The Mongols were known as ruthless barbarians who established the great Mongol Empire through nomadic campaigns of plunder and conquest. Now this was a clan on-the-go! Rather than toting around traditional cutlery, they prepared their food like only true warriors could — they used their swords to slice meat and vegetables before cooking the mixture on their shields over an open fire (I hope they disinfected their swords after their battles and before using them for preparing their food!).

Now, here in Topeka you do not need to be a plundering Mongol to enjoy food prepared Mongolian-style. Hu Hot Mongolian Grill, next to Dick’s Sporting Goods at Wanamaker and Huntoon, opened in March to large crowds eager to create their own personalized Mongolian Barbecue dish.  

You’re a Kansan and think you know about barbecue, right? If you’ve never tried BBQ Mongolian-style, don’t expect ribs and spicy KC-style sauce on the menu. Mongolian Barbecue is completely different.

We put Hu Hot through the TK Test.

Here is how it works:

You pick up a bowl and make your way through a salad bar-style buffet of various meats (pork, chicken, beef and fish), vegetables, noodles and sauces (ranging from sweet to hot & spicy). Be sure to pour at least 5-6 scoops of sauce to your mixture. Once your bowl is heaping full, you will give it to one of the cooks who work around a circular grill and use large spatulas to mix and sear your dish before your eyes. You wind your way around the circle. By the time you reach the end of the line, they are handing you your meal.

We know the routine by heart because we’ve already been there several times. Yes, we liked it enough to return for more plundering of the buffet. The food, including the meats, veggies and noodles, have been fresh, and you can mix and match sauces according to your own tastes. Each sauce is given a “burn rating” so you can make Hu as Hot as you want. For example, Khan’s Favorite is a very mild sauce comprised of soy sauce, rice wine, garlic and spices, while Kung Pao…Yow! is so hot you might want to put antiperspirant on your forehead before you try it.

Hu Hot can be a fun place to take the kids and a nice casual place to meet with friends or hang out in the full-service bar. It may be a bit noisy for business meetings, though there are small rooms available if you need someplace semi-private to meet.