Big Way Hot Pot (Rowland Heights) — Restaurant in Walnut

It’s honestly been a long time since I last had malatang—mainly because I’m always a bit nervous about hygiene and getting a stomachache haha. But recently I saw a new spot open in Rowland Heights that looked clean and had super fresh ingredients, so I grabbed a friend and went to check it out. It’s a self-serve malatang place, priced by weight at $14.99/lb, and broth is included for free with several options to choose from.

The ingredient bar was super clean and well-stocked—tons of choices like fish balls, tofu, seafood, veggies, sliced meats, noodles, and more. They even had abalone, crab, and crawfish, which you rarely see at malatang places. Oh—and they had fenhaozi (sweet potato noodles), which I absolutely love. They came out so chewy and satisfying.

People online mentioned the broth here is on the lighter side, so we tried two kinds: the green peppercorn broth, which was mild but fragrant, and the house signature spicy broth (we went straight for “extra spicy”). It looked super oily but actually wasn’t that spicy. Overall, the flavor wasn’t overwhelming or artificial—it felt refreshing and clean, more on the “healthy malatang” side. Plus, there’s a DIY sauce bar, so you can always boost the flavor to your liking. For me, it hit a nice balance!

The space itself is also really nice—big, clean, and with a touch of design, not your typical fast-food-style setup. And here’s the bonus: if you go before 5pm on weekdays, you get free ice cream and drinks! The soft serve was shockingly good—my friend legit said she wanted to buy an ice cream machine for home after trying it. Way better than most places that actually sell it.

One more thing I really appreciated: each table has filtered water—no weird chlorine taste, which is rare. As someone who usually avoids restaurant water, that was a small but thoughtful touch.

And when the pot came out, it looked so pretty—with all the colorful toppings floating on top, it felt weirdly satisfying haha.

In general, this place feels like a “clean version” of malatang—perfect for people who want the spicy flavors without the heavy oil. Tons of ingredients to choose from, sauce bar for custom flavor, clean space, and fast service. Honestly felt kid-friendly too, since everything was so well-kept.

My friend and I even had a full-on convo about how competitive the plaza is—with tons of Korean and Chinese spots—and then we noticed staff from the hotpot place next door eating here too 😂 If you just get 1lb with the free tea and ice cream, it’s basically the price of a decent lunch, and way more customizable. Not a bad...

I gave the Rowland location 2 chances, and my conclusion is that it is not up to par with the original locations in Canada. Really hoping that this location does not ruin anyone else’s true Big Way experience because the original is absolutely delicious and lives up to the hype.

Writing this review as the biggest fan of Big Way (Richmond/Robson locations in Vancouver)-

I raved about this place to all my friends for the longest time. It was the greatest thing I had in Vancouver and even my friends who never had malatang wanted to go again two days in a row after trying it. I missed this place do much that I would have literally flown there again just to get my Big Way fix.

So of course, I was so excited that they opened a location in Rowland! I rushed over during the soft openings and immediately noticed 2 things:

The broth is not the same, it is bland. Not enough mala flavor or spice. There was no deep flavor profile that I remembered. I tried both the no.1 signature (big way spicy) and the vegan mushroom soup (mild) and they did not taste anything like the ones I had in Vancouver.

The kitchen staff lack attention to details. I went with different groups and both times they got my friends’ orders wrong. 2 of them had their pot full of cilantro when they specifically asked not to put cilantro in. All the kitchen staff did was take whatever cilantro they can get out of the soup, but the damage was already done and the soup had already been marinated and tasted strongly of cilantro. They could not enjoy their meal at all.

Another friend asked for medium spicy but her broth came out completely white. We knew that something was wrong immediately. They tried fixing the broth but somehow her pot came back with barely any soup.

The staff is lovely despite some chaos with the soft opening, and the warm atmosphere of the restaurant allowed us to have a wonderful time despite some disappointment from the food. My friends loved the free ice cream at the end, and said they would come back for just the ice cream.

Really hoping that the Rowland location can work on making the broth taste like how they are supposed to. I would love to come back again when this location becomes more...

I visited it on a Sunday evening around 7 PM, and while the atmosphere had a lot going for it, the food quality didn’t quite measure up.

The Good: The restaurant itself is impressive—spacious, modern, and clearly designed with aesthetics in mind. The air conditioning was strong (a big plus when you're sitting by a hot pot), and the interior design felt upscale and trendy. Staff were friendly and the free ice cream at the end was a nice bonus. It's easy to see why this place attracts a younger crowd; the overall vibe is polished and social, perfect for group outings or Instagram-worthy dinners.

The Not-So-Good: Unfortunately, the food told a different story. The soup bases all tasted very similar and leaned heavily toward bland, lacking the depth and variety you'd expect from a good hot pot restaurant. Even worse, neither mine nor my family members’ broths were hot—just barely warm when they arrived. Several of the toppings didn’t taste fresh; the tofu in particular was off, and the crab was definitely not fresh and had a strange taste. These issues really detracted from the experience. Parking was also a hassle, with a packed lot that made arriving and leaving more stressful than it should be.

Final Thoughts: If you’re going for the ambiance, service, and social scene, this place might hit the mark. But if you’re here for quality hot pot, you’ll likely leave disappointed. It’s not hard to understand its popularity among younger diners—it looks great and feels upscale—but for those focused on flavor and freshness, better options...