I’ve been wanting to try this most raved about katsu place in town but it was only last month that I had the chance to do so. Hey, there’s no branch in Makati, and the nearest one is in Mall of Asia! But I am so glad I was able to try it because now, I am a certified Yabu-holic.
What is “katsu” by the way? And how did it start? Here is what I found inside Yabu’s menu:
It is also interesting to learn the “anatomy of Yabu katsu”. All this time I thought katsu is just a no-brainer breaded pork cutlet. But then, I stand corrected. There is more to katsu than just a strip of meat in a crumbly breading.
At Yabu, your dining experience will start with preparing your own katsu sauce. The staff will be happy to introduce the different Japanese condiments on your table.
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| Akisha growling in awe |
So how do we do the katsu sauce? First, grind the sesame seeds as finely as possible. Although, I must admit that I want mine a bit coarse.
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| Sesame seeds |
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| Akisha trying to grind her sesame seeds |
Then pour about two to three scoops of the katsu sauce into the ground sesame seeds. The sauce is sweet and tangy so I like slathering it on my katsu. I prefer putting three scoops.
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| Adding katsu sauce |
And can you believe we were number 14 in the cue when we arrived at their MOA branch for lunch? It must be really good for people to patiently wait for a table here.
We ordered the Black Tiger Prawn Set, Rosu Tonkatsu Set, Seafood Katsu Set 1, and Kid’s Chicken Katsu Meal Set. All sets come with unlimited rice, miso soup, and veggies. Our order came in fast and steaming hot!
The Black Tiger Prawn Set includes four large prawns a la tempura style. It has the right crunch on the outside and so juicy inside. It also comes with different sauces aside from the usual katsu sauce.
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| Black Tiger Prawn Set |
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| Tempura sauce |
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| Tartar sauce |
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| A bowl of fruits |
Akisha’s Chicken Katsu Set comes with breaded chicken, edamame,rice, cabbage, a bowl of fruits and honey mustard dressing. The serving is actually huge for a kid.
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| Kid’s Chicken Katsu Set |
My favorite of all is the Seafood Katsu Set 1 that includes black tiger prawn, scallop, cream dory, oyster and squid. But, it would have been nice if it also includes salmon. The plump Hiroshima jumbo oysters are so delicious that i wouldn’t mind getting an extra order. The pieces are actually big and super worth it.
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| Seafood Katsu Set 1 |
MIso soup is unlimited, so Akisha feasted on her favorite soup while we savour the rest of the katsu on the table. We all had two servings of rice and soup!
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| Miso soup |
The Rosu Tonkatsu Set was good but I just feel there’s nothing special. I kinda expect it to be juicy and tender inside but that wasn’t the case. Next time, I will try the Kurobuta Premium Set which is said to be the world’s finest pork.
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| Rosu Tonkatsu Set |
The verdict? Yabu is worth the long line! It’s price is worth it (we paid around P1,500 for all of the above). The servings are huge with the unlimited rice, soup and veggies. I heard they just opened in SM Aura? Can’t wait to try the Kurobuta Premium Set there!!!
Travelogues by Matet Garcia-Reyes 