Good Night World

Before I bid you good night, I have to tell you that I've just discovered that I made a mistake.
Mums does have an all you can eat option that doesn't include sake & beer. That plate is only $24.95
The Shabu House still beats Mums.
The meat is better.

If you need a refresher, see my earlier posts: The House Wins & Shabu-balaboopy


That's all for now. Jus needed to clear the air.

...good night world...

- Raw

The House Wins

Such a sad phrase when referring to gambling.
Luckily, that's not the case.
By "house," I mean "Shabu House." (If you need a little preface, see my earlier post: Shabu-balaboopy) In the battle between the Shabu House and Mums, I declare the Shabu House the winner. By no means is it a undisputed, hands down type of victory, but there are a few things that give the Shabu House the 1up on Mums.

Taken mid January, here are some Shabu House photos.

Dipping sauces

Kobe Beef

Drop it in...

Shake it up...

**side note: here is a cooked piece of meat that I dropped in my dipping sauce. it reminded me of a particular Japanese meat dish called, "momiji." It's a beef dish that comes with a vinegar based sauce that you can soak or dip the beef in. It's crackin'... The downside is that I have only found it served at this Japanese restaurant in San Bruno called, "Akagi." Many people appreciate Akagi for their speedy service and decent tasting bento boxes, but other than that, a Japanese food fanatic would rather spend his or her time elsewhere with higher quality Japanese food. BUT, I challenge someone to find me somewhere else where they serve a momiji dish and if they serve it just as good as Akagi. I'll go there and order their momiji any day.**

Plate #1

Plate #2

I scream two top hit off

Quality of food (I should say meat really), the Shabu House takes the cake.
Mums is not bad, but it's thick, like many other places that serve shabu.
You may think that thick is a good thing - in this case, I feel it is the opposite.
The Shabu House's thinner slices of Kobe Beef are more savory.
Like that line in Sunset Park, "...it's butta baybeh..."
On top of that, the Spicy Miso broth beats the plain water broth used at Mums.

You can have the same all-you-can-eat meal with better quality meat for a cheaper price.

But I can't just bash Mums, it's definitely a restaurant I'd go back to multiple times.
Here's the other side of the fence...
One thing that makes Mums a worthy Shabu House competitor is the service.
They have a staff of maybe 8-10 people running the floor. They don't stick to one table, they help ALL tables. And they do a good job floating around, gauranteeing that whatever service you need at the table will be taken care of. Meat, vegetables, beer, sake all come out almost instantaneously.
The service at the Shabu House isn't bad, however it isn't great either. Two brothers work as the main hosts (they look like twins almost), along with a team of maybe 3-4 waitresses. I'll admit, sometimes they forget about things or take a little longer than I'd like to refill my water. But patience is a virtue. They're not that bad all the time.

My conclusion:

If you just want quality in meat, go to the Shabu House.
If you're interested in the all you can eat special and you're not concerned with beer and sake, go to the Shabu House. Usually there's instant seating at the bar (usually, meaning if it's not full...obviously).

If you have a medium to large sized party and you want the all you can eat AND drink special, go to Mums. Everything seems to be larger. Unlimited sake and beer. The sake's not too shabby and they serve beer in the Chris Raw size bottles. By that I mean the 32oz. plus size bottles - not the regular 12 oz. one's you would normally order.

Choose up.

- Raw

Shabu-balaboopy

"what does it mean?"

"...iono..."

"Shabu Shabu" is Japanese for, "shake shake."
...later I was told that it roughly translates to, "swish swish"...
But being that I am not Japanese, nor do I speak the language, I am not sure how accurate that translation is. What I can tell you, however, is that's what I was told by a waitress while eating in Hollywood at a restaurant called, "Koji's." Maybe that's what they tell customers to make their dinner more interesting.
...man was she fine...
But anyways, Shabu Shabu, described as some as, "Japanese Beef Fondue," is a Japanese dish consisting of thinly sliced beef and assorted vegetables. The slices of beef are cooked almost instantly after shaking in a pot of boiling water or broth. Served with rice and dipping sauces, this particular dish has made it's way into my personal favorites of '08.

Last Friday, I was fortunate enough to celebrate a friend's birthday at a restaurant that serves Shabu. That night, we ate at "Cafe Mums," a restaurant located inside of Hotel Tomo in Japantown, SF. I wouldn't actually consider it "inside" since the entrance is still located on the street. One would not have to actually enter Hotel Tomo. Hotel Tomo is just connected to it.
It's on the corner of Sutter and Buchanan.
I feel sorry for those who have eaten at Mums and did not order the all you can eat Shabu Shabu (that's like ordering a fish plate at the House of Prime Rib).
I know nothing of the breakfast or lunch menu - all that matters, is that for $42.95 and some tip, you can have all you can eat Shabu Shabu AND all u can drink sake and beer for 2 hours. Well, maybe 1 and 1/2, but we stayed there for 2 and they didn't mind.

Good Food. Good Company.
The essential ingredients.

They have Asahi... They have Sapporro... They have sake.

And oh, the Shabu's pretty good too.

Plus dessert. They have green tea ice cream. I hate green tea by the way, so I asked for vanilla.


$42.95... + tip...
All you can eat shabu shabu.
Never ending sake bombs.
All within 2 hours.
My end of the table (4 guys) consumed about 6 plates of beef.
In my opinion, it's worth it.
Unless you're a vegetarian that doesn't drink alcohol.
The atmosphere is great and the service is fast.
Although it gets pretty loud cause everyone's pretty much drunk.

Is it safe for a date with you and your girl? Eh, maybe.
It's better for a slightly bigger party.
And make sure they have an appetite so they feel they got their money's worth.
Or at least drink.

I do recommend another spot though, just as satisfying, and not as much a big a dent in your wallet.
Also in SF is the "Shabu House," located on Geary blvd. between 15th & 16th ave.
You can definitely taste the quality in the beef here compared to Mums.
A reason why that may be so is because they advertise Kobe Beef.
I'm not sure what exactly Mums carries. I honestly just sat down, asked for the, "all you can eat," and started eating. Restaurants will generally serve rib-eye or top sirloin - when sliced thin, it's hard to distinguish between the two.
The Kobe Beef, however, at the Shabu House is actually the best Shabu beef I've ever tasted thus far. Maybe it's thinner? Who knows. All I can say is that I know it tastes better.
I'll probably update a future blog with photo's from the Shabu House just to give ya'll a taste.

Their Dinner Kobe Beef Shabu Shabu plate is $15.99 for the regular, and $18.99 for the large. Imagine something similar to the pictures above, only, after you finish your plate, another one doesn't come out. I want to say that they do also have an all you can eat and drink option, but I'm not sure about the price and the time limit. I'd assume that beer and sake is included.
I'll give an update on that later.
They also do give you 3 choices of soup base to cook with: water, spicy miso, or ginger chicken broth. My personal favorite in terms of flavor is the spicy miso. Trrrruuuuuust.

Anyways, I hope that one day, you too will also be as passionate about Shabu Shabu.

- Raw