I now have been to One Pot on Coventry several times, twice for lunch and once for dinner; also I got to try both the Korean BBQ and the Hot Pot options. One Pot is excellent, the food is high quality, the decor is exceptional and the experience is all kinds of fun. Prices are reasonable, $20 at lunch and $30 at dinner for all you can eat. Service is great, the food comes out quickly and they pay attention to the little things, clearing extra dishes, replacing the grill cover, refilling the fluid in the hot pot.
If you haven't done this before the food comes out raw and you cook it yourself at the table either on the grill in the center of the table or in the boiling pot in front of you. Cooking the food can have a bit of a learning curve and different food can be easier or harder to get right, but even so most of the food comes out great. Some of the proteins come out premarinated, others can be enhanced with the sauces, oils and seasonings at the back bar area.
The protein choices include meats, chicken and seafood, there are a nice variety of vegetables, rice and in the hot pot noodles and various dumplings.
I really need to call out the decor; One Pot has a great Korean pop art style that is amazing. My friend Dan did a trip to Korea this spring and he said that it really reminded him of being in Korean.
If you want to have a great high protein meal that is fun and a bit of an adventure I would highly recommend giving One Pot a try.
Previous review: I finally got to try One Pot for a Friday lunch and boy did I enjoy myself. One Pot is located in Coventry Village in a free standing building next to the parking garage. From the outside One Pot looks upscale and conservative, that changes as soon as you walk in the door, the front alcove has a giant silver spaceman and multicolor bears plus plenty of chrome. Inside you get even more of the Pop art bears along with other great décor touches; this would be a great stop before or after going to the Murakami exhibit at the Art Museum. One Pot offers a choice of either all you can eat Korean BBQ or Hot Pot. The menu is clear and allows you to choose what you want with pictures to assist.
I choose the BBQ even though I was a bit limited with only the fish, seafood and vegetables. The tables are all set up with receptacles for the hot pots in front of each seat and a grill in the middle of the table. Ordering was easy and they also have QR codes that allow you to order directly on your phone. The food comes out incredibly quickly, of course no cooking is necessary to slow things down. The grill on my table took a bit of time to get heated up, but once it did I was ready to go.
The actual cooking is fun and easy, you place your food on the grill, keep an eye on it, flip it over and when ready you take it off and eat the fresh, hot food. I stuck mainly to the proteins: garlic shrimp, giant shrimp, spicy calamari, spicy fish and mussels. I did also get some eggplant, oyster mushrooms, sweet potato and white rice. There are a couple of little buffets with sauces, toppings, kim chi and some daikon and jalapenos. I went through quite a bit of shrimp, calamari and fish all of which were great. Among the best were the garlic shrimp, the spicy calamari, the jumbo shrimp, eggplant and mushroom. A couple of things to note, the giant shrimp were excellent, but they do come still in the shell and with the head on, not a big deal for me, but some people could be grossed out; I could not get the sweet potato to cook properly on the grill, just a bit disappointing. As a Korean place I was also a bit disappointed that the banchan (side dish) selection was so limited, but that is just nit picking.
I do have to shout out the service, it was attentive and helpful, without being rushed. One Pot is a great experience and it is great to go to an AYCE place and have delicious high-quality food yet still not feeling overstuffed. The décor is outstanding, the menu is clear and concise. Despite the grills in the table I never felt overheated or had any issue with smoke from the food cooking. Really well thought out all the way around. While not inexpensive One Pot is a good value for what you get. I will be going back both to try the hot pot selection and to do the Korean BBQ again. This is your place on the East Side if you want some great Korean BBQ or just feel like protein loading. Get yourself to Coventry and enjoy. read more