Hot Pot Delight — Restaurant in Schaumburg Township

Horrible experience. Food was just OK.

BEWARE OF THE 18% GRATUITY FOR PARTIES OF 2 OR MORE

There were multiple reasons why our experience was undesirable.

1 - We ordered the "All you can eat" hot pot. You have the option to order up to three rounds but we both only ordered one round as the amount served was plenty. Nothing was ordered in excess and we mostly ordered vegetables with one meat selection. 2 - We ordered the spicy broth and I love very spicy food. This was beyond spicy so I expressed this to the waitress. She offered to add some regular broth but I declined because that would not even help being it was beyond tolerable. Then then finally brought a new broth but warned it was a one time concession. I guess they considered that to be generous but it's literally water with flavor so I am not seeing how the generosity. I literally picked out the hot peppers and there were about 40+ in addition to hot oil so that is more than excessive 3 - Being we did not finish our soup, we requested to take the remaining home. The waitress told us this was not an option as we selected the "all you can eat" option. No where did it state you cannot do so but there was something indicating there was a $30 charge for having excessive leftovers. This was not the case, yet we were still denied a to go container. We then asked the server what she will do with the remaining and she simply stated "toss it in the trash". I said you would rather trash it than have me take it home; she walked to get our check, placed it on the table and never returned. 4 - I looked at the check and it was just under $100. I was a bit puzzled so I began reviewing it. A soft drink was $4, tax did not list the percentage but it was approximately 11% from my calculation. and there was an 18% gratuity added. I then questioned it with the man who came to the table. He then took the bill and returned it to me with the gratuity fee removed. The waitress barely did anything and certainly did not deserve 18% gratuity. I have always tipped 20% or more when dining out but this was an exception to my rule. The waitress made no effort to please the customer. Quite frankly, she seemed quite bothered to have customers.

I knew it should have been a sign that there were only two other tables occupied when we arrived and no one else came while we were there.

In today's economy, choosing to toss food in the trash rather than give it to the customer is absurd. Also it is clear why it is not busy because of the way they treat the customers.

I never mind paying for good food and service but I refuse to spend money in establishments that don't appreciate customers.

Lastly, how is it possible for a manager to not know what tax percentage they are charging. Being the receipt did not state the percentage, it leads me to believe that they are adding some fluff to it and pocketing it....

10/29/25 We were back for our wonderful weekly visit. We got to enjoy the new herb broth, which is great! And, we tried some of the new/changing buffet items. We really love this place and it is always getting better.

10/9/25 We love this place. We continue to visit weekly. Today we spoke with the owner and staff as we usually do. They are changing available foods on the buffet station and adding new broth flavors. Please come and enjoy this place, we really do!!

7/31/25 We were here for our minimum WEEKLY dining visit and got to talk to the owner again. Everyone there is so nice and even asking our opinion on their changes. Tonight they rearranged the hotpot buffet and seating to be contained all in one room away for the bar room! As always, everything here is GREAT! Come give it a try and say hi to us if you see us!

07/10/2025: We are still here at least once a week. We love this place and would really enjoy seeing you here. You can eat very healthy here if you want! And, if you don't think the broth has enough flavor, add seasonings for the sauce bar!

01/2025 update: I just want to thank this place, the owner and the staff for being so nice to us. We come here once a week and really enjoy the place. We had the chance when we were at an appointment out of town to try another restaurant. That made us appreciate this place and all of them that much more! Please give them a try. And maybe we'll see you there.

Current Update: We can't brag enough about this place! I know they enjoy seeing us. They know exactly what we're going to order and they have everything ready for us. They let us do what we want, sit where we want and are very appreciative of our visit. They even know that if they don't add the 18% gratuity they'll get more of a tip from us! Thank you!! I hope they don't miss us while we're gone for 3 weeks on vacation. It will be the first place we go to when we get back!

We regular this place at least once a week! We really enjoy it and the staff, owner and probably customers recognize us!! Now 10/11/24 it has greatly improved. Everything is out for you to serve yourself at the portions you want. Plus, you can try something without order a full order! It was very nice for the owner to come to the table and ask our opinion. And, love to all at Hotpot Delight!

Update: We really enjoy this place and frequent it often. The owner and all the staff recognize us. We have come to accept the menu and broth. But, we still like to add garlic to the broth to add flavor.

We really enjoy this place. We visit often. We miss the old menu choices they had and the seasoning they use to have in the broth. We have to season it ourselves at the table with stuff from the sauce bar. Plus, we miss the old cheaper bottles of wine. A year or two ago, I would have gave it a 6...

UPDATE: 12/24 Totally disappointed! So, I am changing the stars to 2/5. Overall experience went down. New and stricter policy: Only 90 minutes to eat in the restaurant, buffet style self service (making the veggies and meat unlikely fresh- I don’t know how long it has been sitting there), new charges for most of the appetizers, and unfriendly staff.

What was sad of this visit is the server refusing to serve us our soup and to start our buffet because he wants us to wait for all our friends to arrive. The restaurant was not even half full and we were super hungry. We waited for about 40-45 minutes before we politely asked to be served and start the 90-minute rule.

They add gratuity to group of 4 and more. Make sure to check your receipt. It’s still $27.99 without drinks so about $36 total per person.

I don’t think I will go back again. Need to find another hotpot place.

*My number 1 hot pot spot! I have been here several times and my friends and I still keep going there! It is usually empty at noon/lunch and you basically have the place yourself. It gets busier in the late afternoon to around 7 PM. It is around $27 per person but comes with unlimited meat, veggies, and soup mix. ALL YOU CAN EAT! You have to pay for the drinks. We usually get the best of both worlds soup and it is a mixture of the original and spicy soup. I love to add their thinly sliced marbled beef, mussels, shrimps (fresh!), fish and shrimp balls, quail eggs, napa cabbage, and bokchoy! I also never forget to order the amazing cucumber salad and the delicious fried bun. We mix our sauce the way the like it and usually consist of garlic, soysauce, chili, and chives. I would surely...