Here's another restaurant review through the eyes of my kid. This time, we visit his new favorite restaurant: Little Q Hot Pot on Mass Ave in Arlington, MA. All pictures were taken by my son using my phone (as I sweat bullets while he held my fancy phone over the bubbling cauldron of broth).
6-year-old: First we wait for our food. This restaurant is nice. Because they have a stove connected to where the hole is in the table.
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| Little brother trying to decide if he should launch his car into the 'pit' as we wait for our food. |
6-year-old: First the peanuts and other spicy stuff come. And carrots. They taste good, except for the spicy stuff.
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| Condiments of peanuts and spicy cabbage. Plastic bowls, cups, and spoons are ideal for feisty kids. |
6-year-old: Finally the soup comes and they put it in a little hole in the table. They don’t let it splash on us so we don’t get hurt.
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| Complex and delicious Black Bone Chicken Broth equipped with ladles and basket. |
6-year-old: This is the spring roll and dumplings you can order from the menu. It tastes so good. And we don’t have to cook it – they cook it for us. You can’t cook this in the soup bowl.
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| Large menu includes traditional Chinese appetizers and entrees for those that do not want hot pot. |
6-year-old: You can order meat. It looks like they are ground. They come to the table cold. You have to cook these foods in the soup bowl.
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| Paper-thin cuts of raw pork, chicken and beef. |
6-year-old: You cook it by dropping it inside. And when you think it is ready, you take it out and try it. It is fun cooking the food. Grownups cook it – it is dangerous for kids. But I like to watch.
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| Chinese fondue - cooking chicken in savory broth. |
6-year-old: The vegetables taste good. Some of these are super foods I think.
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| Chinese broccoli, carrots and watercress. |
6-year-old: This is my soup. There are some noodles in it. You can cook the noodles. Kids can drop the noodles in. It is fun touching the noodles!
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| Cellophane noodles with pork, chicken, Chinese broccoli, and carrots in broth. The boy had two helpings. |
6-year-old: If you feel a little sad, like if you were crying and bumped your head, someone that works here can bring you a lollipop. But it is a only for a special treat if you finish your dinner or lunch. I’m not sure if they serve breakfast.
(note from umommy)
In my quest to raise my boys to be adventurous eaters, we dine out a lot as a family. We try to avoid ordering the boys the typical kid fare (chicken fingers and fries for example) whenever possible. We seem to have the best luck introducing our kids to more exciting foods when we go to places that have "family-style" dishes. So what better place to get our kids to be adventurous than Chinese hot pot? Bubbling cauldron of broth set in the middle of your table for cooking raw meats and vegetables. Seconds later you get to fish out your food using chopsticks. Exciting? Yes. Healthy? Yes. Tasty? YES!
