I used to love coming here I would come here very often! Recently I went to have dinner with my family and the waitress embarrassed me in front of everyone and asked me why I didn't leave a tip ( I left it in cash) . I was so disappointed as this is my favorite restaurant. After the waitress saw I didn't leave a tip right away she left upset. We didn't even get to finish our dinner and we left. I will not be coming back, they have lost a loyal customer. read more

It was our first Hotpot experience. So much fun. The food was phenomenal. Looking forward to trying more things on our next visit.

Just be aware they offer huge servings meant to be shared! But very good hot pot - would definitely return.

Potwhale was clean, had a relatively vast selection of ingredients to add to your hotpot. It was also affordable, they give fair portions for the price. read more

The hotpot was so delicious. My friends and me went to here for hotpot every week. The best hotpot restaurant in Tucson. If you want to try real Chinese food, highly recommend this restaurant. read more

Potwhale - a hot pot with various foods on a table - Hot Pot Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

This food is delicious!! One of best meals in a long time. Went with a friend last night and we were blown away. We tried the medium spicy and tomato broth combo with prime beef, pork belly, mushroom combo, greens, handmade noodles and tofu. First, probably ordered too much, but it was amazing!! So deliciously numbing and tasty the combo mushrooms were great and I could have just gone all veggie with tofu it was so flavorful. I really want to go back and try more! Service was good if spotty towards the end of our meal when napkins & some more water would have been nice. They were responsive once prompted and the whole experience was a good one. I'll be back as I have more folks to go with so we can try the whole menu:) including those wing apps. read more

So, if your looking for Chinese takeout, they don't do that here. They do authentic hot pot. You will see lots of Chinese people who are either locals or students at the U of A. The potions are large and don't be surprised if someone comes out to refill your broth if it starts to get low. For the price it is a feast. Bring 4 people. We had lots of leftovers and the next day the soup was spicier than the day before. I should have gone with mild but I typically like spicy so we ordered a medium level of hotness. It was flavorful. We had a yin yang bowl with one vegetarian and one beef pot. There are lots of options. It's easy to order too much. read more

Potwhale - Yingyang pot of hot pot. - Hot Pot Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

See all

Love the house special broth alongside the curry broth. Bring three friends; a party of four is ideal so you can order a bunch of different stuff. You will have more than enough food for about $20 with tip. Their "medium" is on the spicier side. The greens combo and root veg combo are a good value. Service has been inconsistent with the check; once they brought it to the table, the second visit we had to walk up to the counter. They probably switched to the latter FYI in case you find yourself waiting at the table for a while. read more

We visited Potwhale to celebrate my birthday dinner. None in my party had been here before. All I knew was what I'd read on Yelp. The hostess greeted us as we walked in and quickly sat us at a table. At first glance the restaurant appears neat and clean. Picnic style tables and benches are the only seating choice. Each table features an induction stovetop in the center to keep the hotpots at a boil. Each table is given a laminated menu with a dry erase marker to mark your order. The hostess/waitress vaguely explained the menu and ordering procedure. Appetizers are offered but the main event at Potwhale is the hotpot. First you choose between broths and whether you would like one or two selections. The menu has a place to mark you desired level of 'numbing' heat but I'm not sure it matters what you choose. We ordered a 'medium spicy' tomato base and a non spicy broth. If the medium spicy is normally as hot as the one we received I feel sorry for those choosing full heat. I definitely would not like to be around them the following day. After choosing your broth you pick the proteins, noodles, and veggies you wish to cook in the broth 'fondue style'. Our choices included lamb slices, mushrooms, broccoli, squid, crab sticks, noodles and a few others. There's also a small table with 9 ingredients to concoct the sauce of your dreams. This is reminiscent of Mongolian BBQ. The only problem we had was when the waitress bought our food after a short wait and included a plate of tripe which we didn't know we ordered. This was due to a typo on the menu which at firt glance looked like 'beef tips' but actually read 'beef trips.' What they meant to offer was indeed beef tripe. Anyhow she took it back with no argument. Everything was extremely tasty albeit pretty high in spicy heat. By the end of the meal we felt as if we'd just had a good workout. I was sweating and my sinuses were definitely very clear. The one thing I learned is to make sure not to wear dressy clothes as the meal is very splashy and you will end up wearing part of it on your shirt. Pricewise Potwhale is quite reasonable. Most ingredients ran from the $4 - 7 range. Its definitely an experience but may be a bit too adventurous for the timid or less brave eater. I would definitely return here again but wish they had different seating. The picnic benches are definitely hard on those of us with back problems. By the time the check arrived I was standing up at our table as my back was hurting so much. read more

Hot pot virgin here. Think Asian Melting pot. Really really good. Broths (YinYang) were flavorful with depth of flavors. Service crazy slow but in their defense crazy busy. Communal tables in a small strip mall store. Didn't know what we were doing, checked a lot of boxes, are a lot of food! Under $70 for 3 people. read more

See all

I am a huge fan of hotpot, and when I heard that a new place opened up in town, I had to try it! Boyfriend and I went around 7pm on a Monday and it wasn't busy at all. We were seated quickly. The give the table a menu, which uses a dry-erase concept, which I thought was pretty cool. You're able to choose what broth you want, along with meats, veggies, etc. Each item is individually priced, so that does make the meal pricier than others. We chose a 2 broth combo: spicy and special house broth. The spicy broth was ordered at a medium spice level, which I thought was relatively decent. For those who are not big fans of peppercorn (like me), this broth is a good choice. I wasn't able to taste too much of it. The house broth was not too bad. You can take the garlic and ginger right off the bat. Both broths were mildly good, not as flavorful as I would have liked them to be. In terms of ingredients, we ordered: 2 orders of prime brisket, 1 order of pork belly, a choy, enoki mushrooms, fish tofu, fish balls, and handmade noodles. We also ordered one soda and one soy milk. The total came out to about $65 total. Ingredients were fresh and gave a true hotpot-vibe. The had a selection of self serve sauces (which cost extra). These include: fish sauces, bbq sauces, garlic, pepper, green onions, etc. Although they did have a wide variety, these ingredients ran out fast. My boyfriend was also very sad they didn't have ponzu sauce. The food was okay, nothing too special or well flavored. The ambiance was very nice. I loved the table set up with the wooden benches and built in stove tops. Staff was friendly (but sometimes forgot to come fill our water), and the restaurant was clean. Overall, the experience was fairly good, but I wouldn't go out of my way to come here. I might come back here and there to see if anything has changed or if my opinion changes. read more

This was such a fun place. Employees were really nice and answered all of our questions. We had the instant noodles and the handmade noodles with the spicy broth fried rice and crispy pork and it was all delicious. I really wish they had a bigger drink menu and maybe more stuff you can get off the pot, other than that GREAT EXPERIENCE! read more

Potwhale - Hot Pot Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

Omg! Yum. Yum yum. The selection is great. Could be a little more but still a good amount for what you get.

Literally saw this place while at a red light and got overly excited! I had no clue we had a hotpot restaurant in Tucson! It was amazing and now I go often! read more

THEE best hotpot in town! A welcoming and clean environment with quick and friendly service! No matter what broth(s) you order you can't go wrong...and the fried rice is delicious! Me and my friends find ourselves coming here at least once a week! If you want to try a hotpot experience that is as affordable as it it delicious Potwhale is the place to go! read more

Potwhale - Hot Pot Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

The food was awesome. There was a language barrier when ordering but the waitress brought someone over that spoke better English. A little confusing how to order but we soon got the hang of it. Everything was fresh and the broth was flavorful. Next time we will have a better idea how to do it and how much food to order. We easily had enough for 4 people. Very good value for price. read more

See all

The hotpot was taste so good, I like spicy food the most, and potwale definitely is the best hot pot in Tucson

Tucson HotPot Greatest comeback! Fair price with very high quality food! The noodles are very authentic and delicious!! Be sure to let your server know if you can't handle the spice they got that real Asian Spice Level read more

See all

While they are only open for To-go, (patiently waiting for dine-in to open) they are still the BEST! I order from them like 1 a week and they always get my order perfect, and it is still as delicious as it was when we dined in! CALL AND ORDER TO GO and make your hot pot at home! You will not regret it! Hands down my favorite restaurant in Tucson. read more

This is so good! Spend a comfortable dinner with my families. Tables, doorways and even bathrooms are really clean. I really enjoyed the process when you put meat or vegetables one by one. It makes you feel like you are the one who really makes food delicious. I enjoy stay in Potwhale, it reminds me of home. :) read more

Potwhale - hot pot - Hot Pot Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

Yum!!! Been waiting for a place like this in Tucson. Come before this place gets TOO popular and there's a wait in line! read more

Potwhale - Hot Pot Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

See all

Potwhale is finally opened for dine-in and I couldn't be happier. Best hotpot in Tucson! Extensive menu, aNd always love the sauce bar. went two weeks ago and really enjoyed my hotpot. Look forward to visiting again soon! read more

Very nice servers they took time to explain everything to me and everything came out very fast and everything I got was fresh and quality ingredients! I got the split base with the house beef soup and the medium spicy almost places I can get the spiciest option and not have a problem but this place delivers on the spice in the best possible way very spicy but still enjoyable and the Sichuan peppercorns went great in it! Will definitely be coming back read more

Potwhale - Split soup with beef broth meat balls,prime beef , tripe, dumplings and squid - Hot Pot Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

The flavours are eye-poppingly gorgeous, the food is fresh, the restaurant is clean, the service is courteous. So glad we have a great hot pot place in Tucson. My partner and I always get the yin-yang bowl so we can enjoy two different flavours of broth. I prefer the medium-spicy, which is absolutely plenty spicy even for a Sichuan-food fan like me, and my partner likes the house beef broth best. Standouts among the fresh ingredients include the thinly sliced beef, the lamb, the pork belly, the greens combo, the mushroom combo, and the housemade noodles- which, coincidentally, are PERFECT for soaking up the last remaining bits of sauce left in your sauce-bar bowl. On that note, definitely spring $1.50 per person for the sauce bar. It's a mistake not to. A must-eat here in town. Seemingly against all odds, Tucson's food scene has produced another gem on First Avenue. read more

Best hotpot ever! Pre-covid I came here every weekend and even during covid I would make the drive to do takeout and cook at home. Nothing beats Potwhale hotpot! Its the best! I love the spicy flavor but can only handle mild. I love the veggies and noodles to eat with it and even add rice cakes. Recommend everyone try Potwhale and be patient as they survived the pandemic and are trying to make a comeback! Will eat there every weekend when they open in person again! read more

I've never had hotpot before today, so I don't have any previous experience to compare to this place, but I loved it! We were a little confused at first because we didn't understand what to do exactly, but it was still a good experience, and between 3 of us we had more than enough food for only $30 including tax and the chrysanthemum tea. The tomato base is incredibly flavorful, and what we didn't use up, we got to take home. We got the prime beef, Vegetable Combo 2 with spinach, bok choy, and cabbage, and the handmade noodles. The noodles were perfect, and everything really went well together- we'll be back soon! read more

Love this place, great variety to order, the soup bases are delicious, they have a great selection of ingredients for your self serve sauce as well! Feels like homemade hotpot without all the work of prepping! read more

I am from China. When I got this hot pot, I am sure this is the most unpalatable hot pot I have ever eaten at Tucson. I can't even believe that there are so many people to eat. If you really want to eat hot pot, I recommend everyone to go to Phoenix's Yu Tian Xia, Yu Tian Xia is much more delicious than this. read more

I go here at least 5 times a month. favorite restaurant in Tucson hands down. Staff is friendly and the quality of the ingredients is great as well. read more

my favourite hotpot ‍ super authentic and they have every option you could possibly want. my friends ans i used to go really often, i miss it read more

We have been twice and it's been great both times! The seating isn't very comfortable but the food is fresh. The soup broth is tasty, meat is super thinly sliced, and service is actually good :) Highly recommend checking this place out! read more

First time ever trying hot pot and this place got me HOOKED! For a newer establishment, I was quite impressed. The place was packed with people, which is always a good first impression. I dined with my family and we requested our own table at the front. The waiter quickly cleaned a table for us and handed us the menus. It was all of our first experience with hot pot so we were a little eager to try everything. We ordered the ying yang pot with both spicy and regular broths. We ordered just about everything to go in it. Tofu, lamb, beef, shrimp, mixed mushrooms, all sorts of veggies, meatballs, rice, mixed greens. The only thing we didn't like were the over-processed meatballs. They aren't your typical meatballs. They had a weird texture and left a strange residue in the pot. Everything else was great. The spicy broth was in fact SPICY but exactly what I was craving. The sauce bar where you create your own sauce was very interesting and it was fun to experiment with. The service lagged a little bit only because they had two servers and were busy. Recommend this new spot for hot pot! read more

Potwhale - Ying Yang pot with mix-in ingredients - Hot Pot Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

First time coming and it was amazing! I loved the tomato base with beef and noodle! The ingredients were fresh at the sauce bar! The staff is friendly and helpful! Will be back for more! read more

Ok so the food was great!! Actually borderline amazing but since they were so busy and i blame that on foodie tucson which ain't a bad thing because its good everyone knows about this place but , service was lacking! They were so busy and seemed like they were stressed! Once we were seated we waited quit some time for our menus and drinks but come to find out you get your own drink? Who know! They also have this sauce station that you paid $1.50 for cheap yes but most of it was out again to them being so busy!!!! The meat was sliced super thin and the vegetables were fresh the broth was amazing and flavorful. Give this place sometime and i really think its going to do very well! If they were not so busy this place would be a 10 out of a 10 read more

First time trying a hot pot restaurant and we loved it! The medium broth is definitely hotter than you would think. The prime beef and lamb combo was delicious. The server was super patient and explained how everything worked to us first timers. Great spot will be back! read more

Potwhale - Hot Pot Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

We found out they have recently accepted dine-in again. We came for the hot pot and wow it didn't disappoint. The broths, meats, and seafood tasted amazing just like those hot pot places where we usually eat at in cali and texas. My personal favorite aside from the usual spicy broth is the house special beef. It really blew me away with the richness of the beef stock and how it is complementing the meats and veggies really well. We will surely be back for our next food adventure when the weather gets a little bit more chilly. :D read more

Nice, loud, lively environment with diversity. It was my first hotpot and I really enjoyed it. There's a large selection of meats and some vegetarian options. Very fast service and clean place. read more

OMGGGG this place is AMAZING!!! We went here on Saturday night and it was delicious. Perfect amount of people and the atmosphere was just right. We will definitely be back to try more. read more

Four of us popped in on a Thursday night around 8. We make hot pot at home but wanted to try this place. I am so happy we did. Days later and I am still thinking about it! The service was so kind and the food is fresh and delicious. It was a little spicier than we bargained for (ordered medium spicy broth), but we combined a couple broths and it was perfect. The fried steam buns are a sweet treat for the end of the meal. The price for four is absolutely fantastic and we will for sure be coming back. Thank you, Potwhale! read more

This is my go to weekend meal every week! I look forward to enjoying fresh ingredients with the perfect spicy soup base. Hands down my favorite hot pot place in Arizona, 10/10 would recommend! read more