Meaning:

“九宫格” means “sudoku,” and “火锅” means “hotpot.” This term refers to a special hotpot where the pot is divided into nine parts in a similar shape to the Sudoku. Popular in Chongqing Municipality in Southwest China, this kind of hotpot first appeared some 40 years ago, when the economy was less developed and resources were limited. Back then, people would share a hotpot around a table, each boiling the ingredients they ordered in the compartments of the pot nearest to them. Today, the hotpot is still popular because the temperatures of the soup are different in different compartments, so that gourmets can cook the ingredients to different degrees. Both the soup and sauces of this type of hotpot are very spicy.

Example:

A: 疫情结束后你最想干什么？

Yìqíng jiéshù hòu nǐ zuì xiǎng gàn shénme？

What’s the first thing you’d like to do when life is back to normal after the COVID outbreak?

B: 去吃一顿九宫格火锅。

Qù chī yīdùn jiǔgōnggé huǒguō。

I’d like to eat the Sudoku hotpot in a restaurant.