Seven Hotpot Review: Best Budget Hotpot in Abu Dhabi, UAE

Seven Hotpot Review: Best Budget Hotpot in Abu Dhabi, UAE

I found a seriously good-value hotpot spot in Abu Dhabi!
It’s a place called Seven Hotpot,

in downtown Abu Dhabi,
right by the big shopping mall
called Al Wahda Mall, across the street 🙂

We parked near the restaurant,

and my husband had actually gone once on his own first.
He said it was so good that he brought me back the next time.

Quick check on the hours!
They stay open generously all day with no break time.

The restaurant has two floors,
but the upstairs ceiling isn’t very high.

The first floor was full, so we ended up in a corner seat upstairs.

Since hotpot is basically a bubbling pot of hot broth
and Abu Dhabi is already hot enough, I highly recommend sitting somewherewith strong air conditioning
if you can..​​

The second floor also feels a little cramped,
so if there’s space downstairs, I think the first floor is better.

Anyway, let’s get into the ordering, shall we?_?

Seven Hotpot, one of my favorite budget eats in Abu Dhabi,
is all-you-can-eat! Unlimited refills, which is always a win.

It’s 59 AED per person— about $16 USD —
with unlimited meat included,which honestly feels like a steal.

If you flip the menu over, there are a few extra paid items too.

But even if you stick to the all-you-can-eat hotpot menu,
you’ll probably leave feeling absolutely stuffed, so there’s really no need.

For your first round, you fill out a paper order sheet
by checking off what you want
and handing it to the staff. After that, you can just order extras verbally.

My husband was sitting there with a pencil,
very seriously deciding what to eat first. So cute, haha.

They quickly set out the small plates, ladles, and the rest of the tableware.

There’s also a self-serve sauce bar~
so you can mix and match whatever you like.

Sometimes they also put out simple fruit,
and I’ve even seen chicken wings there too.

If you want sesame oil, it’s an extra 5 AED, though,,
I guess even in an oil-rich country, sesame oil is still special.

I went over to grab sauce,

but the sauce bar was packed that day. ^^ There were especially a lot of Chinese diners,
and for a second it almost felt like I was traveling in China.

It looks like I only brought back sesame paste sauce,
but underneath there’s chili, oyster sauce,
and a bunch of other things hidden under that blanket of sesame sauce..

For the broth, we went with the unbeatable half-and-half combo:
spicy red broth and white broth. Both were delicious here.

For meat, we chose lamb.
Somehow lamb just feels right with hotpot.

Even though it’s unlimited meat, the quality was surprisingly good!
It was fresh and clean, with none of that weird gamey smell.

We also ordered vegetables, tofu, yuba, and all the usual hotpot add-ins.

If you know you’re going to eat a lot,
it’s probably smart to order generously on the first round,
because when the dining room gets busy, extra orders seem to get missed pretty often.^_

We had to ask several times
for both meat and vegetables before they finally came, sigh..

The staff definitely seemed a little forgetful
and not the most efficient, but they were kind and patient throughout.

This is a photo my husband took when he came by himself before,
and honestly, we always end up ordering the same things at hotpot places.

I was kind of amazed that even in the Arab world, they had such a complete lineup of hotpot ingredients—and since it’s unlimited, we really went all in on the bean sprouts.

If the broth cooks down too much, they’ll come by and refill it on their own.

To be honest, I didn’t love a lot of the local food in the Middle East,
so I kept finding myself eating Vietnamese, Chinese, and Japanese food instead..

If the food scene were stronger overall,
Abu Dhabi would feel like a truly perfect travel destination.^_

I asked for an apron,
and at first it looked like they handed me half a sheet of plastic.

I honestly thought it was defective,
but when I asked the staff,
they unfolded the thin little thing and—magic—it turned into an apron.

I had never seen such a flimsy plastic apron before.

Bubble bubble~
As a couple who has eaten at quite a few hotpot places,
I’d say this best budget hotpot in Abu Dhabi is absolutely worth it for the price.

Compared with Haidilao at Dubai Mall,
the taste was honestly in the same ballpark, but the price here was less than half..!

Even after coming back to Korea, I kept thinking about Seven Hotpot.

Oh, and especially this!!
It’s item number 51 at the very end of the menu: potato ball.But honestly,
I have no idea why it’s called a potato ball—it tasted more like a sweet glutinous rice ball with filling.

It was super chewy, nutty,
and since it’s fried, it was bound to be good—but this one was especially delicious.
It also comes with condensed milk for dipping.

You absolutely have to order this at least once!!!!

When my husband came alone, he also tried item 50, the Golden Bun,
but he said that one was just okay, so we skipped it.

There’s no point wasting stomach space

when two people can eat until they’re completely stuffed for about $30 total.
So yes, I’d definitely call this one of the best budget restaurants in Abu Dhabi.

And here’s a bonus photo..
It was a table that a group of Chinese diners had just left,
and they had very casually tossed tissues,
aprons, and everything else straight onto the floor before leaving;

There was another large Chinese group
at a table on the other side too, and honestly,
because of those two tables, the whole meal was incredibly loud
and chaotic, and the staff looked exhausted too..

The entire restaurant went quiet the second they left..
Please don’t go around reinforcing bad stereotypes about East Asians!!

Anyway, if you’re staying in downtown Abu Dhabi,
this was definitely a restaurant I’d recommend checking out.