OK, so I kind of fluked across this place too. I was looking on Google Maps for a place that had just opened in Richmond when I noticed that Big Way Hot Pot was nearby. I decided to review their menu to see if they offered vegan hot pot options. Typically, all you need is vegan broth, and then you add veggies, tofu, noodles, etc., which are available for everyone anyway, to cook in the said vegan broth. And there you have vegan got pot. While browsing their website, I noticed the soft opening of a new BWHP in Langley! How convenient!
We just showed up that first Sunday. Inside the front door is a screen where you can put your name on a waitlist. It tells you where you are in the line. There were 90 people ahead of us (or 90 parties, I assume), so we decided to leave and plan our visit for another day. On the second day, we showed up at opening time (11:00 am) and stood in line for a mere few minutes. By the time we were finished, the waitlist had grown to 46 parties! They will phone you if you decide to go shopping at Best Buy in the meantime.
They gave us a big brass (?) bowl and tongs, which are quite nice btw, and we lined up to choose from the grocery shelves of ingredients. There is a lot more meat and seafood, but fear not, as you eventually get to greens, veggies, tofu, and noodles. They told me which of the noodles are egg-free, and I took them at their word. I tried messaging them to confirm this for this post but they are not really good at responding. Anyway, they weigh your ingredients (mine came to around $17.50), you choose your broth (there are two vegan broths), and they go ahead and prepare your soup and then deliver it to your table!
I should have taken a before picture, but here is the after. Full of interesting mushrooms and noodles and tofu with tomato broth and some vegan kimchee! Delicious!
And part of the appeal of hot pot is the dipping sauce bar. You can follow their directions and assemble sauces by recipe, or just go crazy like I did. I am such a sucker for sesame paste so there was a lot of that.
This is a large restaurant with plenty of staff who do a good job at making sure you have what you need. It was kind of fun, and I think it's pretty reasonably priced if you stay away from the heavy stuff like the meat dumplings and things that are soaking in water (at least that is the advice I got from the professionals in line ahead of us). The tables for 2 are a little cramped once you have all your food and close together but not everyone is trying to take pictures either.
Food 4 out of 5
Vegan Options Available 4 out of 5
Comfort 3 1/2 out of 5Service 4 1/2 out of 5
Value 4 out of 5
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