Restaurant Review: Mister Hotpot

Last week, I finally had the opportunity to use a Groupon that I had purchased to Mister Hotpot in Sunset Park.  Not too many pics were taken as I was too busy eating the deliciously fresh food that we've selected, so I apologize!  I absolutely love hotpot, so I was really excited to try this new joint out.  I walked out with a very satisfied tummy, but very empty wallet ... even with a $30 Groupon!

Lets start out with the Pros.  The food was indeed really fresh.  They also had a huge selection of balls to choose from, one of which I loooooved: the fish roe ball.  A must try if you ever stop by!  I also loved the herbal soup base.  We ordered some udon noodles (which was fresh and elastic btw) and every bite tasted like herbal soup.  It was delish!  Nom, nom, nom.  Each selection also came out in a really fancy dish, so I have to give presentation an A.  Service was great & attentive and the decor was nice, which made the stay even more enjoyable.

And now for the Cons.  We made a reservation for 7pm on a Saturday night and the place was packed.  There were 4 to 5 other parties waiting to be seated, and we all waited over half an hour for  a table.  It doesn't help that the restaurant is situated on 8th ave, on one of the busiest streets in Sunset Park with pollution and huge crowds.  We all had to wait outside the restaurant while salivating and staring into the window at all the other customers eating.  A few parties got so fed up, they decided to stop waiting and eat at a different restaurant =(.  

Another con is I was CONNED!  I pointed out that I wanted shrimp, which was $6 on the regular menu, but the waitress, who was just doing her job (and doing it well apparently), asked me if I wanted fresh shrimp.  Thinking that it was the same price, I said sure ... and it came out to be $15 for a handful of shrimp!  I can't blame it on anybody but myself, for being foolish, but I would appreciate it if she informed me that fresh shrimp came from the special menu, which wasn't the menu I was looking at.

Lastly, the broth base itself starts off at $15 (or more depending on your soup selection)!!  So on top of everything you plan to order is this $15, which can really do damage to your wallet.  

Needless to say, the meal was absolutely fab, but I walked out paying $15 for shrimp that I regretted ordering cause I was getting annoyed with peeling the shell off anyway, plus $15 for soup that I didn't know about till I received my check.  Besides the wait and the pricey meal, it was a gratifying dinner.  I'll visit again when I'm up for spending some money.

Pork bone and herbal soups

Oysters, tripe, fish roe balls, cuttlefish balls, Fujianese fish balls, Beef .... just some of the stuff we ordered