Hot Pot & Pho — Restaurant in Spokane Valley

This was a WONDERFUL experience. I rarely review anything, but I wanted to make sure this place gets the rating it deserves, so I'm adding my stars in. Tl;dr: beautiful restaurant with authentic delicious food, cannot WAIT to go back. Do yourself a favor and get a hot pot and dine in for a wonderful time.

First off, the atmosphere is nothing short of welcoming. The decor is tasteful, there were garlands in some of the entryways, it just looks lovely, open, and inviting. The staff was wonderful - they greeted us at the door, spoke with all the guests with warmth and smiles, and found us a table in only a few minutes. We had made a reservation, which I highly recommend, I am sure that helped both them and us, as our reservation was for 8 pm and the restaurant is open until 9.

Our server Tamika was so enjoyable to talk to. She was enthusiastic, friendly, knowledgeable, and just fun to talk to. She was attentive to us, always made sure we were set and encouraged us to call on her if we needed anything else. She also had tried virtually everything on the menu so she could give honest recommendations.

Our food was quick - I think our crab rangoons came out about 5 minutes hot and fresh. And you could tell these were hand-made, they were flavorful. Usually I get crab rangoons that taste like cream cheese and that's it - not these. These were crispy and the flavor was balanced, you could taste the crab and the green onion. One of the other servers brought out two different sauces to try with them too, unprompted, he just wanted us to enjoy them and thought we might like the sauces (which we did).

We also ordered boba teas: a Thai tea and milk tea. Let me tell you - there was a place that closed last year that served the best Hokkaido milk tea and I had yet to find a place with milk tea as good as theirs until tonight. Major nostalgia hit me, that tea was sweet and soulful. Savored it all through my meal.

For the meal, we shared the spicy broth hot pot. The hot pot heated so quickly, didn't have to wait very long for it to boil, and the food was all fresh, appetizing, and presented tastefully. It was enjoyable to sit there and enjoy the meal together. Tamika was also very thorough in taking us through how to operate the hot pot itself so we didn't overcook our food. We got the highest setting of spice on the broth. If you're looking to melt your face off with the spice, it won't happen, but if you're looking for a rich flavor with a kick that lasts, that hit the spot. Every bit of food was complemented by that broth.

At the end of the night, we spoke to several staff and told them how much we enjoyed dining there tonight. We could hear the staff banter in the kitchen and it brought so much joy to the atmosphere. They sounded like family, and when we spoke to Tamika and another of the servers, they both said they feel like family there, and you could feel that authenticity. These are people who don't just show up for a job - they are people who care about what they are doing, they care about how people enjoy their experience, and they care for the success of the owner. One of the servers actually teared up when I told her that you could feel that kind of genuineness when you walk in. We also had the privilege of speaking to the owner herself along with the man who was our host, and both of them were so kind, and appreciative of us supporting their opening night.

I wish them much success, and feel it is more than deserved. I myself cannot wait to go back soon and try new appetizers, new drinks, and have a bowl of pho, which I am confident will be brilliant. Cannot recommend this...

Seems like this place is cashing in on being the only hot pot place in town without offering much else.

We made a reservation two weeks prior and when we arrived they said they didn’t have our reservation, but had someone else booked twice for our slot. We waited quite a while for our waitress to come and get our order. Took about 20 minutes to get our bobba to us after ordering. We ordered the wings for an appetizer but they came out at the same time as our meal. The wings were also extremely cold on the inside. Hot pot itself was really just mid. Most places like this deck you out in sauce options, but they didn’t offer any sauces at all (except the hot pot soy sauce on the table) so all the food was honestly pretty bland! Waitress didn’t ask if we were experienced in hot pot, so she didn’t really explain the heat source or how long things took to cook, so I’m glad at least we came in having some previous experiences under our belt or else we would have been lost. Once we were done with our food, we sat at our table for about 40 minutes waiting for our waitress or really just ANYONE to get our check to go.

I have sympathy because I know this is a new place. It’s hard working out the wrinkles in a new establishment. But this seemed like beyond that. The decor of the place is absolutely drab. The service is slow and inattentive (except the robot, he’s cool and I saw him plenty). The food is so bland. I don’t think we got our money’s worth coming here.

EDIT: I love how the owner only read the first sentence and decided to respond to that. Absolutely zero response to actual complaints and criticism. So to respond to the owner, no I don’t think it’s bad you brought hot pot to Spokane. What I do think is bad is your service, the hospitality, and bringing out cold food that’s suppose to be served warm. I also think it’s bad you charge people the price of high quality hot pot but your food is mid at best...

My family and I had such a wonderful experience at Hot Pot & Pho in the Spokane Valley! We made online reservations and were seated quickly when we arrived.

The gentleman greeting was so funny and personable. We enjoyed his banter and the way he presented the menu items - he also explained how the hot pot worked for my sister who had never been before (even repeated it multiple times 😂). The servers also checked on us constantly, we never went without a refill or napkins.

We all shared a two broth pot - one side was a clear broth and the other was a level 2-spicy and sour broth (Great spice level to start at). Everything was brought literally right after we ordered to us on a cute little robot!!

All the veggies that come to the table are shared so you only need to decide on the protein and noodle type (each person chooses their own). My sister, boyfriend, and I all chose beef and my mom chose seafood (you get a variety of seafood with this one! Muscles, scallops, shrimp, imitation crab) and ramen noodles since they hold up well. We also ordered two appetizers- the SPP (shrimp parsley) and the SD (prawn dim sum) and both tasted immaculate with soy sauce and chili sauce as did the broths with our chosen meats.

They veggies are bok choy, cabbage, carrots, bell peppers, and 3 different types of mushrooms with the veggies and although I’m not usually a mushroom person, I cleared them off my side of the table’s plate 😂. My boyfriend also comment on how high quality the meat and veggies were - everything was so fresh and they didn’t skimp on portions. At the end we got out of there for $160 which for a group of four wasn’t bad at all considering the hot pot and meat refills we got!

The food was so good and I can genuinely say that everything about this spot is a 10/10. The food, the restaurant atmosphere, and the service! All of it. We can’t wait...