Dongtan hotpot open till 11pm for solo diners: Lao Chongqing Hotpot

Parenting really stressed me out today. You know those days, ugh. And that's exactly when you need hotpot, haha. Once the kid was down for the night, I took a genuinely weird route to unwind — went to yoga by myself, then went straight for hotpot.

Where is Lao Chongqing Hotpot in Dongtan, and where do you park?

Lao Chongqing Hotpot, a well-known hotpot spot in Dongtan, is located in the Paragon building. Here's the important part: this building is a little confusing to navigate, so make sure you park near the 103-dong commercial/officetel line — once you do, the restaurant is easy to spot right as you head up. I really recommend parking on that side.

It's on the 1st floor of the building.

Open until 11pm: is a 10pm solo meal still relaxed?

Right as I walked in, there was this super cute VIP room with pandas everywhere. They were so adorable I found myself staring for a while, haha. I'd made a reservation ahead of time. What's genuinely great about this hotpot restaurant is how long the hours run — it opens at 5pm and stays open until 11pm. Thanks to that, I could put my kid to bed and still show up around 10pm and eat comfortably and deliciously without feeling rushed.

Just thinking about eating hotpot solo this late already feels stress-relieving. So today I decided to really lean into the mala experience. It's a very comfortable Bansong-dong spot for late-night solo dining.

There were 1+1 and 30%-off deals running on certain broths, so it's worth checking those. The Chengdu mala hongtang (spicy red broth) was 30% off!

Chengdu mala hongtang or Chongqing mala hongtang: which suits spice beginners?

There were two types of hongtang. The Chengdu mala hongtang has that numbing, straightforward spicy flavor, and the spice level can be adjusted. If you're a fan of hongtang broths, this one's recommended. The Chongqing mala hongtang is clean and mild — recommended for hongtang beginners. Since I'm also a beginner, I ordered the Chongqing mala hongtang this time.

Since it was nighttime and I've had a slight cold coming on, I kept it simple: one Chongqing mala hongtang, clear seolleongtang-style broth, the self-serve sauce bar, and just three toppings I actually love! The good thing about solo dining is that I can order only the toppings I really like, keeping the broth clean too. Solo dining is honestly great, haha.

How to order at Lao Chongqing Hotpot, step by step

• Choose two broth types first
• Choose from the sauce bar too
• If choosing just one hotpot broth, check plain water for the other side
• Order the toppings you want
• Make your own dipping sauce at the self-serve sauce bar

Interior and private rooms: does Lao Chongqing Hotpot work for group dinners?

The atmosphere here is exactly what you'd picture for a hotpot restaurant. Overall it doesn't feel too heavy, and with rooms available, it seems like a genuinely good option for family meals or work dinners too. Hotpot has become such a popular go-to these days, so this is a solid Bansong-dong pick if you're looking for a place for group gatherings or work dinners.

The self-serve sauce bar: sesame oil sauce and peanut powder

After ordering the food, first stop is the sauce bar. A wide variety of sauces were prepared there.

The sesame oil sauce here is apparently famous for being delicious. I tried making a combo similar to the also-famous Gunhui sauce, haha. Honestly, making the sauce is half the fun of eating hotpot.

Beyond the well-known sauce combos we all already know, Lao Chongqing Hotpot also offers its own recommended sauce recipes. It's fun to try building one according to your own taste.

So many sauce options were laid out like this. I really love peanut powder, so I loaded up on it today.

Finally, my sauce was complete. Since I'd already ordered a spicy broth, I made sure to keep the sauce itself not too spicy.

A solo hotpot with just bean sprouts, fried tofu skin and meat

After putting in the work on my sauce, the broth had arrived and was already simmering.

My ordered toppings arrived in the meantime too. I went with bean sprouts, fried tofu skin, and meat.

Once the broth had warmed up a bit, I put the vegetables in first.

You wait until it's really boiling like this, then fish out the vegetables to eat first, followed by dropping in the meat.

There are so many ways to eat this, really, so however you like to cook your ingredients works — just cook everything to your taste.

How the Chongqing mala hongtang tasted

I tried the hongtang here first, and it was exactly right! As a serious Dongtan hotpot specialist, the mala flavor here isn't too intense — it's mild and smooth, so beginners like me could enjoy it comfortably. If the spice ever feels like too much, dipping into a milder sauce balances it out nicely and makes it even more delicious.

Now it's time to properly mix the sauce and really dig in.

Fish out the meat, and only cook the fried tofu skin very briefly — it turns soft and floppy faster than you'd expect.

Put the meat on top of the tofu skin, load it up generously with sauce, then dip it into more sauce again. It was genuinely so good ♥

How to make a fried tofu skin meat roll

I also tried something I'd seen on a short video somewhere! Dip the fried tofu skin in the broth for just about 3 seconds until it softens slightly, then put the meat on top and roll it up. You can also add mushrooms or other ingredients inside, but since I was dining solo and didn't order many vegetables, I kept it simple with just this. The tofu skin was bigger than I expected, so splitting one sheet in half to roll two wraps might work well too.

The meat inside might not fully cook right away, so give it a bit more time than you'd think.

Eating it this way, you get the chewy, savory tofu skin and the meat together in one bite — honestly this combo was the best part for me. People usually add shrimp meat on top of this too, but I skipped it since I was already getting full eating solo. Next time I come with family, I'll definitely try that too.

Service, cleanliness and paying with local currency

The staff were genuinely kind, and the food came out quickly. Overall the restaurant was clean, without any greasy feel, which I really liked. Coming here alone after bedtime for a solo meal turned out to be a great little healing routine. Just getting out and having one relaxed meal on my own really melted the stress away.

Lao Chongqing Hotpot, a Bansong-dong spot near Dongtan Buk Plaza, also accepts local currency. Have you all topped up your regional currency yet? There still seems to be some left as an incentive, so be sure to use it for a discount and enjoy your meal. Highly recommend this as a genuine go-to Dongtan hotpot spot for a late-night mood reset!