Food was good and I would actually give more stars had it not been for the fact that I found THREE hairs in my noodle bowl. I understand this sort of stuff happens in restaurants but given that we are in covid times, this disregard to basic hygiene and sanitation is unacceptable.
Got this place(door dashed) because my girlfriend and I were super hungry and SC doesnt have many options. The food tastes and looks like something straight from the frozen isle at safeway. Curry is actually awful, grainy and extra salty. My girlfriends soup was basicalt boiled chinese duck sauce with peppers!Im never one to write reviews, but $15 for a $3 meal is completely unreasonable.In the end we threw it away and heated up a frozen pizza!(oh and it literally stained our bowl)
This restaurant has launched cold noodles, which are very delicious in summer and easy to order.
Had the Pho. It was pretty good, and fairly priced for take out.
I’ve been going to monster pot for about almost 10 years now, since they were Betty’s Noodles in the bus station. I’ve gotten their food before concerts, in the middle of the day, late at night, was my go to date spot and much more. I moved away and would dream about this place, but since i’ve moved back, I’ve been super disappointed in the quality of my food.There used to be long wait times for my food, and I never complained because I knew the food would be good. Since then, my food takes less than 15 minutes to come out now, but my god. The quality is horrid.A month ago, Im pretty sure my tofu was SOUR. I ate 2 pieces hoping it was just citrus, and then told myself not to risk it. I wanted to give it another try, so on Sunday I ordered a Ginger noodle soup with Tofu, and schezwan soup with Beef for my partner. I don’t eat meat, but am not vegan, this is important. When i got home, there was beef in my ginger soup and tofu in his. I didn’t take a photo or worried about it too much because i was tired after a long day.I have thought a lot about it and talked to friends about the downhill of this amazing restaurant. My review isn’t here to deter you from this place but will hopefully get the attention of some one in charge. Bring back the amazing and fresh food you once had! We don’t mind the wait! We miss betty’s!
Been meaning to try Monster Pot for a while now but couldnt ever line up opportunity with their hours... also: COVID.So my son and I went there for lunch today and we both think it was aces!We were seated as we walked up. Immediately given instructions on how to order from their digital menu (they provided a tablet). The waiter told us the food would come in about 10 minutes and showed up in about 5. Pretty decent sized menu (as one would expect). I had the Chow Fun with chicken and my son had some sort of spicy something or other. I should have taken pics... Sorry. Dim Sum menu section had a lot of the usual suspects, but had several wing options including Korean fried wings (which I will try next time). Its impossible to beat my wifes Korean wings, but Ill give Monster Pot a shot at the title.
I had reasonably high expectations based on reviews. Honestly, where I come from (Bay Area) not a chance this place could stay in business. I recognize that Bay Area has a lot of exceptional chinese food. But still, I had four dishes and I could get better versions of all four frozen from a decent grocery store. The people seemed nice, service took 40 instead of 20 minutes, if you offered me a free meal at this place I would not eat it. I feel bad writing this but that is my honest experience.
Monster Pot is a fun hot pot and Chinese noodle joint with delicious comfort noodles. When I lived close by I’d eat here all the time because it’s affordable, staff is friendly, and the flavorful noodles warmed me up. I would recommend most of their noodle soup dishes.The hot pot is incredibly filling so I’d recommend splitting it with someone. A friend tried their Kimchi fried rice and really liked that too. I tried the pad Thai once and it was so-so.Try them out if you haven’t yet.
This is the now closed Bettys Noodles turned proper sit down restaurant. Many vegetarian options available and I believe the most flavorful fried rice in Santa Cruz county including a wonderful kimchi version complete with fried egg on top. You may not have had anything like it before. If you enjoy Asian rice, noodle or soup bowls I highly recommend starting to try the many offerings they provide.
Cold, distant service.Before I ordered, I raised my hand to ask a question and the server said Whats the problem? I just had a question to ask. No problem. The rice noodles were all one big clump stuck together, precooked. The portion of vegetables was extremely meager especially because I didnt order any meat so itd be nice to offer a respectable portion of vegetables. They didnt check back on me or ask me how my food was. This is the first restaurant review Ive ever given anywhere.
The interior environment of the restaurant is very good, the service attitude is very good, and the noodles here are still delicious!
This place used to be good, me and my girlfriend just went today and the quality was really bad the chicken tasted old and there was a weird smell to the soup. The food made my girlfriend throw up. The service was good and the person was friendly but I won’t be coming back
They have good food no doubt however, the service is awful for that they get 2 stars. I’ve been here a lot and I love it but last time I went the server gave us something we didn’t order (pork buns) we thought oh cool it’s free food that’s nice of them (the guys English wasn’t the best and just gave it to us with a smile) it turns out it was the wrong table and they then said we had to pay for it despite being their fault.
Was sat down and given an iPad to order, waiter never came back so we left to eat at sesame instead. Whats funny too is we were giving it a second chance because the first time we ate there the food was terrible and the meat was so chewy I couldnt chew it and almost choked.This place wont survive it has nothing redeemable about it. Food is garbage, service is terrible and the workers are incompetent.
This place has a lot of vegan options. Their teryaki tofu rice is really good. Their fresh spring rolls are expensive and not great. Honestly not a lot of food for the price, but one of your best bets when it comes to food in santa cruz.
The Spicy Curry Ramen is crazy great!!!
Food was good. But dislike how rhey didnt get our order right. He was also demanding for a tip?. Very unprofessional. Sorry specially if I see some random object in my water. And not getting my order right? Why do I need to give a tip.. never again
Went to this place when it was Bettys Noodles in the bus station. The food is relatively the same and still great, but the restaurant could use some music and sports on the 6 TVs.
Great black pepper udon, with or without meat! This place used to Betty Noodle and remains one of the best restaurants for Asian cuisine in Santa Cruz. Deserves 10 stars.
Pumpkin cream cheese wontons are so weirdly good! I feel like they kinda skim on the filling, but the food is still really tasty. I’d recommend!
If I could give NEGATIVE stars, I absolutely would. This was BY FAR the most disgusting Chinese food Ive ever had the displeasure of buying. We dont have a good Chinese food restaurant in town and if you think this might be it, please THINK AGAIN!!! ABSOLUTELY FOUL!!!
I’m reviewing this before I got my food. If you want to pay for water, bring an extra $1.80. First restaurant I’ve been to that doesn’t have cups for tap water. Really?
Food is great! Would have given it another star if they had some music to elevate the mood it was very quiet.
I just had the best beef pho I ever had in Santa Cruz county and it’s been a long journey to finding good pho around here but I found my place!
Life changing food at an affordable price
If I could give less stars, I would, after waiting over an hour for our food, we were given only 1 of the 4 items we ordered, dont go here, you will get ripped off
The food here is pretty tasty & authenticate. I think their hot pot and noodle options are great.
I love the Pho...it’s the best you can get in Santa Cruz outside of San Jose...sometimes you just need some Pho. Thank you Monster Pot
Great place. Definitely try everything on the menu. You will not be disappointed. Polite and very friendly staff.
Food is beyond excellent; only drawback is their massive following that can cause a hunger-filled wait.
If youre in the mood for noodle soup but cant decide what kind, Monster Pot has you covered, the monster noodle soup is an addiction level craving.
Delicious every time 😋 kimchee soup every time
The people here are very rude and not intelligent. The food is mediocre, but the rudeness of the workers is enough to make me not return
1st Timer: 100% Recommend The Monster Hot Pot....Delisioso!!!!!
My whole family got food poisoning we believe
Delicious Homemade wontons 🤤Delicious food and friendly service. 5/5
The food is not even good as it look. I would give less stars if I could 👎👎👎👎👎👎
They looked busy so we tried it. Food was just okay.
Dont eat the spicy ginger noodle soup
Amazing menu and very good soups
Clean, great food, and quick service.
Always tasty food and quick service. Thanks!
Great menu with some very tasty dishes
Great, very effective for takeoutTasty, very tasty
The variety and quality is consistently the best!
So good
Very good soup
My son is studying at UCSC, so it’s great to have such a delicious Chinese restaurant in Santa Cruz.
The food here is delicious, served quickly, and the service is very friendly. Everyone is given a glass of ice water when they sit down. Use an IPad to view pictures and order food, with Chinese and English services available. There are many Chinese home-cooked dishes. We ordered salt and pepper chicken wings, Sichuan soup pot and the new Korean cold noodles, which tasted really good. We also had fried noodles, which tasted just like at home in China! We had a great time. You can dine indoors and outdoors here, and the soup noodles are served in large portions. I recommend this restaurant.
Its too bad! this shop. The noodle soup is really speechless!
Total reviews rating 3.7
60 Reviews for Monster Pot 2024:
Review №1
2022-07-20 06:21:09This Monster Pot is the old Betty Noodles House! Because I met Betty. Ive loved eating at Betty Noodles House since 2014, its really delicious. This restaurant is my favorite restaurant in Santa Cruz. They can now dine indoors and outdoors, the food they make now is still delicious, today my friends and I chose cold noodles, it was really delicious, the noodle soup was sweet and sour, we also ordered a few dishes, all good. The service is very good, providing free ice water, answering questions patiently, I will come here again! Recommend cold noodles, Sichuan hot pot, salt and pepper prawns, Thai iced tea!
Review №2
2023-11-12 21:09:36Read a good amount of reviews before deciding to try this place. Some people claimed the food tasted rotten. I came prepared. Before my partner and I were greeted, a lady spoke to a man who emerged from behind one of the front counters while having his phone out. I tried to think nothing of it. I ordered teriyaki tofu and rice, Kung pao tofu and rice, sesame balls, and a Thai tea. The food took the same speedy amount of time one would expect and wish for at a fast food establishment. It felt less than 5 min and both dishes were ready. The Kung pao tofu was spicy and flavorful. Whole thing was consumed contently. Sesame balls were good. The problem came with the teriyaki tofu. A few bites were chill. Its your standard teriyaki dish in terms of flavor. I had a slight funky taste in a bite of white rice. The funk for sure was present in one of the tofu pieces. It tasted sour/gone bad. I had to spit the bite into a napkin. My appetite left. Id order the Kung pao again and even try a new dish, but the fact I and other people have had not so good experiences give me great hesitation to come back. The lady at the front was nice. The place was dead for a Saturday evening. I expect and dont mind waiting for a restaurant to cook some fresh as can get food. I dont expect a garden in the back. Please dont serve any more old food. Spent like $40 and didnt get to enjoy what was paid for. Also, parking is small, so its best to park somewhere else close by and start walking.
Review №3
2021-08-16 03:23:39Just a BAD experience overall. The customer service was horrible. An older man served our table disturbingly rude and unprofessional, throwing stuff in our faces. We asked for a cup of hot water to help with a group members stomachache and were responded with, Sorry we only sell hot tea (for ~$5/cup). I mean, wow, unbelievable!! We got a hot water cup from the neighbor restaurant, Sesame Korean Grill, and the waitress of Monster Pot finally decided to give us a hot cup of water...(?!)We tried spicy kimchi hotpot, tomato hotpot, fried rice, and spicy noodles. For average of $15/dish, NONE of them was worth it. And I truly mean none, regardless of their services! The foods were either TOO salty or too bland or overcooked. The portion was also not appropriate for the price IMO.In short, I do not recommend this place at all.
Review №4
2023-08-08 05:22:04Came in because I was craving phô.. I have to say I was disappointed with the flavor of it so I would not order that particular plate again.. however, their spork spring rolls are really good. I just wish their peanut sauce was a bit thicker... the salt & pepper wings def were the hit of the night. I would go back and order more wings if my stomach could handle it, lol... overall, I had a good experience there, and the staff was friendly.
Review №5
2021-05-25 20:54:12I ate the Yellow Coconut curry with all the meat additions and it was very good! The broth was the best and everything tasted fresh. However my only complaints are I didnt taste any coconut, beef was very dry and the shrimp wasnt shelled. Other than that it was very filling and Id try it again with less meat.
Review №6
2021-10-20 23:48:27I ordered salt and pepper shrimp, but got chicken wings instead. Here is a photo of the garlic broccoli for $10.25! The container isn’t even 1/2 full. The Szechuan noodle broth had 3/4 “ oil on top, I removed. 2 Szechuan noodle dishes, broccoli for 1 person. Salt and Pepper what was supposed to be shrimp, but got a 5 chicken wings, $52.20! I won’t be back!
Review №7
2022-08-31 03:23:13Okay so I have been eating at Betty’s since their bus stop days. I’ve eaten here before, during and after quarantine; when they were Betty’s, when they changed to Monster Pot AND when they changed back to Betty’s.. and it’s been delicious every time. I don’t know what those other longtime customers that left low reviews ate or experienced but my experiences have always been awesome. Food has been savory as always & service has been on point as always. Tonight, my husband and I both ordered Betty’s Super Soup. The portions were more than generous, seasoning was just right, temperature was perfection, what more can you ask for? This place never disappoints. 5 stars every time.
Review №8
2021-11-22 03:49:19I loved Bettys Noodle House and was heartbroken when I found out they went out of business. Luckily I found Monster Pot as they sell the same udon noodle soup as Bettys. The noodle soups are tasty and flavorful, and are served super quick. I have never had any non-noodle soup dishes, but can tell you the noodle soups are phenomenal. The people who run Monster Pot are nice but customer service was stressful because it was hard to communicate with the waiter since I knew no mandarin and he knew little English. We were given an iPad to order in silence and couldn’t ask any questions about the ingredients because of the language barrier. Seating is okay, it’s in a weird part of downtown thus I recommend taking your food to go, and eating it by the beach.
Review №9
2022-08-07 02:41:29Good choices for vegetarian and vegan. The owner is very friendly and proud of the house made stuff.
Review №10
2023-02-20 04:36:12Honestly super disappointed. I ordered the braised pork & egg noodles & it was syrup-y sweet. I usually never send things back, but was interested with this, I just couldnt eat it, and I do like spicy sweet, this was just candy sweet.. after consulting with the waiter he said to no return it, so I just paid for the extra dish. He proceeded to say he didnt know how to advise me on dishes because hes never eaten the food there because he only makes $18/hour.. it was an awkward encounter ultimately ending with him saying I can feed the extra meal to a homeless person. I never leave reviews, and I like their other food, but just such a weird experience and honestly bad service.