Four Seasons Hotpot City is located just next to Movie Stars Cafe, you can't miss the bright lights, huge signage and long lines.
For the main dining area, there were two kinds of tables: (1) tables of 2 sharing 1 yin and yang hotpot and (2) tables of 4 to 6 sharing 1 yin and yang hotpot. I like that the place looked very clean and fresh. It looked like a high-end supermarket except that you are equipped with white trays and plates instead of carts and baskets. I liked the idea of there plant boxes on the dividers, it adds to the fresh vibe of the place. Floor are clean as I can see the staffs wiping the floor spills non-stop.
On the left side are the function rooms which they call VIP rooms. Fortunately, dear cousin booked us for VIP Table 4 and 5 which had a nice window view of the bay. But, what may the VIP tables cool is that we each had our own pot. This is quite convenient for me since I have seafood allergy. It's also more spacious! Believe me, our table is not this clear or organized as soon as we started. I'm not sure though if we had a space problem or a service problem since we found it difficult to call the attention of the servers to remove our empty plates. Some of them would affirm from our calls and then neglect us after. That didn't make us feel like VIPs... I wish they would also orient us on how to use the electric stove. We had to call for assistance to find out the pressing the power button twice would switch it on. Good thing too that it was in Chinese characters so we understood what was low, medium and high. Each table could seat 12 people. We're exactly 24 so we were able to avail of the big group promo and had 2 persons free.
There were various stations all with a large heading on top. I noticed that many don't pay much attention to what's written on the chalk boards though.
Upon being seated, we were asked for our soup broth: Chicken, Pork, Vegetable or Sinigang. You can get a refill but changing broth would be difficult.
Bread Station
The buffet doesn't limit itself to a shabu-shabu buffet. There's a Bread Station which only had a baguette and butter.
Sashimi Station
There are lots of Sashimi and Maki options. For Sashimi, there were Salmon Sashimi (always emptied fast!), Squid, Kani, Tuna and Tamago. Makis include Crunchy Salmon Roll, Futo Maki, Kani Tongga, Pink Maki Roll, Ebi Tempura Roll, Four Seasons Special (this is a must try!) and California Maki.
Sushi
From the Sushi section, I recommend the Spicy Tuna. Other options include: Salmon Sushi, Tuna Sushi, Saba Sushi (I wished they had a Sashimi version of this), Squid Sushi, Tamago Sushi, Kani Sushi and Mango Sushi.
Sushi Bar
Unnoticeable to many, there a sushi bar with a chalk board label of Salmon Sashimi by the cooked dishes and the Fish Station where you can request for fresh slices of Salmon Sashimi.
Salad Station
There's a do-it-yourself salad bar with three choices of dressing: Caesar, Dijon Mustard and Thousand Island.
Appetizer Station
Tofu Station
Not much variety at the Tofu Station so the Noodle Station occupied half the chiller. The Mochi Shio looks enticing in its pink wrapper. We initially thought it was for dessert, but we were informed by the staff that we're supposed to cook it. It's actually just plain mochi and its cooked version tastes like bilo-bilo. If you like the Peanut Balls eaten during Chinese Lantern Festivals like I do, go for the Mochi Shio (Peanut) in brown wrapper.
Noodles Station
Lots of noodle variants. There are usual ones we encounter elsewhere like the Bihon, Shanghai Noodles, Udon Noodles, Hongkong Noodles, Sotanghon (my nephew feasted himself with this!), Korean Noodle, Dried Hofan, Ramen Noodle (the instant type), Shelled Macaroni and Macaroni. I'd suggest trying more of the specialty ones like the Spicy Noodles, Mushroom Noodles (the family loved this!), Carrot Noodles, Polonchay Noodles and Squid Ink Noodles.
Vegeterian Station
The Vegetarian Station has more tofu items than the Tofu Station. Tofu variants here are: Fresh Tofu, Japanese Tofu (We loved this as it's silky and smooth!), Black Tofu (Couldn't tell the difference fro other tofu really...), White Tofu, Brown Tofu and Beancurd Stick. The other interesting stuff I meant were Fried Tao Pao, Water Chestnuts, Guso, Black Fungus, White Fungus and Seaweeds.
Dumplings Station
While I'm not fond of dumplings, I was intrigued by their extensive selection of Beef Balls, Pork Mushroom, Squid Ball, Chicken Ball, Lobster Ball (looked like balls with kani sticks), Chicken Dumplings, Green Beijing Dumplings, Beef Curry Dumpling (A bit spicy and I enjoyed it!), Chili w/ Meat Dumplings, Kuchay Dumpling, Shanghai Meat Dumpling and Beijing Meat Dumpling. I was looking for the Mozzarella Balls raved by many. I spotted Richard of Tales From the Tummy and Abet of the Food Alphabet coincidentally dining there too or rather they were surprised to see a lot of versions of me (my little sisters=p) and figured I was there too. Richard explained to me that it was there during his first visit but it isn't available this time due to supplier problems.
There's more dumplings on another chiller like Shrimp & Scallop Balls, Shrimp Ball, Cuttlefish Noodle, Ebi Shrimp Paste, Squid Paste, Shrimp Egg Dumpling, Shanghai Meat Wanton, Shanghai Dumpling, Hongkong Wanton and Sharkfin Dumpling. Since none of these enticed me, I skipped these for better options.
Pork Station
The Pork Station is one of the most expansive station aside from the Dumpling Station. It includes parts that you usually find in the streets but you can have them here very clean. There's Pork Isaw, Pork Feet, Pork Skin, Pork Tito, Pork Blood, Pork Ear, Pork Lung Tube, Large Intestine, Pork Egg Isaw (This is a first time for me and I liked it!)...
Pork Liver, Pork Slice, Pork Tendon, Pork Intestine and Pig's Kidney. Did they miss any part?
Beef & Chicken Station
There's not much of the Beef Selections as they were limited to the Marinated Beef, Beef Shin, Beef Tito and Beef Tripe which I'd suggest to skip. Chicken selections include: Drunker Chicken and Chicken Liver. There's also Fried Quail Egg which I don't get the point of because you'll be cooking it again...
Sliced Meat Station (Only Available During Dinner and Weekends)
Beef Short Ribs (center), Beef Striploin (right), Pork Jowls (down), Lamb (left) and Pork Belly (up) |
Fresh Seafood Station
I was expecting interesting items from the Seafood Station from the blogs I've read like Baby Squid, Lobster and Frog Legs. But, I guess we weren't as lucky. Selections available during our visit were Fresh Shrimp, Leather Jacket, Sea Mantis, Fresh Alimasag (these were skinny but good thing there's a bigger crab among the cooked dishes), Imelda Head, Clams, Squid Ring, Yellow Eel (Ugh! This had a very very fishy taste even when cooked well), Gindara (later on replaced by Cream Dory), Talakitok (the big center fish) and Mussels. I tried everything here and the Gindara was the only item I found worthy of the stomach space. I somehow wished I grabbed more before they ran out of it.
Vegetable Section
My favorite station is the Vegetable Station because it had my favorite vegetables: Polonchay and Watercrest. And, it also has so many kinds of mushrooms which I'm crazy for like the Golden Mushroom, Straw Mushroom, Oyster Mushroom, Beijing Mushroom and Shitake Mushroom (These were rubbery for some reason). It also includes some add-ons like Sampalok for the Sinigang Broth.
To enhance the broths or create your own dip, there's a lots of condiments and sauces available. They are two stations like this with similar content. You can be adventurous by adding Peanut Butter or go with classic options like Hoisin Sauce, Oyster Sauce and Sate Sauce.
Cooked Station and Tempura Station
Aside from the Steamed Crab, I skipped the rest. As usual in every buffet, the Tempura Station with Ebi Tempura and Vegetable Tempura is popular and quickly emptied. There's also Fried Wanton HK Style, Fried Beancurn Roll and Fried Rice.
Dessert Station
Dessert Selection is similar to its sister company Vikings. It includes Colorful Cakes, Fresh Fruits...
Kakanin, Frozen Yogurt, Chocolate Fondue, Ice Cream and Crepe.
I'm always a fan of their Green Tea Ice Cream.
Drinks are also the same as Vikings but this had an addition of Arizona Iced Tea and Chang Beer (Thailand Brand).
Tsinoy Foodies Verdict
We all had fun with the individual pot but still in the same table together experience that Four Seasons Hotpot City offered. Having tried, several eat-all-you-can shabu-shabu in the past, that was a first-time for us. Quality-wise, I thought it was a good bargain with the Sliced Meat included. Without it, I'd rather pass even at a lesser rate. We're eager to see more they were to offer with their Premium Station (which is still closed at the moment)
Tsinoy Foodies Review Rating | Four Seasons Hot Pot City Buffet Rate | |
Ambiance | ★★★ | Adult Weekday Lunch: 588 plus 5% service charge) = 617.40 Weekday Dinner: 788 plus 5% service charge = 827.40 Weekend Lunch and Dinner/Holiday: 788 plus 5% service charge = 827.40 |
Taste | ★★★ | |
Service | ★★★ | |
Price | ★★★ | |
♥=Favorites or Recommended |
Four Seasons Hot Pot City | |
Business Address | Bldg E., By the Bay, SM Mall of Asia Complex, Pasay City |
Business Hours | Lunch: 11am-2:30pm Dinner: 5:30pm-10pm |
Payment Options | Cash |
Service Charge | 5% |
Budget/Person | 250-500 |
Free WiFi | No |
Unlocked Foursquare Perks | None |
Contact | (02) 831-7777 | 835-7777 |
Other | Website | Facebook Fan Page |