Little Dipper ... why did you have to close this location ?!? This location was so convenient. We were hoping to have an early Mother's Day but when we pulled up.. it was a different restaurant
Hui C.
order: tom yum broth, beef bone broth, mala hot and spicy broth~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~If you're a fan of hotpot, then Little Dipper Shabu Shabu is a great spot to check out! The restaurant offers a wide selection of fresh vegetables and meats that you can cook right at your table in a broth of your choice. I love the Kurobuta pork and American Kobe, the meat was so fresh and melted! The service is attentive, and the staff is friendly and helpful, guiding you through the process if you're new to hotpot. The ambiance is clean, modern, and cozy, perfect for a night out with friends or family. Overall, I highly recommend Little Dipper Shabu Shabu for a tasty and interactive dining experience!
Frank Young
Cupertino ?You will be hard pressed to find such a well run hotpot/shabu place.They're #1 in the northern California area for good reason.
Kevin D.
I can't hate this place! All You Can Eat and they bring out the meat fast! The meat quality is great and they have Chinese donuts (amazing if you dip in the broth). I've been to both the Fremont and Cupertino location. Probably my favorite AYCE hotpot in the bay area.
Anh N.
This Little Dipper is located in The Crossroads plaza right across from Philz Coffee. This location is bigger and less busy than their Fremont restaurant so I've never had to wait more than 10 minutes for a table. Just like the other location you have the option of ordering AYCE for $30.99 for weekday lunches and $36.99 during weekends and dinner. I love coming to Little Dipper because of the quality and options of meats they have. Their meats are sliced nice and thin which makes it extra tender. Their house sauce is also something you should definitely try. The servers are always very nice and easy to flag down. Most hotpot spots would refill your broth with only the base of the broth regardless of the broth you've ordered, but I've noticed they refilled my neighbor's pot with his Mala broth since that's what he ordered. They were also very nice about switching out my broth without charging me since my first choice of broth wasn't to my liking.
Doris H.
I am missing someAYCE hotpot now! Wish we had something like this caliber in Sacto area.Originally we wanted to try the newly opened Liu yishou hotpot on De Anza Blvd but there was a long line way before they opened. Cousin suggested Little Dipper instead and I am so grateful.No line at all Sat night around 5:45 which was quite a surprise. But hey it was good for us! Service was friendly and fast. We didn't wait long before food was brought to us. Ordering was easy. We marked on the menu directly and handed over to the wait staff and the freshly prepared food came.Overall meat wise my fav was the lamb as it was really tender. All four of us seemed to enjoy the individual soup base at one's choosing. Definitely wanna try other soup base next time.Price was reasonable with the quality and quantity. Ok please do not tell the owner this :)
Kelly C.
Personal Taiwanese AYCE shabu shabu hot pot with plenty of space on a Saturday night?! Unheard of... til Little Dipper Shabu Shabu came around to Cupertino. Nestled between Sprouts and a line of little stores, this secret hot pot spot seems small from the inside but opens up to two larger rooms with plenty of space. The seating area is a bit dark and the tables are a bit wide, but all of that is but a "bit" compared to the delicious stocks (def go for the bone broth) and variety of meats. Highlights include the pork belly, Angus beef, Chinese donut (fluffy fried flour goodness) that should be briefly bathed in the hot pot soup and quickly eaten. The mushrooms, tofu and veggies are a must. Wishes there were more true seafood options but can't go wrong with the seafood balls (watch our for the exploding fish egg insides). Don't forget to make your mixture of your own sauce -- my recs include cilantro, soy sauce, ponzu sauce, vinegar, garlic and ShaCha sauce (this soybean mixture). Dip all meats in said mixture. Parking is in a large but busy lot. No line on a Sat night compared to some other hot pot places. Wished service was faster and came around to us more often--though the waiter who took over the last 20min was very attentive. Overall def worth the ~$40/pp (with tax and tip).
James H.
Usually go to the Fremont location but this one opened last year and newer. This location is smaller than the other location. But the service is better here since it's not as busy.Arrived at 5 pm on a Friday and it was empty. So ordering was quick, only gripe is you have to get a new menu to order each time. You get to mark each item with a marker. You get a individual pot that you can choose a soup base and use the markable menu for everything else.They cut the meat every time you order so it'll take a few minutes.
Elaine L.
So delicious. It's an all you can eat venue and there are many choices on the menu for items to add to your hot pot.I ordered the spicy soup. I love spicy foods and this did not disappoint at all. Very spicy, yet tolerable. My favorites of the items I added to my soup include the kobe beef, the shrimp balls, the beech mushrooms and black fungus.I look forward to coming here again. I will definitely be back.
Richard W.
Relatively empty restaurant but still took a bit of time to get seated and get our orders in. Each person has their own pot to cook food underneath a huge air fan vent. The temp control is finicky - sometimes it can be overly sensitive so you just have to adjust for that. The meats are the most impressive. My favorites were the angus beef (lean, with lots of flavor), lamb and pork Kurobuta. The pork belly was underwhelming - just too much fat to deal with. Soup base choices are basic and vegetable/extras selection is decent: pumpkin slices, tofu, fish balls, beef tendon, tripe, spinach, Napa cabbage, mushrooms. Fish filet skippable - wasn't fresh and the corn slightly mushy. We chose clear noodles but you can also opt for ramen or udon. The sauces are limited - only mushroom base, ponzu and house sauce. I much rather prefer a make-your-own sauce bar for customization and experimentation. I ended up not using the sauce very much. For spice lovers, you also have ask for chili oil off menu. The menu is slightly confusing - you mark what you want, but I think, limited to four selections per category per order. So after you eat everything, you have to ask for the menu again to reorder items. The process alone is a deterrent to customers trying to maximize value. Anyway, great time with a large group, excellent food and average service. That's all.
I'm a frequenter at the Fremont location. I can say Cupertino is the same when it comes to quality! Service on my visit was great-- granted I went on a weekday, during the lunch time. The soup broths offered were the same as the Fremont as well as their other food offerings. All you can eat and great quality sliced meats. You get your individual pots which is one of the best reasons to visit here!
Szeyiu Y.
Worst hotpot place I've ever been to. Do not recommend 1) I called the restaurant to make reservation and the receptionist asked for an exact time so I said 8:30pm. He told me to come asap and I answered I'll try. Turns out he gave our table to another customer at 8:15pm and told us he thought we won't come. I'm not sure what he meant he thought we won't come because I told him we're on our way. LOL 2) They do not provide vinegar and chili, instead they only provide WHITE vinegar and jalapeno I don't know who on earth would use white vinegar for hotpot, and as a chinese restaurant, you're telling me you don't provide black vinegar wth lol 3) Their utensils smell. At first, i thought the smell came from the soup base, but when I smell the spoon, that's exactly where it comes from. Ugh super disgusting
Jon T.
great food great service! I love hot pot and it's so hard to find a fairly priced ayce hot pot place with good quality food! A lot of AYCE places have slow service so they can cheap out on the food but this place definitely doesn't do that, I was really happy with my overall experience here and will definitely return
Sai G.
The food service here is good and the ambiance looks very calm as well. If you are looking for unlimited hotpot stuff, this is the best place. A little pricey but overall the food is good and can have a nice dinner hotpot fun times with friends. Parking is easy and can park close to the restaurant. No need of reservations but might get busy during the weekends. Best time to go is on weekdays if you like buffet hotpot.
T C.
I returned for a 2nd visit by myself on a Friday morning when they opened. Frank, the awesome server/host was there serving by HIMSELF during the lunch time. I did that AYCE menu again. It was still as good as my first time. The meats are freshly sliced and there's one person dedicated to the meat slicing while there are people in the back kitchen who prepares the sides. I will return again. Sorry, Seapot, I'll be coming to LDSS moving forward even if you do have more cuts of meats and sides than LDSS, mainly because LDSS is closer to me. Additionally, the lamb at LDSS is so much better there for some reason and I do enjoy the 2 cuts of beef they have there (SP has like 4-5 cuts of beef). I like the soup bases at LDSS more than Seapot anyway. I WILL BE BACK!!!!
Little Dipper ... why did you have to close this location ?!? This location was so convenient. We were hoping to have an early Mother's Day but when we pulled up.. it was a different restaurant
order: tom yum broth, beef bone broth, mala hot and spicy broth~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~If you're a fan of hotpot, then Little Dipper Shabu Shabu is a great spot to check out! The restaurant offers a wide selection of fresh vegetables and meats that you can cook right at your table in a broth of your choice. I love the Kurobuta pork and American Kobe, the meat was so fresh and melted! The service is attentive, and the staff is friendly and helpful, guiding you through the process if you're new to hotpot. The ambiance is clean, modern, and cozy, perfect for a night out with friends or family. Overall, I highly recommend Little Dipper Shabu Shabu for a tasty and interactive dining experience!
Cupertino ?You will be hard pressed to find such a well run hotpot/shabu place.They're #1 in the northern California area for good reason.
I can't hate this place! All You Can Eat and they bring out the meat fast! The meat quality is great and they have Chinese donuts (amazing if you dip in the broth). I've been to both the Fremont and Cupertino location. Probably my favorite AYCE hotpot in the bay area.
This Little Dipper is located in The Crossroads plaza right across from Philz Coffee. This location is bigger and less busy than their Fremont restaurant so I've never had to wait more than 10 minutes for a table. Just like the other location you have the option of ordering AYCE for $30.99 for weekday lunches and $36.99 during weekends and dinner. I love coming to Little Dipper because of the quality and options of meats they have. Their meats are sliced nice and thin which makes it extra tender. Their house sauce is also something you should definitely try. The servers are always very nice and easy to flag down. Most hotpot spots would refill your broth with only the base of the broth regardless of the broth you've ordered, but I've noticed they refilled my neighbor's pot with his Mala broth since that's what he ordered. They were also very nice about switching out my broth without charging me since my first choice of broth wasn't to my liking.
I am missing someAYCE hotpot now! Wish we had something like this caliber in Sacto area.Originally we wanted to try the newly opened Liu yishou hotpot on De Anza Blvd but there was a long line way before they opened. Cousin suggested Little Dipper instead and I am so grateful.No line at all Sat night around 5:45 which was quite a surprise. But hey it was good for us! Service was friendly and fast. We didn't wait long before food was brought to us. Ordering was easy. We marked on the menu directly and handed over to the wait staff and the freshly prepared food came.Overall meat wise my fav was the lamb as it was really tender. All four of us seemed to enjoy the individual soup base at one's choosing. Definitely wanna try other soup base next time.Price was reasonable with the quality and quantity. Ok please do not tell the owner this :)
Personal Taiwanese AYCE shabu shabu hot pot with plenty of space on a Saturday night?! Unheard of... til Little Dipper Shabu Shabu came around to Cupertino. Nestled between Sprouts and a line of little stores, this secret hot pot spot seems small from the inside but opens up to two larger rooms with plenty of space. The seating area is a bit dark and the tables are a bit wide, but all of that is but a "bit" compared to the delicious stocks (def go for the bone broth) and variety of meats. Highlights include the pork belly, Angus beef, Chinese donut (fluffy fried flour goodness) that should be briefly bathed in the hot pot soup and quickly eaten. The mushrooms, tofu and veggies are a must. Wishes there were more true seafood options but can't go wrong with the seafood balls (watch our for the exploding fish egg insides). Don't forget to make your mixture of your own sauce -- my recs include cilantro, soy sauce, ponzu sauce, vinegar, garlic and ShaCha sauce (this soybean mixture). Dip all meats in said mixture. Parking is in a large but busy lot. No line on a Sat night compared to some other hot pot places. Wished service was faster and came around to us more often--though the waiter who took over the last 20min was very attentive. Overall def worth the ~$40/pp (with tax and tip).
Usually go to the Fremont location but this one opened last year and newer. This location is smaller than the other location. But the service is better here since it's not as busy.Arrived at 5 pm on a Friday and it was empty. So ordering was quick, only gripe is you have to get a new menu to order each time. You get to mark each item with a marker. You get a individual pot that you can choose a soup base and use the markable menu for everything else.They cut the meat every time you order so it'll take a few minutes.
So delicious. It's an all you can eat venue and there are many choices on the menu for items to add to your hot pot.I ordered the spicy soup. I love spicy foods and this did not disappoint at all. Very spicy, yet tolerable. My favorites of the items I added to my soup include the kobe beef, the shrimp balls, the beech mushrooms and black fungus.I look forward to coming here again. I will definitely be back.
Relatively empty restaurant but still took a bit of time to get seated and get our orders in. Each person has their own pot to cook food underneath a huge air fan vent. The temp control is finicky - sometimes it can be overly sensitive so you just have to adjust for that. The meats are the most impressive. My favorites were the angus beef (lean, with lots of flavor), lamb and pork Kurobuta. The pork belly was underwhelming - just too much fat to deal with. Soup base choices are basic and vegetable/extras selection is decent: pumpkin slices, tofu, fish balls, beef tendon, tripe, spinach, Napa cabbage, mushrooms. Fish filet skippable - wasn't fresh and the corn slightly mushy. We chose clear noodles but you can also opt for ramen or udon. The sauces are limited - only mushroom base, ponzu and house sauce. I much rather prefer a make-your-own sauce bar for customization and experimentation. I ended up not using the sauce very much. For spice lovers, you also have ask for chili oil off menu. The menu is slightly confusing - you mark what you want, but I think, limited to four selections per category per order. So after you eat everything, you have to ask for the menu again to reorder items. The process alone is a deterrent to customers trying to maximize value. Anyway, great time with a large group, excellent food and average service. That's all.
Restaurantji Recommends
I'm a frequenter at the Fremont location. I can say Cupertino is the same when it comes to quality! Service on my visit was great-- granted I went on a weekday, during the lunch time. The soup broths offered were the same as the Fremont as well as their other food offerings. All you can eat and great quality sliced meats. You get your individual pots which is one of the best reasons to visit here!
Worst hotpot place I've ever been to. Do not recommend 1) I called the restaurant to make reservation and the receptionist asked for an exact time so I said 8:30pm. He told me to come asap and I answered I'll try. Turns out he gave our table to another customer at 8:15pm and told us he thought we won't come. I'm not sure what he meant he thought we won't come because I told him we're on our way. LOL 2) They do not provide vinegar and chili, instead they only provide WHITE vinegar and jalapeno I don't know who on earth would use white vinegar for hotpot, and as a chinese restaurant, you're telling me you don't provide black vinegar wth lol 3) Their utensils smell. At first, i thought the smell came from the soup base, but when I smell the spoon, that's exactly where it comes from. Ugh super disgusting
great food great service! I love hot pot and it's so hard to find a fairly priced ayce hot pot place with good quality food! A lot of AYCE places have slow service so they can cheap out on the food but this place definitely doesn't do that, I was really happy with my overall experience here and will definitely return
The food service here is good and the ambiance looks very calm as well. If you are looking for unlimited hotpot stuff, this is the best place. A little pricey but overall the food is good and can have a nice dinner hotpot fun times with friends. Parking is easy and can park close to the restaurant. No need of reservations but might get busy during the weekends. Best time to go is on weekdays if you like buffet hotpot.
I returned for a 2nd visit by myself on a Friday morning when they opened. Frank, the awesome server/host was there serving by HIMSELF during the lunch time. I did that AYCE menu again. It was still as good as my first time. The meats are freshly sliced and there's one person dedicated to the meat slicing while there are people in the back kitchen who prepares the sides. I will return again. Sorry, Seapot, I'll be coming to LDSS moving forward even if you do have more cuts of meats and sides than LDSS, mainly because LDSS is closer to me. Additionally, the lamb at LDSS is so much better there for some reason and I do enjoy the 2 cuts of beef they have there (SP has like 4-5 cuts of beef). I like the soup bases at LDSS more than Seapot anyway. I WILL BE BACK!!!!