Haidilao

Haidilao is a Chinese hotpot chain with a genuinely global reputation for service theatre, and its Piccadilly branch, tucked into Coventry Street near Piccadilly Circus, brings that reputation intact to central London. This is not a subtle restaurant: staff perform noodle-pulling shows tableside, birthdays get sung to loudly, and the whole operation runs on spectacle as much as food.

The format is customisable hotpot: choose your soup base, from mild to properly fiery, then work through a long list of add-ins, sliced beef, fresh seafood, handmade noodles, vegetables, tofu, building the meal yourself at the table rather than having a kitchen compose it. The sauce bar is a genuine highlight, letting diners mix their own dipping sauce from a wide spread of condiments, and complimentary fruit and drinks are handed out while you wait. Waiting tables get looked after too, with snacks and games offered to keep the queue from feeling like dead time, a level of hospitality the chain is known for globally.

Opening until 3am daily is unusual for London and makes it a genuine late-night option, useful after a show or a night out when most kitchens have long closed. Group bookings are handled well, with staff able to talk newcomers through soup base and ingredient choices rather than leaving anyone to guess.

Vegan and halal-friendly options are built into the menu rather than added as an afterthought, which broadens who can actually eat here comfortably compared with many hotpot restaurants. The soup base range covers everything from a plain tomato broth to a genuinely punishing mala option, so it works equally well for a nervous first-timer and someone chasing serious heat.

The honest catch is queueing: this branch is extremely popular and does not always take walk-in tables smoothly at peak times, particularly weekend evenings, so booking ahead is close to essential despite the late hours nominally suggesting flexibility. Portions and pricing are reasonable for what is ultimately a build-your-own meal, but the bill climbs if you order generously across proteins. For a lively group meal in the West End, it remains one of the more memorable options on offer.