The best steamboat and hot pot restaurants in Singapore

Fancy a personal hotpot with the soups of your choice and away from pesky double dippers? At this mega-popular Chinese hotpot chain, you can. Boasting over a thousand outlets in China, Xiabu Xiabu finds a home in Bras Basah for its first Singaporean outpost. Cosy up in the stylish 72-seater restaurant where you can enjoy value for money and highly customisable hotpot sets that are paired with highly raved bubble tea from Tea Mi Tea. Each set comes with your choice of one platter, unlimited condiments from the buffet-style bar, rice or noodles, ice slushies and tea. Though our favourite part is the dual hotpot configuration. That’s where you’ll get to choose two out of five soup bases that are crafted with the freshest ingredients – how’s that for variety!

Touted to serve up the most true-to-style soup base outside of Chongqing, expect numbing spice with tingling sensations that seek to satiate even the most discerning of hot pot gourmands. If you didn’t already know, Uncle Fong is all the craze in Hong Kong and mainland China – even Hong Kong A-list celebrities such as Carina Lau can't resist. While the restaurant is particularly stylish, all eyes are on the unique nine-grid layout designed to allow the perfect cook for different ingredients by segregating the pot into three heat zones. Cause ain't nobody got time for overcooked food. Here, premium seasonal ingredients that aren't commonly found at other hotpot restaurants are available. Savour on novelty ingredients such as silky homemade Ebiko prawn paste, smooth Putien soft tofu, thick chewy Wulong potato noodles, well-marbled US prime beef short ribs, and more. Amongst all, our favourite was the nutritious coral mussels which eat subtly sweet with a nice crunch.

The next time you dine at Hai Di Lao, you might find yourself being served by an adorable robot, while the walls around you come alive with immersive light and sound projections. These new futuristic features can be found at the famous hotpot chain’s latest Marina Square outlet. Hai Di Lao has upped the ante by introducing its Personalised Soup Base Service technology. Depending on how salty or spicy they like their soup, diners can now customise their soup base thanks to its new smart kitchen. To add to the dining experience, the walls of the restaurant are also sources of entertainment with light and sound projections. Catch views of enchanting forests and cascading waterfalls as you enjoy a piping hot meal.

Soup bases are arguably the key to a good steamboat experience, and Tong Xin Ru Yi Traditional Hot Pot has a series of gourmet broths that will add flavour to anything you throw in them. Five signature soups are available, including a spicy base with stewed, marinated beef ($48), tomato with oxtail ($48), pickled cabbage with dory fish ($38), and a golden-hued chicken soup ($20). Beyond the usual cuts, Tong Xin Ru Yi’s menu also has options of duck tongue ($14), pork aorta ($18), beef tripe ($16), frog ($14), rabbit kidney ($12), and more for the brave eaters. 

The best way to enjoy a communal meal is by having a hotpot session with friends. Feel like royalty dining at the ornately-decorated Xiao Long Kan Hotpot, with marble-top tables and heavy velvet drapes. Choose from three signature broths (or have ‘em all!), and all the ingredients are brought out fresh for dipping and soaking up the flavours. There are plenty of side dishes to choose from if the hotpot alone is not enough for you.

If you think hotpot is supposed to be a communal dining thing, think again. Fufu Pot is rethinking the way we should be enjoying hotpot dining. At Fufu, you only need one spoon to rule them all. Serving one-set individual pots, each set comes with the ingredients picked out for you that best complements the broth. Have any allergies? Just let the staff know and they'll be happy to substitute out anything. The best part is you get the whole pot to yourself and don't have to deal with pesky double-dippers or fussy eaters. The broth comes in many different flavours like Sichuan mala, collagen, tomato, stinky tofu, Korean Army Stew and Thai-inspired white curry. 

Taikoo Lane, a new hotpot restaurant by Chengdu Restaurant provides authentic Sichuan and Cantonese broths to dip your meats and vegetables into. Get the Sichuan spicy broth ($5), made with beef tallow instead of oil for a more robust and potent concoction, or try the special Chengdu green pepper broth ($5) with peppercorn oil and green peppercorns. It serves as a great base for ingredients like lobster noodles ($39.80), spicy marinated beef ($18.80) and sliced chicken with green peppers ($17.80).

Beauty in the Pot specialises in soup bases that are purportedly good for your skin. The two signature soups, Beauty Collagen Broth and Spicy Nourishing Broth ($20 each), are made with a mix of conpoy, chicken and pork bones. The latter even deploys a cornucopia of Chinese herbs like red dates and ginseng, so the soups are as nourishing as they are delicious. Like Hai Di Lao, the hotpot ingredients here are a bar above your average steamboat joint. There’s US wagyu rib-eye ($21), Kurobuta pork (from $9), and a selection of fresh fish. Even the many types of tofu are worth the stomach space – go for the fish tofu ($1.80), which soaks up all the goodness of the broth like a savoury sponge.

Tucked away on the quieter side of Orchard Road, Hua Ting has a startling 11 steamboat broths to choose from, many of which come in unique variations you won't find anywhere else. There's the drunken prawn ($28), glutinous wine with kampung chicken ($22), and the fish soup with winter melon and conpoy ($38) – just to name a few. Steamboat ingredients are extensive, from handmade balls and seafood pastes like the fish paste with black moss ($7) to all manners of tripe, offal, premium meat cuts and fresh seafood like cockles, clams and lobsters.  

Don't be surprised when the soup base served at Tsukada Nojo comes in a jelly-like texture; the collagen mixture needs to be melted down before you can enjoy a creamy, nourishing broth. Only Japan-raised Jidori chickens are used, and the meal is best enjoyed with a selection of fresh organic vegetables, sliced meats, seafood, and more. A set meal with a plate of fix-ins starts from $25 per person. 

Located in the heart of the CBD, City Hot Pot is popular with the working folks. Every one gets their own hot pot at this joint, so there'll be no more fussing over which soup bases to pick for a sharing pot. With 12 soup bases (from $5.99) and 19 different sauces to choose from, there is no lack of variety here. Diners can also opt for a set meal or à la carte ingredients to dip into their bubbling pots. All meats are freshly prepared and sliced. Highlights include the wagyu chuck eye roll ($19.99), lamb leg ($13.99), and minced pork paste ($8.99). If you're looking to treat yourself, get the lobster ($58.99) or fresh fish fillet ($15.99). And in case you need more to fill your stomach, City Hot pot also offers braised pork rice ($3.99), mee sua ($1.99) and other sides.   

Yanxi Palace Steamboat is perched atop a hill, and located within The Great Ballroom of Hotel Re. Expect a luxurious spread filled with variety. Over 80 different ingredients are available on the menu – from premium wagyu beef slices to fresh catch from the sea. Start by selecting a soup base; there are some eight options to choose from, all double-boiled for some eight to 10 hours to bring out maximum flavour. Prices start from $18 for a single soup base, and $7.50 for three. Then, complete your meal with a slew of hearty additions. There are the usual suspects of diced wagyu beef ($24), sliced Kurobuta pork collar (from $12), and more. But Yanxi Palace Steamboat also creates unique, eye-catching creations of organic handmade rainbow noodles ($12), pastel-hued rose-shaped tofu ($8), seafood paste fashioned into adorable lollipops ($12), and beautiful ice jelly dessert ($5) infused with rose and osmanthus.

While not a hot pot per see, we love Tanyu's green pepper grilled fish too much not to include it. The tangy and spicy soup base is good enough to be slurped up on its own – plus there are 12 other different soup base options so you can definitely find something to suit your fancy. Close enough, if you ask us. Fill up by adding a bunch of mix-ins from cabbage and tofu to mushrooms and luncheon meat, or try its assortment of appetisers and skewers including a delectable bowl of cold spicy chicken noodles or grilled eggplant loaded with garlic.

A household name known for its stellar Chinese cuisine, the Imperial Treasure brand branched into the hotpot industry several years ago, and like the other restaurants under its name, has found enough success to open a second outlet. The soup base is made fresh daily, with its most popular options being the Ginseng chicken soup and Sichuan spicy soup. With bold, robust flavours, the soups provide a great base to its range of premium meats, seafood, handmade meatballs and vegetables. Time to get your steamboat party bubblin’.

While it has seven soup bases to choose from, Shang Pin's known for its Sichuan spicy soup base. The broth is slow-cooked for over three hours and infused with more than 25 herbal ingredients, chillis and chilli peppers. Unlike other steamboat places, it allows diners to have three soup bases in one pot, making it the perfect place for variety-seekers. It also has interesting à la carte selections that other joints lack, like the beef tongue, sea urchin balls and bullfrog meat. For those looking for dinner and a show, watch out for its hand-pulled noodles and "bian lian" (face-changing) opera performances. 

Amid a sea of mookata stalls in Golden Mile Tower you’ll find Thien Kee, one of the few remaining Hainanese steamboat restaurants. Now run by second-generation owner Benjamin Boh, Thien Kee is perennially packed during dinner, so turn up early to avoid the queue. Don’t expect a five-star dining experience or a languid meal here, either – the auntie servers, who have worked here for decades, are as curt as they are efficient. You’ll see a bubbling hot pot on every one of its 90 tables, and ingredients can be ordered à la carte or in sets ($34-$100). The soup is admittedly bland when it arrives, but add the raw ingredients served alongside – they include omasum (aka part of a cow’s stomach) and cockles – and that changes. Don’t forget Thien Kee’s other Hainanese dishes, like its chicken rice ($18-$36) and deep-fried pork chops ($12-$16), which will give even the fussiest of kids something to gnaw on. 

With its wide variety of ingredients and steaming broths, Upin Hot Pot is probably one of the closest alternatives to Hai Di Lao you can get. Granted, the meats may not taste like the premium Hai Di Lao offerings, but it's good enough for the moderate price you’re paying. Upin offers seven broths for you to choose from, including its specialty tomato soup base ($12), mushroom ($12), and pork bone ($18). Choose up to three for the price of one. Must try items include the mushroom meatballs and crispy fish skin. Open until 3am each day, it's also a supper hotspot. 

You can’t put together a hot pot list without mentioning Suki-Ya. With ten locations conveniently located in shopping malls across the island, you're bound to have come across one of its outlets on your day out. While the offerings may not be extensive, its broths are hearty and warming, with a selection of classic hotpot ingredients and fresh greens to choose from. Add that to the free-flow portions of beef, chicken, and pork, and you'll definitely leave with your tummy full. The joint is family-friendly as well – kids 12 years and below dine free with every two paying adults. 

It's easy to confuse Shabu Sai with Suki-Ya, given that both are affordable shabu shabu and sukiyaki hot pot restaurants that feature in shopping malls islandwide. The main difference lies in the selection of soup bases – Shabu Sai has up to seven, with a rotating roster of monthly specials that include herbal chicken with barley and shiitake with scallop. The hot pot buffet at Shabu Sai also offers a ton of leafy greens, DIY-sauce selections and a free flow of sliver-thin beef, pork and chicken. Furthermore, no two Shabu Sai outlets are the same. Depending on which one you patronise, you'll be able to find a variety of sushi, dessert cakes, fresh fruits and waffle stations along with the standard buffet fare. With affordable weekend prices of $19.99 per head for lunch and $24.99 per head for dinner, it's no wonder that it's become a popular spot to dine out for families.     

Herbal chicken broth with fatty pork belly and hand-pulled noodles, all for less than $10? Sounds too good to be true, but it all exists at Shi Li Fang. The Taiwanese steamboat restaurant offers a set lunch for $9.90, and it even comes with a drink of your choice. Pick a soup base (the joint prides itself on not using MSG), the main protein and your preferred type of noodles. Then on top of that, help yourself to a load of vegetables and sides – from cabbage, carrot and bok choy to tofu, black fungus, and mushrooms. It’s more than enough to induce a post-lunch food coma, but at least it doesn't break the bank. 

After spending years living in Shanghai and learning from his wife – a native of Chong Qing – Long Qing’s owner James Chiew has perfected his soup base recipes to appeal to both traditional Chinese and Singaporean palates. There are only four types of soup available: the signature pork bone soup, mala, tomato and wild mushroom ($18 for a choice of two) so you won’t feel too bogged down by choice. Premium ingredients like the Mangalica pork collar ($30), US short rib ($22) and Canadian scallops ($12.80) are delivered daily while pork balls ($12) and prawn paste ($14) are made fresh every afternoon.

This Thai-Chinese hot pot restaurant stands out for its distinctive Thai ingredients and dishes. It offers eight broths, one of which is the fragrant tom kha gai (chicken coconut soup). Sides include the Thai mama noodle, spicy beef salad, black olive fried rice and pineapple fried rice. Weekday lunch buffets start from $30 for adults and $20 for children. The family-friendly joint also has a promotion where a child dines free with every two paying adults, and discounted prices are available for students and senior citizens. 

Goro-goro, a Japanese sound word to mimic the rumbling of your tummy, dispels just that, while keeping the eating affordable. Prices vary between $14.90 and $26.90, depending on the time of day. For the price, you get your choice of over 50 ingredients to throw into your bubbling broth. Soups come in six options, including tom yam, ginseng chicken and a collagen-based broth for the beauty-obsessed. The sprawling space makes it ideal to gather a group of friends and family to huddle over hot pots.