Order Mala Town Takeout or Delivery
Mala Town Photos
Business Info
Mala Town Popular Dishes
MALA TOWN ATMOSPHERE
More like Mala Town
Recommended Reviews - Mala Town
Start your review...
Reviews With Photos
When you don't know what to eat, there is always Malatown. Savory mix-in (5/5): This was dry and mixed with peanut sauce. Super flavorful, but a bit too much sauce in my opinion. Still my favorite malatown place.
Ordered Malatown through Uber Eats and was pretty impressed with how well everything was packaged! I also really liked the ingredient selection and appreciated that their Uber Eats menu was much more extensive than a lot of other mala spots I've ordered from. There were so many options to choose from, and everything I picked tasted fresh. My only issue was that the broth was WAY too spicy for me, to the point where I unfortunately couldn't really eat much of it. I didn't choose a spicy broth, so I definitely wasn't expecting that much heat. That being said, take my opinion on the spice level with a grain of salt because I have a pretty low spice tolerance LOL. What's painfully spicy to me is probably completely manageable for a lot of people. I'd still give it another try because I really liked the variety and quality of the ingredients -- I'd just be extra careful with the broth next time!
We were really craving some malatang, so we decided to come here for dinner. It was peak dinner time so it was a bit crowded, but we managed to grab a table. The self-serve bar ingredients were really fresh, and they offered a fairly large selection of different items (e.g. veggies, meats, seafood, noodles, etc...). There was also a self-serve sauce station. I did go a little overboard and overloaded my bowl a little, but I haven't had malatang in a long time, so I decided to treat myself. I ended up getting their beef bone broth base, medium spice level. I felt they did go a little heavy handed on the spice, but it was still at a spice level that I can tolerate. I somehow was able to finish my entire bowl and I was stuffed. A little pricey, but I really enjoyed my meal. Service was casual and parking is convenient since they have their own designated parking. Pretty good place to satiate my malatang cravings.
My fav mala spot, service is fast and a large selection to pick from Would recommend and large variety of drinks!
I keep coming back here since they give out deals and/or coupons. Ingredients are not placed in the right areas or empty. It's pretty messy and not immaculate like a year ago. Variety and quality have gone downhill. The keyrings provided that have your food number are super worn down due to use. They've installed an awning over the sauce bar which doesn't do much except for have people run into it while getting sauces. Food looks more like slop than soup and/or stir fried. They no longer serve tea and one of the water dispensers is labeled as broken. Mala Town has definitely fallen from top spot for hot pot since so many other competitors have opened.
My first time trying Malatown and it was incredible! - I will definitely be back. You get to build your own hot pot with your own veggies, meats, seafood, fish balls, and choose your own broth. I got the mild signature beed bone broth, and it was delicious and flavorful, not too spicy. They had a great selection of all items - I got beef chuck rolls and pork belly, spinach, enoki mushrooms, lotus root, cabbage, and fish balls! They also have make your own sauce - I loved the peanut seasame. Their selections also included black vinegar, soy sauce, cilantro, green onions, seasame and chili oil, and garlic. My mouth is watering just thinking about malatown, and I can't wait to be back. Bowls were out in about 10 min during lunch time. If you can, come before 12pm to beat the lunch rush!
There are so many hot pot restaurants in the South Bay. I don't think Mala Town compares to the other options available. It's way too pricey and your bowl is required to weigh a minimum amount. It's true that there is a wide selection of ingredients, and the staff keeps the ingredient and sauce bars well stocked. Nice for customizing to your tastes. However, the broth is just okay in my opinion. Nothing special. I really do think there is better hot pot elsewhere that will give you a better bang for your buck!
I was really excited to try this place out. When you walk in, it can be a little confusing as there is no one to check you in to be seated. You simply walk in, and then stand in the line to your left. You grab a bowl and a pair of tongs and you work your way down the veggie, noodle, and meat selections. Your bowl is then weighed at the checkout counter where you pay. After you pay, someone will assist you in finding a table. There's a station in the back, where you can choose from different sauce options, or make your own combination. We weren't sure which broth to choose. But because we're huge fans of mala spice, we went with the mala broth. Although it was tasty, it was SO oily we could barely eat it! For that, we were disappointed. But we'll probably come back just to try the other broth options. Unless we find another spot similar to this to try out.
How could you take the drinks away again? It's getting expensive to eat out these days. The problem with taking the fresh tea is that some of us had expectations. We wanted something refreshing without the extra cost. You had it there initially when you first opened, took it away, brought it back and then it's gone again. What's with the back and forth? I still love your food. My previous reviews still stand minus my comments on the drinks. You have a decent sauce bar and it's always a good crowd here. I'm sure you guys are making money. It's ok to give a little back even in the form of fresh brewed tea.
I like Mala Town. It's good and the concept is fairly straight forward. There are only a few adjustments that I think would make Mala Town pretty excellent. We have visited this location twice now. Ordered different items both times, but the consistency feels a bit off in terms of the spiciness. We also had a nice drink the first time that we didn't get the second time. And I do wish there was a bit more at the sauce bar-it felt limited and bare. The broth are fairly good, but your options are pretty much just non-spicy, little spicy, and burn your mouth off. The space inside the restaurant can be quite crowded. As in elbow to elbow seating. The service are friendly and nice. I'd come back, but would also be very open to trying other options.
We really enjoyed the variety of toppings available, especially the fresh vegetables which I loved. However, the meat was a bit tough to eat, which affected our overall experience. I appreciated how clean the restaurant was, and it made for a pleasant environment. The broth was a little less flavorful than we hoped, and next time, we think the food might be better if cooked a bit longer -- our squash was a tad too crunchy. Overall, it was a nice experience, and we're looking forward to trying it again with some adjustments!
MALA TOWN SUPREMACY!!! My fave malatang place! Been here three times, cost each time: $20, $30, & $27. On average, you'll spend $25~ after selecting your ingredients. I loveeeee getting the tom yum here, & I don't think other malatang places offer tom yum. In general, the tom yum flavor is fire. i would say the amount of chili oil they add is inconsistent. there's times i've gotten alot of oil and times with less. my partner also found the beef bone broth was too oily for his liking and thought tom yum was way better. The tom yum has a nice tang from the lemon and theres slight creaminess to the broth. my friend thinks they add peanut sauce to the broth. it is also not too spicy, which is nice. I dont live near this place but it is worth the drive! I like the wide variety of ingredients and the chewy potato noodles. This place gets busy for a reason and it can be tough to find parking on the weekends.
I love Mala town! It's always so busy, but I appreciate the variety that they have. My go to is the mild beef signature bone broth. The veggies are also fresh and yummy :)
4 months ago
I personally really like the soup Base This is another one of those one Person hot pot place again. I've been too many of these type of restaurant as I love, hot pot and the convenience of having everything in one pot. The line was very long, but it went quickly, and food was served quickly as well I got their signature soup Base, which was a little bit mild spicy and taste just right I like how this soup was drinkable at some places where the soup may be too salty I will definitely come back and try more other things I also did like the fact that they had a variety of good vegetables and meat read more
DO NOT GET THE "DRY RUB!!!" I repeat, NO DRY RUB. It's honestly the worst "sauce" I have ever tasted and completely curbed my appetite. In the menu photos, it looks to be like a dry seasoning (kind of like ramen seasoning), but when you order it, it's essentially just peanut sauce thrown on top. I had to keep stealing my boyfriend's soup base just to eat my meal (and tried to wash off the peanut sauce). The staff seem friendly, but because there are so many people, there's essentially no service (which is fine and typical at hotpot places). They have a nice sauce bar with all of the essential oils, sauces, and garnishes. Expect a wait during the dinner rush, as there is limited seating. read more
Super busy on a weekend night around 6-7pm (lol). We waited for a good 20 minutes for a group of 7. There were actually multiple big groups ahead of us that were just as large. A table of 18 was actually dining too while we waited! The male server was informative and nice, while controlling the line and answering our questions. Once you get to put items in your bowl, be weary of how much you put because it quickly adds up! What I got: veggies (they're light), only 2 strands of potato noodles, stacked up the meat, lotus root, roe fish ball, and got the tom yum broth. I guessed that my pot would be $15-20, and I was right. It came out to be 1.3 lbs and paid $15.XX. Half of my friends guessed correctly and half didn't. While the employees are putting soup in your bowl, there's a tiny sauce bar. I wish they had more options as it's pretty limited. One of my friend's pot was dropped in the kitchen, so a server pulled him aside to apologize and offer him to get as much items as he wants and it will be comped! That's super nice of them and it also happened to one other customer dining in there as well. The floors in their kitchen must be slippery! Tom yum broth was amazing and I almost finished it, but my stomach did not take it well. I had to use the bathroom an hour later. Not sure if it's because of the lotus root not cooked long enough from my soup, cross contamination of some sort? I would definitely avoid adding anything big and frozen from the bar. Besides this issue, ID COME BACK!! read more
This place is so delicious!! When i went, the line was so long and curled around the door so it probably took us a total of 30ish minutes before we were able to start choosing our items and get seated. There is a bunch of seating and a lot of great options for the sauce station! I got the bone broth in mild and it was so delicious!! It was so flavorful and a very affordable option when eating out because you are able to choose how much you want to eat. read more
2 months ago
Food is good and most importantly, my kids love the food here. We normally order the beef broth medium spicy and the kids will order mild version and tomato version. Place is clean, and organized but it does get busy. This is our go to mala place for the quality and taste. read more
1 month ago
Business owner information
Chloe C.
Hi Jackline, thank you for bringing this to our attention, and we’re…
We are OBSESSED with this place! Pro tip: Avoid going after 6 pm bc it gets super crowded. Also avoid any marinated meat/veggies soaked in water as it can hike up your price significantly:) The sauce bar is so great here and their ingredients are consistently fresh and tasty. To top it all off: the staff is super friendly even when it gets crowded and hectic in there. Lots of two top tables inside but they can make larger groups (went as a party of 8) as well! read more
The wait is quite long, especially on weekends during peak meal times. (We went while the restaurant was still relatively new, hopefully it has died down a little since then). I think my husband and I waited around 20 minutes before we even got to the ingredients line, and then an addition 20-30 ish minutes for them to cook our food after we paid. The food ingredients are cleverly arranged so that the more expensive ingredients (meat) is at the very end of the line, giving you plenty of time to load up on veggies and noodles when you are paying by the lb for the whole thing. There's a huge variety of ingredients for every palate. I ordered the dry sauce which was super disappointing. I was expecting mala spices flavor, but it turns out the "dry sauce" is actually a giant serving of peanut sauce on top of your food. I don't like strong peanut flavor, so I was very unhappy with my mala bowl. The sauce is creamy and sticky, peanut butter mixed with other ingredients. You don't really get too much Szechuan flavor profile out of it--which might be nice for some people, but not for me. It was unappetizing to me because the sauce was very thick and coated everything. I would probably be happier with something else next time if I gave this place another shot. While you're not rushed out the door per se, bus boys will passive aggressively start cleaning your table to hint that it's time for you to leave if you're done eating, so it's not even a good place to enjoy your meal with friends. Also, I do have a problem with the fact that they are trying to entice customers to leave 5 star Google reviews by offering them free beverages. read more
11 days ago
11 months ago
Frankly, was super to see how incredibly packed the restaurant was at 9:00 PM on a Wednesday night. Lots of couples, groups of friends, and families dining throughout the restaurant. There was a short wait at the door (within the restaurant) for the folks in front filling their bowls. The staff were all super friendly and professional and provided great service throughout the entire experience. Many choices at the food bar, and quality of the ingredients - I wouldn't say was superb - was fairly decent. The wait to actually get our bowls weighed out and to pay took longer than the process leading up to it. Selected the signature beef broth medium spice for the bowl, which came out within 10 minutes - piping hot! I LOVE spice, and was surprised by how hot the medium was already - something to be mindful of. Great value and experience overall, will be coming back in the future! Really wish they had a reward program. read more
12 days ago
Nice! Yummy! Good lunch after playing nearby. I don't know what else to say but come try it. read more
22 days ago
6 months ago
Whenever I'm craving hot pot, this is one of the few places I automatically go to. Mala Town is a weigh-by-the-pound hot pot place with loads of toppings, including several tofu options, marinated meat, and scallops (which I love). This is one of the few hot pot places I've been to that don't close in the middle of the day, which is a nice touch. Most of the time, it's crowded and it takes a few minutes for your bowl to be ready, but I'd say it's always been worth the wait. I'm a fan of their medium-spicy bone broth, as well as their decently-sized sauce bar. read more
13 days ago
Business owner information
Chloe C.
Hi Whendee, we’re really sorry this visit was disappointing. Your…
Busy store, busier than YGF malatang in the same plaza! It's $1/lb more expensive than YGF but more variety for ingredients and soups. Beef bone broth mild vs. medium spicy comparison is jarring haha, I'm not good with spice so mild was good for me. Grab ingredients then get seated at a table while your food cooks. The tables were cleaned up quickly so no need to worry about seating. read more
I was craving hot pot. My daughter took us to Mala Town. We arrived a little before 5pm. It wasn't busy at all so we were able to take our time picking our veggies, meats, noodle and other toppings. My daughter decided on the signature beef broth and I picked Tom Yum. I was pleasantly surprised by how flavorful the broths were. There's a sauce station. The restaurant itself was clean. Service was friendly. My first time going to Mala Town and it definitely won't be my last :) read more
6 months ago
Love the selection at mala town. Although the broth is sometimes really spicy or not spicy at all if you get mild the place is really organized and clean. The sauces are always full and service is really fast. read more
I love this place! It's got a lot of different options for veggies, noodles, meats and everything is cooked decently well when it's brought out. There's a sauce setup and you get your own sauces and water, you're assigned a table, and they bring it to you relatively quickly. I also love that it's open all day, I sometimes eat lunch around 2-3 pm, and by then YGF is closed but Mala Town is still open. One of my favorite things is also that they use metal for their bowls and sauce dishes. The space is pretty big with plenty of seating and parking in this square can get tough, but the times I've been here it hasn't been an issue even when other areas of the square are pretty crowded. Ambiance is nice and relaxed too, they play old pop songs at a decent enough volume to fill the space but without being too loud. read more
1 month ago
Pretty bomb. This is a diy hotpot place. They got like a buffet bar with quite a few ingredients. The price is determined by how much your bowl weighs. They subtract the weight of the bowl. If it's your first time beware... It might not look like a lot of food but it is. I got about 2.18 pounds worth of food after subtracting the weight of the bowl and it was good for two meals. Also at 16$ per pound, it can def add up. The tomato broth was so good. Surprisingly better than any other place I can think of. I've had it many times at other places. The ingredients were pretty good. Some of the beef like the spicy and garlic beef are a lil tough. It was cool to try it one time but I'll stick with the thin cut shabu beef next time. Overall, dope spot. I'll be back to try their beef bone broth read more
6 months ago
Updating my review after ordering from DoorDash! I've ordered from the store many times in the past and it has never been like this. I ordered a full set with THREE additional items on top of that. The container is not even half full with food, this cannot constitute as even 1 regular order. There's maybe one or two pieces per item which is absolutely unacceptable. I ordered at least three protein items and there's ONE PIECE EACH and it's COMPLETELY MISSING the tendons. There's barely anything in here, this is 1/3 amount of what I would usually receive. This is absolutely not what I paid for. I feel ripped off after spending ~40 on this meal. read more
Business owner information
Yang G.
Hi Sally, we’re really sorry about your experience. This is…
2 months ago
This place definitely lives up to the hype! We came on a Sunday at around 6pm and it was crowded. We waited about 20 mins for a table do 3. They don't let you get food unless there is a table available. Lots of options for seafood, meat, vegetables, and noodles. My go to picks are usually fish balls, potato noodles (I like the chewiness), lamb, tripe, and emoji mushrooms. I got the beef bone broth mild and it was still spicy for me! My spice tolerance is also low though. My friend got the tom yum and his broth had some spice as well. The flavor of the broths were sooo good though. They have a sauce bar and even a suggestion for sauce combos. The servers are really quick about turning over tables so once they see you're done eating, they will try to clear your table asap because there's lots of people waiting. I definitely would come back again! read more
Went here for lunch, these style of places are now trending so I've tried a few of them. Like Malatown more because of the flavor options available. The tomyum i got was creamy and just right, one thing you need to watch out for is the amount of food you place because the weight can add up real quick, so be careful unless you're comfortable paying buffet prices. The service was quick and fast, our food came out fast and this place has plenty of seating and the sauce bar is custom. read more
1 month ago
18 days ago
so amazing I love it so delicious I come here so much it's so amazing you guys should come here read more
7 months ago
I had a chance to try Mala Town this past weekend and it was a great experience. If you are looking for Malatang this is a good spot as they have lots of options of different veggies and proteins. Once we got to the store, thankfully we got into line and started filling up our bowls with all the goodies. The meat here is yum and loved the different variety of options of veggies and different fish/shrimp balls. I ended up going with the mild bone broth which was delicious while the hubby went with the spicy schezuan version. Both of us were happy and full by the end of the meal! This spot is more casual for food, but a good spot. You will be full and it's fun to pick what you want, but do note it does get a little pricey, we paid $50 for two bowls. Overall though good experience and nice service so you pay for what you get. read more
Really solid malatang place. Lots of parking. In a plaza full of asian food and desserts. I feel like they had a huge variety of things to put in your soup. More options than other places. Came around 6pm on a Wednesday and the restaurant quickly filled up. There was a line at one point. I can tell this place is pretty popular. I will say I got the medium spice and I felt like I could have gone spicier. It wasn't that spicy. Other than that the flavor is good and the quality of the toppings is good. Regardless it hit the spot. I really enjoyed my meal and I would come back! read more
1 month ago
My friend and I came in at 11:30, right when they open, on a Tuesday. We quickly picked our veggies, proteins--they had many options including seafood. I got their tom yum broth and my friend got the signature bone broth, mild. Tom yum had a perfect balance between sour and spicy, would definitely recommend. I was expecting it to be salty but it was not the case at all. I tried the bone broth as well for mild, I couldn't taste the spice so I would go for medium spice or above. Bone broth is really hearty, but not bland at all. It's definitely on the pricier side with $16.99/lb, but I'd say for the quality, it's worth it once in a while. Service was quick; the food came out pretty quick as well. Seatings can be a bit close to other tables. I would definitely return to try other broths. read more
7 months ago
Good food and good service! I love the way they serve us with different choices of veggies and meat. The signature broth is decent, a must try one! read more
First time trying something that wasn't YGF. The original beef bone broth flavor was quite lacking in the beef flavor. It was more like salt and cream broth instead. The meat was very dry and rough. It was shredded and ripped horribly with some pieces being too large. My bf had to add the beef flavor from the dipping sauces to be able to taste the beef. The fish didn't look fresh either. It was like $16 per pound which was pricier than other chains. read more
We stopped in for a bite to eat. Sad that they don't offer complimentary sweetened green tea, date juice, or numbing pepper oil. :( Also, they got rid of the sukiyaki soup and replaced it with a new flavor, hot & sour golden soup. Maybe next time, I'll try it. We got our usual; I got the beef bone broth and my wife got her chicken (maw) broth. read more
I've gone several times with friends and this place has always been solid! Since it's malatang, you get to choose the toppings you want into a big bowl that will be weighted at the end when you choose the soup you'd like. There's also a sauce bar and free water and tea (during lunch time I think). The workers are nice and food comes out fast. The place itself is big and roomy which is nice as well. Would definitely recommend! read more
This was my first time trying malatang, and Mala Town was a perfect way for me to jump in! Three of us were able to walk in at around 6 PM on a weekday, and while we were able to grab a table right away, it got VERY crowded soon after we sat down... This spot clearly has a lot of fans, so be prepared to wait for a table! We walked over to the self service bar, and I was almost overwhelmed with the variety of options! They had every kind of veggie, meat, garnish, and ingredient you can think of. The ingredients all looked and tasted quite fresh, which was impressive given the variety of quantity of options on display! I opted for the beef bone broth with medium spice at checkout, and it was delicious with just the right amount of kick! When our meals came out ready about 10 minutes later, everything tasted excellent. There are also a variety of sauce options (soy, peanut, chili, etc.) and garnishes you can use for dipping as well, which just added to the whirlwind of delicious flavor! The service was quick and friendly, and the restaurant had a fun, casual vibe that makes it an excellent meeting place for groups of friends. Overall, I had a fantastic experience here and definitely plan to come back! read more
More info about Mala Town
438 Barber Ln
Milpitas, CA 95035
Directions
(669) 315-1414
Call Now
Order Takeout or Delivery
Start Order
Visit Website
http://malatown.us
Full menu
Hours
Food & Alcohol
Indoor Amenities
Outdoor Amenities
Other Amenities
From the Business
More Info
Health Score
Mala Town Reviews in Other Languages
Ask the Community - Mala Town
When will the chicken broth come back?
Are any of the flavors / broth options gluten-free?
Why does Yelp recommend reviews?
318 reviews that are not currently recommended
The reviews below are not factored into the business's overall star rating.
2 years ago
1 year ago
30 days ago
2 years ago
2 years ago
1 year ago
2 years ago
1 year ago
3 months ago
1 year ago
1 year ago
2 years ago
9 months ago
1 year ago
1 year ago
2 years ago
1 month ago
