Hotpot City — Restaurant in Sydney

I want to tell you about what happened today. My boyfriend and I were having lunch at Hotpot City in Bankstown. While we were eating, not knowing anything, a staff member passing behind me accidentally spilled hotpot broth on my clothes. Fortunately, it wasn't too hot, but my white clothes were stained red with the broth. The female staff member apologised and asked if I was okay, then went to the counter even before I have answered to her. Moments later, she returned with a male manager, and he said "We are sorry for spilling on your clothes, but there's not much we can do." He said this without any emotion, almost like a robot. We were taken aback and remained silent, and even when he offered a free drink, we were still in disbelief.

Finally, he asked if he should bring a wet towel. I agreed, asking myself if I should really be this angry. If they had sincerely apologised from the beginning and reassured us, we might have said it was okay and continued our meal. However, the manager's attitude didn't sit well with me. I asked him if I could charge a dry cleaning fee. From that moment on, the manager seemed visibly upset and took a photo of my polluted clothes and went inside to talk to the boss without explaining anything to us.

If we had been at fault even slightly, we wouldn't have made any demands. However, this incident was caused by a staff member's mistake while we were innocently having our meal. The whole situation, their service, tone, and attitude, upset us so much that we couldn't continue our meal. We waited for quite a while without having our meal. During this time, our appetite diminished, and we decided to just ask for a refund and leave. We demanded a full refund, considering the dry cleaning fee. The manager went back inside while talking on the phone, not even asking us to wait. We waited for a long time, and in the meantime, we decided to settle for a 50% refund and just leave. When the manager came out, instead of offering a 50% refund as initially mentioned, he said they couldn't offer a 50% refund. However, they could arrange for dry cleaning at a place they knew, costing $5-7, and reimburse us accordingly. When we questioned this change, he said they had decided to provide only the dry cleaning cost, as we had initially declined their offer. Frustrated, I asked to speak to the boss, but he refused to connect the call, saying the decision was final, as the boss had given him the authority.

I insisted on speaking to the boss, but the manager declined, stating the decision was final. I emphasised that the issue wasn't the clothes, but their attitude and handling of the situation. Throughout our conversation, the manager left us waiting without even apologising. We were disappointed not only with the incident itself, but also with the way the manager handled it. Another customer who witnessed the whole situation commented on the poor service and the manager's attitude toward customers, offering to include this incident in an article. We just left without receiving any conpensation because we didn't want to continue the converstaion with him. I hope the boss learns about this and others get to know about this incident as well. I want this story...

The absolute restaurant I have been to in Bankstown and possibly in Sydney all together. First we came in and the staff were literally all over the place. The floors were extremely slippery and I don’t even know why. We were charged 157$ for four people. We were given menus and no one explained how to do hot pot. This is our first time experience and we’re confused. After much confusion and we had to approach the reception area for help, we went to pick out our food from the buffet. One of the people sitting at our table did not want to do hot pot and just wanted to eat fried rice and we explained that to the staff and we were told that this guest needed to be seated away from us cause we can’t have hot pot and fried rice at the same table. I explained that this concept does not make sense and I paid for everything so who I decide to eat from the food i paid for. But they insisted that he has to sit away from us. I wanted a refund for his hot pot but they insisted we can’t get a refund and if we did he would need to sit away from us. Anyway so we decided okay well that’s stupid we came as a group and want to sit together so whatever we’ll just leave it. We ordered food and then we went to get our toppings from the sauce buffet. We were met with fruit flies. We were so disgusted. We didn’t get any toppings at all. We ordered dumplings for the table and they never came out at all. I went to the reception and asked them where it was and she rolled her eyes and went to the back. I’m sure at this point they thought I was being a rude customer but I genuinely just wanted to have a good time and none of us had a good time at all. The food was mediocre at best. I asked for a refund for the dumplings and we left. Absolutely the worst experience. I felt so sick after eating. So nauseous and honestly turned off hot pot forever. See pics for the lovely fruit flies. Wish I could give no stars. Update your policies cause that’s a really dumb policy to have and make sure everything is clean. I feel so...

Hotpot City Bankstown is unique, and is one of the few restaurants in Sydney which will leave you walking out with satisfaction after having a meal. Dining at this restaurant is a total new experience. Food, service and atmosphere is top notch! I came here for dinner on a Saturday, and obviously it was very busy and the place was thriving.

Similar to a traditional buffet restaurant, Hotpot City is an all-you-can-eat. Hotpot City allows you to custom your own mini hotpot with a range of broths and sauces to choose from. They offer an extensive range of ingredients aswell. For my Muslim friends out there, the meat is Halal certified. Something you won't see in any other restaurant that Hotpot City offers is that each person has a little stovetop on the table with five settings to control how much you want your hotpot to be heated.

Customer service is great. They guide you around and show you how to make your own hotpot. Customer service is crucial in a restaurant like this (which fortunately Hotpot City has!) as customers are usually unsure about how to use the stoves or need help locating the ingredients buffet. Personally, I didn't need much help as the process was straightforward for me.

The atmosphere of Hotpot City is very lively. Especially during the weekends, the restaurant tends to get very busy, therefore a lot of people going out and about selecting their broths, sauces and ingredients for their hotpot dish. Hotpot City is clean and tidy, so you don't have to worry about broth spills on the tables or chairs :)

To sum up, if you are looking for an all-you-can eat restaurant, or if you want to experience the Asian food culture, Hotpot City is the place to eat. You will learn how to make your own dish, and taste the variety of selections the restaurant offers. Hotpot City is the hotspot for...