8 Hot Pot: Time to Go Back to School ... At a Hot Pot Restaurant

If you're like us, then you don't believe summer means you can't have hot pot almost every day. Thankfully, those of us that are already tired of new openings like Coucou and Yijiaren have an alternative: 8 Hot Pot.

Having opened several years ago, 8 Hot Pot has set itself apart from its competition with a special classroom theme. Every night, the restaurant turns into a class, with a “teacher”, and you will be surrounded by “classmates”, who are also customers. No, it’s not a dirty role-playing thing, except for eating and partying with the “teacher”, although we did find a collection of really odd stickers stuck on the desks.

The branch we went to was the one near Deshengmen, with a painting of a boy and a girl saluting on the wall outside, saying “be a wonderful Chinese citizen.” Upon entry, we saw that the usual restaurant tables and chairs were replaced by school desks and wooden chairs, which were complimented by formulas written on the wall. There were also two blackboards, one in the front and the other in the back. A flag hung above the blackboard and the arrogant “teacher” sitting at the table on the platform was the waitress. About 50 people can be seated there. All of those details were authentic enough to make us feel like we'd gone right back in primary school. 

They only provide hot pot, so we sat down and took the paper that the “teacher” gave us. The way to order is similar to taking a test. In fact they put “8 Hot Pot Quiz” on the menu, and everything you order seems to be like a multiple choice quiz (inciting rage in me, and making me want to run away). We chose half tomato and half spicy broth (RMB 38), but the teacher told us that they had run out of tomato broth, so we ordered mushroom instead. There are four levels of spicy broth, so we went for the second level, which was quite fiery. We got basic fare to put in, such as beef (RMB 36), tofu, lotus roots, and spinach.

We also ordered a salad (RMB 16) and mashed potato (RMB 16) as people recommended on Dianping. The mashed potato was a bit weird, with a slight flavor of milk and chicken, and a subtle hint of black pepper. But that's okay, because the food here is not really the point. People come to 8 Hot Pot for the memories, and every night, there’s a “teacher” leading a “class” between 7-10pm. You can also take real tests and get a student ID here (i.e. become a member). At their Xidan branch, there’s an extra math question that you can figure out to get a free ice cream.

They claim to only allow in those born in the 1980s or 1990s, but since they also don’t check ID, so this is more of a gimmick. If you just want to walk in and have hot pot for lunch, there’s no need to make a reservation, but if you would like to take a “class” between 7-10pm in the evening, or just experience what Chinese school is like (all in Chinese obviously and unfortunately), please contact them in advance. 

8 Hot Pot
172 Deshengmen, Xicheng District (6608 8880)
8号苑秘制火锅(80后主题店): 西城区德胜门内大街172号

23 Taipusi Jie, Xicheng District (8880 8900)
8号苑秘制火锅(西单): 西城区太仆寺街23号

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Email: tracywang@thebeijinger.com
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Photos: Tracy Wang, Margaux Schreurs