Shabu Shabu Ichiban: Nagoya's Number 1 Hot Pot Brand (Century Mall Makati)

Being an eldest sister (achi), I usually treat my shobes (little sisters) from time to time.  Each of my sisters have a different personality as well as preference.  So how did we end up in Shabu Shabu Ichiban?

My youngest shobe loves playing games so if you recall, I brought her to Table Taft.  My second youngest shobe is a fashionista and into beauty so its usually pampering session with her.  Finally, my oldest shobe who is the only foodie among my shobes,  loves two things: Coffee and Eat All You Can.  Over the years, we've tried several eat all you can restaurants but this is the first time I've brought her out for an eat all you can shabu shabu.

As soon as we arrived, we were ushered to a seat.  Table set up was almost instantaneous.


The dining area is divided into two parts.  The common dining area has tables that can serve around 4-6 persons with one large hot pot cooker.  On the other hand, they also have a group dining area that can serve up to 15 persons with each person having a small individual cooker.

Food

Set B

Chinese Cabbage Kimchi and Edamame

To our amazement, they've been open since last year.  But, we just discovered it recently.  They have 3 sets for the eat all you can.  Set A, Set B and Set C.  We opted for Set B believing that it is the most "bang for the buck" option.

If you're seating in the casual dining area, your group will have a choice of two soup broths.  The broth is refillable.  It was a tough choice to make for us since we could only choose 2 out of their 24 soup brothers.  I wanted a spicy one but shobe doesn't like spicy foods so we compromised with the Tonkotsu (non-spicy) broth and Spicy Miso Kimchi broth.  We also had a choice of refillable drink each. 

Set B offers refillable Chinese Cabbage Kimchi, Edamame, Sushi and Sashimi Platter, Vegetable Platter, US Angus Chuck Eye Roll, US Beef Short Plate, Pork Shoulder (Boston Butt), Chicken Leg Quarter, Ground Chicken & Pork, Assorted Balls and Dumplings, Shrimp Tempura, Japanese Style Fried Chicken Wings, Kushikatsu, Japanese Rice, Udon, Raw Egg and Home-made Ice Cream.

Sushi and Sashimi Platter

While shobe and I agree that the Sushi and Sashimi Platter is not one of their strengths, at least they offer it as an addition to the already wide selection.  You don't get this if you opt for Set A.

Japanese Style Fried Chicken Wings

I'm usually not a fan of fried chicken wings.  I really liked the Japanese Style Fried Chicken Wings.  Shobe loved it too.  We would have eaten more of this if we weren't overwhelmed by the other options.

Kushikatsu

Most Kushikatsu we encounter is oily.  But, this one isn't.  It's very crunchy on the outside and the beef roll filling is so tender and juicy.  We were impressed!  If you choose Set A, you only get either Japanese Style Fried Chicken Wings or Kushikatsu.

Shrimp Tempura

The Shrimp Tempura is the reason why many would upgrade from Set A to Set B.

Pork Shoulder (Boston Butt), US Beef Short Plate and US Angus Chuck Eye Roll

The highlight of the meal is the meat!  Look at the beautiful marbling of these imported meat.

Vegetable Platter, Udon, Raw Egg and Assorted Balls and Dumplings

You can choose more dumplings for refills.

Chicken Leg Quarter and Ground Chicken & Pork

This is actually my first time to try shabu-shabu with Ground Chicken & Pork.  It's a really good way to enhance the flavor of the broth.

Assorted Mushrooms, Assorted Dumplings and US Angus Chuck Eye Roll Refill

Shobe ordered the Assorted Mushrooms, Assorted Dumplings and US Angus Chuck Eye Roll.

It's so good!  Try dipping it just for a few seconds until cooked so you can savor its beefy goodness.

We really loved the quality of their ingredients especially theUS Angus Chuck Eye Roll.


Shobe decided to drop her Raw Egg on the broth and had it hard boiled.  Did you know that their Raw Egg is especially brushed so you can just drop it in.  On the other hand, I prefer just cracking it raw and using it as a dip.

Home-Made Strawberry Ice Cream

We tried all three flavors of their Home-Made Ice Cream.  We loved the Home-Made Strawberry Ice Cream the most.

Tsinoy Foodies Verdict
We haven't enjoyed shabu-shabu as much as we've experienced in Shabu Shabu Ichiban.  In fact, we've actually recommended this to family and friends who have tried and gave the same feedback as we did.  You should try it too!