Assign seating here. Even though there is no one waiting and there is 3 open tables. The waitress Emily said since we have a party of 3 - do we mind to be seated at a table that seats 5 and possibly share it when a party of 2 arrive. We said we do not mind and she sat us down at the table. As we are looking through the menu Emily comes back and ask if my two elderly parent can move and seat a certain way to better accommodate if more customer come even though there were still empty tables available. My parent followed her instructions and move into the seats she asked. Emily then comes back, instead of taking order she again asked my parents if they can move one more time. Still there are open table and no one waiting. (See my picture.) At this time I told Emily we already moved and there is no one waiting to be seated. She then get a taller girl from the back to come to our table and ask my parents to move seats. I had enough at this point and asked for the manager. Waldo the manager came and was clueless. Though we had issue sharing the table and kept referring to the restaurants policy on the wall. I told Waldo we had no issue with seating policy. We have a issue everytime the waitress comes to our table she wants my parents to move seats. Make up your mind. Without even absorbing what we told Waldo, he then ask if we would like to seat at another table that can accommodate 6 people. SMH. I said this does not make sense. I then pointed to 1 customer by her self seating at a table for 4. Should we join her at her table to leave the other 3 table open. He still didnt get it . We were done playing musical chair and left the restaurant at that time. Still no one was waiting and there were 3 open tables at that time still. Stop harassing the customer, take the orders and actually work. That is how you free up seat in a restaurant. Not miss treat the customer to leave, so you can keep 3 table open with no one waiting. I thought restaurant wanted customers to fill there tables. Guess not this one since they want to keep them empty.What are you trying to get away with here? Also CASH ONLY ???Not surprise what else they are doing here.
Friday lunch special is great. Get there early to get seating, and theres outdoor bench seating available too. Only con is getting your own sauce, theres normally a line.
Absolutely love this place, great broth, premium quality ingredients. All at a super affordable price. A must try.
Asian restaurant with good customer service. Almost unheard of. Oh yah, the food is good too. There was plenty of meat in the pot and the soup was good quality.I didn’t like the garlic fries too much. Not a fan of mayonnaise.
Would love to see your company expand to the Victorville area as we dont have any hot pot restaurants in the high desert area there are some great location opportunities on Armargosa rd in the 99only shopping center I truly hope you will consider expanding to the Victorville area so that me and my family can enjoy dining at your great restaurant more often
Tasty soup bases and variety of different individual hot pots. The style of hot pot is individual based with all the meats and veggies already in the pot. A drawback to this place is the variety of dipping sauces is small, and the place is quite small so expect to wait a bit during peak hours.Also, this place is CASH ONLY.
Im not sure why people complain about the wait and quality of the food. My husband and I go out to eat almost everyday. Weve been wanting to try this place for awhile. We came at 3pm because thats what GOOGLE indicated, but they are open at 5pm. We did some errands and came back right when they opened. Were glad we did. This is the best hot pot place weve been to. My husband is picky about hot pots, but he LOVED this place. The broth was excellent and fresh. It is a small place and hot pots are not meant to be eaten in a hurry. If youre hungry or running late, come right when they are open or on a weekday. We will be back to this place soon!
Very good and savory soups, the service is great, thanks for accommodating one new guest.
Great hot pot, we came here in a big group and all had a great time! Highly recommend.
Today was the first my wife and I tried out this place and it will certainly be our last as well. First of all, they only have 1 person at the front taking the orders, bringing out the food and busing the tables. We were standing around for about 10 minutes while waiting for 2 available tables to be cleanup up. Why cant the owner just hire another person to help out with this?Second, Im not sure what others are praising about the portions of the food at this place. The amount of protein included in both the mini and regular pots were laughable. On the Mini pot, there were 4 tiny pieces of meat and the rest were filler Napa cabbage. There were not even enoki mushroom, tofu, etc. On the regular pot, I think there were about 6 small slices of meat. The rest of the pot were mostly Napa cabbage, along with a fish dumpling, 1 mushroom and half a slice of corn. The rice bowl that was included with the meal was not even filled. It was half a bowl at best.And then there is the sauce station situation. Has the own never heard of a sneeze guard? All the sauces were just placed in an opened container on a cart. I felt like I was tasting everyones germs in the sauces. Very unsanitary setup.I dont mind paying high prices for food if I leave satisfied and full. But this place was beyond ridiculous. We left still feeling hungry and unsatisfied. Either charge less for the food or add more ingredients to the pot. You really dont get what you pay for at this place. There are countless other hot pot places in the SGV that is more worthwhile. In fact, theres one just a few blocks away.Advice: Save your money and spend it at some other hot pot places.
I really love their cheese fries. The hotpot is very delicious and cheap
It was my 1st time coming here! Food was amazing the thing that was missing was the service. You will be expecting a wait time more than 2 hours. Plus bigger groups have more the priority than 3 people and less. There was time I saw people after me go first before me & few people who waited longer. Is it worth the wait? Maybe would I come back again? Maybe not for the time I waited and the experience I had.
Ive updated my rating, thank you kindly for hearing me out. Looking forward to seeing your new updated menu posted, even though Im no longer welcomed.Previous response:In response to your reply regarding my previous comment review, asking to reset my expectations and yet you accept the 2 stars, along with not wanting me to come back to your restaurant is not a positive outlook response.As I noted on the comment before, your food is great and fair priced, service is wonderful and Id give it a five star, but Ive gone to too many restaurants where they promote a special, but the quality is downsized or omitted the inclusions. And yet comments are not noted to restaurant owner(s), which lets them think its ok to do so. Well I like to let them know its not ok and speak up. Think of my perspective as a customer who enjoys your meals because of the health benefits, rather than fast food, yet budgeted for the cost of the so called pre-covid price and only to be told differently of the inclusion and exclusions on the menu as we order from an outdated menu and its now above my budgeted expectations. I can easily walk out and make a scene, or support the struggling restaurants, but have to reconsider coming back in the future because of the sudden price changes that were not expecting. Im sure Im not the only one...Yes I am a business man in a different field and my clients are informed of updated prices in advance or revisions made before they come in and allow them to decide to stay or leave. In your case, Im finding out about the changes after Ive sat outside for 1 1/2 hours waiting for our turn to sit down and order, but not once were we informed of the changes so we could decide whether to stay or leave beforehand. I understand businesses have to revise their inclusion and exclusions to survive, but dont mislead your customers, give them a chance to decide before waiting a long time to sit down and felt bad to leave. Ill honor you the 5 star rating because I believe your meals are great health benefits, but not if you promote with that kind of advertising and outdated menu price inclusions and exclusions. Unfortunately, since Im not welcomed back to your restaurant, Ill never see the menu updated as well, in order to revise my rating. I truly believe that your restaurant is great and have read the background story for the purpose of your restaurant, but dont be another restaurant that misleads your clients, give them a chance to decide in-advance to stay or leave. God bless and wish you all the best.Previous comment:Id be glad to give your place 5 stars once you remove that bs advertising of pre-covid prices. Its not more than a bait and switch. I recently went there, expecting the main dishes with side choices and drink include. Now its either an a la carte, premium costs upgrades, and less drink selections or premium costs for better drink choices. I was really annoyed with the gimmicks that are another way of inflating prices.Just be honest, remove the sign and update your menu prices along with the inclusion and exclusion choices. I believe that sign outside is an illegal version of false advertising marketing. Remove it, update your menu, and Ill consider going to 5 star. Otherwise, the food is great, but cant support restaurants with gimmicks.
The quality of the ingredients here are good. Their hotpots feel really clean, and the drinks are not too sweet either. Only thing is the sauce area is up front near the register, so it feels a bit odd. Other then that, the service and food here is awesome.
Terrible and unfriendly E menu to use. After you finished ordering, it quickly expired while you were waiting in the line to check out. And you have to start all over again?! It’s not cool. Btw the waiting chair in front of the door is broken. Come on!
Place is to small and cramped, 5 people seated in a table meant for max 4 people. Barely have room for the drinks and sauce plate. Soup was bit on the salty side and the shrimp was not clean thoroughly.Shrimp was sliced at top but was not clean and you can see the poop vain and to top it off towards the end of my meal found small bug that normally found in lettuce floating in soup.So compared to other hot pot place it is so so. Only good was they have different price point for those on a budget.Small pot is under 10.00 come with 2 option of drinks
Looking for a good place for hotpot and found this place. Actually I’ve saw this place and pass by it a couple times but never want to step inside because the “California” seem so western and I don’t really like the combination of Chinese food and western food.But this place is soo good that I will totally come back again!The meat is good after you level up, and the soup also tastes tasty! Furthermore, the price is way cheaper than boiling point but the value of it is better than it!So if you are thinking about weather you should come or not, you don’t need to! Cause they are great and you won’t be disappointed.
I enjoy this place so much ! Don’t be deterred by the long waits every now and then, this place is determined to provide its customers the best experience possible .Their hot pot selection are all very tasty and my favorite is the Hollywood protein . I think choosing the upgrade option is best since it’s a great bang for buck .Their white garlic sauce goes great with my cooked meats so don’t forget to make a stop at their dipping station .
Amazing yummy hot pots with amazing selection! They use only quality bone broth and fresh ingredients. You won’t find MSG here! Gelatinous broth is better than watery broth. Even their milk tea doesn’t have the powder creamer, which is why it tastes very light compared to other milk teas.Cash only!
Prime beef quality is superb!
Much better than some of the other personal pot places Ive been to. price was reasonable and food actual tasted good. the sauces are yummy too. after trying it I can see why there are often a long line for this place.
I don’t really like hot pot because the Boiling Point gave me a very bad experience. I was skeptic to come here and try it since I’m originally from Phoenix, AZ but I gave it a shot and by far has been the best meal I have tried here in Cali! Hands down the best service and quality of food. Would love to see them expand to Phoenix!
Awesome food highly recommend the upgrade. I got the Thai Tom Yom upgrade big shrimp and great flavor. My loves the Malibu Shabu Shabu!!! We go a few times a month love this place but go early they get busy and the dinning room is small but comfortable.
Theres a small parking lot and plenty of street parking.It got busy around 7:30-8pm and so we put our name down and waited. We also noticed a CASH ONLY sign so thank goodness there was a Chase across the street.This is a small restaurant that probably fits about 25 people. Some tables are long so they might seat you cafeteria style.The customer service was really friendly. I ordered the upgraded Malibu Shabu Shabu. There are 3 options with each hot pot: regular, upgrade - comes with more meat and premium - comes with even more meat. It also comes with a free drink!! I THINK they were - iced tea, peach iced tea and lychee lemonade. This place was pretty good and the proportions are generous for one person and not stuffed with cabbage.
Best hot pot place in Alhambra. I always the protein pack style hot pot. really good, mixed with vegetables. They also have free drinks. Prices are good. Portions are big and can be finished when really hungry. Drinks were ok. They do only accept cash. Parking is on the side. It does get busy sometimes and tables get filled up real quick.
Calling this place very good would bean understatement. As soon as you sit down, youre greated with wonderful staff and offered a wide selection of foods. First time ever going to a Hotpot location and Im sad to say that this place may have probably ruined my yet to happen experiences at other Hotpot restaurants. Food is phenomenal, they use healthy and organic rather than msg and preservatives in their broth and veggies. However, due to its compact size, there will usually be a wait. Forget that though, if you want to have a great deilicious meal, come here.
This is my favorite hot pot place in San Gabriel Valley. The hot pot is good size with a drink for under $10. Where else could you find a deal like that. And for people wants better and bigger things, you could always upgrade. Thats what I like about this place.The only downside is you have to wait for quite some time in here. Expect an hour wait.
Great hot pot restaurant!Love the quality of the ingredients.Space here is very limited so be ready to wait.Everyone in the 626 is jumping on the hot pot craze would love to see one on the west side.Staff was on it and didn’t disappoint.
Absolutely love this place! Im 2nd gen Chinese and I grew up eating hot pot, so you know Im not messing around. This place is SO GOOD!! I get the Malibu shabu shabu, upgraded to the second size and I could barely finish it. Lots of good quality meat, a healthy portion of bai tsai, diversity of mushrooms and fish cakes, clean flavorful tasting bone broth, with glass noodles, rice, AND a boba drink!!! This is the ultimate hot pot spot yall. And its locally owned.
Not enough staff, terrible service. Go there if you’re not hungry, waiting 1.5-2.0 hrs to be seated and 1 more hour to get food! Don’t recommend it.
By far the best hot pot in SGV! Its really that simple. The staff is amazing, soup base legit with no msg and fresh veggies/meat. Plus, try their hand-crafted ice cream and you will be writting a review like this too.
California Hot Pot is a small restaurant that offer flavorful hot pot. I may not be a big fan of hot ppt per se but I enjoyed my food. Atmosphere is good and very inviting. Interior decor is modern but kept its culture. It is well organized, neat and well lit. Outdoor seating is small but organized. Prices are afforfable. Its Cash only! They should have credit card available. Parking lot is free and available. Overall, its the best hot pot in Alhambra neighborhood.
Ok. Im not a fan of having to wait 10 minutes for the broth to boil bd cook the food. Im use to quick bd easy but the lamb is good nd shrimps are pretty big. Flavor is ok.
Great food and service! Easy to park, certainly will visit again.
It is really small restaurant and the wait is also quite long. However the food is really good and also the drinks. This is the Asian place where you dont get abuse by the waiters 😂😂 they have excellent waiters and waitresses.
Food is great, but the service was horrible, waited for about an hour to get the hot pot.
Great food, better service! Keep up the great work folks!
The service and the food was so amazing! Such great price and quality of food. Highly recommended. $10 hotpot with a drink was enough for 2 meals :)
Great soup at lowest price. I wish theyd have more room for customers.Service was well managed by staff. Im giving this credit to Hillary
Good meat
Order a korean kim chi today seem like a lot to me.
Delicious and affordable! Prepare for an hour wait, but definitely worth the time.
5 stars. Very great place for family or a date. Food is wonderful and cinematic; atmosphere is really warm. The staff are pleasant. Wow! 👍😋
We are sitting in the restaurant waiting for over 40 mins, still not ready!!! Terrible serving speed.
Im wondering if this place has the same owners that it did 6 or so years ago. It was a very interesting experience and I would go back to try their current food if so.
Love the soup, it takes 2-3 hours to make bone broth at home.
Awesome for individual hot pot. Its the second time Ive been here and its been solid each time. Would come back again.
I got here at 9:33 and it was completely shut down. I wish people would just update the Google website. So many restaurants have the wrong hours. It can’t be that hard.
Good fast service. Food is awesome. Best mushroom vegetarian soup imaginable!!
Dank hotpot options. Their silverlake mushroom hotpot is so delicious, great option for vegans/vegetarian!
Decent. The service is a bit slow and they actually forgot to give me back the change. But the staff is friendly and the food taste not bad.
Man this was great specially when you are in the area shopping for restaurant supply there after having a hot pot lamb shrimp tofu excellent
The soup, the beef and the vegs are perfectly balanced. Wait 45 mins but it worths!
There great hot pot for good price.not much seat so liker have to wait
Cash only. Love this spot so glad theyre reopening
Delicious food but they really need to hire more staff.
I think Im addicted.
Got lucky and had no wait for an early dinner. The food was good
Bad service attitude.
Great price and I think its better than boiling point for your buck.
Great food. hospitable atmosphere. best price
Great service. Healthy food options. Justifiable quantities.
Delicious, fast service. Will be back. Monday and Wednesday are less crowded
Good food, great service, good price, great quality!
The broth is so good. The portions are really big too.
Best hotpot place in alhambra. msg free and great prices
Good food! Good price. Cash only!
Great food, service and unbeatable price
Best hot pot Ive tasted yet far!
Great price and large portions!
Very fresh ingredients. Good service .
Bomb. Gets packed as people wait in line before it opens.
Cash only please.
Very good
Every combination a banger
Good food
Great food and service
Good
Get the Carolina reaper
Consistently delicious
We love it.
Great service !
Full of flavor.
Good taste 👍
Good
The hot pot is quite delicious, but the waiting time is a bit long.
The food is good
Familiar yet unfamiliar taste
Soso
Total reviews rating 4.4
99 Reviews for California Hot Pot 2024:
Review №1
2023-07-14 00:10:34Great budget-friendly option for hot pot. I went around 8:30PM on a weekday and there was no wait at all. Their ordering process is a bit different. They have you create a ticket and scan a QR code to order online. Once you place the order, you go up to the cashier and pay. Note that they do not take card, only cash or zelle!For $20, I got a milk tea, large pot filled with generous amounts of 4 different types of protein, and ice cream for dessert. Theres also free juices/teas on the side of the cashier along with the sauce bar. Personally I think the sauce bar could be better especially since there was no satay sauce. I really missed the thai spicy broth from boiling point but they have a tom yom option here that was super tasty. The pot is pretty similar size to boiling point as well but its def filled up more.I also had the dirty fries and it was the bomb dot com. It came with green onions, drizzled with their house made sauce, and covered in bacon bits. It made for a great appetizer for the table.
Review №2
2023-11-14 07:19:13Was feeling under the weather and in the mood for hot pot. This place is definitely worth it. Ordering is different but not hard. Staff is helpful and friendly.
Review №3
2023-08-03 20:33:51There are few seats. The hot pot is just okay. They do not take card, so you need to bring cash or use Zelle.
Review №4
2023-01-10 08:03:28This is a 4/4.5 star place for me. We love hot pot but this is different from the AYCE joints all over the place. You pick the size of bowl you want, the style/type of stuff you want inside and a burner with your pot full of good stuff comes before you. If you have a large group, be patient as this is a small location and can’t accommodate many large groups. I’d say 30 max if they jam everyone in. For a small place like this they probably would like to keep things moving as efficiently as possible and turn the tables over.We ordered mini pots and premium pots. The pots were mainly California, Japanese Tonkotsu and Malibu Shabu Shabu. There was one person to help facilitate the ordering process and collect your payment and another clearing the tables so once I emphasize - it’s a small operation. It’s straight forward after you order. Grab your dipping sauces on your own as well as any beverages thru the dispenser. Then wait for your pot to arrive. And boy oh boy did it arrive. When the pots were placed in front of us, the meat and presentation of it all was amazing!!! 😱🤤 I think my photos look good but in person it’s even better. I’m so glad we gave this place a try, it was worth walking in during the last hour. We ended late but walked away with satisfied, full bellies. The friendly, wait person was so patient with us and explained the ordering process when we messed up and even walked us thru the menu listings. We had newbie written all over our foreheads so she recognized the puzzled looks on our faces when we got stuck.Thank you California Hot Pot for the great experience! We will be back and have recommended this place to friends as well!
Review №5
2022-10-22 01:34:10California Hot Pot is a nice hotpot restaurant. The food tastes great, especially the soup. I recommend ordering the Upgrade package and not adding sides before you look at how much food is to be served. The wait was quite long during weekend. The staffs are very nice and super helpful. Parking is available on the streets and or adjacent to the resto. Down side is CASH ONLY. So, I had to register my name first and went to the bank to get some cash and came back. Restroom is clean. You pay first before you eat.
Review №6
2022-08-31 07:57:14Hotpot is delicious! Portion is adequate. Comparable to Boiling Point but less expensive. Menu is pre-Covid pricing....more bang for the buck.👍. There are 4 price options: mini, regular, upgrade (quality meat), and premium (highest quality meat). Regular or higher option comes with free beverage. Premium include ice cream, and all you can eat rice or noodles. This establishment could use extra help. Food took a bit long to serve. Condiments, sauces, and beverages are self-serve. Theres parking adjacent to the building. Cash only.
Review №7
2019-02-23 21:02:56Great addition to the hot pot craze in the 626. Its definitely different from the other hot pot places in the area because everything comes raw in your pot. Unlike boiling point, this place has different flavored soup bases and Im sure youre able to customize it. I ordered their Thai Tom Yum upgrade with their Peach Sunshine Green Tea. The soup has just the right amount of spicy and sour. The shrimp they give are indeed jumbo shrimp scampi. What I wish they did was devein the shrimps because its a black lining on the shrimp that makes it look gross.Youre only limited to certain sauces, which is located by their cash register. If I remember correctly, there was garlic, sesame, black bean, soy sauce and green onions. The next time Im here, Ill have to give their tonkotsu a try because I was actually craving beef but got seafood instead. I did get to try my friends beef and it was amazing. Cooking it raw and eating it however you like it is indeed better than having it precooked and tasting overcooked.Tip: get there early to wait in line because it can take a while to be seated.
Review №8
2022-10-22 20:05:35Very few seating locations, so wait time can be very long. The service was dealing with it as best as they can, but we ended up having to wait for an hour outside.Hotpot itself was okay, but nothing special when compared its local competition. Its a little bit on the pricier side too
Review №9
2022-08-23 05:45:28This place is popular so please put your name on the list immediately. Once seated, you’re given the menu that allows plenty of customization. Step 1 is to select quality, 2- style & flavor. Be aware you can interchange the protein with the different broths. 3 - spice level, and then drink. I liked that they all include a drink which is self serviced. Great variety in the sauce station. This place is great for value and service. Highly recommend!
Review №10
2019-01-06 04:59:45With so many hotpot places in the area, it takes a lot to stay competitive. Its good that this place offers 3 price levels for those who are on a budget versus those who want to splurge a bit. I got the hollywood protein upgrade and my friend got the Japanese tonkatsu spicy regular. I tasted her broth and it wasnt as spicy and portions were a lot for a regular size. For a Saturday, there were people waiting at least 15 minutes before the restaurant opened and at least 5 parties waiting 30 minutes after it opened. My friend and I chose to sit outside so we didnt have to wait. It was doable especially with the hot broth. It did get cold at the end of our luncheon. The place had 2 heaters that they brought outside but it was not used. Not sure if it was broken or the staff didnt want to set it up for only 2 customers. The staff was nice and checked on us a few times after we got our orders. The broth was on the blander side for me but I think I would give this place another chance by trying a different broth and spicy level. Overall, my experience was pleasant.