Liuyishou Hotpot(Chicago) 刘一手火锅 (芝加哥) — Restaurant in Chicago

Tucked within the bustling Chinatown enclave of Chicago lies Liuyishou Hot Pot, a culinary treasure that seamlessly marries tradition with a contemporary dining experience. From the moment one steps inside, the restaurant exudes an air of warmth and authenticity, inviting diners to immerse themselves in the vibrant tapestry of Chongqing-style hot pot cuisine.

The location itself is impeccable—situated amidst the cultural heartbeat of Chinatown, Liuyishou is an effortless blend of accessibility and charm. Its ambiance strikes a delicate balance between elegance and conviviality, making it equally suited for intimate gatherings or lively celebrations. The neatly arranged tables, thoughtfully spaced to accommodate the requisite bubbling pots and bountiful platters, set the stage for an unforgettable feast.

The menu is a veritable treasure trove of culinary delights. While the offerings are vast and varied, it is the impeccable quality of the ingredients that truly shines. We opted for a selection of beef and lamb cuts alongside the spicy beef—a decision that proved to be a masterstroke. The thinly sliced proteins, artfully presented, boasted a tenderness and marbling that underscored the restaurant's commitment to sourcing the finest ingredients. The spice blend in the broth, a signature of Liuyishou's heritage, imparted a symphony of flavors—rich, nuanced, and tantalizingly addictive.

Vegetarians are far from an afterthought here; the variety of fresh vegetable options is nothing short of extraordinary. From leafy greens to lotus root, the offerings cater to both traditionalists and adventurous palates. It’s a reminder that hot pot is not just a meal but an interactive experience, one where diners craft their perfect bite, layering textures and flavors in a way that feels personal and celebratory.

One of the undeniable highlights of the evening was the sauce station—a cornucopia of condiments and aromatics that elevated every morsel to new heights. Whether crafting a savory umami-forward blend with sesame paste and garlic or a fiery concoction with chili oil and fermented tofu, the station served as both playground and palette, allowing diners to tailor their experience with a bespoke flair.

Service, often a variable in the best of dining establishments, was nothing short of exemplary. The staff at Liuyishou exemplify hospitality at its finest—gracious, attentive, and profoundly knowledgeable. They navigated the complexity of the menu with ease, offering thoughtful suggestions and ensuring that every detail of the meal was attended to with precision. Questions about the nuances of the broths or the proper cooking times for certain items were met with thorough and enthusiastic explanations, elevating the evening from a meal to an education in culinary craftsmanship.

As the evening wound down, it became abundantly clear that Liuyishou Hot Pot is more than just a restaurant; it is an experience, a celebration of communal dining and a testament to the art of hot pot. For those seeking a dining destination that embodies tradition while embracing innovation, Liuyishou is a must-visit. In every sense, it is a triumph—one that will leave diners planning their next visit before they even step...

To be clear, this is a restaurant where you build and cook your own soup. You pick your broth, you pick your meat, chicken or pork to add to your soup, while you are cooking it, on a heating element which is built into your table. There’s a heat source on each table which allows your soup to be cooked and heated. Food presentation is amazing! A ring of raw meat surrounds the soup bowl, a long fried pork “kabob” hanging from a wooden hook make for great eye candy. There are very few items on the menu which are not made for your soup. For example, you can order fried rice as a side to your soup, but don’t expect to find egg rolls, potstickers, chop suey, chicken almond ding, general tsao, etc. or the usual items you find in a traditional Chinese restaurant, they don’t exist here, this is real Asian food as you might expect to find in parts of Asia. I made the mistake of ordering noodles, thinking they would be cooked, instead they were uncooked, meant to use in your soup. So if you are not familiar with this type of restaurant, you will be confused. Very little help from the staff. You have to ask for utensils other than chopsticks. As for the meat options on the menu, you can order raw beef, chicken or pork, but only to be added to your soup broth, it cooks in your soup, in minutes. You cannot order a steak or grilled chicken. All in all, very confusing if you’re not familiar, made even more difficult by wait staff that don’t entirely speak English. As for the flavors of the food, they were OK, I personally wouldn’t return but I’m also not familiar with Asian cuisine. From the reviews I see, this place gets great reviews, but it seems to me these reviews are more so from those familiar with this type of cuisine, and/or are from this region of the world and understand the language and ingredients. As far as restaurant cleanliness, it’s great, the decor is fantastic, the ambience is very good, I just don’t know that building my own soup is something I’d like to do again, especially not knowing what all the ingredients are. You get a paper menu where you check off the items you would like to order, you are given a pen to check off your selections. We didn’t receive individual bowls for our soup, the idea is to share from the large pots from the center of the table. Kinda hard to eat from a bowl in the middle of the table, I believe this was the idea anyway. When we asked for individual soup bowls, they gave us paper bowls. (Those paper bowls can be seen in my pictures). The restaurant style is a great idea though, if only I knew more about the ingredients and if I knew in advance there weren’t many selections outside of those you use to “build” your soup. We should’ve checked before entering. Very interesting and unusual place for sure, it is certainly not a traditional Chinese restaurant as Americans understand it, with traditional menu items, as we’re accustomed to, but if you like to try different things, certainly...

We went there on a Friday evening and throughout our whole trip to Chicago, this is actually the only disappointing thing that we wished we didn't experience. We paid like 70-80ish bucks and we are a small party of 2 and didn't order a lot of things, at least not as much as we usually do when we go to other hotpot places like Haidilao. I personally don't usually get the sauce but they automatically added the sauce price to our table, so in total with my friend, it's $4 added without asking for the sauce only. When I started to try the meat, it had the weird smell. I'm Asian and I have tried so many different herbs, tripes, livers,... so I do know the smell and flavor of them. The soup base was having a weird smell that I really couldn't eat. I tried a couple of bites but at the end I really couldn't eat anymore. A waitress came and asked what's wrong and I told her to try to see the smell of the meat. She tried to smell and explained it was just the tripe in the soup base but honestly I just couldn't eat anything. At the end, we left without even finishing a dish of meat. 70-80ish bucks for a meal like that would be really disappointing, I could have been to Haidilao or Happy Lamb. After seeing that I couldn't eat anything, my friend suggested my to go try the sweet desserts that they were putting at the sauce bar. By the time we went to check that out, they already cleaned up and there was nothing there. By the time I went back to my AirBnb, my stomach hurt so bad and I was in the restroom for a couple of hours. However, luckily I was feeling better for the next morning to fly back home. Overall, it was just not an...