十七门重庆老火锅 Seventeen Hot Pot — Restaurant in Beaverton

I went on a weekday at 6pm so there were lots of seats but as it got later, it was packed!

Environment: The area was a lot brighter and I loved the mood of it. It felt welcoming and there were booths around the area. There were tables for 2 and up to maybe 8-10 people as well. I liked the decorations as it wasn't too much but it was still nice and they had Chinese background music playing. Behind the seats there was a sauce bar where you can get sauce (of course) as well as fruits, small dishes like pig ears and radish, and Chinese "sweet water" dessert.

Staff: They were quick and efficient. They checked on us multiple times to see if we needed more soup. They mostly served us food and helped us with the soup and water. Everything else we grabbed by the sauce bar.

Food: Okay, we ordered a lot so thanks for reading all the way to the bottom (HAHAHAH)

Soup bases: #5 Umami mushroom broth: this was umami indeed. Very flavorful and lots of mushrooms. They were really delicious, all bouncy, a bit chewy, and not overcooked as you let them boil. This soup base did get a bit saltier as time went on so ask a server to pour some water to dilute it just a bit. #8 Flavorful bone marrow broth: this was lighter but to be honest, this had enough flavor on its own, too. I didn't use the sauce bar because I can't handle spicy foods and this was already savory enough.

1 Meter beef and lamb meat: first of all, extra points for appearance! It was long and grand! I heard that the servers slice the meats themselves so the meats stay fresh. I'm so glad they do this instead of buying frozen pre cut meat. It makes a difference. The meat was so tender and with a little fat in between made it extra delicious.

Flat Iron Beef: again, super tender and with some fat it made the meat more flavorful and delicious. It didn't feel greasy or filling and the portion was reasonable!

Fish ball with fish roe: you need to be careful when eating this because there's super hot fish roe inside.

Ox tongue: the ox tongue was fresh but it was hard to cook it just right because it got super chewy. It felt like I was chewing on a beef flavored gum and I couldn't swallow some pieces.

Handmade meatball with cilantro: the texture of the meatball was nice. It wasn't very hard and it kind of falls apart as you eat it, kind of like western meatball. The downside was that it was too salty.

Bean curd sticks AND bean curd rolls: they're both soy products and you should get BOTH of them because they soak up all the soup and flavors.

Snakehead fish filet: the name is a little weird but the filet was delicious! Soft, tender, and smooth! No fishy smell or taste. I'd highly recommend this one!

Pumpkin: I believe it's Japanese pumpkin and after boiling it for awhile, it was good. It was sweet and the thickness of the slices were nice so you have a nice bite but it's not too thin where it turns to mush or too big that you feel like it's a lot of work to bite into.

I got mango passionfruit tea without the extra sugar syrup. Very good with the meal as having something cold and a bit sweet/tangy was nice. Generous cup and the combination was good.

Mango snow ice: the consistency and texture of the snow ice was really good! It was creamy and fresh pieces of mangoes to go along with it, it was a great way to end the meal! There were also mixtures of condensed milk and mango syrup. Those areas were extra sweet. Perhaps if I requested less syrup, it would be better but overall, I really enjoyed it. I couldn't finish this on my own so the table shared it with me and all liked it!

Did you read all the way to the end? HAHA. Yes, some may say that this place is pricier than others but after eating it, the freshness and the portion of the food makes it worth going in my opinion. I would come back again to try some other dishes. I didn't even eat pork yet! Glad there is a fresh and clean hot pot place...

SOFT OPENING WITH THE CRASH LANDING

Our dining experience at this recently opened "all you cannot eat" restaurant was far from satisfactory. While I understand that new establishments may face challenges during their soft opening, the issues we encountered were fundamental and unrelated to the typical adjustments required during this period.

POOR ATTITUDE - 1/5

On our first visit, we arrived at 3:15 pm but were turned away by the servers, who informed us that they do not serve anyone between 3 pm and 5 pm due to a shift change from lunch to dinner. This information was not provided on their Google listing, resulting in a waste of our time and effort in driving there.

SERVICE - 1/5

Determined to give the restaurant another chance, we decided to visit earlier on our second attempt. However, we were met with unprofessional and rude service from the waitstaff. The servers were also incompetent, forgetting to provide essential items like tongs for handling raw food (we had to request them in separate after they brought all the raw food), which is a clear breach of sanitary standards. One server in particular, a man in his 40s wearing glasses, displayed a lack of professionalism and bad manners and seemed unsuited for the hospitality industry in general.

FOOD - 2/5

The food itself was disappointing, with limited variety and underwhelming flavors. The restaurant provided only two small bowls of broth, one of which was excessively spicy. The meat and vegetable options were scarce compared to other all-you-can-eat establishments, which typically offer 8-10 choices of meats.

PRICE: 2/5

Despite the "all-you-can-eat" model, the restaurant failed to deliver on this promise, leaving us hungry and dissatisfied. The price of around $25 per person for lunch buffet before tips felt overpriced for the meager portions and subpar quality of the food.

ATMOSPHERE AND PARKING: 2/5

The atmosphere was mediocre, with the only somewhat positive aspect being the use of table tablets for placing orders, which added a modern touch. However, the free parking was poorly managed, and the restaurant's employees smoking in front of the establishment rather than in a designated area was an unpleasant sight for non-smokers like us.

PROS: Modern tables for ordering and clean toilets (but who cares when everything else sucks, right?)

LOCAL GUIDE'S VERDICT:

The problems i encountered at this restaurant were not minor issues related to a soft opening but rather fundamental flaws in their service, food quality, and overall management. I cannot recommend this establishment for dining and would describe it as an embarrassing place with incompetent...

Wow, seventeen hotpot absolutely blew me away. Best hot pot I have ever had. Will be back soon, must try!

The food was delicious. We did the 4 grid pot to try a few different broths. All 4 were really good, it was nice to have the variety and test the different flavor combos with different foods. Zesty Tom Yum was my favorite, it has a nice flavor and spice that complements the food well. Tangy Kraut was also a really rich and tasty, I loved it with veggies and the beef balls.

For foods we did the wagyu beef, some veggies, beef balls, and shrimp balls. Everything was really delicious and fresh. I could tell it was high quality meat and even veggies. Wagyu was really good. I was blown away with the hand made beef balls and shrimp balls as well, tasted better than homemade.

Sauce bar was 100% worth it, gotta make your own sauce to dip the food in. I go with a peanut butter based sauce and throw in some oyster sauce and chili oil among other things. I was surprised with how good the quality of the sauce bar items were. Peanut butter was very thick and creamy, very tasty. Most hot pot places use a cheap watered down peanut butter, but not here.

Drinks were great, Mojito was impressive, much better than I typically get from a restaurant. My wife ordered the Lemon Yakult and wow that was really really delicious. It was a really nice compliment to the spicier broths and very refreshing.

The restaurant itself was quite nice and clean with a good vibe. I was really impressed with the presentation of the food, everything looked really nice and high end. Service was good as well.

Food is just too good to miss this spot. Quality, presentation, and flavor were much better than other hot pot places we have been to. Wonderful experience, delicious, and good price for the quality. Overall 5 stars, we will be back again...