Cuisine The Way You Want It
Baidu Shabu Shabu
37-04 Prince St., Flushing
(718) 353-9538
Hours: Mon. – Wed., 6-11 p.m.; Thurs. – Fri., 7 p.m. – 2 a.m.; Sat. – Sun., Noon to Midnight
Credit Cards: Yes, All Major
As you walk through the door at Baidu, it seems like entering the nightlife of hip city in China. Bamboo and silk cloth hang from the ceiling and the entire restaurant has dim lighting with various lights and decorations all around. A waterfall is in the middle of the restaurant with colorful lights inside and a flat screen TV in the center. You are surrounded by lightly colored brick walls, bright red booths and beige tables and chairs.
Baidu has a full Sichuan and hot pot menus. If you’re trying hot pot for the first time, each person gets a pot for themselves to cook their own food at their seat, where there are stove tops.
The choice is yours from the broth you cook your food in, entrees of meat and fish, sides of vegetables and different sauces for dipping. You can have every part of your meal exactly the way you want it. The venue is also vegetarian friendly, with a variety of vegetable and tofu entrées.
Customers can also choose a buffet, where a group can order as much food as they want plus soda or beer within a two-hour period for $25 a person. The rest of my dinner party selected this and were very pleased. They consumed plates of strips of beef, seafood platters, chicken, short ribs and vegetables until their stomachs were completely stuffed and satisfied. They particularly enjoyed the angus beef, which is a restaurant favorite.
Being a vegetarian, I went in another direction. I had the vegetable combo and was pleased with the amount of food it had to offer at an affordable low price. Most of the fresh vegetables on the menu, noodles and some tofu were all on my plate, ready for me to take a bite. They had to take a visit into the pot though of course.
One by one, I dropped the spinach, corn on the cob, tomatoes, mushrooms, slices of pumpkin and cauliflower into my personal pot with vegetarian broth. Next, I dropped my noodles into the pot. I watched as my dinner sizzled in my pot and steam flowed into my face. I found the experience amusing.
If you are looking for delicious Chinese food cooked to your liking at a reasonable price come to Baidu Shabu Shabu. It is an entertaining and satisfying dining experience!
-Cristina Foglietta