4.9 stars · 959 Google reviews · around ₹400–600 for two · open till 10 pm · rooftop of NomadGao, behind the Lower Dharamkot taxi parking. Ratings checked August 2026.
Sort every café in Dharamkot by rating and this one sits at the top. It manages that while serving food almost nobody else in the village attempts — which, in a place where the default menu is hummus, shakshuka and banana pancakes, is not a small thing.
The Hot Pot House is Vietnamese, and it means it. It bills itself as the first authentic Asian ramen and hotpot restaurant in India, founded by a Vietnamese health coach, and the kitchen behaves accordingly: broths are simmered properly rather than assembled from stock powder and given a Vietnamese label. Pho, hotpot and summer rolls are the three dishes reviewers name again and again, which usually means the kitchen is consistent rather than occasionally brilliant.
What to order
The hotpot is the thing you plan an evening around. It arrives bubbling at your table and you cook as you go, which stretches a meal across a good two hours quite naturally. That is wonderful if you have come with people and a poor idea if you are trying to catch the last shared taxi down the hill.
Summer rolls are the lighter option and the better call at lunch — rice paper, herbs, no heaviness at altitude. The Vietnamese coffee is worth ordering even if you have already had chai somewhere down the hill; it is dense, sweet, condensed-milk coffee and it will comprehensively fix an early start. There is also a Chiang Mai khao soi on the menu, a more recent addition that has not been around long enough to have a settled reputation.
Portions are generous and the food is genuinely light — the health-coach influence shows in how you feel afterwards, which is not something you can say about most Dharamkot dinners.
The people behind it
It is women-owned, run by Joy, a health coach, alongside Mayur, with Taryn front of house. That small-team feel is a large part of why the rating stays where it is: guests repeatedly describe being looked after rather than served. In a village where most cafés are staffed by seasonal workers who rotate out every winter, having the founder in the room changes the experience.
The setting
It is a rooftop, and the mountain view is the reason to sit up there rather than eat quickly and leave. The approach is unglamorous — you walk behind the taxi parking at Lower Dharamkot, past the point where it stops looking like anywhere you would find a restaurant — and then you climb up and the Kangra valley opens out in front of you.
There is karaoke on some evenings, which is either exactly your thing or exactly not. If you want a quiet dinner, ask before you commit to a two-hour hotpot.
Getting there
Head for the Lower Dharamkot taxi parking — every driver from McLeod Ganj knows it — then walk behind it towards Trek and Dine. The café sits on the roof of NomadGao. It is one of the least strenuous café approaches in Dharamkot, which matters more than you would think in a village built on a gradient. If you are coming up from McLeod Ganj on foot, allow 30–40 minutes uphill.
Honest drawbacks
It is small and it fills up on weekends and through the summer season. The hotpot takes time to cook, so a late arrival means a rushed meal or no meal — the kitchen closes at 10 pm and stops taking hotpot orders well before that. And a rooftop is a rooftop: in monsoon, check the sky before you plan a long dinner up there.
Know before you go
- Arrive by 8.30 pm at the latest if the hotpot is the plan.
- Cash and UPI both work.
- The walk back down is unlit. Bring a torch, or use your phone — the Dharamkot lanes are steep and uneven in the dark.
- Come hungry and unhurried. This is not a quick-stop café.
If it's closed, or full
It is a small room and it fills up on weekends. For another late dinner without a climb, Bodhi Greens runs till 10 pm on the main street and is the most reliable late kitchen in the village. The Crossover is also open till 10 and is the better call if you want something lighter than two hours of hotpot.
If you have come up specifically for Asian food and the rooftop is packed, the honest answer is to come back tomorrow and book the evening properly — nothing else in Dharamkot is doing this.
Read the full roundup: the best cafés in Dharamkot. Planning a longer stay in the village? Our Dharamkot workation guide covers stays, wifi and monthly costs, and the Dharamkot village guide explains how the place is laid out.
← All blog postsQuestions, answered
What is the Hot Pot House in Dharamkot known for?+
Vietnamese food — specifically hotpot cooked at your table, properly simmered pho, fresh summer rolls and strong Vietnamese coffee. It is founded by a Vietnamese health coach and bills itself as the first authentic Asian ramen and hotpot restaurant in India. At 4.9 stars it is the highest-rated café in Dharamkot as of August 2026.
Where exactly is the Hot Pot House Café?+
On the rooftop of NomadGao, behind the Lower Dharamkot taxi parking and near Trek and Dine. Walk behind the taxi parking and climb up — it is one of the easier café approaches in Dharamkot, with no long uphill stretch from the road.
What does a meal at the Hot Pot House cost, and when should I arrive?+
Budget roughly ₹400–600 for two. The kitchen closes at 10 pm and hotpot takes around two hours to eat properly, so arrive by 8.30 pm at the latest. Cash and UPI are both accepted, and the walk back down to your stay is unlit — carry a torch.