Robot Noodles: Aura Hot Pot Near Beitucheng

Aura Hot Pot welcomes you to the future, a future in which robots have replaced humans for the specific task of cutting daoxiao mian (刀削面).

Now, before all my fellow nerds go rushing over to Aura Hot Pot to taste the animatronic future, let me adjust your expectations. This robot, which looks like a knock-off Ultraman, doesn't do much at all except flash a few lights and then shave those noodles. I'm just hoping that after a life of servitude, he doesn't rise up to cast off the shackles of his human masters.

The robot-made daoxiao mian (RMB 7) does seem more … well, humane, since it keeps people from having to rapidly flick knifes in the vicinity of their thumbs. The machine is designed to make the noodles longer, too, which is nice.

Aside from the robot gimmick, Aura is actually an excellent hot pot restaurant. It's very similar in business model to Haidilao, though its service falls just short of the ultra-efficient mindreading of its rival.

The art of hot pot ordering is so heavily dependent on the preferences of whoever's at the table that it hardly seems worth it to make specific recommendations. Still, I'll highlight a few of the items we've enjoyed at Aura Hot Pot. One of their specialties is their fresh-cut lamb (鲜切羊肉 xianqie yangrou, RMB 28). Since it's cut by humans (I guess they couldn't find robots for that job), it's thicker than the usual paper-thin hot pot meat. It has a nice chew to it, as a result. The handmade shrimp balls (鲜虾滑 xianxiahua, RMB 26), which have a clean, fresh taste, are also popular.

Our broth of choice is a split pot with numbing mala on one side and clear broth on the other (麻辣清汤鸳鸯锅 mala qingtang yuanyang guo, RMB 35). Depending on your penchant for Sichuan peppercorns, you can have them adjust the ma flavor of the broth, so don't be afraid to ask if you're not into the tingling-tongue sensation.

On our visits, we've eaten at Aura for about RMB 60-70 a head, though that's on the low side since we didn't order much meat or any alcohol.

Aura Hot Pot 傲辣火锅 Bldg 2, 8 Minzuyuan Lu, Chaoyang District (on the southeast corner of Minzuyuan Lu and Beitucheng Xilu)
朝阳区民族园路8号院2号楼 (8299 7003)

Photo: Josh Ong