Kat's 9 Lives

Tired of the same old Shabu Shabu? Unfortunately your friend or family wants Shabu Shabu but you don't? Come to Yojie Japanese Fondue & Sake Bar where both of you can be satisfied. They not only offer shabu shabu they also offer Sukiyaki. I actually don't think I have done Sukiyaki before so this was a very interesting experience. The best part is Burumun, aka Gourmet Pigs, had a certificate. Upon entering I saw that they have a wonderful deal on Sunday where you can have an ENDLESS Sangria for $5. Why oh why did we happen to go on Saturday! lol The inside is very nicely furnished in a sleek dark decor that exudes modern elegance.
I even love the contorted glasses. They just looked so adorable in the light that I had to share the photograph!
So what is Sukiyaki you might ask? Here they serve the Kanto, Tokyo, style. The broth is a mixture of soy sauce, sugar, and mirin. It is almost like Shabu Shabu where they bring you out the thinly sliced meat and a big plate of vegetables to dip. Once the broth is hot enough you use the tongs to pick up the meat and start "swishing" away. I prefer my meat more on the rare side so I barely keep it in the heat. A big difference between Sukiyaki and Shabu Shabu is the sauce you dip it in. They give you a bowl of raw egg and you are to mix/beat it thoroughly to get a smooth even consistency. You can choose to dip the meat before you cook it or immediately after it's cooked where the egg will help cool down the meat. I thought the egg went surprisingly well together and began to dip all my meats on this side.
The sauce for the Shabu Shabu side is your normal Ponzu and Sesame sauce along with the grated Daikon, Garlic, and chopped Green Onions. What's most important about Shabu Shabu is the sauce because it is basically cooking the meat in water so all the flavor comes from the sauce.
Lucky for us that the table had two burners so we were able to simultaneously enjoy Shabu Shabu and Sukiyaki at the same time. We decided to order the Seafood Combo with Salmon and Beef for the Shabu Shabu side and The Sumo that's 12 oz. of Certified Angus Beef for the Sukiyaki side. We only wanted to dip the salmon on the shabu shabu side, but it really doesn't matter how you ordered the plates as long as you selected different ways of cooking them. After all, they all come out raw and you choose where you would like to dip them. =)
The meats were very tender and fresh. Eating Sukiyaki and Shabu Shabu is actually very healthy. All the oils from the meats are dispersed when boiled in the hot water. They give you rice and veggies that balance out the meal. Personally I don't eat any vegetables, I just want meat! So we got another side of meat! lol
For dessert they offer Chocolate Fondue or with a twist, Green Tea Chocolate. They even offer a sugar free green tea chocolate for $3 more. We decided to get the Fruit and Pastries combo with Bananas, Strawberries, Poundcake, Rice Crispies, and 2 flavors of Marshmallows. The strawberries were sweet but my favorite is always the rice crispies! It's interesting that the green tea chocolate had a denser consistency and solidified at a quick rate. Chocolate fondue is always a great way to finish off the meal. We turned a healthy meal to unhealthy too!
Yojie Japanese Fondue & Sake Bar
501 W Olympic Blvd #102
Los Angeles, CA 90015
(213) 988-8808

This will be my 100th post! ^_^ After many adventures, I have reached my new milestone and more to come in the future. For the 100th post, I chose to do the Shabu House! I have been meaning to put the pictures up for this place, but due to injury and Ms. Lin's computer having a breakdown... What better way to than to talk about this new restaurant than on my 100th post. We have been trying many shabu shabu places and I am all for the all you can eat, only if it's good. The reviews online were pretty good so we decided to give this a go since they offer beef AND lamb. Yum Yum! Their all you can eat is only valid after 8PM and it's like a secret so just ask for it. I would recommend that you call and make sure that they still have the offer to be on the safe side. The service was friendly, especially the server named Victoria. They were open to 10:30PM the night we were there, and there were still a lot of people there late at night.

Like all other shabu places, there are the sauces that you can flavor to your liking. They had the typical Shoyu that tastes a little like Ponzu and the sesame paste. At Shabu House they offer the Red Daikon that Hot Mama at Shabu told us was the correct additive. Of course they had the chopped green onions and delicious ground garlic. They also bring you White Rice and a plate of Vegetables & Udon Noodles to fill you up. Save room for all the meat and fill up on the veggies & udon at the end. You got to strategize your meal! ^_-
What's really great about this place was that you get to choose the soup base for the shabu instead of just water. You can either choose a Spicy Miso or a Ginger Chicken broth. Ms. Lin and I both chose the Spicy Miso. The soup base was delicious! It really reminded me of the Korean soup base, jigae. Since I am not a big fan of spicy foods, I asked them to make it milder. Unfortunately, the soup tasted great when it's not as spicy but the meats don't stay in the broth too long to be cooked it would have been better to keep it spicier. It really adds more flavor if you have a spicier broth, but remember that it will get saltier and spicier later on.
For meats they offer the American Kobe Beef and Lamb, for the all you can eat. You can never go wrong with all you can eat beef and lamb in my opinion. Each piece was thinly sliced and done when you order it. I tried to take a picture of them slicing the meat, but don't worry... I have tons of the meat, the most important part! Ms. Lin and I had the beef to start out with. Soon we ordered some pure lamb plates and mixed plates. I think after how much we ate, they would be wise to take the all you can eat option of the menu. O=P Each plate had a lot of meat on them and what I really liked about their meat was that they were sliced fresh. They were not all melted and sticking to one another like the ones at Mum's. It's a give and take because you have to wait to order more meat and have them slice it, while at Mum's it's just an endless supply without having to ask for more. Ms. Lin and I were discussing the benefits of each place. She likes the meat at Mum's more because they were thicker slices. I am neutral because I just love meat, to me the quality was about the same. The process at Mum's makes you feel less guilty for chowing down on all the meat because they just bring plate after plate of meat to you.
Be sure to soak the Udon in the broth for a really long time so the flavor can soak in. It will basically melt in your mouth! So delicious! To finish off the night, you get a choice of ice cream. We both chose the Green Tea Ice Cream. All in all the service and the food was great. I loved the flavors and the meat choices. Overall I like this place more than Mum's, but both places were great. Since I have had my fill of shabu for a while, I will not be eating shabu for a while but I will be back again! Hopefully they will still have the deal and not have our pictures up on the wall for who to ban! O=P The all you can eat shabu menu is $26.95, which is not bad if you can really eat like us Scary Asian Girls! Shabu House
5158 Geary Blvd
San Francisco, CA 94118
(415) 933-8600

I have been waiting forever to come up and try this all you can eat shabu place called Mum's. Who can say no to all you can eat meat!?! After going to Shabu with Hot Mama, I have been craving for some nice meat and not at a high price! As Ms. Lin has said before that Mum's is lots of good meat for a good price, but their sauces are just decent and not as good as Shabu. This place is located in a hotel in Japan town between Sutter and Buchanan. We met up with a friend and based on the dinner talk I am going to label him as Stinky Tofu! =9The service was nice and quick. They sat us down immediately and brought over the burner. Everything else was already set on the table and ready for you to chow down! As soon as the water starts boiling you can load it with veggies and meat. While your waiting for the water to boil, you can make your sauces. They had the typical sauce that resembles ponzu and a sesame-based sauce. At the table there were two other bowls with the chopped green onions and the minced daikon to add to the sauces.
First we tossed in the mushrooms, tofu, enoki, and other veggies. Then we started to load in the delicious meat. Beware not to let the meat overcook as you put it in because they are paper thin so they cook rapidly. As you put more and more meat in, the broth becomes darker and more flavorful. Do not put in the noodles until the end of the meal because it will soak up the broth and at the end it will be the most flavorful. This does not mean you can't put the noodles in early if you really like noodles because they will come by and add more broth.
You can ask for more meat or more vegetables any time and they will be more than glad to help. Be sure not to fill up on fillers like noodles or veggies, go for the meat ^_-. Can't tell I am a carnivore, huh?
After you put a lot of meat in, the gunky film from the meat will develop atop. On the table there were utensils ready sitting in water for you to use with your meal. Inside there was a ladle designed to remove the foamy film and you clean the ladle off back inside the pot of water. Thereby allowing you a clean broth that's ready for more yummy ingredients! Go meat!
All in all the place was good and great for the price. The meats quality varied a little but overall was good. I mentioned to Ms. Lin that Shabu had better meats and sauce but at a much higher price. At least here you can get your meat fill and at the end of the meal you get a choice of ice cream. Stinky Tofu and I got the Sesame and Ms. Lin opted for the Green Tea. I must say the ice cream was very tasty and had just right creamy texture. If I knew where or what brand they had I would get some for home. The tip was included on the bill and they were very fair as they crossed out the tip section to my credit card bill. Bonus points for not being greedy. I definitely will be back again in the future, but not any time soon as I must explore SF! ^_-Mum's
1800 Sutter St
San Francisco, CA 94115
(415) 931-6986

Hot Mama! ^_^ That is what they call the nice lady who owns the shop. I have never had Shabu, and I thought I should try it somewhere that sounds fun. She is not as extreme as everyone says, but she definitely takes pride in everything she makes and she should! The sauces that she makes are delicious. You start off with the basic Ponzu that you get to spice up with green onions, garlic, traditional red radish, and the red homemade chili paste. She pointed out that the red radish is the correct type to use and not the white radish. I really wouldn't know since I have never had Shabu before, but it was interesting to know. You also get the Sesame sauce that is unique to her restaurant, as my sister told me. Both sauces were delicious, especially since you flavor it to your own liking! I loaded mine with garlic! She also has a special yummy jalapeño soy sauce for your rice.
Prices here are a little bit high for the amount of meat you get. I got the Deluxe Combo, which includes the meat, vegetables, udon noodles, rice, and a choice between California roll or Gyoza. She brought us a huge plate of vegetables and noodles as the pot of water is boiling in front of us. Then she runs behind the counter to cut the meat on the spot. I am a huge meat eater and it was definitely not enough to make me full. If you eat all the vegetables and noodles, then I can see why people would get full. I was very tempted to get more meat but I didn't feel like spending $30+ for lunch.
There was nothing special about the California rolls. I thought they Gyoza was good, but I don't quite see what everyone is raving about on the internet. They should try the frozen ones sold in supermarkets. Ajinomoto brand is actually extremely delicious and very easy to make at home. Overall, the add-ons were not bad but nothing I'd crave all the time.
All in all the food was delicious, it left me wanting more but that was because I didn't get my meat fill. Price wise, it is kind of high and my sister kept saying that she will take me to this place in San Francisco where it is all you can eat! The sauces might not be as good, but you get all the meat you want. I would still come back to this place because the service is friendly and the food is good, also to see Hot Mama again.