It’s still winter here in Vancouver and it’s always the best time to hit up my favourite spots for soup and stews. I”m a creature of habit and I have these places I always go to for a comforting meal. I know I say Vancouver, but none of these are in the City of Vancouver. These are located in the Greater Vancouver Area. We good?
There are so many places to go for hotpot in the Lower Mainland but Yuan’s was my first introduction to skewered hotpot. Their tomato broth is my favourite and I just fell in love with this place right away and have been coming back often even in the summer months.
They offer skewers that usually start at $0.99 or you could also choose a plate of the items, but it’s great if you want to portion your orders.
Apart from the hotpot, I love ordering their ala carte dishes like their noodle soup with meat sauce and deep fried buns with condensed milk. I also really like their plum juice. They give you an ipad where you choose your broth and skewers.
Where: Aberdeen Centre, Richmond BC
Cost: For two people the average cost usually goes between $35-$50 excluding tax.
Grandma Liu’s is my favourite go-to for individual hotpot that’s pay-per-weight while far from the maddening crowd. Sure it can get busy, but I often go during non-peak hours and I always see people having solo hotpot. I love their Kingsway location because it’s compact and cozy. You also get a free drink and icecream, like most hotpot places. When I started going, they only had one kind of broth but these days it seems they’ve expanded their selection.
If it’s your first time, it can be intimidating because while the service is friendly, it’s also barely there. Unlike some spots where the servers guide you, you basically walk in, grab a pot and a tong and start picking out your choices. They’ll deliver your meal after it’s weighed and cooked but you’re on your own when it comes to grabbing your utensils and as far as my memory serves me, there’s also no sauce bar.
While not as popular as other spots, this is the place I always go to when I’m on my own and craving for some hot, spicy soup and quiet time.
Where: Kingsway, Burnaby
Cost: Pay-per weight, depending on my appetite I can average between $17-30
Happy Valley Village Restaurant
The moment you enter Happy Valley Village, it feels like you’ve been transported to a rural Chinese village, complete with a wedding palanquin.
They serve Northeastern Chinese cuisine in iron pots. We all pretty much relied on our friend to order but the food was just so good, and we had so much leftover. We chose pork as our protein, picked a variety of vegetables and added corn bread.
Tea was served in a thermos reminiscent of the ones we had growing up in Asia. The servers then proceed to bring all these ingredients into the pot while it cooks in front of you.
I’ve had the fish and pork stew. Both were delicious but I loved the pork stew most because it tasted familiar to me.
Where: Richmond, BC
Cost: $40-$60 per person
An underrated local gem and a true neighbourhood favourite. I have been coming to this restaurant since I moved back in 2019 and their dishes are consistently so good. Among all the Korean restaurants I order online from, their gamjatang (pork bone stew) is my favourite. I also love their soft tofu stew and grilled mackerel combo
Where: Burnaby, Kingsway
Cost: $20-$25
Soft City Life 
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