT IS STRANGELY WELCOMING

Decked out in perhaps some of the most unorthodox restaurant decor around, dining at Shi Li Fang—irrespective of which outlet you visit—will have you feeling as if you were dining in a toy store. With plushies scattered all around and waiters donning Pikachu hats, it truly does not get any more bizarre.

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8 DELICIOUS SOUP BASES

While there are plenty of soup bases to choose from, the ones we find ourselves returning to constantly is the tomato, mushroom and collagen chicken (extra top-up of S$3.50).

The tomato is mildly savoury with a sourish-sweet undertone that gives anything you cook inside it a sweet, umami note. The mushroom, on the other hand, boasts the same sort comfort you would derive from a piping hot bowl of cream of mushroom (sans the cream) and the chicken collagen is just the epitome of comfort.

Regardless of whether you opt for a single pot, a double pot, a triple pot or a quadruple pot, prices still remain at S$12.80.

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EXTENSIVE RANGE OF INGREDIENTS

The ingredient options here are aplenty with several meat options such as beef, pork, lamb, chicken, as well as assorted offal to fill your pots with.

If you happen to be hankering for some hot pot but find yourself having to eat out alone during lunchtime, then do consider their lunch set options that cater to individuals and groups—just as affordable and a surefire way to get you pumped to take on the rest of the workday.

Shi Li Fang has outlets at Chinatown Point, Orchard Central, City Square Mall and Thomson Plaza.

Shi Li Fang (Orchard Central)
181 Orchard Road, #07-10/11,
Singapore 238896
Tel: +65 6238 0800
Daily: 11am – 10pm
Nearest Station: Somerset

Photos are credited to Shi Li Fang Hot Pot.