Chinese Chain of Spicy Chongqing Hot Pot Heading to Convoy

Joining the growing contingent of hot pot restaurants in San Diego is Shancheng Lameizi, a brand with 22 locations in China and three in California — one in the Silicon Valley town of Milpitas and two in the Los Angeles-adjacent San Gabriel Valley, an area known for its exemplary Asian restaurants; it’ll replace longtime Convoy Street restaurant Thai House Cuisine.

Shancheng Lameizi was founded in 1993 in Beijing, China, but specializes in the hot pot of Chongqing, an important city in Southwest China; a central dish of Sichuan cuisine, it features ingredients cooked tableside in a flavorful broth. Its soup bases are made fresh daily; the spicy and numbing version features Guizhou hot pepper, Sichuan pepper of Maowen, Pixian bean sauce, and natural spices while the mild soup is made from long-simmered pork bones.

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An a la carte menu offers a huge selection of meat, seafood, and vegetables to cook in the hot pot, from Kobe beef ribeye, lamb shoulder, and cuttlefish dumplings to chicken gizzards, lotus root, enoki mushrooms, and fresh tofu skin. There’s also a self-service bar, where diners can help themselves to an array of sauces and complimentary snacks and desserts, from peanuts to red bean soup and fried glutinous rice balls with sesame.

Thai House Cuisine should remain in operation until Shancheng Lameizi Hot Pot begins a comprehensive remodel of the space; president Ryan Zhu tells Eater that construction should begin by the summer’s end, with the restaurant opening in Kearny Mesa by early 2020.

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