Shabu-Tatsu Not Too Shabby

Shabu-Tatsu: Sake

Today we were headed to Sunrise Market in the East Village to pick-up some ramen making supplies so we finally got to try a restaurant that's been on my list for a long time now: Shabu-Tatsu. We've never had hotpot before Japanese or otherwise, so this was an exciting new adventure for the Newbie Foodies. We started with a lovely bottle of unfiltered sake and settled in to see where the meal would take us.




We ordered the shabu shabu since this is what we were here for. One order of Prime Rib and one order of the pork. Then things started happening. The waiters brought lit the stove in the table and brought out salads, toppings, rice and dipping sauces (ponzu & sesame). Then platters of vegetables and meats arrived. Since we were newbies, they explained what was going on and kicked us off with the cooking. Soon we were shabu shabuing with the best of them.

Shabu-Tatsu: Shabu Shabu

Mid-meal they also brought us cups with some salt & pepper in the bottom so that we could enjoy some of the broth created while cooking the meal.  Afterwards, they brought out some hot tea and some house-made ice cream (we opted for Green Tea & Red Bean) which was very creamy and a nice way to end the meal.

Shabu-Tatsu: Tea & Ice Cream

I'm sure there are plenty of people who turn up their noses at this kind of dining, but we absolutely loved the interactivity of the meal. It also allowed us to experiment with each bite and pace ourselves while being totally engaged and entertained. This would be a great meal to share with just about anybody- parents, young children, friends- it would probably keep people off their cell phones.