ZhangLiang Malatang Hot Pot in Jersey City
ZhangLiang Malatang Hot Pot in Jersey City
I really like the concept of hot pot and was really looking forward to try ZhangLiang Malatang in Jersey City. What I did not know is that Malatang is a popular Sichuan street food, where you choose a variety of ingredients like meat, vegetables and noodles, that are then cooked in their kitchen in either a broth or a dry spices mix, that can be quite spicy. Quite interesting as you do not know what you will end up with.
ZhangLiang Malatang in Jersey City
ZhangLiang Malatang in Jersey City
Sauce station at ZhangLiang Malatang in Jersey City
ZhangLiang Malatang in Jersey City
ZhangLiang Malatang in Jersey City
So, first, you grab a bowl and some tongs, and then choose from the various raw ingredients their propose: noodles, vegetables, eggs, meats (I had lamb and beef), etc. You then proceed to the counter where they will weigh the bowl (you pay $15.99 per lb) before you tell them how you want you food to be cooked. It can be in a broth (I tried their classic beef bone broth, while Jodi tried their mushroom one) or with the spicy dry mix that is really spicy and that I liked less, because the mix itself was a bit overpowering. They then give you a number and will disappear in the kitchen for several minutes before coming back with your dish. Et voila!
Beef bone broth soup at ZhangLiang Malatang in Jersey City
Beef bone broth soup at ZhangLiang Malatang in Jersey City
Mushroom broth at ZhangLiang Malatang in Jersey City
Mushroom broth at ZhangLiang Malatang in Jersey City
Spicy dry mix at ZhangLiang Malatang in Jersey City
Vegetarian spicy dry mix at ZhangLiang Malatang in Jersey City
I like the concept that is very similar to Mongolian BBQ: you have no idea what your dish will look like when cooked, adding a bit to the excitement of dining at this sort of places. For sure, it can get a bit out of control when picking the ingredients…As I mentioned before, I prefer the broth as the spicy dry mix, that was really spicy, overpowered the whole dish. Still, this is a fun experience!
Enjoy (I did)!
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ZhangLiang Malatang - 185 Newark Ave, Jersey City, NJ 07302
