What’s not? The ordering system is a bit confusing if you’re not used to customizing your own soup and are visiting for the first time, but the staff will help you.
Vibe: The environment is clean, not too fancy, and suitable for a casual or business lunch or dinner. It’s also the type of the place you visit for comfort food when it’s cold and rainy outside (so ideal for the next three months).
Who’s picking up the check? We paid around €80 for two people — but it absolutely depends on how much food you put on your plate.
Insider tip: It’s very easy to have eyes bigger than your belly and overload your dish. But be aware that you’re charged for weight of the ingredients, as well as the soup base.
Fun fact: Cheng, the owner, said his primary motivation for opening the restaurant was his wife, who complained about the lack of good spicy Chinese food, and malatang specifically, in Belgium.
He also said that “Chinese people from all over Belgium came on the first day of opening” and “one guy from Ghent even biked there and back just to eat the soup.”
How to get there: The restaurant is in Ixelles, about a five-minute walk from the metro station Porte de Namur.
Review published on February 13, 2025. Illustration by Natália Delgado/POLITICO.