Haidilao Hot Pot Arcadia in Arcadia

I wasnt planning on writing this review until I watched a video from the YouTube channel The Try Guys. They reviewed Korean BBQ and Hai Di Lao in Arcadia. Its the same place where I had my hot pot, but the food and service I received were completely different from theirs.I visited Hai Di Lao after watching the movie Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storms at AMC Santa Anita 16. The location used to be a Westfield mall, but it has obviously been acquired by Chinese owners; a 99 Ranch Market recently had its grand opening there.Ive known about Hai Di Lao for a long time but never had the chance to try it. In China, Hai Di Lao is famous for its service. They offer nail polishing, ear picking, and other services while you wait for a table. The waitstaff are always attentive, listening to your small talk and fulfilling your requests.When I was in China, I wasnt a fan of Hai Di Lao. I dont like the feeling of being spied on; I prefer to be left alone and only attended to when needed. Additionally, Hai Di Laos Sichuan-style hot pot is too mild for my taste. I prefer the Chongqing style, which has a thicker, brighter, and spicier soup base. In LA, that means places like Shancheng Lameizi Hot Pot in Rowland Heights and Chun La Hao Chong Qing Hot Pot in Temple City.The Hai Di Lao in Arcadia uses small personal pots instead of the traditional large square or round ones. Its more like shabu-shabu than Chinese or Chongqing hot pot. There was a poster advertising a 10-year anniversary special with meat plates priced at $1.99 and $2.99, but I was later told that this was only for lunch.The soup base was bland and tasteless. The food was overpriced, with small portions. For example, $18.99 for 6 pieces of beef book tripe, $9.99 for duck blood that was only half the size of a tofu block, and $13.99 for 8 thin slices of beef. The only positive was that the food was fresh.Once I was seated, the waiter gave me a pad and left me alone, not even serving water. It seemed they were understaffed, and I had to wait for the waiter to finish attending to other tables. I ordered Bo Bo Ji (鉢鉢雞), and was told that this dish would be available starting the next day. What?I have to say, the service was non-existent. You have to find the waiter yourself and wait for them to finish serving other tables. It was a very disappointing experience.As I was leaving Hai Di Lao, I checked the poster again. It did say the special prices were only for lunch, but the text was so small that it was easy to miss.

This was the second time weve eaten here. The first time was 4 years ago. The food is very good and the service wasnt bad. I like that they have complimentary toothbrushes, mouthwash, and ladies feminine products available in the ladies restrooms, so if your on a date and dont want garlic breath on your date they have you covered. I appreciate the restrooms being very clean. We live 30 minutes away,so next time were in the well definitely pay them a visit. The dancing noodles guy wasnt in on this day.

Five stars for all the food and our stunning server Julius. We came to Haidilao Arcadia today and they had beef brisket for $1.99 and lamb for just $2.99. We ended up ordering a lot and spent less than $20 / person. Definitely worth it to visit while they have this promo going. Its also 40% off after 9:30PM. Our server Julius was really professional + kindly explained everything to us, would definitely recommend asking for him.

Ordered a mushroom soup base, beef aorta, lamb shoulder, meatball platter, boneless short rib, vegetable platter, and konjac noodles. Mushroom soup base was a good choice as it has a strong broth to work with given how short the meal may be. The beef aorta was a surprise and still quite pleasant, good if you like something on the chewy side. The lamb shoulder and boneless short rib were great choices, the former tastes smooth and the latter is a good staple of a hotpot. The meatball platter was various seafood which was nice to have and the vegetable platter were an assortment of napa, spinach, and another green vegetable. The Konjac noodles were a cute addition too. Overall, good to check the style out.Outdoor seating does have heat lamps for chilly evenings. Indoor seating appears to prioritize larger groups due to table layouts.

To be honest, Im generally not a fan of hotpot places. I feel you can get more bang for the buck doing it at home. However, this being my first Haidilao experience, its not bad. Service was great, staff were friendly, even when you could tell that they were tired, they still maintained that level of friendliness and energy. The quality of the food was decent, and as others have commented, its not a bad variety of choices. Even the choices for sauces was pretty good. Wish they couldve offered more variety of desserts, but its ok.I seen videos in Chinas Haidilao that use robots to deliver your food to your table, and everyone keeps telling me about the complimentary massages, salon services, car washes, snacks, drinks, etc... All while you wait. Id probably change my review to a 5-star review if those were allowed, but then, Im sure theres economic if not some sort of legal cost to doing all that here.

Nice ambiance!It looks unassuming from the outside, but once you get in, the atmosphere looks almost like a fine dining. There are several sections that offer some privacy for certain occasions which is cool and for the casual eater, there is a bar area.The food is good and our waiter was very attentive. As an added “attraction,” there is a person who demonstrates his noodle making skills. I agree with other reviewers that prices are on the high side. This place works well for special occasions.

Perhaps more about the ambiance, the service and the decor that yield a great experience over the food itself as hotpot is hotpot. What you put into it is what you make of it, so ingredients wise its typical for any hotpot place. Price wise its not typical at all, youll pay a full paycheck if you go wild with the meats here. Thus, this is more of a special occasion enjoy the full ambiance vs eating the same thing at home in your wife beater experience.

I love that there are several soup bases to choose from (a total of 9). Most importantly, they serve it in a personal sized pot, which means everyone can choose their favorite soup base. Our favorite soup bases are mala and pickle cabbage broth. Tom Yum goong is flavorful too. The meat quality is overall decent there, would recommend getting the combos if you like varieties. If you have a big appetite, they have a double combo which comes with short rib, seafood platter, and veggie combo. If you are looking for melt in your mouth meat texture, they have Mayazaki A5 beef Meat too! Pricy but worth a try. Some signature dishes are really good too, such as duck intestine, black sliced ox tripe, and shrimp paste. Whats even better? They also do mala dry pot!

Im a new hot pot fan and tried 3 different hot spot restaurants this week but there is something really special about this place. Their staff! They are so nice and very helpful which also reflects on how good their food tastes. Presentation, quality, clean, friendly staff and tasty food = 5+ stars!!!

Haidilao hot pot is still so delicious and the service is so attentive. This store is located on the second floor of Arcadia Mall. The business has always been very good, and it is always full of customers. Especially on weekends, there are many customers eating, and there are even queues. The kids love the small snacks and are always half full before serving. The kids are happy every time they come here.