The latest thing in the hotpot world is Snack Hotpot. A red hot hotpot innovation courtesy of one of China's biggest chains, Spice World Hot Pot, the formula goes something like this. Instant noodles, check. Chips, Cheetos, check. Hotpot, CHECK. Chocolate, White Rabbit candies, Lollipops, uhm… check? Let's see how this works out.

Spice World Hot Pot is one of China’s top ten hotpot chains, with multiple overseas branches. It's a trend-setter, a bold hotpot adventurer, fearlessly asking questions like "Can milk tea be hotpot? Should durian hotpot? What if Hello Kitty mala butter?" It's a fad factory. For its latest innovation, Spice World Hot Pot has done a makeover on its checkout counter, turning it into a 90’s snack shack festooned with retro treats. It's 288rmb for two main dishes (I picked beef offal and fish) and four snack boxes. You can choose from stuff like White Rabbit Candy, Mimi Shrimp Flavored Chips, Mylikes Chocolates... everything I ate as a kid. I ordered the double instant noodle pot (one flavor of instant noodles equals one broth). The snacks came out first. I got Cheetos, chips, chocolates and, yes, lollipops, served in metal lunch boxes from my school days. Nostalgia feast.

So How Does It Taste

The instant noodles tasted great, naturally. The chips and Cheetos killed. Hotpot flavored chips dipped in hotpot flavored broth is obviously a winner, and the Cheetos swell up until they're basically soup. I can't stress this enough, do not try hotpot lollipop. It is exactly as bad as it sounds. It's like having your sweet-tooth pulled with a forklift. It is an absolute disaster. Overall, though, better than I thought. If Snackpot has taught me anything, it’s that my future hotpots need instant noodles and chips, and definitely do not need lollipops. Thanks, Snackpot!