Sunday, April 20, 2008

Not Too Shabu

Mr. Monkey and I met his family for dinner at the plaza in Little Tokyo that includes the infamous Curry House. I thought we would have to eat at Curry House again, but, to my delight, we didn't! Instead we went to Kushi Shabu (123 S. Onizuka Street).
Kushi Shabu was an interesting choice, as both Mr. Monkey and I are not shabu-shabu fans at all. We derive no joy from boiling things. But Mr. Monkey's dad does. [Insert your own Fatal Attraction joke here.]

Kushi Shabu was dark and old-ish. Not really the greatest ambience. We had a teeny-tiny room to ourselves.
It doesn't seem like the smartest idea to be eating boiling food in a teeny-tiny room, but that's what Kushi Shabu is all about.

Instead of shabu-shabu, the rest of us dined on a ton of fried things. Kushikatsu (otherwise known as "fried skewers" to the non-Japanese-speaking) are Kushi Shabu's non-shabu-shabu specialty. (The restaurant's name is making more sense now, no?)



Aside from the fried skewers, we also had fried soft shell crab, tonkatsu, tamago, and grilled black cod.



Dessert was a melange of fruit, red bean paste, and konjac in heavy syrup.
Would I go back? Maaaaaybe. It sure was a bounty of fried goodness. But, even as a lover of fried items -- and I can't believe I'm actually saying this -- I believe it was just too much. It's one thing to eat a few fried items, but it's a whole different experience when everything you're eating is fried.

And on a stick.

17 comments:

  1. Is thatthe teeny place that always has a line out the door? If so, the fried food on sticks finally solves the mystery to me. I always wondered what the fascination was with their shabu shabu!

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  2. Food swimming around in boiling water is strange to me.

    The fried goods on the other hand, are oh.so.good.

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  3. hmmmmmmm fried on a stick...

    i almost ate at hot dog on a stick yesterday. it's my go-to when at the glendale galleria.

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  4. mmm..fried goodness. yeah, i once in awhile get sick of it.

    shabu shabu is good when done right. well, i just like the places that do the udon at the end when they "season" the water better with broth and put in lots fresh yummy noodles.

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  5. i just finished watching bourdain's 'no reservations' on japan and they featured kushikatsu. looks tasty. at least, much tastier than curry house.

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  6. Whoa, it's like a county fair! Soooooo.much.fried.food.on.a.stick.

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  7. Long-time reader, first-time commenter ... you just described two of my favorite food concepts together - fried foods & meat on a stick. I would never leave that restaurant.

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  8. We love Shabu Shabu! Actually, we love any meal where we get to cook our own food....Or maybe that's just me....

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  9. Monkey Niece is especially cute in that first pick.

    And unlike Kate, I'm not a fan of places where I have to cook my own food. I don't like coming out of a restaurant smellier than when I went in, plus the point of going out is to have someone ELSE cook my food. ;)

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  10. I heart shabu shabu. What can I say? I love dinner and a show.

    The first picture is adorable :)

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  11. i don't mind the cook-your-own thing, but the hub refuses to go. and i'm no shabu fan, either. the melting pot's meat course fixed that for me.

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  12. I'm diggin' LMN's little piggy-tales :) :)

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  13. Those baskin robbin clown cones are a childhood memory for me.

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  14. Woah, fried madness overload.

    That first pic of MM and LMN is way too cute.

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  15. Man, you go out to eat with your family a lot. I barely see mine let alone dine with them often. I'm glad you got to try a different place even though it was over load.

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