# Big Way Hot Pot

> Big Way Hot Pot is a Richmond, British Columbia-based fast-casual restaurant company that turns hot pot into an individual, build-your-own meal. Guests choose from roughly 100 ingredients in Canada, select a broth or dry mix, pay by weight, and let the kitchen cook the bowl. Founded by Jack Yao and Christiana Luo, the chain grew from its first Burnaby restaurant in 2022 to 22 locations across British Columbia, Ontario, and California by spring 2026, attracting a US$43 million strategic investment from Chinese restaurant group Jiumaojiu.

- **Founded:** 2021
- **Headquarters:** Richmond, Canada
- **Founders:** Jack Yao (Founder and CEO), Christiana Luo (Co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer)
- **Team size:** Approximately 1,400 employees as reported in May 2026; LinkedIn lists 1,001-5,000 employees.
- **Products:** Build-your-own individual hot pot, Dry pot bowls, Boba and tea drinks, Rewards and membership
- **Notable:** Expanded from the first Burnaby restaurant in 2022 to 22 restaurants across British Columbia, Ontario and California by spring 2026., Entered the United States with a Rowland Heights, California restaurant in July 2025 and added Monterey Park later that year., Built a workforce of about 1,400 people by May 2026.

## Products & services

- **Build-your-own individual hot pot** — Guests select meats, seafood, vegetables, noodles and specialty items, choose a broth, pay by weight and receive the finished bowl cooked by the kitchen.
- **Dry pot bowls** — The same self-serve ingredient format finished with dry spice mixes rather than broth, including spicy Szechuan and rotating options.
- **Boba and tea drinks** — Milk teas, fruit teas and other drinks that extend the fast-casual meal and support add-on revenue.
- **Rewards and membership** — Canada and US membership programs offering points, perks, promotions and merchandise.

## Achievements

- Expanded from the first Burnaby restaurant in 2022 to 22 restaurants across British Columbia, Ontario and California by spring 2026.
- Entered the United States with a Rowland Heights, California restaurant in July 2025 and added Monterey Park later that year.
- Built a workforce of about 1,400 people by May 2026.
- Attracted US$43 million in additional strategic investment from Jiumaojiu in February 2026, bringing the investor's holding to approximately 49%.
- Established a social-friendly 'guess the price' promotion that can make a bowl free when a guest guesses within ten cents.

## Latest updates

- **2026-07** — Launched a birthday-month promotion offering a chance to win one year of free Big Way.
- **2026-05** — Reported 22 restaurants and about 1,400 employees; CEO Jack Yao said the new strategic investment would not change operations or prompt reckless acceleration.
- **2026-02** — Jiumaojiu agreed to invest US$28 million in new preferred shares and purchase US$15 million of shares from existing holders, taking its total interest to roughly 49%.
- **2025-10** — Opened the Monterey Park, California restaurant, the brand's second US location.
- **2025-07** — Opened the first US restaurant in Rowland Heights, California.

## Links

- Website: https://www.bigwayhotpot.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bigwayhotpot
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bigway.hotpot/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BigWayHotPot
- TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bigwayhotpot

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/big-way-hot-pot
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-08-23