Fancy Chinese Hot Pot Specialist Finally Opens in San Diego

Hot pot restaurants abound in San Diego but the latest addition is the fanciest one yet. Though its arrival was first announced in 2019, Shancheng Lameizi has only now landed on Convoy Street, just in time for Chinese New Year. The well-established chain has a nearly 30-year history in China where the first of its more than 20 locations opened in Beijing in 1993. Since expanding to the U.S. in 2016, the brand has opened three branches in California. It’s best known for its spicy hot pot, a specialty of Sichuan cuisine that hails from Chongqing in southwestern China.

Open daily for lunch and dinner, the new Convoy Center restaurant has three dining rooms decorated with Chinese artwork and furnishings, with each table set with a central cauldron for its simmering soups, which range from the signature spicy and numbing version flavored with hot chilies, Sichuan peppercorns, bean sauce, and spices that comes in three levels of heat to milder pork bone, mushroom, or tomato broths. The large selection of ingredients to cook in the hot pot includes wagyu and Kobe beef, lamb shoulder, pork intestine, cuttlefish dumplings, lotus room, tofu skin, and Chongqing tapioca noodles.

Candice Woo

Candice Woo

Shancheng Lameizi is part of a growing contingent of upscale hot pot establishments that offer extra amenities to its customers. Hair bands and eyeglass cleaning cloths are provided to protect diners from splashing broth and the bathrooms are stocked with new toothbrushes and other toiletries. At a counter that holds condiments and sauces, there’s also a variety of free snacks and desserts, from sweet purple rice porridge to fried sesame balls.

Candice Woo

Candice Woo

Candice Woo

• All Openings Coverage on Eater [ESD]