Shanghai Tide

While you get to do the last bit of preparation yourself, Shanghai Tide has been working on your hot-pot supper for a long time. The fiery broth is the result of a three-day simmer—beef bones and a whole chicken boiled with a blend of Szechuan spices and liberal amounts of chili oil. Good luck choosing treasures to add to the hot pot: soy-infused pork meatballs, salty fish balls, razor-thin bamboo, fried taro slices, clams, baby spinach and egg dumplings. Hint: Take the spicy edge off with cod or rice cakes, which are cruelly omitted from the English-language menu.