Hot Kitchen

Yay! I found a decent Szechuan restaurant in NYC! I must admit I have yet to visit Flushing which is a shame but I will definitely put that at the top of my priority list next semester. Hot Kitchen is located in the East Village and I heard from T that it opened in the east side in the 50s also! I first went for a group halloween dinner and went again with a smaller group because I really enjoyed it! The xiao long baos are no ding tai fung but they are still rather tasty and juicy. I always wanted to have the hotpot here but I did not know that you had to specify when you made the booking so I was quite disappointed when I arrived and they said I could not have my hot pot. T is going to try it out in the upcoming days so I hope that she will like it also :)

Xiao Long Bao with Crab Roe
The flavor of the crab roe is not what you would get in Hong Kong but you need to come here with certain expectations when you order crab roe items. The skin is also a little bit thick but not too bad at all. The meat is flavorful and juicy and overall this was yummy and I would order it again. 

Ox Tongue and Tripe with Spicy Peppery Sauce
This is a Szechuan classic and was made very well here. The tripe and pieces of tongue were cut to the just the right thickness and I loved the texture. The spicy sauce was also bursting with flavor and spicy enough. Would order again!  

Fresh Killed Fish in Spicy Broth
I actually ordered water cooked fish (水煮魚) and was given this. This was not what I ordered but it was actually really yummy so I did not really mind the mistake. The sauce was thick, spicy, and slightly sweet. The fish filets were also tender and thick enough to hold up to the robust sauce. This went so well with a bowl of white rice. The addition of scallions and garlic was also delicious! 

Sliced Beef in Spicy Broth 
This was quite well done but nothing out of the ordinary. I must prefer water cooked fish but this was certainly not bad either.

I will definitely be coming back to Hot Kitchen whenever I have a spicy craving and I will ensure that I try the hotpot next time! 

Hot Kitchen

104 2nd Avenue

Between 6th and 7th Street

New York

NY 10003