Cuifengyuan Hot Pot

The Cuifengyuan Hot Pot restaurant in Dalian’s southwest suburb of Hei Shi Jiao is a traditional Sichuan restaurant. While the most popular (and logical) time to visit the restaurant is during the chilly winter months, Cuifengyuan Hot Pot is busy all year round.
 
When you sit down, you will be given the choice of a very hot or mild sauce to boil the various foods you choose to cook in your hot pot. You can also choose to have a hot pot with both sauces separated, so you can enjoy two different flavours during the meal.
 
If you are not familiar with eating hot pot, the basic idea is that you cook your own food in a boiling pot on the table. The variety of meats (sliced beef, lamb and pork) as well as seafood and vegetables make the hot pot a complete and enjoyable meal. There is an incredibly long list of various meats, seafood, tofu, noodles, and vegetables that you can choose to include in your hot pot.
 
The price of the meal is reasonably cheap as are the Chinese beers (4-6 RMB per big bottle) and  selection of juices. The service is fast and efficient, but not particularly friendly. Most of the staff does not speak English.
 
For vegetarians, there is an option to have part of the hot pot contain only noodles and vegetables.
 
The restaurant is not the cleanest in town, but is still of acceptable conditions.
 
Cuifengyuan Hot Pot is always busy in the evenings, particularly on the weekends. Making a reservation in advance or collecting a number from the hostess an hour before your meal is recommended so you can be guaranteed to have a table.
 



The Cuifengyuan Hot Pot Restaurant is located on Zhongshan Lu in the suburb of Hei Shi Jiao to the southwest of the city. The No. 202 tram stops nearby and buses 801, 23, 406 and 28 also go to Hei Shi Jiao. The restaurant is just next to the western gate of the Xinghai Park. A taxi from the city centre will cost around 20-30 Yuan.