By EDKL Writer A.A.
Blazing into Sunway Pyramid, Malaysia's homegrown Hotpot Kitchen fires up the appetites of spice-addicted customers with Sichuan-inspired fare that casts the spotlight on fresh cooking. If you love the sultry heat of mala-style peppercorn sauces, twinned with a delicious diversity of culinary ingredients, this is the place to feel the burn.
One of Hotpot Kitchen's distinct advantages is in how it allows customers to choose exactly what they want to eat, from the meat and vegetables to the sauces - the control is entirely in your hands; you can even select the precise amount of food to fill you up. The spread is conveniently laid out, so it's a breeze to make your picks.
With around 80 items on the line, there's no shortage of temptations, topped up throughout the day. Hotpot Kitchen also assures patrons that all of it is free of pesticides, antibiotics and hormones, so it makes for a relatively wholesome indulgence.
First, head to the vegetable section to harvest your greens, mushrooms and noodles. Then bring a second bowl to the meat enclave, which includes local chicken, beef and seafood, as well as some imported cuts of pork. It's certainly easy to find something for everyone.
Take your raw food to the counter and tell the service team which spicy sauce you want them to prepare it with - Spicy Fragrant, Spicy Dynamic or Spicy Xtreme, made with Sichuan peppercorns, mixed with a range of 40 other spices. The sauces are primarily differentiated by their content of peppercorns; the Spicy Dynamic, a notch below the Xtreme, was already sufficient to make us break a sweat. If you're wary of pain, opt for the Unique Platter, showcasing a mild broth instead.
Meat with Spicy Dynamic sauce, distinctly intense though not overbearingly so.
Vegetables in the Unique Platter, gently cooked to emphasise the original flavour of the fibre.
The food is charged based on the weight of the ingredients. Vegetables clock in at RM3.99 per 100 grams, while meats chime in at RM5.99 per 100 grams - great value for good-quality stuff, which explains why the restaurant was packed when we visited on a weekday for lunch.
Side dishes are available too, which can also be ordered at the counter and served to you when ready. Keep things spicy with the chicken wings and the clams, lip-smacking in their flavour-loaded sauciness.
If you want a fast, fuss-free lunch, order one of the five lunch sets, which come with Chinese tea or water. For rice devotees, one set surfaces with chicken and potatoes in your choice of spicy sauce; for noodle enthusiasts, another set is brimming with beef, pork balls and pork belly.
With all this fieriness, liquid respite is essential: Hotpot Kitchen produces its own brand of beverages in the Soy Goodness line-up, with three flavours - Almond Soy Milk, 100% Pure Soy Milk, and Cocoa Soy Milk - as well as the exclusive Hotya herbal teas. If you prefer something stronger, sip on beer made famous by one of China's largest breweries at RM7.90 per can (there's also a Buy Five Free One Tsingtao promotion for groups).
Thanks to Hotpot Kitchen for having us here.
Hotpot Kitchen
SPWF002, Green Zone, Sunway Pyramid, Bandar Sunway, 46150 Petaling Jaya, Selangor. Daily, 10am-10pm.
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