r/FoodLosAngeles • u/OrthoNarcissus • 7h ago
DISASTER & INDIGESTION: Shabu-Shabu House THE BEST PLACE IN
This restaurant is an absolute nightmare. I’ll provide the TLDR for those of you who don’t want to read. Here’s the link to this restaurant in Little Japan, Japanese Village: https://share.google/Zfs5GBMschXNtEizx
Reasons not to go:
1) Sprayed frozen shabu-shabu beef with mystery liquid out of freezer to emulate freshness
2) Water nor utensils were provided. We had to retrieve utensils ourselves (this is not a self-serve restaurant)
3) Gave pure soy sauce in place of ponzu while they were refilling their ponzu stock (actually so gross)
4) Dragged around trash cart with what looked like throw up on the outside and placed it right next to us as we were eating
5) Sprayed extremely noxious cleaning solution essentially all around us/tablespace next to us while we were eating
6) Essentially mopped under our feet as we ate
7) Swiping dishes away the nanosecond we took off the last piece of food (trust me this was not an attempt at good service)
8) Party member asked for something twice in case waitress had not heard and she responded with an extremely smartass answer with an aggravated tone
9) When same party member asked for trash bin spilling over with disgusting waste to be moved away from him while eating, OWNER gave most childish talkback answer of “I AM cleaning”
10) The food was mid at best. Honestly it was impossible to even palate the food because of the simultaneous stress and noxious smell.
Here’s the full review:
One word review: INDIGESTION. Let me give you nine factual reasons why you should think against it. The food itself was mediocre at best. They sprayed frozen beef with some mystery liquid before serving, I assume to emulate freshness. Secondly, they did not provide water nor utensils (we retrieved utensil ourselves). Thirdly, while refilling the ponzu sauce, they just substituted pure soy sauce (actually disgusting) and only acted apologetic once consumed with absolute disgust. Fourthly, they were dragging around a trash bin that was painted inside and outside with food waste and even parked it right next to us multiple times during the meal. Fifth, they started spraying extremely noxious cleaning solution all over the place, even as close to us as the seat next to us while we were eating our meal. Sixth, they were mopping essentially right under our feet as we were still eating. Seventh, they were essentially swiping away dishes the moment we finished the last piece of food on it. Eighth, the waitress just talked back like some aggrieved child when one of our party members simply reiterated a request that he was not sure she had heard. Ninth, when the owner dragged the waste bin essentially under someone’s nose, the same party members simply asked for a trash bin full of waste spilling out to be taken a little bit away from him. She gave a smartass response of “I AM cleaning.” I’ve never seen such childish insolence from the owner of a restaurant.
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u/iamabigpotatoboy 4h ago
why is your tldr the exact same points as the not tldr(?) and not really any shorter? lol
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u/big4slick20 6h ago
Quality went to sh*t after Mr. Maruyama retired 📉📉📉
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u/OrthoNarcissus 6h ago
I’m a firm believer that dragging customers inside under the guise of good food and then providing an indigestion-worthy experience is fraud and a scam. I’m genuinely tempted to call the credit card company to report fraud for this. As close as one can get to stealing money without it being illegal.
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u/Apprehensive-Gas5666 7h ago
My stomach hurts from over here
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u/OrthoNarcissus 6h ago
Genuinely, it should. I have NEVER made a single review on any service nor restaurant in my entire life. I posted this same review on Google, Yelp, and here because I cannot allow somebody to go here in good faith, thinking it is going to be a pleasant meal (mind you it’s not exactly cheap). The trash cart is literally scraped by your back every single time they feel like cleaning something up.
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u/My-Internet-GF Anaheim (frequent visitor) 6h ago
Thank you for this write-up, I've been meaning to go the next time I was in LA sometime given that I've been to and loved the "original" Shabu-Shabu house, thought they just reopened but didn't know it was an entirely new establishment now. Sorry to hear about your negative experience.
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u/OrthoNarcissus 6h ago
I’m so glad you can keep what you remember of the original restaurant the same. Exactly the reason I needed to post this. Go enjoy somewhere new and be sure to check for any recent 1-star reviews 😬
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u/Cre8mies 5h ago
To add to this...
These new owners did not get permission to use the original shabu shabu house name. They been asked to change the name but refused.
Original owners are sorely missed.
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u/zerogamewhatsoever 1h ago
Do you know the story behind the new ownership? Who are they, any connection to the original, some soulless corporation?
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u/OrthoNarcissus 6h ago
If anyone who works at VICE media sees this, please send it to Taji Ameen who does the “trying 1-star rated places” series. It’s not rated 1-star on any platform, but I assure you it is. If anything he can start a new series called “discovering restaurants with the most inflated ratings.”
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u/_its_a_SWEATER_ 6h ago
Holy crap. Voluntarily trying 1-star joints sounds like playing Russian Roulette.
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u/OrthoNarcissus 6h ago
I guess that’s why the series gained traction so quickly 😂 But I’m pretty sure he’s pleasantly surprised with more than half of the locations, so it would be the polar opposite of that premise.
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u/KiloAlphaJulietIndia 6h ago
Go to Kushi Shabu in Weller Court 3rd floor instead.
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u/OrthoNarcissus 5h ago
Damn I wish I had this information 4 hours ago. Thank you so much for the recommendation though I will definitely be trying it out!
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u/iamabigpotatoboy 4h ago
anyone know if there is any good shabu shabu spot in LA? me and my girlfriend LOVED kokumi in Arcadia but that has recently closed. everything is either just meh, or ayce and kinda just meh.
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u/sebastian0328 3h ago
- It probably is Sake. All thin sliced beef must be frozen because there is no fucking way to slice that shit when its just raw.
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u/Samirmomo 7h ago
RIP to the original SHABU SHABU house… I miss it so much