Tucked away upstairs on Cambridge St in Box Hill Dainty Sichaun has been open for quite some time now. I had been pestering Mr Curious to let us try out Dainty Sichuan after he went with work colleagues and came back smelling of delicious sichaun peppers and chicken soup. However, hotpot with two people is not as fun and it also results in a limited menu selection.
After rounding up a large group of us, we happened to book on what must have been Melbourne's coldest day in April. The thought of having hotpot, sichuan peppers and cosy-ing up with friends seemed more and more appealing as dinner came nearer. Each person has their own individual hotpot and mini induction stove top, so if you are a germ-a-phobe or would prefer a different soup to everyone else, this hotpot place is the one for you!
Our eyes must have been larger than our stomachs that night, as we may just have ordered a few plates too many. Their menu is filled with pictures of their items on offer, and for once, the dishes pretty much come out looking like the picture in the menu. There are sections for soup, meat, fish, vegetables and so on.
There are also chili indicators next to each dish representing their spice level. If you don't eat chili, one chili level may just be one chili too hot. Some of our seasoned chili eating friends found the basic spicy soup base too hot already, so you have been warned non-spicy-food eaters, stick to the basic soups. Soups can be selected as a single soup base which arrives in a single pot, or a half-half soup pot with two different soups in each half. You order as I call it "Asia-style" by selecting how many of each item on a white piece of paper, very easy to over order.
After hearing that the chicken-abalone soup base (~$16) was pretty good, I went with that, and boy was I not disappointed! With a mini abalone at the bottom and unlimited soup refills a bonus. The other half was the spicy sichaun soup which I found to have quite some punch to it, rather than cooking my food in the spicy side, I preferred to dip the pieces into the pot for sichaun flavour instead.
If you go for the mushroom combo it is a pretty big dish, and if you also select the vegetable combo, there are a small selection of mushrooms and rice cakes in there too! We had more plates than the table could accommodate, but have no fear, they have a solution for that. A mini bar cart for all those extra dishes that don't fit. That icecream sundae looking thing is actually calamari paste (almost like a giant fish ball, that you can spoon into your pot), it's not a fancy sorbet unfortunately.
Hotpot is one of those meals that is best to enjoy with friends as you can order many more dishes than with just a few people alone. Dainty Sichuan in Box Hill is well set up for large groups of ~8 and have a wide selection of food that is of a decent quality. I'm currently salivating thinking of that sichaun soup smell, will be back for more as the depths of winter come upon us!
Dainty Sichuan Box Hill
Level 1
2A Cambridge St
Box Hill, VIC 3128
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