China's Hottest Hot Pot Brand Opens in Orchard — 3-Hour Queues on Day One
Three-hour queues at Orchard. A $78 set menu. Xiaolongkan is the Chinese hot pot import Singapore didn't know it was waiting for.
The Queue That Started at 9am
Xiaolongkan, the Chengdu-born hot pot chain with 800 locations across China and a cult following among Chinese tourists, opened its Singapore flagship at Orchard Central on Thursday. By 9am — two hours before service — there were 60 people in line. By the time the doors opened at 11am, the queue had grown to 200. Average wait by mid-afternoon: three hours. This is not unusual for Xiaolongkan openings; the Kuala Lumpur launch in 2024 saw similar scenes. What is unusual is that the Singapore market absorbed it without blinking.
Xiaolongkan Singapore
📍 181 Orchard Road, #05-01 Orchard Central, Singapore 238896
📞 +65 6734 0881
⏰ 11am–10pm daily
📅 Book here (online queue system available)
🗺 View on Google Maps
The Menu: Spice, Theatre, and a $78 Set
The signature is the 'Bone Broth Imperial' — a 72-hour-simmered beef bone base that arrives at the table in a carved copper pot, alongside a Sichuan numbing-spice broth for the two-compartment option. The $78 set feeds two with premium wagyu slices, hand-pulled tripe, and house-made fish tofu. A la carte runs considerably higher: Black Angus short rib at $38 per plate, Yunnan wild mushroom platter at $28. Drinks are a separate $15–$22. A full dinner for two comfortably clears $120.
The Data Box: Chinese F&B Imports in Singapore 2025–26
- Xiaolongkan Singapore launch day average wait: 3 hours
- Set menu price: $78 for two (lunch) / $98 for two (dinner)
- Chinese restaurant openings in Singapore (2025): 47, up 31% on 2024
- Estimated annual revenue for top 5 Chinese hot pot chains globally: USD $4.2bn
- Haidilao Singapore occupancy rate (2025 avg): 87% across all outlets
Why This Matters Beyond the Queue
The Xiaolongkan opening is a data point in a broader pattern: mainland Chinese F&B brands are arriving in Singapore with brand equity pre-built by Chinese tourist traffic and social media, and converting that into paying local audiences within weeks. Haidilao proved the model. Xiaolongkan is the next test. If the queue sustains past the novelty phase — typically six to eight weeks for new openings — Singapore's hot pot market, already the most competitive in Southeast Asia, is about to get significantly more interesting.
