DIY hotpot is picking up speed in Melbourne and every corner you turn, there seem to be more DIY hotpot popping up. David’s have their sichuann hotpot restaurant and have opened up DIY hotpots. What do I mean by DIY hotpots? Pull up a seat, sit down and let me show you a whole new world. David’s Spicy Pot does get busy so if you plan on dropping by in peak hour, be prepared to wait. We decided to have an early dinner and there were plenty of seats available.
When you walk, on the right are pots and tongs for you and you basically pick them up and move along to where all the ingredients are. So it’s basically free for all. Get whatever the hell you want and chuck it all in your pot – all them noodz, crab sticks, chicken, mussels, just whatever tickles your fancy. Once you’re done, go to the counter and the staff will weigh your pot and you’ll get charged depending on how much your pot weighs. Also, don’t forget to pick your broth and spiciness too!
I got a fresh walnut and peanut milk because if I was going to have anything spicy, I definitely need the milk. This was so frigging delish. It was real nutty and so light and I would definitely recommend this. Mr Kingdom Hearts got the chinese snow beer and yes, it was 500mL and yes, it was very refreshing and light.
Fresh Walnut & Peanut Milk Chinese Snow Beer
While our hotpots were getting cooked, we ordered some entrees. The spicy chicken feet wasn’t as spicy as I thought it would be and the flavour was definitely on point. The steamed egg was cooked just right, not too watery and not too solid.
Spicy Chicken Feet – $8.80 Steamed Egg – $5.80
I’m a huge sucker for xiao long baos and when I saw it on the menu, I had to try it. Unfortunately it wasn’t the xiao long bao dumplings but they were actual baos. Inside was beef and bao dough was soft and fluffy. However, the bao to the meat ratio was off and there was way too much dough for my liking. Not a huge fan of this and don’t be tricked thinking this is the XLB dumplings.
Xiao Long Bao – $5.80
I got the pork bone soup and it had no spiciness to it at all BUT the flavour was frigging fantabulous. It had so much flavour and depth but it wasn’t too rich and I could drink this all night. Mr Kingdom Hearts got the Little spicy traditional spicy soup and holy moly it was way too spicy for me. It had a great kick and if you can get past the spiciness, it was a great soup base too.
David’s spicy pot is a great place if you want to get a pot on your own or share. They have a huge variety of ingredients and there’s something for everyone. Their entrees are great, the broths are even better. David’s, we will definitely be back and one day I’m going to get over my spicy tolerance and try Extra Spicy!
Disclaimer: I was invited to dine by David’s Spicy Pot and all opinions expressed are my own.
Verdict: 🍷🍷🍷🍷
Food: 🍷🍷🍷🍷
Service: 🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷
Value: 🍷🍷🍷🍷
166 Russell St, Melbourne VIC 3000
Tel: 0421 462 918