Steamboat and Hotpot: How the Pricing Works, From Soup Base to Sauce Bar

By The Table desk · Last verified 4 October 2026

A steamboat or hotpot bill in Singapore is built from four layers. First, the soup base, charged either per pot or per person. Second, a sauce bar or condiment charge, usually per person, which often covers the self-service sauces, fruit and sometimes drinks. Third, the plates of meat, seafood, vegetables and noodles, priced one by one, often with a cheaper half portion. Fourth, at most sit-down restaurants, a 10% service charge and 9% GST on top: the familiar “++”. Buffet steamboat works differently: you pay a fixed price per head for a set time, and the soup and sauces are normally inside that price.

Once you can see the layers, a hotpot menu stops being a puzzle. Here is how each one works, and how to keep a happy table from becoming a surprising bill.

Quick facts

• Soup bases are charged per pot at some restaurants and per person at others; split pots (two or four broths) usually cost more than a single broth.
• Many hotpot chains charge a per-person fee for the sauce bar; check whether children are charged at the same rate.
• Ingredients are ordered by the plate, and many menus offer half portions so small groups can try more.
• Buffet steamboat is a fixed price per head with a time limit; some buffets charge for food left uneaten.
• Restaurant prices marked “++” add a service charge (commonly 10%) and then 9% GST on the total.
• Under Singapore’s price transparency guidelines, mandatory charges should be included in, or clearly shown next to, the headline price.

What are you actually paying for?

Every hotpot restaurant mixes the same building blocks in its own way. The table shows each one, how it is usually charged and the question worth asking before you order.

Part of the bill	How it is usually charged	Worth asking
Soup base	Per pot, or per person; split pots priced as one item	Is it per pot or per head? Are refills of broth free?
Sauce bar or condiments	Per person, sometimes with a lower child rate	Does it include fruit, dessert or drinks?
Meat, seafood and vegetables	Per plate; half portions on many menus	How big is a full plate compared with a half?
Noodles, dumplings, rice	Per plate or per piece	Is hand-pulled noodle a per-portion charge?
Drinks and wet towels	Per item; some places charge for towels and peanuts	Can you decline items placed on the table?
Service charge and GST	10% service charge, then 9% GST, at most restaurants	Is the price shown “nett” or “++”?

Hawker and coffee shop steamboat stalls tend to keep things simpler: a set for two or four, priced as one, with no service charge. Restaurants give you more choice, and the choice is where the bill grows.

À la carte or buffet: which works out cheaper?

It depends on appetite and on how disciplined the table is. À la carte rewards a group that orders carefully and shares; you pay only for what arrives. Buffet steamboat rewards big eaters and teenagers, because the per-head price stays the same however many plates you clear. The catch with buffets is the clock (often 90 minutes to two hours) and, at some places, a charge for food that is taken and left. Weekday lunch is usually the cheapest buffet session, and weekend dinners and eves of public holidays the dearest.

• Pick à la carte for two people, light eaters, or when you want premium items such as wagyu or live seafood.
• Pick a buffet for four or more hungry people, especially at weekday lunch.
• Pick a stall set when the point is a cosy, casual meal rather than variety.

A worked example: reading a ++ hotpot bill

These are illustrative figures, not any restaurant’s menu, to show how the layers stack up for a table of four at an à la carte hotpot restaurant with “++” pricing.

1. Add the food: soup base, four sauce bar charges, plates and drinks come to a subtotal of $120.
2. Add the 10% service charge: $120 × 10% = $12, making $132.
3. Add 9% GST on that $132: $132 × 9% = $11.88.
4. The bill is $143.88, or about $35.97 each.

In other words, the “++” adds about 20% to the menu total (1.10 × 1.09 = 1.199). Multiply the menu prices by 1.2 in your head and you will rarely be surprised. Our guide to what ++ means on a Singapore menu explains the sums in more detail.

How do you keep the bill in check?

1. Check how the soup is charged. A per-person soup base for six adds up quickly; a per-pot price favours bigger groups.
2. Order half portions first. You can always add more; you cannot un-order a full plate of beef.
3. Ask about anything placed on the table unasked, such as towels, peanuts or pickles, and return it if you do not want it.
4. Look for weekday and member deals on the restaurant’s own app or site, and read the terms on minimum spend and blackout dates.
5. Watch the buffet clock and the waste rule. Take small amounts and go back, rather than piling a plate.

And a food safety note from the Singapore Food Agency: cook food thoroughly, use separate utensils for raw and cooked items, do not overload the pot so the broth can keep boiling, and tell staff straight away if an ingredient seems spoilt.

The WahLiao Verdict

Hotpot is one of the most joyful ways to eat together, and the bill only bites when you forget the layers. Before you sit down, find out three things: is the soup per pot or per person, what does the sauce bar charge cover, and is the menu nett or ++. Order half portions, share generously, and multiply by 1.2 for any ++ menu. For a big, hungry group, a weekday buffet is usually the best value; for two people who want the good beef, à la carte wins.

Questions people ask

Is steamboat the same as hotpot?

Broadly, yes. “Steamboat” is the long-standing Singapore and Malaysian name for cooking raw ingredients in a shared pot of simmering broth at the table; “hotpot” is the term used by most Chinese-style chains. The pricing logic is the same.

Can I refuse the sauce bar charge?

At restaurants where it is a per-person cover charge, usually not, which is why it should be shown clearly on the menu. Where it is optional, the menu or staff will say so. Ask before ordering rather than at the till.

Are children charged full price?

It varies. Many buffets charge by age or height, and some à la carte restaurants have a lower child rate for the sauce bar. Check the restaurant’s own website or ask when booking.

Should I tip at a hotpot restaurant?

Tipping is not expected in Singapore, and most restaurants already add a service charge. Leave something extra only if you want to. See Do you tip in Singapore?

Sources: Singapore Food Agency, guidelines for safer steamboat meals; Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore, guidelines on price transparency; IRAS, GST rate. The Table explains; it does not endorse.

Read next: Buffets in Singapore: Pricing, Time Limits and Food-Waste Charges · Zi Char Explained: How to Order for Four Without Overspending · Back to The Table

For what’s worth it this week, with the bill shown, read The WahLiao Week.