Even though Singapore is hot and humid all year round, the people here love gathering with family and friends around a hotpot where ingredients are boiled in broth. While this can be easily prepared at home, it did not stop many restaurants from joining the steamy (pun intended) scene. Other than Cantonese herbal and tongue-numbing Sichuan ma la steamboat, there are also Japanese shabu shabu or sukiyaki and Korean ginseng or kimchi hotpot. Local versions include bak kut teh and laksa among other soup bases offered at Jumbo Group's Jpot. The latter is also available at Laksania, which recently opened its 4th branch at Jem. And now there is Thai-style steamboat with the opening of MK Restaurants at B3 of 313@somerset where Cold Storage used to be. It opened in 2003 at Parkway Parade and Singapore Post Centre with a local franchisee that, according to a spokesman from the popular Thai steamboat chain, eventually had to "shift its focus back to its core business".
