Shabuway Japanese Style Hot Pot

Go here for great deal on lunch! Recommend getting: lunch special (beef) with spicy broth. This is good on a cold day or nice little getaway for lunch. The lunch special you only get 4 pieces of meat and actually seems little, but was just enough! BUT, I did have food envy when my neighbor order kobe beef… which was only other $ 4 bucks and you get double the amount of meat. I did come back the next week and got the kobe. ;)

This location is terrible. Shrimp dumplings were bland and mushy. Limited options. Only has spicy miso or water broth no udon or seaweed like the sf geary location. Service is slow and disorganized too. Don’t eat the green onions on the table, they look freezer burned.

Came here for a late lunch as the nearby zabu zabu was not offering AYCE anymore that day, and my group had a great experience! We all did option B which kept even my most ravenous friends happy. The vegetable plate came with cabbage, spinach, enoki, squash, tofu, broccoli, and carrot — lots of variety. The udon was ok, tricky to cook correctly, and the ramen wasn’t bad at all! Definitely give the shrimp dumplings a try as well. Yum!

My favorite place to eat in San Mateo! Great cuts of meat and the broth is to die for!

Being the first customer on 12/​24, I had been rewarded with overnight rice that is overcooked, almost like a congee. Also missing tofu from the vege plate.
This is my favorite shabu restaurant in the bay because of their sauce. But lately I have been disappointed so many times. Poor meat quality, missing items, and inconsistency. Not to mention they don’t know how to value loyal customers.
Not recommended to go anytime soon.

Went on a Tuesday night, ordered the option B all you can eat. Our service was the worst I have ever had, so bad I didn’t leave a tip. The shabu was average, the beef was subpar, some pieces way too fatty others way too lean, too thick also. Asked for about 6 different things over the course of my meal and never got them. Almost feel discriminated against since I was the only white person in the joint. My server was a middle aged Asian man.

I came in here for lunch. The lunch specials are good deals, but as my first shabu shabu experience, I’m a little biased in giving it a high rating. Overall it was a great experience.
This place wasn’t busy for lunch, so we were served immediately. Our food came out soon after. I love the cook-​it-​yourself experience, but this seemed like a healthier/​less heavy alternative to KBBQ. The veggies, tofu, and meat were freshly prepared, and there was a filling portion of it. The miso broth was good. I didn’t like the seaweed broth as much. You also get 3 condiments, and they were awesome with the meats and veggies.
They do have a «sharing fee,» which I thought was ridiculous because this food is meant to be shared in a pot anyway. So each of us had to order something individually. The lunch specials make it more affordable, but the portions weren’t that much smaller. I would love to come here again, anyway.

Aw man. I am so sad! This place has gone so far downhill that I could cry. I recently came home to visit for Thanksgiving and came here with my parents. My dad’s meat had pieces of BONE in it and he said it was tough like cardboard (he got the American kobe beef), the rice was old and hard, and they offered «California veggies», which sounded fine and dandy, but when we agreed and ordered that, they were missing almost all of the additional vegetables that it was supposed to come with! I had even asked ahead of time before agreeing to order it what it came with and the server had no idea. He just said that he thought the vegetables were bigger, so I didn’t really understand and had to ask for a new menu. When I saw the menu, my mom and I agreed we’d order it for an additional charge. If we hadn’t pointed out that it was missing asparagus and mushrooms, plus a bunch of other things, he would have just charged us for the more expensive vegetables, because he didn’t know what was supposed to be on the California vegetable plate, and therefore didn’t even realize he basically brought out the regular vegetable plate but on a different, larger, platter. On top of all of this drama, it took way longer for the «California» vegetables to come out, like a good 8 – 10 minutes after we had already gotten our meat and my dad had received his regular plate of vegetables. We had to ask another server if they had forgotten about our vegetables. I sincerely do not understand what was taking so long. The long wait made it all the more suspicious when we finally received the sad vegetable platter, like they were hoping we’d forget what was supposed to be on the plate and not notice that it was almost identical to my dad’s regular vegetables. Also, I don’t know if this guy was new, but he honestly didn’t seem to know much and seemed more interested in talking to his friends that happened to walk in to eat there and his coworker. Multiple times we had to ask for water, sauces, and rice. It was pathetic.
In all honesty, I’m probably not going to be coming back. I’m going to try Zabu Zabu the next time I’m home.

Tasteless broth. Really way below my expectations.
Was craving for some hot pot and decided to try a different place from our regular list of hot pot places.
We ordered a Kobe beef set and a Pork set. Chose the half half pot, one of which is spicy miso and one is the seaweed broth.
The meat didn’t taste that fresh. The broth was just bad. Both the spicy miso and the seaweed was bad. The seaweed broth tasted more like just plain water. Thankfully the sauce they provided taste pretty good, we were dunking the meat endlessly for more taste.
It’s pretty disappointing given that for hotpot places, their key two focus are awesome broth and fresh meat. Unfortunately, both did not quite work out when we visit.
Will certainly be my first and last visit. Decent service and ambience but can’t make it up for the poor soup base n meat.

I must admit, our first choice was Little Sheep, but with an hour-​long wait, we meandered to Shabuway. This was my first time eating here, though I’ve passed by countless times. Our wait was about 15 minutes (only 29 people as maximum occupancy) and we were seated at one of the two bars.
One major difference between sitting at the bar vs. sitting at a table is that you cannot do half and half broth (traditional and spicy miso) as each person at the bar has their own shallow pot. I ordered one, while my husband ordered the other. We chose to share a large plate of kobe beef and kurobuta pork, and we were informed that there was a sharing charge of $ 6.50. We didn’t know how the portions would look, so we decided to share rather than order too much food individually and waste. We ordered the traditional plate of vegetables and shrimp dumplings. We automatically received glasses of water, bowls of rice, and ponzu and sesame sauces, made in house.
When the meat came we immediately noticed the quality of the kobe beef. And you see one of the employees slicing it deli style at the front of the restaurant. Delicious! And the sauces were some of the best I’ve ever had, especially the ponzu. Normally I pass on that sauce because it never surpasses my love for the sesame sauce but tonight, it held its own.
We ended up also ordering a medium plate of kobe beef afterwards, especially after never receiving the shrimp dumplings. No matter – we didn’t miss them and the bill was amended. Besides that, we couldn’t say a bad thing about the service – refills and check-​ups were constant.
I would definitely return, though next time we may order our own medium plates which would also allow for another vegetable plate as well since we wouldn’t be sharing. Sharing was definitely enough food for the both of us though. I would definitely return, especially if I’m having lunch solo. It reminds me of the set-​up of xiabu xiabu overseas, one of my favorite spots for shabu/​hotpot.

Did ayce. So make sure you come hungry if you decided to do ayce. The ayce has 2 options with option a which is 28.99 (it has all the meat: lamb, pork, kobe beef, american kobe beef) while option b is 23.99 which only has american kobe beef and pork. My mom, brother and i got the option a. Of course we got shrimp dumpling, udon, ramen, vegetable as side dishes. Had spicy miso (medium). You can taste that spicy flavor that we had to add non-​spicy flavor broth to calm the spicy flavor down. Anyways the meat/​food were average but good for the chilly night. We had 3 plates of vegetable. We only ate half of it of what they gave us.
You can do split the pot if you want if you want
Had ice cream toward the end of the meal since it comes with the meal. They only had vanilla flavor only. The ice cream was thick but good at the same time.

Been here a few times and I was excited to write a review thinking that it would be good, since the food was decent. If you want like something different where you cook your food to your liking,
with veggies this might be ok for you. However at the end the other server at our party’s table tonight was not nice at all.
We were confused on the pricing when we received out bill so we said «ehh.» And paid the $ 200. I just looked at our bill and they charged us $ 13.00 for sharing food with our kids! WTH! ($ 6.50×2 adult share) = minus stars.
We had «not all you can eat Kobe» and they did. It was closing time and we were about to leave and my son says «hey I want to take this home.» He asks for a box and then the girl comes out all stewy and says «no you cannot!» And gives us all a cold stare. Like foreal?! We just spent $ 200 here and you’re going to be a witch? And she kept her arms folded as I just looked at her like wow…
I honestly wanted to take a photo of her stare to post it here, it was really strange. (This was even after we signed our $ 200 bill here mind you)
However in defense of our server Brittany who helped our table she was great, super kind and tried to explain the dishes. I think she felt bad that the unkept server was so wretched to our party. Customer service is what they need to work on.
Sorry not coming back that other server ruined it. Kinda felt like we got swindled and charged for giving Mom a potsticker really? (Potsticker plate is $ 15.50)
**NOTE: BEWARE THEY CHARGE YOU FOR SHARING WITH YOU OWN KID! Who does that?! They charged us $ 13! Go to another Shabu place with honest pricing policies and better customer service!

Walked in as a single right at 2. Everyone still eating. «Sorry we close at 2» it was 2. Not 2:01.
A no-​brainier fail in the restaurant industry.

Yum unlimited Kobe Beef!
My friend and I were deciding between eating here or at Zabu. We chose this place instead since it had a bigger selection. We ordered the half Spicy Miso & half Seaweed Broth. Between the two broths, the Spicy Miso was my favorite and held the most flavor. The Seaweed Broth was a bit bland and flavorless for my liking.
As for the meat, we opted for the Kobe Beef, Angus Beef, Pork, & Lamb. The meat was good quality but eventually everything started tasting the same since all the meat was so thinly sliced. It was still really filling and I appreciated how quick & attentive the staff were. Also, don’t forget the dipping sauce! The ponzo sauce was my absolute favorite!
Overall, I had a good experience eating here and thought my meal was worth the $ 28. There are definitely better hot pot places out there, but I still left the restaurant feeling full & satisfied.

I got all the protein I needed for my post half marathon recovery! We came here as a second choice as Shabu House isn’t open for lunch. Having never been to San Mateo before, we were surprise by all the options in the shopping district and really liked Shabuway.
The lunch special is great value. It’s certainly more value than our usual place back home. They have a kids portion for like $ 6 so I didn’t have to share! :)
The only knock was that the meat was a little fatty though I’m partially at fault for not ordering the lean option at the same price. The side of veggies and tofu was plenty. The sauces were also great. We did miss having grated dikon though. The service was attentive and courteous.
Next time we’re in the neighborhood we won’t hesitate to stop by again.

I like the small feel of this restaurant. It enables the servers to give you very good service. The meats are fresh and there are plenty of yummy vegetables.
The reason why I couldn’t give this restaurant more stars is because it’s very limited in the flavors of broth offered. They only have two: spicy miso or seaweed. The seaweed is literally water with a piece of seaweed!
Also, the meats are very thin (which is good) by so very wide (bad) that it becomes a whole mouthful when you’re eating. This is difficult to do when the meat is so hot coming out of the boiling hot broth.
I would consider coming back here. But it wouldn’t be my first choice as I like the place across the street better.

It’s a ok place for shabu, the kobe beef had a grainy texture but the vegetables were fresh.
Customer service sucks, I told the waitress at the bar, my sister was on her way, she would not let us save her seat, so of course when she came in it was taken. I had my sister share my chair with me… The ONLY problem with that is they actually charged me because my sister shared a chair with me, what a bunch of weirdos…

Wow, that was a lot of food consumption on our part!!! The four of us were really hungry after a day in half moon bay. We were seated right away. We of course did the Option A, all you can eat. We ordered, no joke, 14 meat plates, 6 vegetable plates, and nine bowls of rice with half and half broth (one spicy and one seaweed broth). For meat, we ordered lamb, kobe beef, angus, pork, man, we chomped them all down!!! The sesame sauce was the bomb and the vegetables/​tofu added a nice touch. When we ordered something, it came quick! Not a bad deal for 28 bucks, but it was worth it for the amount of food, service, and good brotastic times!!!
Overall: Excellent food, excellent price, excellent service!!!

Hard-​to-​find gem in downtown san mateo
The vibe inside is warm, and the furnishings are not bad. Clean, not too bare, and warm lighting. The red walls adds to the warm vibe. The price is not low ($ 20 for medium size set), but definitely gets you really full, and is soooo tasty. Well worth the money.
The spicy miso soup is nice, spicy enough to give a «kick», but not too spicy. There were lots of veggies and beef, and the beef slices were thinly cut – you can see the chef actually cutting the beef at the front of the store before he personally serves it to you. The pot is small enough that it heats up very quickly, so you never have to wait for you food to cook – it gets cooked very easily/​quickly.
The wait staff are also all very friendly and nice, frequently checking up on customers to see if they need more water/​sauce etc.
Will definitely go back to this place again and again

The meat quality is not that great.
The vegetables were OK but the udon was super mushy even before you blanch them in the broth.
The spicy miso tastes more like red pepper flakes or something along the lines of paprika and cayenne.
It’s not that spicy but I just didn’t think it’s tasted like miso.
Service isn’t that great either. You always have to ask and flag them down (even if they pass by you a million times to get to the kitchen) because they’re not really attentive.

It is good place to go since weather get cool, my bf pretty often in here. The place not big, but very clean and comfortable.
We had all you can eat, I love Kobe beef, all of vegetables, udon, tofu and ice cream, I know all of Shabu restaurants all over, but the meat quality & sauce is the best, I love their sauce, even I don’t know what is, but I can taste is difference from other Shabu place, I dipping my sauce with lots of green onions, garlic & chili powder. So great!
We hate waiting long line, so we come here very late on weekday, otherwise, there is always a long wait on weekend. This is located in downtown San Mateo how it is, Also it is the best place go to Shabu with my Bf.