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Schenectady County eatery Volcano Asian BBQ and Hot Pot, located in Niskayuna at 2309 Nott Street, held its soft opening on Thursday, Aug. 3.
“Get ready to ignite your taste buds and embrace the sizzle and simmer of VOLCANO Asian BBQ and Hot Pot!” the company said on Facebook.
Under the direction of owner Briana Lin, the restaurant offers up a unique “hot pot” dining experience in which customers prepare their own meals right at their table. Think fondue but with broth instead of cheese or chocolate.
The first step is picking your soup base; diners can choose from tomato, herbs, Sichuan spicy, miso, tom yum, mushroom, or original chicken and pork bone broth.
After that, it’s time for the meats, noodles, and veggies. Among the dozens of flavor combinations are sliced pork belly, calamari, lobster balls, mushrooms, and sweet corn.
It all comes together in a big pot of simmering broth in the middle of the table, with each diner preparing their own dish. Food is then dipped into a variety of sauces.
“When eating hotpot, choosing the right sauces is the key,” reads a post on its Facebook page. “A little dip of sauce will have a different flavor once you taste it.”
Typical hot pot dipping sauces include garlic sesame, spicy chili garlic, and Taiwanese Shacha, made from soybean oil, garlic, shallots, chilies, and dried shrimp.
Volcano Asian BBQ has already earned high praise days into business, including from one Yelp user who proclaimed it the best soft opening they’d ever attended.
“The food, service and interior were amazing!” Debbie A., of Schenectady, wrote on Yelp. “HUGE sauce and condiment bar along with spices/powdered broth, oranges, watermelon, honeydew, kimchi, seaweed salad.”
Another diner was equally impressed after attending the soft opening with her boyfriend.
“The waitress was amazing with helping us order since it was our first time,” Tammy T., of Albany, wrote on Yelp. “The food was outstanding! So fresh and it keeps coming. The price was reasonable for the portions.”
Volcano Asian BBQ and Hot Pot is open daily. Find out more on its website.
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