first impressions after walking in on a random tuesday: welcoming, delicious, and affordable... what a great place to walk by after watching a movie! this is a very casual, quick hot pot spot that you pay by the pound. for $14.99/pound, i think it's a pretty great deal. i filled my bowl about halfway with some flat hot pot noodles, ramen, bok choy, and beef, and when i went up to pay i was like 0.95 lbs which i was pleasantly surprised by! LOL. the nice man at the register (we assume the owner!) gave us his recommendation for the classic spicy hotpot beef rib soup with light mild spice, so we both got that! the soup was so comforting, and the beef was cut very thin so it was super nice and tender! made my own chili oil/soy sauce/garlic/green onion dipping sauce at the sauce bar that paired perfectly with the meat. and even BETTER?? THERE WAS FREE TEA!! the complimentary wintermelon tea was sooooo yum and refreshing. the owner told us he does that so that people don't have to worry about buying a drink, and we were very appreciative. overall such a great experience, and i would definitely come back and try the mild spice next, as i bet that soup would be even more flavorful :') thank you for a lovely meal! read more

Fast Hot Pot - Hot Pot Near Me - Tustin, California

5/5 - An at-home eating experience. The broth had a delicious body to it that carried a lot of flavor on its own. The man at the counter had started me off with Lite Mild on the spice, which paired neatly with the thickness of the broth. I would have this order again. At $14.99/lb, I ate: - Various rolls of beef - Pieces of bokchoy - 2 bundles of vermicelli - 1 piece of lamb The lamb was recommended by the man (though, I felt the lamb would have been better to try with a spicier flavor). This spot has a home-y vibe and they make you feel comfortable. You can tell that the front of the house marries well with the back, and becomes an experience you'd want to come back to. Also they serve a sweet free tea! read more

seriously a great deal over here! i just wish there were more meat options, and the selection was a little too fatty for my liking. flavor wise, the tomato based one was really good! i cant do spice very well so it was perfect. i like the konjac noodles and the veggie selection :) super casual establishment and a quiet sort of vibe. the workers are humble and seem like nice people! very kind and hospitable. read more

Fast Hot Pot - tomato based diy pot - Hot Pot Near Me - Tustin, California

This is a fast hotpot place where they cook for you in the kitchen after you pick. It's like fast food so don't expect any kind of table service. Prices were reasonable for what it is but can be cheaper than MCD fast food. Don't be confused by the other fancy hot pot place next door. This is not that and it costs way less. read more

It's another self serve per pound noodles bar. The selection is not as extensive as some other places I have been to and also the meats look like have been sitting there for a long time. The soup was ok but probably is packaged broth. Overall, it's ok; did it worth 21 dollars for a small bowl of noodles? Maybe not read more

I love malatang and the concept of picking your own ingredients and paying by weight. It was $14 per pound plus an additional few dollars for the broth, and one pound was the perfect portion size. My favorite things to get were the sliced beef and the squid legs, they also had a wide variety of noodles. The only complaint I had was that the broth itself was a little too salty. The complimentary sauce bar was also great, it had all the usual things I use, like garlic, cilantro, green onion, and sesame oil. They also had a chili oil that was quite spicy and can be used to adjust the spice level of your choice. After weighing and paying at the register, the cashier brought out our soup very quickly, within five minutes. I enjoyed this spot as a casual and customization quick meal. read more

Fast Hot Pot - Mild beef broth (a little over a pound) - Hot Pot Near Me - Tustin, California

Fast Hot Pot is a build your own hot pot where you pay by weight. I love places like this because you have so much flexibility about what you get. The hot pot was good and I liked the flower shaped fish cakes a lot! The signs are a bit confusing and all over the place, though. So sometimes, I wasn't really sure what I was grabbing and mostly relied on my own knowledge. I did ask about a few items, though and they were very helpful. There are several broth choices which I appreciate, including some I had not seen much at other places before. This is a very casual spot. You get your bowl together and pay at the counter. They'll take your stuff and cook it up for you in the back. Utensils, sauces, and water are self serve. Some of the sauce stuff is at the sauce / utensil counter while others will be at your table. Make sure you have a table (inside or outside) before ordering or you might be out of luck trying to figure out where to eat it. Overall, it's a cute small family business and I'd come back here again. Service is good because the people are friendly. The prices are reasonable and very on par with others in the area. It's in The District, so there's free parking, but it might be tough to get a spot. read more

Fast Hot Pot - Hot pot - Hot Pot Near Me - Tustin, California

Came to Fast Hot and it is your classic build your own hot pot spot with plenty of toppings to choose from. At $13.99 per lb, it is a pretty good deal for loading up on whatever you are craving. I went for the house special dry pot and the flavors were a little more nutty than expected but still very tasty. The mild level was not too spicy at all and I actually wish I had gone for the spicier option for more of a kick. The only thing that brought the experience down was the seating situation. I told the worker I wanted to eat there but she said there were no seats so I had to take it to go. One table was already cleared with the people leaving and another was cleared right after we ordered, but she gave the first one to people who had not ordered food. I even overheard her telling them in Chinese that they could sit there, maybe thinking I could not understand. It felt like she just did not want us to eat there which was disappointing because I was really excited to try this place and enjoy the food fresh. Food was good but the way I was treated really took away from the experience. read more

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Love this place. Quality ingredients, great price and very friendly staff. Repeat customer forever--it's fantastic on a cold day, too! read more

Fast Hot Pot - The best combo! - Hot Pot Near Me - Tustin, California

Did not help when needing to use restroom. Cashier ignored me and asked if I could use restroom or directions to closest restroom. They just sat there and did not answer; ignoring me. Restaurant next door did help though! Highly recommended the people next door read more

I came here on a cold Sunday night with two friends and had a very nice experience. This is a self serve place based on the weight of your food, so I was able to grab some tongs and get a nice variety of meat, veggies, and noodles (I even got some quail eggs!). Then, they weigh your bowl for you and cook it with broth - I got the classic spicy hotpot beef rib soup at lite mild spice. I was pretty worried that it would be really spicy (I'm weak to hot Cheetos) but it was honestly the perfect amount of spice! The bowl was humongous and the food was just sooo good, excellent for dispelling the cold. I didn't experience any stomach pains after, which was a bonus. There's also a dipping sauce station to the side if you need it. I really appreciate the owner and other worker's attentiveness and their nice variety of ingredients. Would love to come back again soon! read more

Fast Hot Pot - Bokchoy, cabbage, pork + beef + lamb, quail eggs, spam, udon, etc Soup base: classic spicy hotpot beef rib soup, lite mild - Hot Pot Near Me - Tustin, California

There is no one at the front counter that is fluent in English and can small talk or friendly conversation with you. They just act like stone robots. Also, the sauce containers were icky, with sauce not cleaned on the plate and on the bottles themselves. read more

Had a random craving for this place so I stopped by on Thursday night. The staff was polite and service was fast. You grab a bowl and tongs and select your own ingredients first, then you bring it to the counter and they weigh it and ask what soup you would like. I chose the fish Maw Chicken soup this time. It was tasty, a little on the salty side. I'm not sure I would pay for the upgrade next time because the regular soup is pretty good. There are a few tables inside but I've never had trouble finding a seat. They also have the option to take it to go. Will definitely be back. read more

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Came to try this place out since it's closer to me than YGF in Cerritos. The ingredients looked fresh, and I was excited to try it. When we got to the counter with our bowls, I asked the lady at the register what the difference was between the dry spicy mix and the Lao Cheng du dry mix, but she didn't seem to understand what I was asking. I just opted to do the spicy mix bc the picture looked better, and she asked me what spice level I wanted. I asked for the medium. The lady said, "No, too spicy. Mild." I said , "Medium." We repeat this exchange a couple more times. I gave up. My food came and mild is not spicy enough for my liking. My husband had gotten the beef rib broth, and it was not as good as the beef bone broth at YGF. YGF in Cerritos also has a much wider variety of ingredients, so I think I will just make the drive than to repeat this experience. Also, it was my first time having the server dictate what flavor profile I can or can not order, and I didn't like it one bit. Thank you, next. read more

tl,dr: interesting spot for some to-go hot pot. After you select all your ingredients, you bring your bowl to the cashier to weigh and price it, then they'll cook it. Likes: + Wide selection of ingredients to add to your bowl. I even indulged in their exotic ingredients, like tripe, duck blood, quail egg, and maybe gizzards. + The cashier lady was nice and helpful despite her lack of English proficiency. + Yummy sauce bar. Non-likes: - The cashier lady does not speak English. Thankfully, a nice guest there helped explain to me how ordering food works here. Also fortunately, my mediocre Mandarin skills helped carry me the rest of the way. - Also, the cashier lady didn't really know how to work the machine, so at first she was gonna charge me an extra $2 on the spicy option, but thankfully she reimbursed me after I pointed this out. - Considering her language and technology barriers, "Slow Hot Pot" would've been a more suitable name for this establishment. Gripe: - A little expensive. For a $33 lunch I could still eat more. read more

Fast Hot Pot - yummy sauce bar - Hot Pot Near Me - Tustin, California

This place is an absolute GEM! My gf and I have been coming here every Sunday lunch for months now after the farmers market and occasionally for dinner, and it's become our comfort food haven. Not only is it reasonably priced, but I love the selection of ingredients and flavour of the soups and dry spice bowls. It takes me back to when I lived in Shanghai. I'm not sure, but I think they are a small family that runs it - we have our regular table outside and the uncle there always brings out the dishes with a huge smile on his face and says in Chinese, "eat it while it's hot!!" with the friendliest vibe. Also, their current $29.99 ayce deal with the skewers is amazing - we nearly burst after eating there last week. I genuinely love fast hot pot haha don't ever change!! read more

Fast Hot Pot - Hot Pot Near Me - Tustin, California

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I'm absolutely obsessed with this Fast Hot Pot restaurant! My husband and I dine here every Sunday! We've tried many Malatang restaurants but none compare to this place in terms of flavor and friendly service. The umami flavors of the hot pot always hit the spot! The owner was super sweet and gave us some free delicious coconut jello for dessert! read more

Fast Hot Pot - Warm and hearty Hot Pot every Sunday - Hot Pot Near Me - Tustin, California

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The soup here was delicious and the owner was very kind to us! Also the all-you-can-eat bbq option was great value! I love the chicken wings and the potato chips especially. read more

The soup base is amazing. The workers are super nice and even though there was a language barrier they accommodated and were super helpful. The vibes are great. 10/10 soup and vibes. I noticed a few people walk in and leave (a little intimidating) but you should definitely give it a try!!! read more

Fast Hot Pot - Beef bone broth and more - Hot Pot Near Me - Tustin, California

Overall, this is a good hotpot place, but I advise skipping their AYCE option. The skewers came out very slowly, and the staff were very strict on ordering. We waited 20 to 30 minutes between rounds, and we were told we couldn't add to our order until the previous one came out and was finished. Stick to the à la carte menu if you decide to go. read more

The food here is delicious and I love the workers. It's right very cozy inside and I enjoy eating here with my wife after a long day.

The soup bases are amazing. We usually have the chicken with fish maw as well as the green chili and they are both delicious. The ingredients look fresh and lots of vegetarian and meat choices. The staff is always friendly. The only issue is it's a small place only a few tables. It's a hidden gem in OC. read more

I really wanted to like this place as Malatang is my current food addiction. On Yelp, this place seemed promising but as soon as I walked in, I had concerns. For one, it's a very very small shop. Inside, there is only 4 tables which means there is not much seating space. I think there is only two people working here and I have a feeling it's like a mom and pop shop. There were also projectors facing the wall but weren't on. Wasn't sure what those were meant for. They still have the typical open fridge build your own bowl, but the selection is sparse and not everything seemed to be good quality. The beef was labeled "angus" beef but there was just so much fat and not enough actual meat. There is some miscommunication as well, on the outside on the front it said 12.99 per pound, but once you walk inside it's 13.99 per pound. Also, on Yelp it shows that there is different types of preselected and premade noodles but that is gone. You basically have to create it yourself. One thing here that differs from other Malatang places is that they have a variety of soup. It's not just bone broth, they also have mustard green soup as well. However; they charge you a dollar for soup base. Other Malatang places do not charge you extra for soup base. The food itself is really bland though, I got little spicy, which is lower than mild. I am not a spicy eater so to me, little spicy tastes like medium spicy. All I tasted was spicy and there was no depth to the soup or the food. It's like there's no salt. It seems like it's just boiled in water and put drops of chili oil. This also applies to the mustard green soup. It's just spicy and bland. The service here is okay. The guy who is the cashier brought water and checked up on my table, however, he kept speaking mandarin to me which I couldn't understand. It didn't seem like he spoke any English so I couldn't understand what he was asking me. He was very kind but I just couldn't understand lol. He also gave us a free coconut jelly to share, it's probably the only thing there with flavor. Overall, it's not on my recommendation list. The food is bland and the selection isn't the greatest, the place is small, and unless you speak mandarin, you will have a hard time communicating with the staff here. You'll just have to point and give thumbs up or something of that sort. Compared to other Malatang places like YGF or Yin Tang, for a more expensive price, they need to step up their game. read more

Fast Hot Pot - My creation - Hot Pot Near Me - Tustin, California

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Me and my family had dinner at this place last night. They got the greatest hot pot. Very tasty barbecue. highly recommended.

We've been twice now and found the price fair and the food delicious. Tom Yum and their original are both great flavors. This place was fairly quiet both times but we saw people looking in. They'd probably do well if they had a friendlier and inviting welcome to folks new to the concept. The woman who works there isn't very friendly but her counterpart was polite. read more

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I'm a huge fan of hotpot and am loving this pay per pound hotpot style that's been popping up in the area so had to give this place a try! Service was great and they offer a variety of ingredients that will satisfy your hotpot cravings, but I personally wasn't a huge fan of the soup base as it didn't have as much depth and flavor as I would've liked. If you're craving hotpot quick though and you're already in the District area, it would be a good spot to stop by. read more

Fast Hotpot is located at the Tustin District, by Claires. I came here one evening looking for a healthy inexpensive meal. I love their concept. You can choose your ingredients such as meats, seafood, vegetables, noodles, and other hot pot accompaniments. And then you pick a soup base and they cook it for you in the back. It was quick and simple. So when I entered the refridgerated area with the ingredients were protected by a screen that the staff opened up for me. I grabbed a big bowl and tongs to grab my ingredients. I like the concept but I have concerns about the same tongs grabbing all these ingredients. Especially when you can't trust the customer who doesn't have the proper food trainings to be aware of these things. AYCE buffets usually have a tong for each ingredient to prevent the contamination. Also there were no labels for the ingredients so that is one way the business can improve. I'm careful so I grabbed my vegetables first before I grab the proteins so I don't contaminate for the vegetarians and vegans. I grabbed spinach, bokchoy, all the mushrooms, quail eggs, crab ball, fish ball, fish cake and a little pork. The ingredients got weighted at $12.99/lb and the Tomato Broth I picked was $0.99. I grabbed a lot of the items I normally get when I eat hot pot and my total was $15.54 before tax and tip. Not bad at all. For the most part I enjoyed the food. Everything was cooked at the same time so you lose out on cooking ingredients slowly and at different timings per item. Also the enoki mushrooms tasted funky. I have this all the time so something was off. The tomato broth was not as good as HaiDiLao, but oh well it was a lot cheaper than going to HaiDiLao. I would come back for a quick and easy affordable meal. Definitely a no frills type of bite. read more

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My friend and I dined at Fast Hot Spot, where we were warmly greeted by a young boy who guided us through the ingredient selection process. His hospitality was exceptional. I don't consider this place as "fast food.". All the ingredients were fresh and flavorful! read more

Fast Hot Pot - Vermicelli noodles with assorted fishballs and vegetables. - Hot Pot Near Me - Tustin, California

I like the concept of picking whatever meat, veggies noodles you want and have them all cooked in a spicy bone broth. I like the variety and it's fast, affordable, and pretty tasty. For the ingredients, everything is $13.99 per pound (they strategically put the meat options at the very end) and there are over 50 ingredients to choose from. I'd say the quality of the ingredients were good but not great - still worth it at the price point. After picking the ingredients, you get to choose a broth and how spicy you want it. I got the bone broth, mild spicyness and hubby chose the dry mix option (藤椒）,medium spicyness. The bone broth was flavorful, but a bit too salty. The dry mix definitely had some good heat and numbness (麻辣） . Hubby started sweating after a few bites but really enjoyed it. They also have a new menu item where they can stir fry the ingredients in a dry pot instead of boiling it, so will probably be back to try that next time. read more

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I love a good casual hot pot spot! Fast Hot Pot is a quick build-yourself-a-bowl type of place. It's $12.99 per pound and $.99-$5 additional depending on the type of broth you choose. They have a good selection of fresh veggies. It is a little limited on seafood and meats but what they have are pretty good. I do want to add that they had intestines and pork blood which was surprising. You just come in, grab a bowl and some tongs, and fill it up. They weigh at the register and bring out it cooked for you. Easy. I went with their mild spicy Laochendu Fast Hotpot broth for $1.99 and it was delicious. Very flavorful and just the perfect amount of spicy. I highly recommend it. All of the items I choose in my bowl was also good. My husband was also pleased. We spent around $50 for both of us and we were both satisfied. Fast Hot Pot is located by Baked. read more

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Pro - self pick out ingredients for your own hotpot - choose options between dry or soup - variety of ingredients available (like a buffet) - able to manage your portion - price varies weight of your food - family owned business - good services! Cons: - limited space/tables available read more

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Come here all the time!!! Favorite malatang place. We haven't tried the all you can eat though. Back to the malatang, the spice is adjustable and it's not as spicy as the other restaurants I've been too. The broth is so good as well as the ingredients that are available. The service is great and all of the staff are nice. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!! read more

DIY hotpot. 12.99$/lb. + minimum of $0.99 for soup. Pick your veggies (self serve), pick your soup and they make your bowl with your selections. I got the spicy hotpot broth with small spicy and it was SPICY. I had to scoop out some chili oil b/c it was too spicy even for "small" spicy. I loved the variety of the vegetables and noodles but the meat was disappointing. No sauce bar. Limited overall seating, 5 booths..not good for larger parties (more than 4 people). Great concept and potential. read more

Fast Hot Pot - Hot Pot Near Me - Tustin, California

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This is a Ramen place inside of the Tustin district. It's small. It's like the chipotle of Ramen and you pick everything you want in your bowl and then you pick the spice level and the bra. They do have a lot of options, different types of noodles, mushrooms, and types of meat. The lady always very nice they bring you water and serving is pretty big. The Ramen is delicious. It's a quiet little spot and they have many ingredients that you probably don't find the other Ramen locations. Super Ramen place recommend we order one bowl and share between my daughter and my niece and we end up pretty full actually. read more

Great food with many choices of protein and veggies. Serve yourself and then you'll hand it over so they can cook it after you pick a broth. The gentleman behind the cashier was awesome he helped my wife and I for our first time going there. Made it easy to understand and this place Will be my new go to spot. Only down side I see is the limited seating. read more

Found a bug in the food while I was eating it was disgusting The food itself was bad it tasted old like it's been sitting there for 2 days The service was bad the looks were got for asking for an extra utensils like calm down it's just a plastic fork you won't go broke from it but you will go broke when people stop going to the restaurant because of all the bugs read more

Fast Hot Pot - Found a bug in the food while I was eating it was disgusting - Hot Pot Near Me - Tustin, California

Have been here quite often now since it is on my way back home from work. The Malatang price is not bad for Irvine/Tustin area. I'm just sad that they stopped offering chicken cartilage in malatang. The new Chinese skewer deal is pretty good. Small place so occasionally there is a wait for the table. read more

Fast Hot Pot is a delicious hot pot restaurant with friendly service! What you do is you grab a bowl and a pair of tongs and fill up the bowl with all of the veggies, carbs, and proteins that you want. Afterwards, they weigh the bowl to figure out the price and you choose a soup for all of it to be cooked in. As soon as I finished ordering, one of the men working there brought two cups of water and two cups of coconut pudding over to my table and he told us he made the coconut pudding which made the place feel cozier. He also showed me the sauce bar once my bowl came and encouraged me to get as much as I wanted. In terms of the food, everything was delicious! You control what goes into it so in theory, you should like everything that goes into the bowl. The sour cabbage soup I got was super flavorful and came with chunks of pickled cabbage. I got it at the small spicy level and it was still pretty spicy, so I recommend going down one level from what your normally get. Out of everything I got in the bowl, I enjoyed the bamboo shoots, beef, tripe, and tofu the most. When you first pick up the bamboo shoots and beef, they come in pretty big chunks so it was a nice surprise to see that the chef cut them up into more manageable bites in the cooking process. The man who rung my order up checked in on us several times and gave us the biggest smile when we told him the food was good. You could tell he was happy to see us enjoying the food and the whole experience felt friendly/home-y/cozy. I will definitely be back and will bring friends! read more

Fast Hot Pot - Bowl of veggies and meat - Hot Pot Near Me - Tustin, California

This place exceeded my expectations! The soup was really delicious and lots of different items to choose from. I got the classic hot pot beef rib soup broth which was a 10/10. The owner was super nice and friendly! I'm definitely going back just because the owner made the visit so warm and welcoming. Overall, the experience, the service, and the flavor was fantastic! read more

Fast Hot Pot - Hot pot - Hot Pot Near Me - Tustin, California

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pretty solid spot, the place could be a little cleaner but service is pretty usual and the broth is good. i used to come here more before i started going to show hotpot (i personally like that place a bit better) read more

Fast Hot Pot - Hot Pot Near Me - Tustin, California