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| - It's not bad. It really isn't, considering hot pot restaurants tend to get abysmal ratings on Yelp for some reason. There's potential here, but really the primary issue is the price. For almost $60 per person, even with a special "discount", it is quite expensive for the quality of the food.
I am a huge fan of hot pot, and I'm always down for trying a hot pot restaurant even if Yelp tells me to stay away. It's just... BlogTO made it look so good. Damn you BlogTO. The interior is really nice though, and looks just like what you see in their video. It is sort of annoying if you're on the second floor (half the tables are on the second floor) and you have to walk up and down the stairs every time you wanna grab something. I guess you could consider it exercise to leave more room in your stomach to get your money's worth.
The selection is the biggest I've ever seen but a lot of it is not really necessary. Everything is presented out in the open, which is good if you're going with a hot pot noob who wants to see exactly what everything looks like before they eat it. I prefer it, but you also have the downside of some stuff looking like it's been sitting out there for some time. It's a trade off I suppose. There's a whole section with cooked foods, but honestly they weren't that great aside from the chicken wings. The indication that they never need to be refilled is a sign that they're not good - probably should update them to something that not only tastes better but also looks more appetizing. The fruit section is a nice add-on though, I'd keep that.
The hot pot items themselves are alright. The meats are obviously not grade A but I honestly don't think you need high quality beef for hot pot when the broth is already so salted that it masks all the natural flavours of meat. The seafood items are cool, even though I'm wary of seafood at hot pot restaurants, it is a good thing if you're into that. I'm surprised though that some basic items like udon and fresh tofu are missing, but I guess to compensate they do have some more exotic selections like beef tongue, which I don't really think is a great in hot pot. But please keep the quail eggs, it's really all I personally need for hot pot and I'll come back as long as you keep them.
With the way everything is set up in the restaurant though, I think the price point could work. There really isn't a "high-end" hot pot restaurant and XiangZi could be the first. I think they just need to make it worth the $60. Drinks should be included in that price along with a drink bar somewhere. The dessert selection could be spiced up, perhaps add some mango pudding or tofu-fa or maybe even a soft serve machine!! Do better research to see which items are actually being consumed by customers - replace the stuff that no one is eating and add something else - aside from the fresh tofu and udon I also recommend dumplings (not just wontons), daikon, and fish paste. Add a dancing noodle man or something, to add some novelty and trick people into thinking that that novelty is somehow worth the price. Seem to be the trend these days for restaurants to add gimmicks, but hey, it works and they were pretty awesome when I saw them in China.
Aside from the decor though, another thing the restaurant does a pretty good job with is service. They provide covers to cover your jacket so they don't absorb the smell of hot pot. They provide aprons, which no one used but are kinda cute I suppose. The servers were attentive and polite, something I'm not really used to from hot pot restaurants, but I guess that's what $60 gets ya. The place is also really well ventilated, so it never felt stuffy in there and your face isn't getting steamed with hot pot broth. The backbone of the restaurant is in place to build something much better, and I definitely see the potential. Seeing as how this is just their soft opening, I'm hoping they'll work out and are here to stay. Best of luck!!
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