Gyu Jin Shabu Shabu & Sukiyaki

We walked around iSQUARE and checked out all the restaurants that were already opened. As soon as we peeked in this restaurant we knew we wanted to try it out. The next night we went back and had dinner in Gyu Jin Shabu Shabu & Sukiyaki without fully understanding what we were up against.

Sure the buffet of veggies, noodles and other goodies were easy to understand. It was the different choices of beef and soup base that got us confused. Because of language difficulties, the Japanese manager with his few English words and a lot of pointing at the menu, convinced us to try the Supreme Wagyu sukiyaki course which cost HK$ 318 per person. At first he was insistent on the Kobe beef soy milk course for HK$450 but we weren’t that adventurous. I can’t imagine dunking meat and veggies in soy milk!

There was a wide array of veggies to choose from. Pick out all the ingredients you want and take it to your table to cook in the shabu shabu.

2 kinds of noodles in plastic bags were available. The udon was superb.

I loved the fish balls, meat balls and the mini Japanese hotdogs the best.

We totally skipped the rice.

For dessert there were 5 flavors of Haagen Dazs ice cream to choose from.

These are the rules for eating at this restaurant.

Whenever we eat shabu shabu or hot pot in Manila we usually order a lot of veggies and all kinds of balls – lobster, fish, pork, beef, and just a plate or two of imported beef because it was expensive. Here the main ingredient was the beef. I kept asking if the beef was eat all you can. I didn’t know if they understood me but they kept nodding their heads.

There were three of us for dinner. They brought out 3 plates of meat right away. The first plate had thin slices of pork belly. This was good but we didn’t bother finishing it since we concentrated all our efforts on the beef.

pork belly

The manager gave us a plate of Kobe beef to try for free. You can see all the wonderful marbling in the beef. It took only a few seconds of dipping in the hot broth to cook. It was so buttery and melt-in-your mouth tender.

kobe beef

The supreme wagyu beef had a different pattern in its marbling. It had a wider strip of fat in the middle as opposed to the fine and even marbling of the Kobe. Maybe it’s my uneducated taste buds but I couldn’t really tell the difference between the two kinds ofbeef. They both tasted divine to me. If these were grilled or pan fried the difference in taste and texture would be more obvious.

This plate below had about 10 layers of thinly sliced beef. Half way through we were already full. We managed to finish it with much pain and agony in our bellies. And I thought it wasn’t enough!

supreme wagyu beef

The sauce for shabu shabu was very different from the ones for Chinese hot pot. We kept trying different combinations but found them too salty. We settled with the plain sesame sauce pictured on the right.

sauce variations

The soup stock that remained after cooking all the beef was very, very good and flavorful. It contained all the delicious essence from the beef. But we were too full to drink it anymore. A good thing too since it had all the beef fat left in it. Not healthy!

If I were to return I would definitely order a lower quality of beef since they taste the same when cooked in broth. I think the supreme beef or regular Wagyu would be good enough. The meal was expensive but a it was a good experience.

Gyu Jin Shabu Shabu & Sukiyaki menu

Gyu Jin Shabu Shabu & Sukiyaki
Shop 706, 7/F, iSQUARE
63 Nathan Road,
Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong