I found a caterpillar in my soup, which honestly just means their veggies are fresh and probably pesticide free! It came from either the spinach or the pea sprouts. I was gonna stomach it and just keep eating my caterpillar soup, but the mental block got to me. They took off the item from the bill, allowed me to get a new bowl, and they discounted my new bowl as well. Not their fault, but they took responsibility, and even though I hate wasting food, they were more than kind enough to accommodate. read more

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Yum! Good thing I read all the reviews first. This was perfect for me and a lot of food. I may have over did it otherwise. My daughter couldn't resist trying everything and her mix dry pot was over two pounds. She took leftovers home. I selected 4 beef rolls, half a tube of soft tofu, two shrimps with the head, two lobster/crab fish balls, two types of mushrooms, baby bok choy, broccoli, and achoy. It came up to 1 pound 4 ounces and I selected the tom yum soup. It was a little salty but delicious and more than enough for one meal. I dipped it in chili sauce for added spice. There was a spice center with different spices, green onions, & sauces. It is one pound minimum for $14.99 lb. I was super full. Next time, I would take half of it home. Service was great. We walked up to sign in and they asked how many and gave us a table. We filled our bowls and someone was sitting at the assigned table. The cashier had someone move them so we were all good. The place is actually clean considering all the different bowls of raw ingredients to choose from. Tables were white with plastic orange/black bowls, chopsticks, and orange plastic spoons. It took less than 10 minutes for our bowls. Everything was hot & heated thru. They also refilled water. Employees weren't overly talkative but they were polite. read more

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Favorite malatang spot, hands down!! More reasonably priced for the quality!! There's never a time that I'm unhappy with the food. I will say that sometimes their broth is a bit spicier than described, so just keep that in mind! You can always spice it up with the sauce bar if it's not spicy enough for you. The service is usually fairly good. It's self serve while you build your bowl of toppings, most of the service is at the beginning then just refilling water and giving you a to go container. It gets pretty busy, so it can be noisy and a bit of a tight squeeze between tables. The wait isn't too bad though because there's a lot of tables! read more

This was my first but definitely not my last malatang experience! It was really amazing, they have a huge range of ingredients even for vegans, including tons of different types of tofu and mushrooms and vegetables. I really liked the tofu sheets and chiba tofu which was really unique, and I think my favorite ingredient overall was the taro. The broth menu clearly indicates which options can be made vegan, I got the tomato soup base which was very flavorful. Service is good, it is mostly self service, you can grab free cups of water, they only really check on you to bring out your bowl and collect payment at the end. Not too expensive, $15 per pound with a 1 pound minimum. Would highly recommend! read more

Zhangliang Malatang - tomato soup vegan malatang - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

it was okay, got the dry mix this time and wasn't really sure how i felt about the sesame in it. probably wouldn't be my first choice for malatang, but it was decent! read more

I recently visited Zhangaliang Malatang for my very first malatang experience, and I'm so glad I went with an expert friend because I would have been completely lost otherwise! I loved the concept of building your own bowl and choosing exactly what you want. I loaded mine up with lots of fish balls, picked dry noodles, and went with spice level 3. It was delicious. The numbing Sichuan spice was just right--enough to make my lips tingle without overwhelming the flavors. read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Dry noodle - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

You have to reach the minimum lb otherwise they make you go back and get more food. Overall it was good & tom yum soup was good! Cheaper price than other places in the area. read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

Delicious! I had the dry mix noodle and it was super salty and tasty, almost too much so. You build your own bowl (the variety of items is super impressive), weigh, pick a broth or topping - and they cook for you! There is a 1 pound minimum which was slightly annoying because I for one, struggle to eat an entire pound of food in one sitting. Plenty of seating inside and outside. The staff were polite. read more

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I went yesterday for what is probably close to my 10th visit to this spot and it hits every time. This is my friends and I's go-to malatang spot because of its proximity to Stanford campus, the really wide variety of items, the fair pricing, and the variety of soup options. The beef here is decent, the vegetables are quite fresh, and the sauce station has all of the essentials. In terms of soup, I think the best one has to be the classic bone soup. You have the option to choose your spice level from 1-10 (not for all soups though). I've been told that I have a high spice tolerance and I usually get 7 here and it isn't really spicy at all. My friends who self proclaim that they have low to very low spice tolerance will at max get level 3, and they say that that is spicy. Service here is pretty minimal since you just grab everything yourself. Once you enter, you are given a table number so pay attention! After you get to the register, you'll weigh your bowl, choose your soup, and be given a bracelet with a number on it. You will be given the bill after you finish eating. It definitely gets busy during dinner time so plan ahead and/or join the waitlist in advance. Overall, Zhangliang is one of the most solid malatang spots in the area and it is always a good time when I come here. read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Classic bone soup level 7 - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

Still a solid decent place for malatang in the area! Condiments and ingredients are great, compared to other spots. My only complaint is that they put the Chinese donut at the very bottom where it was entirely too soggy to eat. Please keep it separate or at least on top for those that choose that option! read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

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We've been obsessed with this malatang (麻辣湯) spot ever since we discovered it about two years ago. I know there are thousands of malatang shops around the world , but this one is still our go-to. There's usually no wait, but the place is almost always full and lively. Like many Chinese-style malatang shops, the price is based on the weight of the ingredients you choose. For me, it usually comes out to around $17-25, depending on how much I put in my bowl. Leftovers can be packed to go. I'm a huge cilantro lover, so I always add a lot to my bowl--and if you ask for chopped cilantro, they'll add extra for free, which I really appreciate. This location is closed on Tuesdays, so we often go to the San Mateo location instead, but my partner thinks this location seems to have a wider variety of ingredients. You can choose the spice level from 1 to 10, and even level 3 is already pretty spicy. read more

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Good option for malatang with lots of ingredients to choose from. I wish they cut up the Napa cabbage thought so it's not one big piece. Soup broth has more peppercorn flavor compared to other places. They get busy so plan ahead read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

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Back again for more malatang. Got the bone broth medium spice. More chili flakes in the soup doesn't make it more spicy...tone it down. Broth temperature could have been hotter. Good selection of toppings as usual. Everyone in my party enjoyed their soup. Everyone except for one young gentleman. Here is his honest review ""Loved the food, the bright clean ambiance, good noise level even at peak lunch hour, and very fast service. However, staff is inadequately trained in guest photography. 3 stars." read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Waiter took our photo... - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

Lots of variety to choose from. Sadly there was tiny fly in mine.... Soup base was so so. Would not recommend going if you are cautious about food safety and sanitation. Super crowded like you'd need to be super skinny to not feel claustrophobic. read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

Busy on a sunday evening, but malatang is perfect when the weather is cold Broccoli is a no go for this, it kind of takes over the mushroom broth taste. read more

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Yummy malatang~ have lots of selection with variety of veggies and meat and noodles and mushrooms! Usually packed during lunch and dinner with quick service. The place is not very spacious and pretty packed all the time so prepared to wait if you are going on the pick hours. read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Malatang medium spicy - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

I way outdid myself here. I came here for the first time with a friend who recommended the place and told me about the self-serve and per pound pricing model. She said if the contents of my bowl didn't equate to a pound, I would be sent back to add more fresh ingredients to my bowl for the dry pot stir fry or soup. Upon entry, I received a large bowl to add uncooked dry pot/hot pot items into and when I saw the selection of ingredients, I started heaping all of my favourite into the bowl. They didn't have a station to weigh my bowl at the food bar, so I didn't know how much I got, and even when I went to the checkout station, I for some reason only saw my friend's item. When my dry pot bowl arrived to my table, it was massive and looked like it could feed a family of 4 in comparison to my friend's very reasonably sized bowl for one person. It wasn't until we got the check at the end of the meal that I was able to see I got 2.82 lbs worth of food, almost triple the weight my friend ordered. Let's just say I have leftovers for probably a day's worth of food, which is great because I love all the flavours and textures. read more

Zhangliang Malatang - dry pot - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

As a vegetarian and spicy food lover I love this place!! I have been here several times and the tastes just hits every time. It's pretty hard to find options in Chinese cuisine as a veg and this place finally sees me. I always get the dry pot and I love how it's so flavorful and not that mala. You can pick however many toppings as you like, my favs are(hotpot noodles, lotus root and bunch of star donut). It's pretty heavy and definitely like a once in a while thing. Cause the dry pot has hella oil but I do think that contributes to the flavor profile. It's mainly self serve, but now they assign you tables and bring out your order to you. Service pretty fast and straightforward. For the best ambiance and taste you should go when it rains or when it's cold, it makes the food taste 10 times better! It's pretty casual and a place you can drop in anytime. read more

Awesome place! Lots of options here for ingredients and the areas are kept clean and organized. The restaurant itself is bright, large and airy. It felt like I was in China bc of the vibes and design. I got the classic bone broth level 10 and loved it but it's pretty spicy, I started coughing but checked myself so I didn't look weak. read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Classic bone level 10 - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

$14.99 a lb, diy ingredients bar. You pick what you want to eat and bring it to the cashier. Let them know what kind of sauce you'd want, and they give you a number and take your bowl and seat you. I picked out lots of veggies and different types of tofu with some low carb shirataki noodles, cooked in dry pot Mala style. The sauce was vegan. The complimentary condiments bar is amazing for additional toppings. They seat you in an organized timely fashion - managing the chaos nicely. Will be back! read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

I love malatang and was excited to try this place! I noticed the prices are a bit more affordable compared to other malatang spots Selection was really good! Me and my friends got malatang with the signature beef bone broth at mild. It might have been a bad day for them but the broth was VERY salty, and overpowering. I would still come back and hope it's better next time! read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Malatang - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

Solid Malatang! Came around 7pm. We joined the waiting list and probably only waited 10 minutes before being told to line up to make our bowls. We asked for the first available table and ended up being seated outdoors. They are busy, and the sauce bar always has a line. They also stored the soup spoons with the sauce bar, which I found a little annoying since it made the crowded corner even more crowded. They have great toppings. The meat section is first and everything is fresh and often replenished. I liked that the filling on their fish balls and beef balls are tasty--quality! Classical Bone Soup is passable; the spice carries it. Good spice, but I prefer Malatown's bone soup more as they have better broth flavor. read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Classical Bone Soup (Mild on bottom, Medium on top) - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

Had dinner here today. You can pick out whatever veggies, tofu, noodles etc you want in a bowl. Then they will make it in the style you prefer. I opted for spicy stir fry. The food was good. It is a high volume and turnover restaurant The service was good and minimal There is no ambiance per se Will come back again read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Stir fry dry pot vegan option - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

Zhangliang is like YGF's crowded but mildly less numbing sibling. Join the waitlist from the Yelp app because you'll have to join in-person anyway. Their vegetable selection is not quite as good as YGF but I think the quality is a little better? I like how they bring it to you so you're not as overwhelmed trying to carry a big bowl of hot malatang. They don't do split bills per table and you're required to at least get a pound worth of food. read more

Zhangliang Malatang - medium spicy bone broth - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

We came at around 7pm and waited maybe 30-45 minutes. I feel like the layout of the restaurant isn't optimal. It was super crowded at the front, and people kept cutting in line. It's a bit frustrating since we trying to check-in, and other groups skip the line to try checking in first. Other than that, the food was good. Good quality meats, veggies, fishcakes and fish balls, and delicious soup! I would come back again, but maybe when it's not so busy. read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

unfortunately i did not have a good experience here and would not recommend this restaurant. the staff are extremely unprofessional and disrespectful at this location. the location in san mateo is much better. each person must have at least 1 pound of food in order to proceed with checkout (totally understandable). when we got to the counter, my bowl did not meet the weight requirement so i had to go back and add to my bowl. immediately, we let the staff know that since my friend's bowl was 1+ pounds that we were going to redistribute the weight and i would add a little bit more to my bowl. despite this comment, they proceeded to take my friend's bowl back to the kitchen any way. when i returned with more food, i was surprised to know that my friend's bowl was no longer at the counter so we could no longer redistribute the weight. i politely explained that as previously mentioned, our intended plan was to to redistribute the weight and the worker proceeded to cross his arms and reaffirmed that it was their policy that each bowl had to be 1+ pound. i then explained that we did not ask for the bowl to be taken back to the kitchen yet and that we told him what our plan was beforehand. he did not seem to care, stopped talking, and continued to cross his arms. eventually, he decided to talk my bowl back due to the growing line. i wish i could say that was the only poor interaction we had with the staff that evening. when we sat down, the food came out within a few minutes. we began eating and about 5 minutes into eating a female worker came by and requested that we return the tag to them. i explained that we did not receive any tags and the lady took her hands and patted her waist requesting that we check again. we both patted our waists and again told her that we did not receive this tag to which she said she would be calling over her manager. being treated like we were stealing or lying over a soup tag was incredibly off-putting. this was a bizarre and accusatory escalation over a mistake the staff made at the counter. the food is good, but with so many other malatang options in the bay area with better service, i will not be returning. this restaurant needs to do better. read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Tom Yum Malatang - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

Solid spot for malatang. The ingredients looked fresh and the sauce bar was clean. You pay after you eat. They came by often to refill the water cups, which was nice. It also wasn't crowded when we came, but that's probably because it was an off-hour. I got the tom yum soup broth and thought it was pretty mild in spice and flavor. I tried my friend's original beef bone broth and thought it was much better, so I would probably get that next time instead! read more

Went on Christmas day and was not too busy! Hit the spot on a rainy day. Toppings were good and the soup was good. Malatang is always something I crave. read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

I came here with a friend on a Friday night, and although there was a fairly long wait, it went by quickly since there's a lot to see around the area. Once we got in, we filled our bowls, which was a fun experience with a great selection of ingredients to choose from. Afterward, we weighed our bowls, and I chose the classic bone soup to go with mine. The bone broth had a great flavor and wasn't too spicy. The interior of the restaurant was nice, although the tables were a bit close together. Overall, the food was great, and it came out quickly. read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

Come here frequently. Good selection of vegetables. Greens could be trimmed cleaner and fresh shiitake mushrooms would be nice. Good selection of condiments plus complementary fresh orange slices, fortune cookies, and gelatin in sweet syrup for dessert. Missing frog legs and more specialized items on last trip. Service is minimal but adequate. Servers are always accommodating and friendly. Place is minimalistic but clean. read more

The mala craving is real. I've been here several times and have always enjoyed it. The staff members are always courteous and helpful. When you enter you are assigned a table (if no available space, you will join waitlist) and can start loading up your bowl. Once done, at the cashier you inform them of how you want your meal to be cooked and you pay by weight ($14.99 per pound). You receive a number for your order and wait at your table. There's a sauce station where you can customize. The wait isnt too long, I want to say 5 minutes. There's a consistent churn of people coming in and leaving. So wait time to dine here isnt too bad. read more

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I really wanted to love this place and it seemed promising. They had so many stuff to choose from that other places don't have like the tempura, fish cakes, and crawfish. I also like that they offer fresh egg noodles not all places offer that. Fixings were great, but the broth was not my favorite there was tang to it and no so much of a beefy flavor. They do offer non spicy since my daughter can't take spicy whatsoever, but to her disappointment it was spicy for her, which I didn't understand since I ordered hers non spicy. It is pretty decent, flavor is not bad, but it's not number 1 in my book! read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Beef bone broth medium TO GO! - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

No wait on a Saturday mid afternoon (2:30pm ish). This establishment is located in downtown Mountain View. There's plenty of parking behind the building. Zhangliang is clean and ingredients are fresh. It has a modern feel for a Malatang place. + Location is key to success and they are centrally located with street and back parking lots (5 stars) + Love their orange accents, clean facilities and sense of style with matching to go bowls (5 stars) + Ingredients such as raw meats, meatballs, vegetables and condiments are freshest compared to all the places I've been to (5 stars) + Although it's self service here, my water was surprisingly refilled just in time as I was sweating bullets from all of the extra chili I added (5 stars) + Bone broth spicy wasn't spicy enough for me and I felt the broth wasn't as rich as others but the rest of my family thought it was great (4 stars) read more

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This is one of my favorite spots for malatang! I've been to this location numerous times over the past year or so and they never disappoint! They have such a great variety of options for their malantang both in the filling option (veggies, meats/seafood, noodles, tofu, etc) + soup/flavoring options! Came here recently on a Wednesday night around 6pm and there was no wait, but the restaurant was still pretty packed! I'd say expect a wait for weekends around lunch/dinner times but generally their service is pretty fast so the wait shouldn't be too bad! They also have a yelp wait list! ~The Food~ You pick out all the ingredients you want in your malatang and then choose what soup/seasoning you want! My personal favorite flavor is their Stir Fried Spicy pot! It has just the right amount spice and packed with flavor! I gave their new Golden Green Sichuan Peppercorn Soup a try and it was pretty good! I personally think it could've had a bit more spice/mala flavor, but I liked that the broth wasn't too oily or heavy. ~Parking~ This location is on Castro St so they have plenty of public parking lots + street parking around! read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Stir Fried Spicy Pot - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

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$14.99 per pound, lot of selection of meat and vegetables. The foodstuffs are all fresh. Line was long on Monday dinner time but the line moved fast. The service is quick and staffs are friendly. I had the dry pot and it's great read more

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Great food! Personally I really like their bone broth. Good selection of ingredients as well.

This place is actually pretty good. I like this version a little better because the soup does not get cold too fast. They have all the offerings as traditional hotpot and they have a double sauce bar so it doensnt get crowded. The mild broth was good and filling, it felts like eating a home cooked meal. It's located downtown and there's plenty of parking in the area. I would come here again if I was in the area. read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

My favorite personal sized hot pot spot in all of the Bay Area! Zhangliang Malatang is one of the only places that still serves Tom Yum soup while still allowing personalization via the ingredients bar. With the price still at $14.99 per a pound, the restaurant has kept their pricing low to similar restaurants. They also offer bottled drinks free on weekdays! I have heard they offer stamp cards for visits in SoCal locations and wish they would bring the concept to the Mountain View location. The Thai Tom Yum soup is spicy but is rich in flavor. There is a slight sour taste accompanied with sweet. Additional flavors can be added from the free sauce bar (garlic, cilantro, green onions, peppers, spices, and sauce) I always find myself coming back here for the unforgettable soup and have been a frequent diner the last few years. Zhangliang Malatang is undoubtedly the best place to eat malatang! read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Tom Yum Soup - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

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Hands down, the best malatang spot in the bay area!! This place is 20 minutes away from us but we'll always make the drive for it! We always get the tom yum soup base and it's soo flavorful and soothing! They have lots of great toppings to choose from! Staff are kind and always walking around to make sure we have water! It can get super busy during lunch time esp on the weekends, so I'd highly recommend putting yourself on the waitlist on Yelp! read more

Zhangliang Malatang - tom yum soup base - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California

The food here is always good, and I always order with my eyes more than with my stomach. It's easy to get carried away here, but this was my first time ordering a bowl weighing 2.1 lbs. I have food for days! The service is definitely a no frills vibe, as expected. Don't expect the friendliest servers here, but you come for the food. I ordered the Tom Yum Broth for my malatang. I would rate this overall a 8/10. I always ask for extra seasoning and flavor and they always deliver. read more

Zhangliang Malatang - Comfort Food Near Me - Mountain View, California