Hot pot showdown at trio of German places is an adventure in taste as well as totals

Always a sucker for targeted social media marketing, especially when I’m hungry, I recently followed a Facebook ad on a quest to discover the best Chinese hot pot restaurant in my neck of the woods.  

Initially lured by an all-you-can-eat special at a joint outside Frankfurt, I quickly discovered two restaurants in Wiesbaden and Mainz that had opened within the past few months.  

Inspired and committed to the cause, I made a plan and set out as judge, jury and executioner for my impromptu mid-August battle of boiled meats, noodles and vegetables. 

Kylin Malatang

Nestled in the heart of downtown Wiesbaden near the RheinMain Congress Center and Museum Wiesbaden, Kylin Malatang is a no-fuss establishment with nearly endless options.  

Upon entering, I was greeted with a stack of giant bowls and three large coolers offering around 60 ingredients that I was free to load up on.   

While the restaurant isn’t all-you-can-eat in a traditional sense, it’s easy to get more than your fill in one go. Signs reminded me the price was 2.39 euros per 100 grams with a minimum order of 400 grams, or just under a pound.

I quickly lost track of how many items and how much weight I was throwing into my bowl as I constructed a mountain of beef, shrimp, chicken, pork and at least a dozen different vegetables. Since I consider myself a fairly fun guy, I especially appreciated the six varieties of mushrooms on offer. 

At the counter, I chose the traditional spicy soup base, handed over my bowl to be weighed and cooked, and paid. You don’t get the standard do-it-yourself cooking experience at your table, but the service was fast and friendly.  

My food was ready for pickup in about 10 minutes. I stopped by the small condiment bar just outside the seating area to grab some minced garlic, peanut sauce, cilantro and extra chilies to round out the meal.   

I was pleasantly surprised by how spicy the broth was, but other than heat and salt, I can’t say it had much flavor. The meats were cooked well but still tender and tasty, while the vegetables retained a nice texture without becoming mushy.  

I’d pass on the frozen meat and shrimp balls and the duck breast if I visited again. While they tasted fine, the texture was a bit off, and cutting them out would have probably saved me a considerable amount of weight. 

Try as I might, I couldn’t finish the giant bowl in front of me, but I left more than satisfied, if also a little thirsty from the abundance of sodium.  

Kylin Hotpot

The next evening, I stopped by the place that originally caught my eye.

Kylin Hotpot, about 30 minutes from Wiesbaden, caters to both large and small groups. The all-you-can-eat flat rate also includes a separate buffet with additional sides and desserts.  

I immediately noticed the thematic interior, with a large pagoda serving as a focal point in the dining room, as I was guided to my seat. 

I was handed a tablet loaded with over 70 items to choose from but was limited to about 10 per order every 10 minutes.   

I appreciated the individual-size hot pot broth bases and ultimately settled on the spicy plant oil base, though the spicy beef fat base was tempting. 

The ingredients were very similar to those at Kylin Malatang in Wiesbaden, also including a variety of mushrooms, but overall appeared to be a bit higher quality. 

There were also a few more exotic items available for an extra charge, including frog legs, duck blood and A5 wagyu, the highest quality and yield grade given to Japanese beef. 

I can be an adventurous eater at times, but I kept it relatively simple, sticking to fresh, unfrozen items and passing on the extra 10 euros for a side of wagyu after some internal struggle.  

I stopped by the buffet after placing my first order and grabbed some kimchi, fried rice and spring rolls while I waited for the main feast. 

Plate after plate quickly arrived, and I got just as much enjoyment from debating which combination of ingredients to throw in the pot as I did from eating them. 

The broth lacked spiciness compared with the heat of the previous day’s, but it more than made up for it in flavor and aroma. A lot of the spice came from a heavy inclusion of peppercorn, which nearly numbed my mouth at times.  

I tapped out after four rounds but made sure I had room for a few scoops of ice cream, which was also available at the buffet. 

I was amused by the feline robot butler that made its way to other tables, delivering food and drinks and collecting empty dishes, though I wasn’t fortunate enough to receive a visit and interacted with only humans during my stay. 

I had no complaints with the 30-euro flat rate and left bursting at the seams after an entertaining meal.        

Lafondue Hotpot

A couple of days later, I dropped into Lafondue, which shares space with Osakii Pan Asian Restaurant at the Scheck-in Center, just off the A60 in Mainz.  

I was initially confused by the layout since there was only one main entrance, and a little miscommunication with the staff had me sitting on the Osakii side of the venue before I eventually made my way to the hot pot dining room. 

Lafondue also has a digital ordering system like Kylin’s, but I was instructed to scan a QR code with my phone to access the menu instead of being provided an in-house device.  

Thankfully, I was able to access the free Wi-Fi from the nearby Edeka supermarket because my cell signal was weak and could have easily put a stop to my meal before it began.  

Each item was priced individually, including the hot pot base, which ran about 12 euros on its own. I don’t remember counting the number of ingredients, but it felt like there were slightly fewer on offer than at the two previous contenders.  

Items ranged from around 4 euros for vegetables to 8-10 euros for meat selections, topping out at 238 euros for a kilogram of king crab legs.  

Lafondue’s A5 wagyu slices rang up at 78 euros, and I regretted not opting for the less expensive version during my visit to Kylin. 

A condiment bar similar to those at the other two restaurants was also available, but for a small additional surcharge.  

I certainly felt limited by my budget as a single diner and ordered only one variety of mushroom, some chili-marinated beef, chicken, pork and noodles.  

To be fair, the portions were significantly larger and obviously designed for a group of people. The hot pot base was huge and split between a spicy broth and a milder beef-and-chicken stock. 

Combined, the two bases were by far the best of the three restaurants’. I even had a couple of small bowls of just the broth after I had finished my meal. 

The food was high-quality and enjoyable, and the house-made lemonade was very refreshing, but overall, I felt like I got less at a significantly higher price than at my two previous hot pot outings.  

It may have been a blessing in disguise, though, as I’m sure gorging on hot pot three times in five days did a number on my sodium levels and maybe a bit to my waistline. 

I’m sure I could have enjoyed a wider variety at a more comfortable price point with a larger group to split the bill, but I would certainly never return to Lafondue as a solo diner. 

Verdict

You can’t really go wrong choosing any of the three for a good meal, as each offers a distinct take on traditionally communal dining. However, the two Kylins clearly stood above Lafondue during my excursions.  

Overall, Kylin Hotpot in Dreieich takes the crown. It’s hard to compete with all-you-can-eat ice cream and a kitty cat robot helper! 

That said, Kylin Malatang is likely the only place I’d visit again in the few months I have left in the region, especially as a solo diner, if for no other reason than the restaurant’s flexible structure and proximity to my home. 

Kylin Malatang Wiesbaden

Address: Rheinstrasse 27, Wiesbaden

Hours: Noon-10 p.m. daily 

Prices: 20-30 euros per person

Information: +49 611-8804-9280, www.instagram.com/kylin_malatang/ 

Kylin Hotpot

Address: Robert Bosch Strasse 28, Dreieich 

Hours: 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. and 5:00-10:30 p.m. daily

Prices: All-you-can-eat hot pot 29.90 euros per person, excluding drinks 

Information: +49 610-3310-9635, www.kylin-hotpot.de/ 

Lafondue Hotpot 

Address: Weberstrasse 15, Mainz

Hours: 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m. and 5:30-10:30 p.m. daily

Prices: 40-plus euros per person depending on group size

Phone: +49 613-1880-5599, www.lafondue-mainz.de/