"Wan Ke Shi Guo," located on Section 2, Qinghai Road in Taichung, is a highly regarded hot pot restaurant with branches all over Taiwan. I actually came here based on a friend's recommendation, who said their braised pork rice is delicious, rather than being attracted by the hot pot 😆.

The quality of the meat is above average, especially the slices used in the hot pot, which are fresh, tender, and have a good chew. Coupled with their broth, the overall flavor is significantly enhanced. Although the portion of meat slices is slightly small, the quality makes up for it.

The ice cream selection is quite unconventional, with some unique flavors like lychee oolong that are worth trying. Having dessert after the hot pot is a perfect way to end the meal. In terms of vegetables, the cabbage could be better; even after cooking for a long time, it remains somewhat tough. I suspect they use frozen imported varieties.

The key dish, braised pork rice, uses a balanced mix of fatty and lean meat, with a focus on the fatty part. However, the fatty meat is elastic and does not feel overly greasy, with a bit of chewiness. The braised pork rice has a hint of sweetness, with the savory flavor being less pronounced—it's not the kind of heavy soy sauce-flavored braised pork rice, but it is quite unique and not at all greasy. Especially when paired with sesame oil bombs, the flavors of both complement each other well, making you want to take bite after bite and share it with friends.

Overall, "Wan Ke Shi Guo" not only has satisfying hot pot broth and meat, but its desserts and braised pork rice are also quite distinctive, making it a restaurant worth revisiting.

The shochu chicken pot is really highly recommended!

Most of the reasons why restaurants are recommended are delicious, cheap, large portions, and easy to take pictures. If one of the four items is met, it is very good. And Wanke Shiguo meets all four criteria!

At a price of more than 300 per pot, you can have shochu chicken, which is really cheap in terms of prices in 2024. Soju chicken is cooked with a whole bottle of rice wine. During the cooking process, the clerk will light a fire on the wine to burn off the alcohol, leaving behind the sweetness and aroma of the rice wine. It is visually shocking and suitable for taking photos and videos. In addition, the clerk will add a spoonful of stock, sesame oil, ginger slices and Chinese medicinal materials to the pot. The more the soup is cooked, the more fragrant and richer the flavor becomes. I originally prepared seasonings, but they were completely useless. The soup itself is quite flavorful. There is a slight deduction for the local chicken. Maybe I didn’t cook it long enough and the meat was not tender enough. It is recommended to save it until the end. On the one hand, the meat becomes soft and tender, and on the other hand, the chicken is released into the soup. The soup will be More fragrant. As a side dish, I recommend ordering glass noodles. During the cooking process, the glass noodles will absorb a lot of hot pot soup, and the shochu chicken is full of flavor.

Another pot of stir-fried Matsusaka pork we ordered was also very good. Before starting to cook, the staff would quickly stir-fry the Matsusaka pork with onions and other seasonings in the pot. The stir-frying process was very fragrant. The aroma of stir-frying will remain in the hot pot soup, making it taste delicious. But the pork tasted okay. It was a pity that the flavor couldn't be absorbed when stir-frying quickly.

We also ordered duck blood and old-skinned tender meat, both of which are highly recommended. I think it's a bit strange to add duck blood to the soup, so we ate it directly. The seasoning itself is very sufficient. The duck blood has a good flavor. It should be because of the addition of seasonings such as star anise and Sichuan peppercorns. It is very fragrant. The old skin is tender and the meat is thin, and the inside is smooth and tender. It is a successful dish in itself. The main difference is that it is not topped with the usual sauce, so it is recommended to cook it in the soup to let the skin absorb the flavor of the shochu chicken. It has a special and delicious taste.

After checking, it seems that there is also a branch in Taipei. It seems that I will have another option when I want to eat hot pot in the future.