
3

"Expanding from Orange County into North Park, Tabu Shabu — which already has locations in Costa Mesa and Huntington Beach — is taking over Paesano’s 50-year-old, 2,250-square-foot site on 30th Street and will open after a thorough remodel in Fall 2019, bringing an interactive, authentic Japanese shabu-shabu experience. Shabu-shabu, literally meaning “swish-swish,” involves swishing meat, seafood, and vegetables in boiling broth and dipping them in sauce; at Tabu Shabu diners choose from four broth bases (seaweed dashi, spicy miso, tonkotsu pork, and sukiyaki) and order proteins such as prime rib eye, wagyu short rib, Jidori chicken, Kurobuta pork, and wild Mexican shrimp in four-ounce, eight-ounce, or half-pound portions, each served with a veggie plate that includes shiitake mushrooms and napa cabbage plus noodles, rice, and goma (sesame) and ponzu (citrus soy) dipping sauces. Founder and CEO Jeff Chon says the concept’s foundation is bringing authentic Japanese shabu-shabu to different demographics, and he is actively looking to add another Tabu Shabu in North County." - Candice Woo