Chongqing Hotpot Chain Which Counts Carina Lau & Anita Yuen As Customers Opening In S’pore

Spicy hotpot, typically anchored by beef tallow, numbing chillies and peppercorns among other ingredients, is a staple dish in the city of Chongqing in Sichuan Province. It’s often served in a pot that’s thoughtfully sectioned into nine compartments for neater communal dining.

The Putien towkay’s numerous visits to Chongqing sampling “countless hotpot restaurants” led to the birth of Uncle Fong Hotpot Restaurant, which opened its first outlet at Causeway Bay, Hong Kong in 2016.

According to the press release, the flagship outlet attracted “demanding queues among locals and celebrities alike for its authentic Chongqing-style hotpot”. Just who are these HK celebs? Veteran actress Carina Lau (far left), singer/actor Julian Cheung Chilam (far right) and his movie star wife, Anita Yuen (centre). The brand’s PR rep told us these stars “have popped by [the eatery] more than once”.

The sleek diner comes with contemporary wooden furniture and natural stone dividers set against backlit ceilings and walls.

There’s plenty of room for smaller groups of two to six and there’s also a single private room for larger parties of eight.

Uncle Fong Hotpot Restaurant’s signature Chongqing-style soup base consists of five main ingredients: “Chongqing shizhuhong chilli, Sichuan Hanyuan pepper, refined high quality beef tallow, Sichuan Pixian bean paste and Yunnan yellow ginger”.

Non-spicy soup options include Pork Bone Broth, Tomato Broth and one curated for Singaporean tastes – Fruit and Vegetable Soup, which is described as “light with a mild sweetness, refreshing in our tropical climate”.

Diners can opt for the signature Chongqing-style soup in the pot with nine compartments (for easier sectioning of ingredients among groups), or mix-and-match two soup bases with a dual hotpot. All soup bases are charged at a flat rate of $7 per pax.

Fresh meat and offal to swish in your soup include US Prime Beef Short Ribs ($21.50), Fresh Ox Liver ($8.50) and Pig Throat ($9.50). There’s also seafood, vegetables and other ingredients like Ebiko Prawn Paste ($8.50), Coral Mussels (red sea cucumber intestines; $19.50) and Putien Soft Beancurd ($3.50).

Uncle Fong Hotpot Restaurant opens April 26 at #B1-108/109, Great World, 1 Kim Seng Promenade, S237994. Tel: 6232-7800. Open Sun – Thu, 11.30am – 11pm; Fri & Sat, 11.30am – midnight. More info via Facebook and Instagram.

Photos: Uncle Fong Hotpot Restaurant, HK01, PBE Media

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