YABU (House of Katsu)

A friend of mine suggested we try this place a couple of months back and it got me interested even though I know I myself am not always a fan deep-fried-battered food. (which would explain why I'm not always a fan of Tempura). But a foodtrip is nonetheless a foodtrip. And I thought perhaps a restaurant that had people lining up and waiting just to get in deserves to be tried before I make a final verdict.



On a personal sidenote: We were a party of 8 that particular sunday morning. And it took an hour of waiting before our table was ready.


While waiting for my order to arrive, we were a given a small bowl which contained what look like sesame seeds. We were also each handed this wooden piece which the friendly waitstaff said was to be used to grind the sesame seeds as part of the process of making our own sauce.



Make our own sauce you say ???? As far as I noticed, there is only one sauce to speak of. Its the one that tastes pretty much like the chinese HOISIN SAUCE. All that we have to do is add some of that sauce into the bowl of grinded sesame seeds (probably the kitchen staff were too lazy to grind the seeds for us) and voila !!!! we now have a sauce that tastes like ...... HOISIN SAUCE.





On a personal sidenote: Come to think of it, the grinding of the sesame seeds part is quite effective in keeping tables with restless and noisy kids entertained for a couple of minutes.


For my order, I opted for the PREMIUM KUROBUTA TONKATSU SET
According to the menu, the pork used here is of the Kurobuta variety (also known as Black Bershire Pig) and is considered the world's finest pork. It is called the "kobe beef" of pork due to its rich marbling, softness and flavor.



Included in our order of the katsu is a bowl of miso soup (no pic available), refillable or unlimited servings of steamed rice and coleslaw. And to take away the oiliness and fatiness after the meal, some fresh fruits is also part of the meal.



In fairness to the dish, the pork is moist and quite tender to the bite. But I personally find it quite difficult to fully enjoy the "kobe-ness" (is there such a word? hehehehe) of the pork when it is being overwhelmed under all those batter and breadcrumbs.

On a personal sidenote: I sampled a piece of the "regular" pork katsu that my sister ordered and while the "regular" does have a bit more dryness to it. The only major difference would be the pricing.


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At the end of the day, I guess for those who are already fans of katsu dishes, YABU can be considered one of the better places to go to here in the metropolis (though there is still probably other establishments to try). But for non-fans like me ........ its going to take a whole lot more to make me a believer.


YABU House of Katsu is located at the 2nd Floor of the Atrium Section in SM Megamall.