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California Shabu-Shabu
Category: Restaurants Japanese Japanese [Edit]
18908 Brookhurst StFountain Valley, CA 92708
(714) 963-8844
- Hours:
Mon-Sat 11:30 am - 2 pm
Mon-Sun 5 pm - 10 pm
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- No
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- No
- Take Away:
- No
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch, Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Beer & Wine Only
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Casual
- Has TV:
- No
- Caters:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
About This Business:
Lunch Hours: M-F 11:30am-2:00pm Dinner Hours: Daily 5:30pm-9:30pm Daily Yelp Happy Hours: 5:30-6:30pm* *Offer Valid w/Any Entree or In Sake Lounge… read more »
391 reviews for California Shabu-Shabu
Review Highlights
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"but don't forget the hot drops." In 47 reviews -
"Because the Ponzu sauce is extra delicious." In 41 reviews -
"The Prime beef is amazing and service is great as well." In 28 reviews
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391 reviews in English
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Review from Michelle L.
Irvine, CA
5/24/2012 1 Check-in Here
My boyfriend likes shabu shabu and I like hotpot which means one of us has to budge on the days we are craving soup and meaty goodness. I'm glad we decided on shabu shabu this time because this place was awesome!
My boyfriend had a slight problem finding this place but I think that was more mainly due to his stubbornness for refusing to use the GPS. But anyways we got there and we couldn't have picked a more perfect day. There was NO LINE and there were barely any people in there. Even the servers told us that we chose a great day to come because it usually is much more crowded.
I ordered the regular prime beef and the boyfriend ordered the Jack prime beef. I was so surprised at the amount of meat that came out. SO MUCH. I think it's my first time at a shabu shabu place that I actually felt like the money was worth it. It also came with plate of veggies (napa cabbage, carrots, mushrooms, tofu etc) and also some udon and vermicelli. You also get a choice of white or brown rice! My boyfriend really liked their Goma sauce with a few drops of their hot drops. I liked their ponzu.
I think the best part of the meal was the udon at the end. The servers will come along and pretty much make a whole new meal. Cook your udon noodle with whatever veggies and meat you have left then they will take some of your shabu shabu broth and their udon broth and create a pretty awesome bowl of noodle goodness. Delish.
I can't end this review without putting in a good word for the guy who served us. He was really helpful in suggesting what we should order and making out sauces/broth. In addition, he gave us free ice cream! A scoop of strawberry and lychee sherbet. It was really tasty and the perfect end. 5/5! -
Review from Doannie N.
Fountain Valley, CA
5/18/2012 1 Check-in Here
I love Shabu!!!
This is the first location & the first place that I have ever had Shabu at.
I have tried Shabu at many places after this but nothing will ever compare to the amazing orgasmic dipping sauces & hot drops. Presentation is great & service is awesome at this location. Since they open their other location in Costa Mesa, this place has gotten less crowded which is totally fine with me! I normally don't ever have to wait long when there is a wait . . & I always end up leaving full and happy.
This is definitely a place you have to check out & try for yourself if you haven't already . . but be warned . . you might get addicted & end up eating here . . a lot !
Keep up the yummy good-ness. :) -
Review from Janet L.
3/29/2012 1 photo
came here on a tuesday night and it was actually pretty busy. the manfrand and I were in the area 'cause I had a shoot all day long. we were both starvin marvins and looked up places on the gps (we don't have smartphones) and I was able to call a friend from the area about any shabu restaurants. it was cold and I was craving shabu. actually, I can eat it everyday if I wanted to. my friend said this place got good revs so we just decided to go check it out. they closed at 10PM that night and we got there a little before 9:30PM. luckily we were served right away and got errythang pretty quickly.
we shared the Godzilla Choice Beef plate. sucks they had to add $7 (?) to our bill for the extra veggie plate and rice (they gave it to us in the beginning before we ordered) but it's alll gravy. we were hungry AF but thought it's be a good deal to order a big plate and share. 27 pieces of meat for $32.50. honestly, dunno if that's a good deal but whatevz. i'm down.
they provide all the onions, daikon, garlic, chili powder and chili oil all set on the table for you so you don't have to ask for it unless you needed more.
you get the choice of white rice or brown rice. we decided to get brown rice 'cause that sounded healthy.
the meat was delish. soft, tender, and some fatty pieces. noms!
I add onions, garlic, and daikon to my plain soup to give it a kick of flavaa. and I add chili oil to my peanut sauce along with onions. as for the ponzu sauce, I love to add everythang. it just makes it that much tastier.
the service is very attentive and friendly. even when it's busy, they check up on you frequently. me likes.
I def recommend if you're in the area! -
Review from I G.
Irvine, CA
5/25/2012
I love this place so much, and I come here so much that the employees recognizes my entire family.
The end.
ps the wait is irritably long sometimes. -
Review from Tina K.
Anaheim, CA
5/15/2012
It's a bit pricey here. It's so funny bc the waitress said that yojies was better...uh lol. There's so many shabu places now that I don't know if this place is my fav. anymore.
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Review from Elise V.
I think I've finally made my rounds to all the big, well-known shabu places in Orange County!
This original California Shabu Shabu is located in the big plaza with the McDonalds on the corner of Garfield and Brookhurst. There's plenty of parking, which the CM doesn't have. This location is a bit smaller than the CM one, but somehow it seemed roomier at the same time. The vibe was a bit different though - I like how they decorated the CM location more to go towards a more younger crowd with their artworks and murals.
I went here for lunch with Michelle W. and I ordered the regular prime beef with brown rice and an iced green tea. It was http://bomb.com. No complaints there. Everything was brought pretty quickly and it tasted delicious. It cost about $25 for everything, including tip.
Service is good. There was always someone checking to see if we needed anything. Another thing that I like about this location more than the CM one is that, even at 1:00, they're not busy. There were a few other patrons in here, but other than that, it was pretty empty. Definitely stop by here if you're in the mood for shabu and you're in the area. So worth it!Listed in: Healthy Living, Shabu Shabu
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Review from M D.
Fountain Valley, CA
4/19/2012
Food was good but I personally liked the service and food better at shabu shabu bar. Wait was long and they asked me and my friends to share a pot. They made it up with giving us 2 free house sakes tho but took away the dining experience from my friend who was eating shabu for the very first time... I ordered the prime meat and thought it was pretty fatty slices and not presented so well like shabu shabu bar... Overall, it fulfilled my craving but may consider fulfilling it elsewhere in the future.
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Review from Jennifer K.
Hacienda Heights, CA
3/9/2012 1 Check-in Here
Yay! I love Shabu Shabu! I came here with my girlfriends about a month ago. I ordered the Angus beef with brown rice. I really like the fact that you can order brown rice with your food. It surely does make me feel less guilty for indulging a large portion of food :) I also love the fact that they give you sauce to add to your broth when you're done, so you can have some "udon soup"
The food is also very reasonably priced here and the service was prompt and friendly. I definitely will be back!! -
Review from marcus l.
Pasadena, CA
3/9/2012 1 Check-in Here
Summary: The best shabu shabu (at this price point) I have had.
Food tried: Large Choice Beef. They cut it right in front of you and the quality is decent. Next time I may try the prime but that should be enough. IMO, when you reach a certain quality level of beef, the difference (when you are cooking the beef shabu shabu style rather than cooking a steak) becomes much less evident when you upgrade to something like kobe.
Service: Just right. Not so excessive that they are constantly interrupting your meal and not like my experience at Mizu212 where they neglected the pot enough to let it burn out.
Parking: Huge parking lot. Easy -
Review from Antoinette L.
Newport Beach, CA
4/28/2012
This place is always packed! And they don't take reservation. So you should go there early, write your name right away, and wait. In return for your patience, the food is healthy and yummy, and for those who like it hot, ask for the hot drops and insanity sauce. Caution: they are hot, so try a bit at a time. I have seen friendly competition between customers to see who could take more drops of hot sauce. They are open for lunch and also for dinner. The staff are great but they are really busy so it may take time to be served. Sometimes it is so hard to get their attention that I wonder if they walk by so quickly and blindly on purpose. Or if they all just have severe tunnel vision. I noticed the dishes have been quietly shrinking smaller every time; I guess they are cutting back their budget.
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Review from Natalie L.
Anaheim, CA
4/25/2012
I absolutely love this place! The food is amazing! I always get the beef and vegetables. Service is good too. The only thing is the wait is usually long but totally worth it.
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Review from Jacqueline G.
Westminster, CA
3/11/2012
I think what first got me was that this place is quieter than other Shabu Shabu places. I enjoyed being able to eat without loud music and TVs.
The meat was very fresh. They cut it right in front of you. I had a great meal and the service was just as great! -
Review from Mike M.
Updated - 1/8/2012
If you have never tried shabu-shabu, this is a great place for your first time. Shabu-Shabu literally means swish swish. You start with an electric hot plate in front of you with a pot of boiling water. You add soy sauce and other seasoning to the water. In front of you is a plate of raw, bite sized, meat and veggies. Simply drop them in the pot, a few at a time, let them cook for 20 seconds, take them out, dip in a choice of different sauces and eat. When you are almost done, throw all of what is left in the pot, along with some noodles, and pour the whole batch into a soup bowl for a final delicious bowl of meat and veggie soup.
The staff is eager to help you figure things out, but don't take too long to eat as this place gets packed.
The quality is top notch. The service is brisk, but friendly. They hustle all night but will stop and down a sake shot with you if offered.
This is a unique date place or great family fun. The wife and kids all raved about the food and fun.Listed in: Best Japanese in SE Huntington
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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4/19/2009
My family is really a bunch of troopers. Ever since I discovered YELP last fall, I have been on a… Read more »
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Review from S W.
Long Beach, CA
4/17/2012
This place is awesome ! The dipping sauces are homemade so they don't have the chemicals that so many Asian sauces have. Service is great... especially Heidi.
Love it ! -
Review from Rob L.
Miami Beach, FL
4/14/2012 1 Check-in Here
This place is really fun, the food is awesome and healthy. I have never had this style before. You get a bowl of boiling water to cook your meats, veggies and noodles in on the spot. You add your own spices and sauces to get your perfect combo. They have a special hot sauce dropper if you like it spicy, two drops was plenty but our waiter said someone tried 100 drops once! It was a long wait on a Friday night but wasnt too bad with a few drinks. Great experience!
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Review from Lynn N.
La Palma, CA
4/14/2012
I went here on a Saturday night and I was glad to see that it wasn't so packed. I only had to wait about 10-15 minutes. The service was great. They were really attentive and always checked up on you to see if you needed anything else. I shared a large plate of meat with my sister, which turned out to be really good. The meat was tender and it wasn't super thin like how it is at other shabu restaurants. The only downside was that they charged $7 for an extra plate of vegetables. Basically, one plate of meat comes with a plate of vegetables at no extra charge, but if you're sharing the second plate of vegetables will be charged. At least they give you a little bit more vegetables compared to the other places I've been. Overall, I was more than satisfied.
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Review from Crystal H.
Westminster, CA
2/18/2012
I am SO glad my cousin introduced me to this particular shabu shabu! The environment, the employees, the service, and especially the food is all above par and tasty!
I love coming back here over and over again! It's also perfect for dates and catching up ! -
Review from Yckin N.
Westminster, CA
5/9/2012
Place is a little strange soup is just water. no just in soup went there for lunch with your friend to catch up. Small small but very friendly service. the order was odd cause the soup base came last... guess it was just me but i wanted it with the order right away. i got through half the meal and they took my meat away and started to clean up... RUDE.... For the record i am an extremely slow eater but there was half a plate of meat left so i didn't think they would take my food away. I left it go cause i had class in half an hour and probably couldn't finish but i still felt rush and a little angry that they took my food away. all and all pretty good but not as good as shakuras. still in quest of the best shabu shabu. Workers are friendly and funny.
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Review from Tianne T.
Fountain Valley, CA
11/21/2011
I'm really disappointed to have to give this 1 star, but the lunch hours posted indicated that they stop seating at 2pm. I called ahead just to make sure this was accurate, and sure enough, I knew I'd get there right before 2pm, which I did by 5+ minutes, and they denied me seating.
If this is the case, you should post that you close at 145pm, not 2pm, because I consider this false advertising, especially when I called in advance just to make sure. Please note I respectfully did not arrive after 2pm, and did not expect any special treatment, had I arrived late. I arrived prior to it by a few minutes.
The gal at the front was semi-pleasant about it, so this is not her fault, but unfortunately they have just lost a customer. -
Review from Priscilla C.
La Habra, CA
1/3/2012
Whaaaat???? Me? Liking shabu shabu??? I used to dislike shabu shabu so much, my mentality was basically: I'm cooking my food in water -which everyone knows, tastes like nothing. So why did I come here to eat shabu shabu? Because my beloved sister had been begging me for months to go eat shabu shabu with her, and I had to give her credit for being a good sport when it came to me dragging her to all my food adventures. Another reason, I was hungry and she offered to pay.
The wait wasn't too bad, 15 minutes at most.
We ordered two large regular beefs with brown rice, but they ran out of brown rice. I fixed the sauces & "broth" to my liking with garlic, scallions, chili pepper, soy sauce and sesame oil. Overall I have to say I enjoyed my meal, the large however was a little too much meat for me and next time will just order the smaller plate of meat. The best part of the meal was the end when we asked for the udon soup base. Basically, they give you a bowl with soup base concentrate, cook your udon noodles and whatever veggies & meat you want, ladle the shabu shabu broth with all the the good stuff into your bowl. Make sure to taste the udon broth as you go so you don't end up adding too much water making your udon broth bland. Then, enjoy! I never knew they had this at shabu shabu spots, if I had I would have been a lot more willing to go.
I will definitely be back, because I've been to other shabu shabu spots even though I didn't like shabu shabu back then and this is the first time I actually thoroughly enjoyed my shabu shabu experience. Next time though, I'll make sure I put some effort into my appearance rather than just throwing on a sweater and putting my hair in a bun because the male employee who was cutting the meat was kind of cute. Hahaha -
Review from Arlyn G.
Los Angeles, CA
3/16/2012 3 Check-ins Here
Best price & best shabu shabu I've ever had. It's unfortunate that the shabu shabu places in Little Tokyo are mediocre compared to this place.
+:
- awesome customer service even when it's busy
- large selection of meat and seafood. I've had the choice beef, chicken, and scallops. Chicken is a steal with how thick the slices are, the scallops are the giant scallops, not the little rinky dink ones that look like mini marshmallows, and choice beef is fresh and marbled.
- option for 2 or 3 item combo (aka choose more than one type of meat)!
- spicy hot drops! They are a must. I get 3 drops in my goma sauce and it gets the nose just a little sniffly; just the way I like it.
- goma and ponzu sauce is the business! I like that the goma (sesame sauce) isn't too watered down like some spots and the ponzu sauce is perfectly citrusy. I don't know how to describe it other than YUM! I drop my veggies and my meat in the ponzu before I dip it in the goma.
- you don't need to pay extra for brown rice
- your pot isn't so far in front of you or too close to you that all you see is steam or you're almost part way out of your chair just to swish
- the vents actually work! I like facials, but not while I'm eating.
- mouthwash dispenser in the bathroom
- plentiful parking
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- I gotta drive to Fountain Valley whenever I have a craving
I usually come here with my brother during lunch since it's such a steal. A large choice beef for $13.50?! Don't mind if I do. We've never done the udon option, but every time we've gone, many of the patrons are eating out of ceramic bowls. There larger selection of meat items, hot drops, and sauces on top of their great service is what really sets this place apart from other shabu shabu restaurants and what keeps me and the broham coming back. -
Review from Doan P.
Fountain Valley, CA
Updated - 11/24/2011
This place isn't the way it use to be, I remember going here once a week. I was here the other day and service was horrible. I guess drinking with your friends is more important then refilling my water or taking my order.
WHAT HAPPEN TO THIS PLACE?
If your the owner and reading this review, I hope you do something dramatically because I wont be the only customer you will be loosing.1 Previous Review: Show all »
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3/23/2011
Not really into yelping but for this place; Its worth it. PEOPLE TRY THIS PLACE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!… Read more »
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Review from William Billy J.
Bellflower, CA
12/7/2011
Price: 3 star
Average pricing
Sauce: 3 star
tasted better from other Shabu-shabu
Meat: 4 star
Service: 3 star
I don't think they've would notice If I left... -
Review from O G.
Los Angeles, CA
11/20/2011
Overall Rating: 3.5 Stars
I love Shabu Shabu. I could never say no to it. Although my experience was good, I've had better elsewhere.
Veggies: A lot of my nappa cabbage had tiny black spots on it. I believe it's still edible but it just doesn't look very appetizing. My tofu didn't hold together very well and I only left it in there for a few minutes. Usually I eat it last and it holds up.
Prime beef: It was more marbled than the choice but the difference was so minor that it really wasn't worth the extra cost. I've had prime at other places and it was more "melt in your mouth". Also, they should have trim the fatty parts at the end of some pieces.
Ponzu sauce: Very good, nice and tangy. The citrus is very apparent.
Goma sauce: It was ok. I don't really like the peanutty taste.
Green tea ice cream: I did not like it. I like my green tea ice cream more on the sweeter side instead of the "tea" side.
Service was wonderful and attentive. -
Review from Angela W.
San Leandro, CA
12/11/2011
This place is delicious. The concept of Shabu Shabu is relatively easy to make at home though. Boil water with some seasoning and boil your food.
Food: Simple ingredients (glass noodles, udon, green onions, cabbage, broccoli, carrots, your choice of meat, etc). The soup base tasted pretty similar to the soup base for ramen. Food was mediocre.
Ambiance: Definitely a 4 star. It's nice to cook your own food. Very active and it's different than eating at other places.
Would I come back? If I had visitors, I would bring them there... but I think I'd rather go to a ramen restaurant instead.
People do come here to eat alone. Great place to do so. -
Review from Chris H.
Mission Viejo, CA
3/10/2012
This place is so Yum, if you get a chance you must stop in. The center is a little old, but dont worry the food is choice, nuff said.
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Review from Ba T.
Huntington Beach, CA
4/18/2012
This place really hits the spot! I have explored many different Shabu Shabu places and this one really is my favorite. Great food + great service = money well spent! Thank you for Dinner!
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Review from Victoria S.
Westminster, CA
4/18/2012
OMG! I LOVE THIS PLACE! service is great, food is great. its a little pricey but worth it! (:
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Review from Tina B.
Riverside, CA
9/17/2011
Saturday, July 28, 2011
Came to eat here after a fun filled day. It was my first time trying shabu-shabu! I honestly don't know what to think of this place and really do want to try it again.
We came in and waited for about 5 minutes to get our seats. The seating is centered around the waiters. You sit on a high chair and have a small counter area. I felt a bit constricted while trying to maneuver through all my dishes.
The waiters should help out first timers a bit. I didn't know how to get going.
Pretty much, you cook your own meal with your own boiling pot of water. You get to put however much you want of the ingredient into the pot and have it fit your taste to you liking.
The meal is included with two different sauces, Ponzu and Goma. I don't know why I didn't try the Goma. I only ate Ponzu and maybe that's why I didn't like it as much.
We got the..
$22.50 - Large Plate of Lean Beef - It comes with a plate of beef. 13 pieces? Good place to eat if you want to eat healthy.
Everything just tasted very bland. If I wanted some flavor, I would have had to pour a whole bottle of soy sauce.
I'm exaggerating but you get the picture..
I asked for some drops of hot sauce. I should have gotten more of it to add more flavor to a flavorless pot.
I thought it was really unique that you could poor the soup you've been concocting in your hot pot into your bowl of noodles to make udon soup! You ask them to prepare the bowl for you and they put in udon soup base into a bowl.
I was too disappointed by that time to really eat the udon soup.
$1.75 - Red Bean Ice Cream & Lychee Sherbet - It was a nice ending to dinner.
The waiters didn't rush us out when it came time to closing.
Personally, I wasn't happy. I didn't like what I was eating and probably a large part of the reason why was because I didn't even know how to eat it.
It has a 4 star rating, maybe I'll give another try next time. -
Review from Susan Inong J.
Costa Mesa, CA
2/25/2012
Fantastic! The Kobe Beef was excellent and the soup base in the end of the pot with extra greens and udon noodles, was the bomb! Friendly wait staff and family friendly. Introduced by good friend, Mona. Thanks, Mona! Love this place.
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Review from Lychee W.
Huntington Beach, CA
11/2/2011
Shabu is yummy whenever. They give you s variety of vegetables and I have tried prime beef and choice beef and i prefer the cheaper choice beef since its more fatty which makes it tasty! Haha
The vegetables are things like cabbage, mushrooms, spinach, carrots, brocolli, tofu and some other things. You have a choice between brown or white rice and given two dipping sauces. Don't forget about the hot drops but remember a little of this stuff goes a long way. Haha
I like how the service is fast and you basically eat right when you're seated. My favorite part of the meal is when you get the soup base to eat your noodles and left over soup with :)
This location is nice but my fav is the California shabushabu in Costa mess for the cutesy tokidoki like decor.
Price is about $25 a person which isn't bad. -
Review from Sadia C.
12/29/2011
Came here last night for dinner with a friend. The place was packed! luckily, I came right before the people started rolling in. We waited 25 minutes...not too bad.
We get seated and immediately are greeted by the server. She was quick with our food and drinks. The veggie platter is awesome here, why? Because they give glass noodles, tons of lettuce, mushroom, good stuff. The generous portions of meat also helps too :) I ordered the choice beef, which came with 9 large pcs.
The servers were on it! our glasses were never empty. They rarely checked up on us, but I guess i can't blame em, only 3 servers for the entire place?
The squeeze bottles were great (sesame oil and soy sauce I think?) to add to the broth. Overall, the food was excellent.
Now for the peeves. No room!! I couldn't eat comfortably without worrying about bumping the people next to me. This is one of the more cramped places compared to other shabu shabu restaurants and for this type of cuisine, you need arm space and table space for: the plate of meat, the bowl of rice, the veggie plate, the condiments like radish, garlic and scallions, then the 2 bowls for the goma and ponzu, the chili powder, your drink, chopsticks, blah, blah, blah.
Another peeve, they turned off my stove before I even finished!!!! WTH! The servers were on the other side, I had to eat my soup lukewarm :( NOT COOL!
Overall, I would come here again because it's so close to home, but hopefully I can come by when it's not so packed. Service lacks when its busy. Great food, though and that is all I need :D -
Review from Diana D.
Huntington Beach, CA
8/26/2011
Amazeballs.
This place is my favorite shabu shabu place. They give you huge plates of veggies, which I LOVE! and the orders of meat are actually pretty large too. I have to admit though, my review might be a little biased because every time I've been here, I go with my friends who know the owners/workers so we get hooked up and serviced a lot more. Regardless, I've been to other shabu places that have much smaller portions for the same prices. Every time I come here I am so stuffed off my butt that it hurts, but a good hurt. This place is so good that i literally crave shabu shabu almost every day ( i know really sad, huh?). As I am writing this now I am thinking about how good California Shabu-Shabu is and how I wish I could have some right now!!!
There is a con though... it does get pretty busy at night so you can expect a wait. On weekends it's an even longer wait BUT once you get a seat it is well worth it. -
Review from Crystal I.
Laguna Beach, CA
8/16/2011
Great place to dine with a group of friends or on a date.
Clean, fun and always delicious!! -
Review from chi n.
Huntington Beach, CA
1/15/2012
I've been to other Shabu Shabu restaurants and no other place has the dipping sauces down like California Shabu. It's simply perfecttttt. Its kinda busy during dinner so I usually like to get my Shabu fix during lunch instead since there's no wait. My favorite is the salmon and prime beef combo where you get about four pieces of each. Doesn't sound like much but I always leave completely full. The quality of the meat and fresh veggies has always been good every time I've dined here and the udon is the best part at the end of your meal. Overall, the menu is simple and the Shabu experience is fun if you don't mind cooking your own meal in a hot pot. There's so many variations as to how to adjust the meal to your liking which is what makes it unique.
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Review from Vanessa H.
Aliso Viejo, CA
4/18/2011 1 Check-in Here
Awesome little place tucked away in a positively dilapidated-looking strip mall. I have been to the Costa Mesa location several times and figured it was time to try the O-G! And it was fantastic as expected. Our service was excellent!
One bonus that I hadn't known was an option was to ask for a leaner cut of meat. I think you can only do this with the Choice Beef, because the Prime & above are meant to have more marbling. That does mean that you do get a lesser quality meat (which is reflected in the lower price), but I was happy to NOT be picking out the fat from my meat for once! Of course the taste is out of this world...the ponzu sauce is incredible and I love being able to put ungodly amounts of garlic in both the water and the sauce.
Now if the cow gods could only invent a softer meat, without the fat, and not make it expensive! {sigh}...a girl can dream, can't she?Listed in: Shabu Shabu in Orange County
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Review from Diana N.
Westminster, CA
1/13/2012
Oh my god, this place is delicious. My boyfriend took here about a year ago and introduced to me the magnificence that is shabu-shabu. Tender, thick udon noodles? Freshly steamed Japanese veggies? Weirdly delicious peanut butter dipping concoction? PLATES OF KOBE BEEF? California shabu-shabu, I thank you for opening me up to a new form of Japanese cuisine, I was getting tired of being left unsatisfied by little, artfully-crafted plates of sushi rolls.
This place will definitely fill you up! A large plate comes with about 9-20 pieces at about $20-50 depending which grade of beef you choose. Pretty pricey in my opinion, but well worth it. They also provide you with a bowl of udon noodles, though I never think they give you enough. I almost always have to order more, which costs extra too I believe. There special dipping sauce is also delicious as well! It really brings out the flavor of the beef as well as ties the whole beef, udon, veggie mix together. Their secret ingredient is peanut butter! They have 3 types of beef, Kobe beef being the king of it all. it's about $50 for 9 and I have only tried it once! But, by god, it constantly haunts me everyday. From the moment I popped a slice of those babies into my mouth, as the buttery, velvetty texture melted down my throat, it changed me. Not even the rarest, tenderest of sirloins can substitute for the succulence that is shabu-shabu style kobe beef. It kills me to know that my carnivorous appetite won't be satisfied until my next Christmas bonus! ANYWAY, yeah, the beef there is pretty damn awesome.
The service is great! The waiters are entertaining, they're always down to take a shot of sake when you offer them. Let me tell you, Asian glow is a hilarious thing to witness. The crowd is usually pretty hip, lots of young couples. The seating is pretty limited, it encircles their kitchen set-up, so there's usually always a wait. It typically varies from 15-30 minutes, but I usually walk around the plaza to pass the time.
Great place and can't wait to come again! -
Review from Angie K.
7/25/2011 1 Check-in Here
Overall, a decent option for shabu. I drove here from LA to meet up with a friend, but if it wasn't to meet up with her, I don't think I would have driven so far just to eat here.
Not super expensive, not totally cheap, either... I think you basically pay for what you get. There's better shabu in LA that's better quality, but also more expensive than CA Shabu Shabu. I had the beef plate here. Some pieces were a bit tough/chewy. There's better quality meet elsewhere, but again... you get what you pay for.
Great service! People were very attentive, even if it was busy, and I could tell they were working hard even with a group of demanding patrons. I got all of my requests in a timely manner, and if I had to ask again (just a few times), they were always immediate and apologetic about it, so stars for that. -
Review from Hanam V.
Orange, CA
1/23/2012 1 Check-in Here
Simply stated... This restaurant has got to be one of my wife's favorite... if not THE FAVORITE one. My feelings and sentiments are likewise. We try to come here as often as we can... or as often as the notches on my belt will allow. =) --- Food is absolutely wonderful... and the staff, is also very friendly. I have NEVER had a bad experience at this place... ever... and I have been coming here for years. Like I said, food is fabulous and the staff is also wonderful LOVE THIS PLACE!!!!
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Review from T S.
Newport Beach, CA
1/6/2012
I love this place. One of my favorites. It's one of the places you know what is actually going into your body. YUMMY and very fresh always. Always packed so be patient- but worth the wait.
