A filling malatang experience! Plenty of fresh veggie/meat options to choose from. They charge…read more$15/lb. The broth had a great balance of mala, salty, and savory without being too skewed to any. All of us got Medium spice, which surprisingly wasn't spicy at all. We had to manually add chili flakes to increase spiciness. Recommend stopping by

Best malatang in boston!!!!!!! the first time I went, it was so good that I went back 2 days later…read more The broth is like a bone broth, and it's so creamy and delicious! They have a good selection of veggies and meat, and lots of noodles. I recommend getting rice instead of noodles because it pairs so well with the soup. The service is really quick and the owner is really nice! They have free iced tea so that's a bonus. Lots of seating inside, so there's never a wait! Love love love this place :)

Great experience always! Super fresh food and service. Very friendly if you've never been to hot…read morepot.

This might be my new go to spot for AYCE hotpot during lunch hours…read more My two reasons are, their mala broth is amazing and is actually spicy. Second reason is, the quality of their meat selection is excellent. Literally tastes so fresh and clean. I love that it's thinly sliced, too. Maybe I have a third reason too lol their dumplings, their dumplings (chives or cabbage), are so tasty. It comes out steaming hot in a whole order. Please try! We came here Monday for lunch. The waitress that was there and served us, she is amazing. Super friendly and helpful. We opted for the VIP selection because why not. For $40 a person, it's still not bad for the quality of food you get. I highly recommend it. Just check out my shortrib picture, you'll drool! The only reason I gave this review 4 out of 5 is because, there were not much seafood selection.

Casual, lively, and always a good time. Shabu-Zen in Allston is popular with the college crowd and…read morefamilies. The space is clean, and they have a parking lot right behind, though it fills up fast. Street parking can be tricky. They have a great selection of broths, from veggie-based and savory to Sichuan spicy. You can load up on meats, seafood, and veggies, and there's a lot to choose from. I also like that shabu-shabu is interactive. You get things uncooked and cook it yourself in the bubbling broth, so we're constantly dipping in different meats, seafood, and veggies. We usually get sake here because it pairs so well with the meal. They have cocktails too, but this is definitely more of a sake-and-shabu kind of place for me. Overall Service: The staff here have always been great. I've been several times now, both with bigger groups and just a couple of friends, and the service has consistently been friendly, patient, and attentive. Even when it gets busy, they're always pleasant and on top of things.

The broth was good and the meat was also nice! But i found it lacking on spice for some reason,…read moredidnt had the hit i usually get. The service was quick and nice. The ambience was quite nice too, we didnt had to scream.

For a late Saturday lunch, I followed my friends to Gigantic Wonton. Out of friendship, I withheld…read moremy apprehension about dining at what sounded like a whitewashed dumpling joint. To my surprise and slight confusion, I entered into a Cantonese BBQ shop (albeit one that also serves wontons, but of the regularly sized variety). My party of 3 ordered the following, all to share: - 川味云吞 (5 Pieces) Spicy Pork and Shrimp Wonton $6.50 - 炸云吞 (5 Pieces) Fried Pork and Shrimp Wonton $6.50 - 猪肉灌湯小笼包 (5 Pieces) Pork Soup Dumpling $8.95 - 3x 小白饭 White Rice $6.00 - 烧腊三拼 BBQ Trio Combo $25.95 - 明炉烧鸭 Roasted Duck - 特色豉油鸡 Soy Sauce Chicken - 脆皮烧肉 Crispy Roasted Pork - 鱼子烧卖皇 (4 Pieces) Pork & Shrimp Siu Mai $6.50 - 脆皮烧肉 Crispy Roasted Pork (priced per lb) $14.35 (0.7lb) The various dumplings, wontons, and shumai all had decent amounts of shrimp, in the Cantonese style. The wontons themselves had delicate, but not soft, wrappers. The shumai's pork also possessed a fine tenderness / 細嫩 indicative of high quality fillings; It tasted better than most dim sum places'. The bbq trio combo also impressed. It had the good cuts of roasted duck, not the bony ones that you get when they're being cheap. The soy sauce also had not overly brined into the meat, indicative of old, unsold cuts. The skin also seemed taut and not just overflowing with soft fat underneath. The soy sauce chicken tasted juicy and tender and not overly brined. Skin also seemed taut. The crispy roasted pork impressed the most. The skin was so crispy that the sound it made breaking was like that of a small bone. The meat remained tender. For the last 5 years, I struggled to find a Cantonese BBQ place that could hold up to those in the SGV. I couldn't find any in Allston previously, Chinatown's Cantonese places never evolved past the 60s and 70s immigration wave and aren't worth considering, and I was too far from Quincy for reliable testing. Now, however, I have a new go-to. They really need to change their English name, however. Also, the location has a small storefront with a 4-5 person window counter and 6 2-tops that could merge into 3 4-tops.

We were looking for a new place to try for dinner & found Gigantic Wonton!…read more I've been on a wonton kick lately and was drawn to all the wonton photos I saw from here. It's a pretty small restaurant with no frills & a few tables for dine-in. We got a bit excited and ordered 4 apps to try & two entrees. - crab meat & pork soup dumplings - pork & shrimp siu mai - crispy shrimp roll - phoenix lava buns - roasted duck wonton noodle soup - beef pan fried noodles (omitted veggies) The crab meat & pork soup dumplings were just okay. We liked that the dumpling skin was not too thick but thick enough to not break easily. The filling was on the blander side. The pork + shrimp shui mai were tasty! They tasted better than pretty much all of the dim sum spots in MA, in my opinion. Loved the pork + shrimp filling with mushroom. For the crispy shrimp roll, I honestly didn't know what to expect. I thought that maybe it would be crispy shrimp filling in a rice roll but it was essentially an egg roll with shrimp haha. Still, it was good! The phoenix lava buns were yummy. I liked the size of them! I'm honestly not a bao person so, if they were any bigger, I think I'd be too overwhelmed LOL. They came nice and hot (like everything else we ordered) & I can always appreciate a lava bun! The roasted duck wonton noodle soup is what I personally had and it wasn't bad at all. I think next time I would just get wontons only though. They were huge & flavorful! But as for the rest of the dish, I could do without. Soup was bland, noodles were nothing special, and there was only really 2 pieces of duck that had meat. Most of the duck pieces were skin + fat, which I typically discard anyways so I was kind of sad. Flavor wise for the duck, it didn't impress me. The duck skin had some flavor. Meat was essentially flavorless though. It's hard to find good roasted duck in Boston unfortunately but I will keep on searching! I finished the wontons and whatever meat I could get off the duck pieces & left all the noodles in the bowl. The beef pan fried noodles were delish! Beef was tender & noodles were cooked how we liked. Good flavor. Overall, not a bad spot! Some dishes are definitely better than others. The ladies that helped us were very nice & attentive. Prices are reasonable. I would come back again. Rating: more like a 3.5-3.75 but I shall give it a 4 for the good service.

Visited plenty of times still great tasting clay pot varieties I only took a picture of the one we…read moredidn't start yet but the other two we ordered was demolished quickly Pictured is the Unagi/Beef clay pot as always off the chart delicious Other two that did not make the pictures are the Minced Beef,Peas,Eggs and the third was Fish filet seasoned perfect in the clay pot. We also had the salt and pepper chicken wings ,pan fried dumplings,sautéed pea pod stems with garlic,and salt and pepper calamari. Also for drinks iced lemon tea all delicious and if haven't tried it's your loss. Missing out on a great neighborhood spot. Very great service as always too.

Went in with my parents and we had a couple of noodle based dishes, beef coriander rice noodle and…read morebeef chow foon. I also ordered a medium clay pot duck dish. Our favorites were the noodle dishes; the priciest dish we ordered was the medium sized salt cured clay pot duck dish was mostly rice, and there was also bone with the duck, making it tricky to trust the crusty rice was crusty rice and not duck bone with each bite. Service was excellent, would go back again. The ability to order off the QR code to see pictures associated with what you are ordering is also a plus! Menu in Chinese and English is another plus - especially those of us with family who are more fluent in Chinese than English.

Food was goooood, especially given Boston's food scene. Everyone at the table enjoyed every dish,…read moreand this place is a great bang for your buck. The portions were also fairly large, which was a big reason I rated it so highly. The dan dan noodles were really flavorful, and the pork was . Easily one of my favorite dishes. The beef with green peppers had the perfect spice level. The beef was tender and well-seasoned, the peppers were cooked nicely, and the two flavors complemented each other really well. You also can't go wrong with the stir-fried green beans and eggplant. Both were cooked and seasoned well, and this was another favorite. The small Szechuan dry pot was pretty good too. We chose beef, lotus root, cabbage, and cauliflower. It wasn't overly oily, and I really liked all the vegetables. The beef was just okay, but we had already ordered beef in another dish, so we probably should've chosen a different meat for more variety. Overall, the food was flavorful, the portions were generous, and the prices felt very reasonable. Definitely a solid option for sharing a bunch of dishes with a group.

Good food, great service, awesome menu options all for a fair price. The location is magicalread more

This is an excellent pick if you're really craving hot pot. If you're not familiar, hot pot is a…read moredining style where you pick your own broth and basically build your own soup. The cuts of meat are served sliced thin so they cook almost instantly. There's also a sauce bar with all of the ingredients you could need to build a nice dipping sauce. And Happy Lamb has sooo many sauce options. They have a lot of broth options, protein options, and when it comes to the rest of the fillings they're buffet style. The produce and seafood is chilled and refrigerated well, and in the same area there are a variety of hot items to choose from also. A fun bonus is in addition to fountain drinks being included, there's a self serve station offering mango juice, sweet tea, and unsweetened tea. The mango juice is GREAT!! I got the mushroom cross while my partner got the classic bone broth. We got the pork, garlic chicken, and beef slices. My only complaint is we were in a huge fan of the chicken because it doesn't quite cook as well as the other meats for this style, but there may be other others who enjoy it this way. My soup got sausages, mushrooms, and taro root. My partner got cabbage, pumpkin, radish, potato, udon, and shrimp. It's just so good! If you're a fan of hot pot this is a great place. If you've never tried it it's also a great option for a first experience.

The broth was very flavorful. We had the tomato and spicy broth. Meats were fresh and delicious!…read moreWe came here since they have all the other items (veggies, noodles, etc..) in a buffet-style type to grab and go. Service was great and attentive. A place for build your own sauce and everything was clean. Price is also very reasonable.

MDM Noodles is one of my weaknesses…read more Every time I pass by, I think about going in; then I remind myself that I bought groceries the day before and really ought to cook them, after which I think, "I could make noodle soup at home." And then I think about MDM Noodles again. The hand-pulled noodles are chewy, fresh, and delicious. The soups are full of flavor, deeply savory, and always satisfying. They're certainly delicious, but what I love most is that the bowls actually look beautiful. My dad always said Chinese cooking has to have three things: color, aroma, and taste (色香味), in that order. First, it has to look good. Then it has to smell good. Then, for Pete's sake, it had better taste good too. MDM gets all three right (色香味俱全). The soups are arranged with real care: vegetables layered, colors balanced, everything looking fresh and inviting. I eat a lot of noodle soup around Boston, and I have had some very pale, sad, skin-toned bowls. At that point, I might as well go home, save money, and make my own. MDM is not that. Their soups taste fresh, have tons of umami, and are pure comfort food for me. Noodle soup has always felt like home because my dad used to make it on Saturdays before driving me to music lessons. His noodle soups and MDM's are totally different, but somehow I still get that same feeling when I eat here. You do not come to MDM for ambiance. One time in the summer, I honestly couldn't tell whether they were open because the lights were so low. Were they saving energy? Were they creating mystery? Unclear. The service is good, but very direct. The prices are reasonable. Not cheap, exactly, but for the quality, flavor, and number of ingredients, absolutely worth it. I always leave full, happy, and very glad I ignored the groceries waiting at home.

I'm sure other dishes are good, but I was looking for good soup/noodle dishes. The taste of the…read morebroth was good, as were the green veggies, but for me the meat had a strange taste and texture to it. It was very tender but almost shriveled. I'm not asian but any means so I can't speak to the authenticity of natural quality of the old friend noodles, but it wasn't for me. Perhaps egg drop soup, scallion pancakes, or other items I'd go for. This place has a lot of good ratings so I might give it a second chance. The noodles tasted more like spaghetti was added in. I left so much food behind as a result. I more so would go for korean or japanese noodle spots from now on.