Shabu Plus

Multi Personality . Shabu Plus offers a variety of Japanese food options but just like its rebrand into three establishments (Shabu Plus featuring shabu shabu, Shibuya for Izakaya, and Death Punch for cocktails and small bites), it doesn’t quite find its identity I like having options and Japanese establishments like izakayas are used to serving a variety of foods Choices are good but nothing really stood out among the shabu, sushi, ramen, yakisoba, and binchotan selections The modern shabu features a nice burner housing but the portion sizes and by ounce price for the higher quality items (Sanuki Olive and A5 Mizayaki Wagyu $36/ounce) seems prime for bundle pricing We also splurged on the Jewel Baco with the caviar being it’s most notable ingredient compared to the fish 📷 Jewel Baco $46 ~ Royal Siberian Ossetra Caviar, Wild Trout Roe, Chef’s Selection of Freshest Catch / Kombu Nabe $25 per pot / American Black Angus Ribeye $36 per 6 ounces / Jumbo Gulf Prawns $8 each / Tsukune Chicken Meatball $18 / Koji Cured Chicken Thigh $7 / Local Shishito Peppers $9 📍Shabu Plus / Shibuya Eatery / Death Punch (Washington, DC)

Intimate dining experience. Very high quality meats that taste great. We had the duck broth, which was rich and tasty. Staff was attentive and the owner is very friendly.

We had the classic Kombu dashi pot and it is nothing more than just water, not much flavor in the base. Fortunately, the ponzu dipping sauce tastes good. I had shabu shabu in Tokyo, NYC and San Francisco and I loved it, but this is nothing like them. The beef quality was good but also very pricey. Good for ins pictures tho.

I was really excited for my reservation having never tried shabu shabu before. This place did not disappoint! It's such a fun experience and the wait staff is very knowledgeable. We tried items from both the kaiseki menu as well as the shabu shabu. The highlight of the kaiseki menu for me was the Kushi Katsu. It was delicious australian wagyu sandwiched in some breading and was amazing. The real star of the night for me was the Olive Wagyu, which may be the single tastiest form of Wagyu in the entire world. Simply out of this world! Best bite of anything I've ever put in my mouth. Shabu Plus is the only restaurant outside of NYC that has it on the entire east coast. If you don't want to break the bank you can opt for one ounce per person (which I HIGHLY recommend) so you can cross it off your bucket list. While I'm raving about the Olive Wagyu, all the meat we got (and I think we got everything) was amazing. For those new to Shabu Shabu, the meat comes to the table raw, and you dip it into boiling broth (there are several types to choose from) for just 3-5 seconds. Give it a shake to dry it off and then give it a nice dunk into one of several sauces at the table (I recommend Ponzu and a dab of salt for the more expensive cuts of meat, and the Goma-Dare for some of the others). The meat is unseasoned so it is not a sin to use a little more sauce then you'd expect. After the meal you have the option to get complimentary soba or udon noodles and cook it in the remaining broth. Overall, Shabu Plus completely exceeded my expectations and I'll be going back very soon!

We had a total blast at this place, the food was spicy and delicious, the service was friendly and helpful, and the neighborhood is a whole vibe. You can get ramen, grilled meats, hot pot, and all manner of apps. Three stories, nice sake menu, I would be a regular, if I lived nearby.

This is a really cute spot for some yummy sushi. My favorite part was the little chopstick holders. They're just so cute!

We went for hotpot and were very disappointed. Their broth was mainly soy sauce (couldn’t distinguish any other flavor) and the quantity was ridiculously low! It barely lasted for 20mins with their high heat stoves. Price was really high compared to the quality and quantity.

Good shabu shabu, but over priced for what you get. Everything else seems more reasonably priced but also expensive. 20% automatic service charge.

Multi Personality . Shabu Plus offers a variety of Japanese food options but just like its rebrand into three establishments (Shabu Plus featuring shabu shabu, Shibuya for Izakaya, and Death Punch for cocktails and small bites), it doesn't quite find its identity I like having options and Japanese establishments like izakayas are used to serving a variety of foods Choices are good but nothing really stood out among the shabu, sushi, ramen, yakisoba, and binchotan selections The modern shabu features a nice burner housing but the portion sizes and by ounce price for the higher quality items (Sanuki Olive and A5 Mizayaki Wagyu $36/ounce) seems prime for bundle pricing We also splurged on the Jewel Baco with the caviar being it's most notable ingredient compared to the fish selection Jewel Baco $46 ~ Royal Siberian Ossetra Caviar, Wild Trout Roe, Chef's Selection of Freshest Catch / Kombu Nabe $25 per pot / American Black Angus Ribeye $36 per 6 ounces / Jumbo Gulf Prawns $8 each / Tsukune Chicken Meatball $18 / Koji Cured Chicken Thigh $7 / Local Shishito Peppers $9 Shabu Plus / Shibuya Eatery / Death Punch (Washington, DC) Shabu Plus accepts credit cards and has indoor dining only.

Came in for a quick pre-dinner snack and will definitely be coming back! We got the spicy tuna roll, grilled seasonal vegetables, and grilled pork belly. All very fresh and cooked perfectly! Curious to come back and try more. Our waiter suggested the ramen and ribs! We ate inside Shabu Plus (a bit confusing since it is 3 establishments in one). It was beautiful inside and decorated very nicely. Overall a great experience, we'll be back for the full one!

We came in for dinner the other night. The drink options were limited to a few saki and beers and their pop up Xmas cocktails - no other wines or cocktails available. I started with the Shishito peppers, they were pan blistered and tasty but super spicy. I had the katsu chicken ramen. Portions were large and chicken was tasty, but server forgot to bring it out for 45 minutes. Spicy tuna roll also good. He did make it up by bringing complimentary mochi. Decor was modern and well done. Only one bathroom for the whole first floor ... prices were reasonable for portions and Adams Morgan location.

Music just stuck on the 80s heartbreak station, total muzette vibes- Killed me . Could not stop trying to sing with the music while eating Shabu Shabu. Thank God I got there when they opened with my boyfriend so we could just casually sing cause no one was eating inside yet lmao. I'm honestly giving Shabu plus a 3-star because of their broth. It was lack luster. I was pretty excited for a seaweed/miso broth but it was just blah. Service was great though and I'll deff come back but not for Shabu Shabu. One other note - they give you a bunch of vegetables standard with your order, so if you get the veggie menu (I forgot what it's called), it's more or less the same vegetables. What really stunned me was the amount of portabella mushrooms...I think I ate my share for the whole year lmao. I did wish they provided more mushroom variety's, like woodear mushrooms or shiitake. Isn't there a Japanese grocery a bit down the hill they could pick some up from?

I was looking forward to Shabu Plus after reading about its impending opening in the Washingtonian. After a wonderful shabu shabu experience in NYC pre-COVID life, my husband and I have been anxious for D.C. to have a similar experience. It seems rare to find restaurants dedicated to shabu shabu in D.C. We tried a shabu shabu restaurant in Fairfax but it just didn't meet expectations, so we were excited about Shabu Plus' arrival. Shabu Plus was envisioned by Chef Darren Lee Norris, of Kushi fame, and his wife Candice Wise-Norris. It is the final addition to their three-level Japanese eatery in AdMo - the first two being Shibuya Eatery and Death Punch Bar. Shabu Plus focuses on, as its name implies, shabu shabu (Japanese hot pot) and kaiseki. The interior, while not huge, feels very zen-like and communal. Each table has a shabu burner, so you can see and cook your food right in front of you. To order, one first selects the dashi or soup base: traditional, duck bone collagen, black feather chicken, or vegan. Then, one chooses from a variety of meats, poultry, and seafood. All pots come with cabbage, mizuna, tofu, shiitake mushrooms, garlic chives, and Japanese leeks. The ingredients are brought to the table to be dipped and cooked in the broth. Make sure not to overcook the proteins! They also bring out house-made sauces to accompany the proteins, such as ponzu, yuzu-kosho, or sesame seed. We ordered the following from the seasonal kaiseki menu to start: + Sashimi Torchon (Norwegian salmon, yellowfin tuna, shishito scallion ash, ponzu, and oshinko) + Kona Kampachi Tataki with konbu, ginger dashi, and burnt scallion oil For the shabu shabu, we ordered: + Sanuki olive-fed wagyu NY strip loin + 45-day dry-aged Roseda Farm ribeye + Virginia grass fed bison ribeye + Berkshire Heritage pork belly + Berkshire Heritage pork loin + Jumbo gulf prawns After we finished everything, we opted for noodles to be added to the seasoned broth (one can also ask for rice). This is one of my favorite parts of the shabu shabu experience, as the broth has been enhanced by all the previously dipped vegetables and proteins. For dessert, I asked for the matcha panna cotta. It is the only dessert currently on the menu, but they will be adding more as they continue to grow. Overall, the experience was great. I still think our shabu shabu experience in NYC was better, but Shabu Plus has been the best in the D.C. area to date for me. The staff were all very friendly and accommodating, and it's exciting to see a new restaurant grow and hopefully thrive. If you are into shabu shabu or haven't tried it before, I recommend giving it a try!

My friend got stomachache after eating here. Good to take photo but not good for food though. Not as good as Shabu in NYC. Sushi are below-average.

I got a bit lost, but outside there's a Shibuya sign. You're supposed to walk in to a sushi place, and then Shabu Plus would be upstairs. Anyhows, after getting seated, I noticed that the decor seemed very traditional, and that the music 100% did not match the decor. It was an interesting mix. There weren't that many people up there. The waiter was very nice though. We also got complimentary sushi! So the broth is very tasteful and the veggies that came with it helps a lot on making us less hungry. There are instructions that come with the sauce box that tell you how to cook your meat. I thought that was super cute. The meat is bland without the sauces, so do mix up a sauce. I couldn't drink since I had to drive, but the alcohol menu looked pretty good. At the end, we got complimentary noodles - we picked soba and udon, and both were good. I personally liked the soba more. Drink the soup with it - it's good! The only reason I'm giving a 4/5 is that I don't think the pricing is worth the taste. Don't get me wrong, the meats were high quality. But would I pay this much again for anything besides the olive wagyu? Nope. One of us forgot our phone and the waiter ran out to find us. Really did appreciate that!

Candice and Darren were an absolute joy to work with. I called them in advance requesting a party of 20 individuals following a conference. They worked to create a tailored menu and willing to help us get the appropriate documentation for the per diem. They provided me accessible contact information that allowed me to contact them outside of business hours. The day of us attending, we had a conflicting event that resulted in 8 attendees. Candice and Darren made the adjustments and we didn't have any fees. The restaurant is located on the second floor of the building. They accommodated a long table to fit our group. We sat down and they explained the whole Shabu process. The entire group loved this dining experience! Folks ordered sushi, Shabu, alcoholic drinks, and the service was beyond satisfactory. The staff is kind and wonderful to work with. I recommend this restaurant! Great experience, great staff.... And more importantly... great food!!

Delicious, hot pot - super impressed with the food. And would go again if we did not experience the poor service (hopefully it's growing pains). Our server was disinterested, to the point that he dropped off our bill (without us requesting it) and never checked to see if we were done eating, enjoyed our meal, etc. (We had not crossed our 2 hour mark, nor was the restaurant even close to winding down). For what seems to be an active table side cooking experience we expected more direction, especially never having experienced hot pot like this before. Another server then took away one of our appetizer plates, without even checking if we were done eating it (we were not). Very confused by the lack of interest in engaging. Also - the bathroom- when I asked our server where it was he didn't give directions just said it's upstairs. Upstairs is another bar (unrelated to the restaurant), where you navigate people and have to again ask for where the bathroom is. What made it worse was the loo had floating turds inside - imagine seeing that right before your meal? For a pricey, (we paid $100 pp), upscale restaurant like this, these things really ruined the experience. The saving grace - the food and another helpful lady who maybe was the host (she greeted us at the door), and actually took the time to explain the different sakes, the food etc.

Very authentic Shabu experience. We came on Sunday for pre fixed lunch menu. We got two 5oz meat plates, a soup base and tamago zosui (kind of Risotto). The flavor is light and balanced. It is not a typical Asian hotpot place. If you are looking for authentic japanese flavor, this is it.

Cute spot with intimate atmosphere and fantastic staff. My boyfriend and I tried this place for the first time this evening and had a great experience. At first glanced, the menu looked a bit pricey, but we were impressed with the quality of the food. We ended up with so much meat we couldn't finish it. The sushi was phenomenal. We also felt well taken care of by the staff. Our server explained the Shabu process to us and was available to help us throughout the meal, along with three other staff members. We will be back !

This place was an awesome surprise. Staff was helpful getting things done right or correctly. Broth was delicious and just continued to get better. Protein choices were fresh but I would stay with the beef and pork. The spices and sauces were a big improvement over other Shabu I've tried. Great place for sharing a meal

I was really excited for my reservation having never tried shabu shabu before. This place did not disappoint! It's such a fun experience and the wait staff is very knowledgeable. We tried items from both the kaiseki menu as well as the shabu shabu. The highlight of the kaiseki menu for me was the Kushi Katsu. It was delicious australian wagyu sandwiched in some breading and was amazing. The real star of the night for me was the Olive Wagyu, which may be the single tastiest form of Wagyu in the entire world. Simply out of this world! Best bite of anything I've ever put in my mouth. Shabu Plus is the only restaurant outside of NYC that has it on the entire east coast. If you don't want to break the bank you can opt for one ounce per person (which I HIGHLY recommend) so you can cross it off your bucket list. While I'm raving about the Olive Wagyu, all the meat we got (and I think we got everything) was amazing. For those new to Shabu Shabu, the meat comes to the table raw, and you dip it into boiling broth (there are several types to choose from) for just 3-5 seconds. Give it a shake to dry it off and then give it a nice dunk into one of several sauces at the table (I recommend Ponzu and a dab of salt for the more expensive cuts of meat, and the Goma-Dare for some of the others). The meat is unseasoned so it is not a sin to use a little more sauce then you'd expect. After the meal you have the option to get complimentary soba or udon noodles and cook it in the remaining broth. Overall, Shabu Plus completely exceeded my expectations and I'll be going back very soon!

A confused, underwhelming, and very expensive experience. If you are in the market to spend a lot on a meal, I highly suggest going to another restaurant. Shabu Plus seems to have potential but is ultimately held back by its amateur service and bland hot pot. To its favor, the non-hot pot menu items were quite good and well presented. But for a restaurant that sells itself on its hot pot, Shabu Plus commits the ultimate sin, flavorless broth. I am not exaggerating when I say that the broth almost tasted like nothing, you will have a more enjoyable experience eating store-bought ramen broth. We tried both the Traditional and Duck broths and both were mediocre at best and unpleasant at worst. The table management was non-existent and we had plates cluttering up the table leading to a confused dining experience. To top it all off, the service can best be described as amateur, which is certainly forgivable when paying low prices, but for premium cost, I expect premium service, and it was truly nowhere close to that. Giving this restaurant two stars almost feels too generous, but as I said before I do believe it has potential. The chef was able to produce some visually impressive and tasty dishes but came up so short on the broth that it's difficult to believe that they were made by the same person. Ultimately, I cannot recommend this restaurant to anyone. But if you are very careful about what you order, and don't mind poor service and high cost, you could possibly have a decent experience.

I really wanted Shabu Plus to be awesome as this is the only shabu hotpot specialty restaurant in DC. The first disappointment is that their hotpot setup is very amateurish for the premium price they charged. For their 'hardware' setup, Shabu Plus still use portable gas range that hotpot restaurants typically used back in the 80s and 90s. They literally just put a portable gas grill that sits on the middle of table with the hotpot on top. I cannot help but pointing out that even the low to mid-price range hotpot restaurants in Fairfax and Rockville already have individual hotpot for each person built into the table. This type of old style gas range and the pot literally took up 30% of the table space, making the dining experience awkward while you have plates of food obscured by the gas grill on the other side. Not to mention the risks involved if you need to reach over to get something and accidentally flipped over the pot or touch the sides of the pot and get burnt. Also with this setup everyone have to dip and cook their food on the same pot. If someone tasted their food and find it not fully cooked, should they dip it back to cook more in the pot shared with others? Or just discard the piece of meat and cook another one instead? With the premium price of the meat here it certainly creates an interesting dilemma. In my opinion, this kind of portable gas grill setup for shabu shabu is only suitable for home use and definitely not befitting a premium shabu shabu restaurant. The second disappointment is the high cost of the food, I do understand Shabu Plus wants to go premium, and even have wagyu beef available. However most of the meats I tried did not taste like the premium price suggested. Shabu Plus also charged their meat by weight per ounce, in a way it hides the expensive price. By the time you ordered the amount of meat that typically comes with a fixed price per dish hotpot restaurant, its will easily cost at least 3 times more. That is a lot of premium to pay for what is offered. Shabu plus does have decent decor and good selection of drinks, however their shabu shabu setup and price of their food definitely needs to improve for me to come back.

Look, I hate to say it but I can't lie, the vibes are off at this place. For a menu that is priced like a upscale trendy Japanese place, the environment and ambiance does not match that at all. The lights are too bright and their playlist is just endless 80s rock. BUT... This is easily the best hot pot I have ever had. Everything about it was delicious, ESPECIALLY the wagyu. We had 6oz of the cheapest one but we tried the highest priced one and oh my god, it was unbelievable. But even the cheap one was amazing! We also had the pork belly and ribeye. Everything else we put in that duck broth came out so tasty. One of my favorite elements of the experience was that they bring you a tray of all their sauces. I personally love hot sauce and they had like four different kinds, each one with a different flavor profile. Their wasabi mayo wasn't spicy but it was SO good. I tried all kinds of sauce combinations along with the beautifully flavored veggies and meats from the broth and it was just glorious. Though this ended up being the most expensive meal I've had in a long time (after many drinks) it was so so so worth it. I highly recommend this place. If you want an amazing hot pot experience, look no further.

This place is the biggest scam. Please don't dine here. The hotpot broth was completely flavorless with hardly any variety of vegetables, and it cost us nearly $100 for barely any food. I left hungry and sad.

I really wanted to love this place, it's so hard to find a hot pot style restaurant with vegetarian friendly options. we asked if we could do 2 separate hot pots since I was the only vegetarian of the 4 of us. We were told that we had to all share one hot pot because there was only 1 burner on our table, or we could have a split pot but there would be cross contamination between the broths since it's in the same pot. I explained that I would get food poisoning from cross contamination with meat products. We ended up all getting the vegetarian style which was bland and didn't have much variety of ingredients. There was a slightly larger table next to us with two burners we could have used. And we were the only people in the restaurant the entire time we were there. We also ordered sushi, and they had a vegetarian friendly roll. They served all the sushi on the same plate, and draped two large pieces of raw fish over the top of the vegan roll. When I mentioned again that i couldn't eat food touching fish the server was super unhelpful and I ended up eating only a few pieces that were farther from the fish. It was delicious but it would have been nice to be able to eat all the food I ordered. The entire time they blasted Nickleback type music at us in an empty restaurant. I can't recommend for vegetarians unfortunately

The shabu shabu was good but god the service was awful beyond description. Most of the time the restaurant was empty and I was stuck there 20 mins just waiting for her to collect the bill. The food was also super expensive. Never again.

I love shabu shabu, and this place fit the bill! I found the prices to be reasonable and the atmosphere top notch. I always eat shabu shabu when I'm in Japan, it's something DC has been missing. I encourage everyone to come give it a shot!

First review! We went here last weekend during the second week open and had a really fun time. Any meal that includes soup bubbling at your table with fresh veggies, duck broth, top quality meats, and seafood is bound to be a hit. Combine that with an encore of noodles plus great service and you have a truly winning combination. Our favorites were the A5, pork belly, and clams. The staff was super attentive and friendly. Haven't seen anything quite like this in DC before and really enjoyed it. Highly recommend!

I was really looking forward to trying this place but I won't be returning. The sauces provided are tasty but they're not enough to help the blandness of the broth or the meat. The meal was very overpriced for the quality.

If I could give this place zero stars I would. I've been to hot pot many times and when I walked in I noticed that the server expected me and the majority of the other customers to be new to the experience... as it's the only way they could scam you out of so much money. They charge you per ounce of meat and the average is around $15-20 an ounce.... Just to be clear, an ounce is basically 1-2 strips of meat. At any other hot pot place I could get 4-6 ounces for the same price. This place costs 4x what it should be. To make it worse my broth tasted like water and I had to drown my food in soy sauce to make it even a little edible. I spent $70 on a meal that gave me less than half the food for over double the price of somewhere else and it tasted like crap. Also, the server gave me this speech about how they had this fish brought In from Japan that was super fresh.... Someone explain to me how a fish shipped over seas from the other side of the world is "fresh". You could say authentic... but not fresh. But based on everything else it's probably not authentic at all. I'm having surgery tomorrow and if I somehow die on the table and this place was my last meal I'm going to be pissed!!!