Urban Shabu

The hot pot scene in Edmonton has been bubbling up over the past few years with several restaurants opening up in succession but things seem to have finally settled down. The main players, 97 Hot Pot and Asian Express Hot Pot, are located in Chinatown with Chili Hot Pot just off of Whyte Ave. Okay, Asian Express has a second location south side if you want to get all technical on me. Rounding things out, there’s Kings Noodle & Hot Pot, Bangkok Restaurant and BoBo Hot Pot Restaurant.
I’m not the biggest fan of hot pot (AYCE once every 6 – 9 months is more than enough for me) but a sweet Groupon deal ($ 70.00 for 4 people) couldn’t be passed up. After holding onto the coupon for a couple of months, we finally made our way over to Urban Shabu to use it with the deadline fast approaching. Always seems to be the case when you buy one, eh?
Three bros and I arrived at 7:00pm on a Thursday evening. It was L’s first time ever having hot pot so we eased him into the process. The inside is spacious and what I really liked about Urban Shabu (besides their hilariously random signage) was their ventilation system. Yes, you will smell like hot pot before/​during/​after your meal but that’s a given. Regular price is $ 27.95/person for all you can eat dinner, $ 2.00 extra for specialty soup broths (chicken broth is free) and $ 3.00 if you want half/​half. They have a solid lunch deal ($ 11.95), which I believe is similar to 97’s deal. There’s even a parking lot in the back aka. two ways to get into the restaurant.
We each ordered a different broth — I went with the HK style satay. Not too satay-​ish but it was good enough. I wasn’t in a super spicy mood so it worked for me. The sauce station is pretty standard while the ordering system is guess, wait and see, which always seems to be the case when you go for hot pot. Just order more the next round to compensate!
— Good stuff: lamb, beef, enoki mushrooms, bok choy, fried bean curd (try it if you’ve never had it before. It soaks up all the flavours in your broth.), lamb mash, quail eggs and noodles.
— Meh stuff: beef brisket (weird odd looking pieces, not what we were expecting), green onion and spring rolls (dry, luke warm. Skip out on the fried crap).
— Japanese style sesame balls, mango tapioca, soft tofu, vanilla ice cream and osmanthus jelly cake — we were stuffed silly but obviously, we ordered dessert. There’s five different items to choose from and we decided to try them all. Ridiculous. Mango tapioca was probably the best but the osmanthus jelly and soft tofu were close runner ups. The ice cream was pretty standard although I found it a bit too artificial tasting while the Japanese balls were luke warm and glutinous.
Don’t be afraid to try something new. There’s a ton of items to choose from so you might as well make the most of it! For the most part, everything was pretty good except for the fried items that we ordered. Price wise, it’s pretty standard AYCE fare. My advice: go during lunch. Your wallet and belly will both be happy campers.

Both me and my friends hated this place, everything was too small, all dishes were like bought from a kid’s tea party. Not fresh at all, the shrimps were so old and had a funny smell…

I’m a vegetarian who very occasionally allows herself fish, so this place is not the most conducive to my diet. However, I saw a Groupon for this and snapped it up because Urban Shabu’s golden buns are very delicious. I still had a fulfilling meal despite my dietary restrictions.
Although service is usually quick, they usually shortchange your order like many AYCE places. However, I do respect that they do not want to waste food and that they are offering a great deal already. Although this place is not significantly different than other Edmonton AYCE hotpots, I like its proximity to the LRT station and its attempt at upscale décor. The décor is very… glitzy.
To get your money’s worth, come very very hungry.
Unfortunately I only saw the Groupon once and the deal ended within three days.
Come here for AYCE, and run here if you are lucky enough to have a Groupon.

Love this place the food and the staff are amazing. Been here the second time now and would always come back great value for money. :)

In the last few weeks, Me and Jessy have been really into eating Hot Pot. We’ve gone to Urban Shabu a number of times, and a few other places as well. Hot Pot have been increasing in popularity in Edmonton, and now there’s many places to choose from. They are all basically the same, with slight variations.
For those of you who don’t know what Hot Pot is, basically it’s what I call a version of Asian fondue. You choose a broth, and then a bunch of things to cook in the broth. You can choose between spicy, sour, plain kinds of broth. The basic chicken broth is complimentary, and you can choose to pick a different kind of broth for a little bit extra. Then, you have choices of a variety of meat, vegetables, noodles, seafood, etc. I posted pictures of the menu at the end of my post for reference of what you can order.
I think Urban Shabu is one of my favourite places to go for Hot Pot. They are owned by the same people as Urban China. I find that the interior of the restaurant has a more clean and modern feel to it, and it’s mostly just a personal preference. The food as most of the Hot Pot places are relatively similar and the same, so for me it just mostly comes down to the atmosphere, and how enjoyable my experience is.
The sauce station at Urban Shabu is really neatly and clearly laid out. It’s nicely labelled and easy to make whatever sauce you like. I usually like two make two different kinds of sauces, one that’s just plain and simple, which is soy sauce, garlic, and a few garnishes, and another one that’s on the sweeter side, hoisin with peanut sauce.
As for things to order, I really like getting the mashes. These are handmade meat pastes that you can form into balls and put into your soup. They usually come out really tender and really enjoyable to eat. They also offer a few specialty items such as deep fried buns, green onion cakes, spring rolls, etc. Usually, when we go for hot pot, it’s just plates upon plates of sliced lamb, corn, and a mixture of different kinds of mashes…

I bought a Groupon and didn’t know what to expect as this was my first time having hot pot in Edmonton. To my delight it was a lot of fun! It was absolutely packed with Asians (and non-Asians)when we arrived on a recent Friday evening (good sign!) so I would recommend making a reservation.
I really enjoyed having my own personal pot — I’d never seen that before. Also, the fact that there are lots of broths to choose from (+$ 2 if you’re not getting the basic chicken broth) was new to me as well — at home we always just use water. The husband got the spicy Szechuan broth and I got the lamb broth. You can choose among hot, medium, or mild, and we both went with medium. Both were tasty — mine had a light lamb flavour (not too lamb-​y) and just the right amount of chili oil; his was burn-​your-​lips off covered in chili oil, with the broth being very savoury and with a hint of Szechuan peppers. I think I preferred his.
The menu is buffet-​style in that you get a sheet with all the options, put down the number of whatever you want, and can repeat this as many times as needed. There was a good selection of noodles, a few dumplings (all were good), seafood, meat, offal (YE-​AH!!), meatballs (Chinese-​style bouncy ones), handmade pastes, veggies, and some cooked foods. As it wasn’t clear if putting down ‘1’ would get me one shrimp or one order of shrimp, we ordered conservatively the first time around. (For things like seafood, dumplings, and konjac noodle knots, it seemed like ‘1’ = 1 piece, but for other things like leafy veggies and meat/​offal, ‘1’ = 1 order.) The food comes out rather quickly but you don’t always get everything you asked for. Don’t hesitate to check in with the serves as they are more than happy to go grab it for you. Everything was really fresh, including the offal which is super important. I got to eat some pig kidney (not stinky at all), heart, and my favourite, chicken gizzards (possibly listed as chicken kidneys).
There is an amazing area (next to the cash) with all sorts of toppings (ginger, garlic, green onion, etc) and sauces (XO, multiple chili sauces, soy sauce, etc). I found I didn’t need to use as many sauces since the broths were so flavourful but I’m glad they exist.
One thing that contributed to my 5-​star rating was the amazing service. From putting a cover over my coat to ensure it wouldn’t get dirty, to getting me extra food items from the kitchen, to refilling our pots with broth on a regular basis, everything was done with a smile and some friendly words. I’m not sure how price compared to other hot pots ($ 27 – 28 per person) and while it might seem steep, I think it’s worth the occasional visit and will likely be back! FYI they do take visa.

I came here for a work lunch and we arrived around 12:15 to find less than half the tables occupied. We were seated at a table for 4 and give our papers and pencils to pick 5 items and broth. The pencils even have an eraser at the end if you want to change your selections.
There was quite a few broths to choose from which I liked. While we waited for our food to come out, we went to mix our sauces. The area isn’t very big if there’s more than 3 people but I like how everything was labelled well and nothing run out.
It didn’t take long before our food and pots of broth arrived. The veggies in the bowl were cleaned and fresh. I ordered udon noodles, 3 shrimp dumplings, wheat gluten, sliced beef, and 3 fish balls. The broth took a little time to reach boil but it gave us time to enjoy good conversation.
We didn’t need much service during our meal but appreciated with empty plates were removed. At the end of the meal, they brought us each a bowl of mango dessert. I didn’t have any as I wasn’t sure how much milk was in it but my table mates enjoyed it.
For $ 11.95, it’s an excellent deal and a meal that left all of us full and satisfied.

Urban Shabu was the first hot pot place my bf and I have ever tried. The interior is pretty modern. The only thing I don’t like about Urban Shabu is that it’s a pretty tiny place so the tables are pretty close to each other.
We’ve actually gone here a few times now and very pleased with the service. Their very quick on taking the broth orders and menus along with clearing any dishes. We have also tried Lucky 97 Hot Pot just down the street and prefer Urban Shabu’s meat as they actually offer both meat chunks and sliced meats. Lucky 97 does have more variety for food. But as for environment goes, Lucky 97 wins.
We still love Urban Shabu and very pleased with what they offer. We will be returning!

I wish I took pictures…
Driving around downtown with my gps searching for Urban Shabu, I almost missed it and went somewhere else for eats. Good thing I drove back in the parking lot and found their backdoor :)
Walking in we immediately got seated on a 4 person table which was great for the 2 of us (I love extra room). One lady took our drink order and then soon after another lady asked for our drinks (great service).
This was our first time here so we didn’t understand on the ordering system, I just assumed that we each had to fill out the paper menu on what we would like in our hot pot. That was not the case, you fill out one for each table order.
A lady server came by and asked what broth I wanted. I choose the tom yum my companion hadn’t decided yet but she came with 2 broths and mine perfect but his was something with a lot of chilies. I told him to ask for a different one but he doesn’t like making a hassle for the servers.
I tried his and WOW that was extremely hot! I would have sent it it back and asked for a new one lol.
Our veggies and seafood came out and then our meats. Everything looked great! Fresh and the meat was thinly sliced for easy cooking. I was thinking that this would be it for ordering but we wanted more seafood and my companion wanted to try the pork blood and tendons. I have an adventurous palate but this day I’m glad we did not have to share broths.
Our servers were on the ball, fast, courteous and funny. By the time we had finished our meal I wanted to roll out. Then our server came and asked if we wanted dessert and I said no I cannot put anything else in my tummy but he insisted. So he gave us a tiny bowl of mango tapioca, I took a sip and it was really nice but I was too stuffed to finish it.
I highly recommend visiting this restaurant because I will definitely be back and with more people.

I came here with two of my friends on a Friday night which I thought would be extremely busy but surprisingly not. This was my first time at Urban Shabu and I was very very excited! The first impression was very good, they have spacious parking in the back and the design of the resturant was very mordern and unique. The restrooms were also very clean and tidy.
Despite the materialistic first impression the service was not as great. We were greated and seated in the very back of the resturant which I didn’t mind but because we sat therebit definitely felt like service was neglected to us. We didnt get out food or broth until 30 minutes in because none of the waiters came and took out order mind you they were not even that busy.
I ordered once and reordered only once but both times they would not bring ¹⁄₃ of what we ordered and the potions we ordered were also messed up. So in turn I had to keep reordering and telling them they forgot this and that which is a hassel. Because we sat in the very back they rarely came and checked up on us so we had to physically catch their attention in order for them to serve us. During all of this the restaurant was pretty empty with maybe 5 – 7 other tables. The spring rolls were definitely not aa good as what i would have expected. They were soggy and definitely didnt taste like the spring rolls you would get at a phở restaurant.
Overall I wouldnt come back to this restaurant unless I had to because there are definitely other hot pot places that have better service and better food. (check my other reviews!!) The only thing i would say is that they have quite a few of different desserts to chose from which is nice. My experience was not terrible but it was not good. Personally I wouldnt recommend this place as a must go resturant.
p. s. $ 27 + $ 2 for broth per person which is typically the usual price for all you can eat hot pot.

Quite by coincidence, our family decided to have a family gathering at Urban Shabu, another hot pot restaurant within weeks of my first hot pot experience; I now have two hot pot experiences to compare and contrast.
First impression of Urban Shabu is fantastic. There is a nice size parking lot (look for the little white signs reserving spots for the restaurant) behind the restaurant within steps of the restaurant’s back entrance; don’t worry, a nice bright neon sigh mark the entrance, you won’t miss it. Upon entering, the decoration can only be described as, «unusual». Large black and white posters of European cities like London, Amsterdam, Paris line the walls; combined that with neon lit Chinese characters and plasma TVs playing the news; «unusual» was the word that came to mind. The bathrooms were super clean, a HUGE plus when it comes to Asian restaurants.
So the family were all seated and starving, ready to eat… this is where things start to head south. It took close to 30 min. for someone to come by to take our initial order and another 15 before stock arrived. By now 45 min. of our 2 hour time limit is gone; lol, good thing they didn’t seem to care that we stayed longer than 2 hours. The restaurant was less than ½ full on a weekend evening, no reason for the slow service. At the end of our meal, two servers were standing in front of the TV watching the news, they were not exactly «rushing».
If you want peace of mind dining, do not look under the table… My control box was upside down, my companion’s box was swinging freely under the table hanging by two thin wires; both covered by grease and food bits. «Hygienic» and «safe» were two words which didn’t come to mind at that time. The fun part was then she had to dive face first into my laps to look for her box *grin*. The heating plates were not attached to the table, my bro accidentally nudged the table and his shifted off the table. I wondered if the city inspectors inspected the electrical bits and pieces — if you look under the table, everything seems to be cobbled together with bits and pieces or wires and tapes. A little scary when you have hot soup nearby and loose wires resting on your lap.
Finally, the food arrived. Cooked appetizer wise, only spring rolls were on the menu, they were a little soggy and chewy, definitely fried a while back. Not the best but wouldn’t call it bad either.
The beef/​lamb came solidly frozen. Not a bad thing, the way they were shaved, the meat came in neat frozen tubes which melt instantly when placed in the hot stock. The stacks of tubes looked really neat and huge when it arrived but, once cooked, there is really not that much food per plate. The chicken and pork came in thin strips, way too small for hot pot purposes. My family had lots of good laughs with our chicken treasure hunter games; since no strainers were provided, not an easy task, bonus points for tracking down the pieces before they became completely overcooked! I was a little disappointed with the quality of the meat, despite being shaved extremely thin, they were chewy; something shaved that thin should simply melt in your mouth.
The veggies did look like they were past their prime, all showed slight discolorations. The seafood was okay. The prawns came with heads on, if you are not in the mood of having pairs of eyes staring out of your pot back at you, may be avoid that. Basa was the only fish provided. The squid, was TOUGH, only tentacles were available — I wondered where the better parts went. The «homemade» minced seafood (provided in tubes so you can make your own seafood balls) was fantastic, do get those. The other seafood balls all came frozen solid, not a big deal but takes a little time to cook through.
Food quantity is a guess at best, we ordered 4 orders of beef initially and got a plate of about 20 thin slices; not nearly enough for a big table so just for fun, my bro marked off 24 orders of beef and we got the exact same amount. We laughed. The number you place on the ordering form is just a suggestion, you get what the server decides to give you.
Price wise, identical to other similar restaurants, $ 26 per person, plus $ 2 for stock beyond the generic chick stock and $ 3-​$ 6 for drinks. On top of that, you can order premium drinks and food items like lobsters, geoducks etc. at «market price». We didn’t partake so I can’t comment on the price or quality, but it is definitely good for those special occasions.
The makeshift equipment is a concern to me. The food quality and service level can definitely improve. Given the identical price point with other hot pot restaurants, I understand they were less busy that weekend evening. Having said that, if you are looking for a clean modern looking place to take a date to experience a Chinese hot pot feast, Urban Shabu is a good choice because of the larger drink menu and more modern/​cleaner inter

My favourite hot pot place. It’s great because each person at the table gets their own pot to boil their food in so you don’t have to put in sauces according to what everyone wants and it can be your own. The service isn’t the best but it isn’t expected to be for a restaurant like this, I recommend taking groups of people. It helps if someone in the group can speak Chinese too

This restaurant was my first visit to hot pot and I adored it. That said, I’ve only been here once, but ever since that one visit, I’ve been craving a return visit (in due time, I hope!). Not only is it all you can eat deliciousness, but the menu has so many great options! The portion sizes were a little unpredictable, but as everything was darn delicious I have no complaints. The restaurant itself was clean and bright. I really loved the buns and the many options of items to put in my individual hot pot. We didn’t even make it to dessert as we were so stuffed with deliciousness that we didn’t get to try the apparently good dessert options!
I would definitely return here and hope to bring friends next visit!
The washrooms are a bit odd and the décor is occasionally a bit kitchy but I think that somehow adds to the appeal of this location.

Hotpot is the actual bomb. Urban Shabu is one of the better places in YEG to come and get your fix! It’s got a huge variety of items to choose from on the menu, most of them are to cook in your pot and there’s some precooked sides in there too. Like other reviewers have mentioned, there is no standardized measurements for servings. Sometimes you order 1 and get a huge amount, other times you order 6 and get the tiniest piffle. You do get endless ordering the entire time you’re there, so I don’t really find this a huge problem.
The staff is wonderfully attentive and quick. All you have to do is catch their eye and they’ll be over in a second. The food also comes out very quickly.
The pots here are individual, instead of communal. I personally prefer having a group pot, because I’m all about the bonding aspect of eating hotpot with people, but having your own pot is also nice. It’s also go for if you’re taking first time hotpotters. I know that a lot of my Westerner friends are very leery of food sharing, so it’s kind of a good way to introduce them to the experience of hotpot.
The broths here are better than the other hotpot places. That being said, it is a bit more expensive. It also has a modern interior and looks a lot more modern and less… sketchy than a lot of other places. For the overall experience, it is one of the best in Edmonton.

Always inconsistent. I’m rarely notified if my order is no longer in stock.
4 stars only because of their peanut/​sesame sauce that I can’t find elsewhere.
Come hungry.

The all you can eat style dinner is one of my favorite meals for winter — a nice warm broth, loads of meat and seafood, extra humidity for those with parched skin? What more can you ask for. Edmonton seems to have exploded in hot pot restaurants, with Asian Express Hot Pot the first to serve individual pots. Then came Urban Shabu by the dim sum owners of Urban China. Not long after, 97 Hot Pot right across the street. If three hot pot restaurants wasn’t enough for Edmontonians, two more have opened since my last hot pot review: Bobo Hot Pot (15 326 Stony Plain Road) and Chili Hot Pot (7219 — 104 St), and with another Asian Express Hot Pot location on the way! Bonkers.
Anyways! I’ve been to Urban Shabu numerous times now and have enjoyed all of my visits. I’m going to say I never blogged about it because all my photos were of lamb slices piled over top of each other every time I went out with Joe and his friends. They love lamb. This time around, my dinner dates ordered a good variety of meat cuts, seafood, vegetables, and noodles though so I figured a post was due.
Individual pots are the way to go. You can keep track of what you put into your soup and not have to worry about what everybody else is doing! I won’t lie, there’s been times when I’ve forgotten a thing or two in the pot and by the end of the meal it’s more of a guessing game of what it actually was.
My go-​to dishes are the handmade mashes and that goes for any hot pot place. It’s hard to compare the taste of the mashes when my visits are so far and few in between but Urban Shabu’s is still delicious. I don’t know why I enjoy sectioning off pieces of mash and watching them expand into balls in my soup pot, but I do. Call me a weirdo. Make sure you section it into pieces though (roughly 3 — 4 pieces per order) or else you’ll just get one large lumpy ball of seafood. Other favorites of mine: lamb slices (Joe rubbed off on me!), beef tripe, fried bean curd (unpictured), and mounds of baby bok choy and spinach!
It was a Wednesday night, so service was excellent as the restaurant wasn’t jam-​packed with people. I’ve never seen the sauces at the sauce table empty before which leads me to believe they maintain it quite often, refilling the popular ones such as soy sauce, hoisin sauce, and oyster sauce. The best part of Urban Shabu is the concern for the «post hot pot» smell. If the restaurant was full, and fifty little pots of soups and spices were boiling away, cooking whatever your heart desired… that steam has to go somewhere. I’ll tell you where it goes! It goes into your hair, your skin, your clothes! You can’t go anywhere else after hot pot, the shower is your destined location. But with Urban Shabu, it’s not so bad. The ventilation is the best of the three restaurants in Chinatown, plus they have purple seat covers for your jackets if you request them. Thumbs up!
Another thing people like about Urban Shabu? Dessert. They offer more than your usual vanilla or strawberry ice cream. They’ve got sweet tofu pudding, mango crème sweet soup (it’s served cold, with tapioca), and a delicious version of longan berry jello («cake» on their menu) that won’t fall apart on you when you pick it up. Love. They also have Japanese style sesame balls which I haven’t tried yet, and green tea or black sesame ice cream.
My personal preference is Urban Shabu and it always has been. I think the clean modern look, clear windows with no condensation, and the way my hair smells afterwards is a big factor. Food wise though, they’re all pretty similar. 97 Hot Pot had more of a consistency with how they plate their dishes, especially the meat cuts, making it easier to gauge how many plates to order. I also thought 97 Hot Pot had fresher cuts of meat as well. The mashes, like I said, are hard to compare. Service wise, Urban Shabu does a good job even when it’s busy. Some of my friends love 97 Hot Pot though because of their service button, just press it at your table and tada! Help is on the way. If you need a full array of sauces and easy access to them though, Asian Express Hot Pot takes the cake. I believe they’re cheaper too? I haven’t been there in a while. OH! And Urban Shabu doesn’t do half pots, you know, where they split the pot with a divider so you have a spicy side. Best get your sauce concoction down and add some heat there instead. Does it all really matter though? Not really. Hot pot = WIN.

The food variety was not much different as compared to another hot pot restaurant. The desserts were much better and I ate both the mango pudding and the longan and berries cake (like a sweet dim sum) which was a little less sweet and a bit too dry and hard as compared to what I had in Toronto, but still the only place I’ve found anything close in Edmonton.
I didn’t expect individual steamboat for each diner, and a downside is it makes for a lot more work per person and it might be best suited to those who prefer not eating out of the same pot for several reasons. There is no option for a hot plate for grilling meat.
What a lovely idea to cap the seat back with a silky slip-​on cover to prevent one’s jacket slung over the backrest from being brushed against and fall off the chair. I couldn’t get over it, kept repeating it to my fellow diners.
I was a bit misinformed but it all worked out well with mutual accommodation so let’s blame that on the language barrier. The service was initially slow, some things were forgotten, but overall service was good.
I had the winter melon soup base, and the happy :) Chinese wine, as well as a bottle of plum juice for the table. Tried some baby bok choy for the first time since only earlier this year did I start eating green vegetables. Next on the list is trying gai lan.
Very pricey and tiring so it can’t be more than once in a while, and it wasn’t something I crave anyway, so it’s all good.
Tip: Try ginger, soy sauce and hoisin sauce mixed for the meat and veggies, and perhaps ginger and fish sauce for the seafood.

Well I don’t want this to be a carbon copy of Jenn L’s review since I was with her… but I really have to point out the cockroach that was just crawling down the wall. Thank goodness this came at the end of our meal when we were pretty much finished dinner. Gives me the heebie jeebies just thinking about it. Too bad, if we had left 10 – 15 minutes earlier this would have been a pretty positive review. Now I just think about what’s in the kitchen where all the food is.
Other than the above stated, there is a huge selection of food to choose from. Unfortunately they never brought our shitake mushrooms even with several orders checked off multiple times.

I’m really conflicted about what to rate Urban Shabu. The menu items were extensive but as other reviewers mentioned, the portions the staff give you are very inconsistent and therefore it gets confusing when you want to order more. For instance, we ordered what we thought were several orders of the shittake mushrooms, but received literally about 5 – 6. We upped the ante on our next order and doubled our original order, but didn’t receive ANY the next round, or the round after that. We think they ran out, but they could have at least informed us. Aside from this, I enjoyed that everyone gets their own individual hot pot and soup base. The sauce station is also extensive and I like that it’s DIY. Oh, and the seat covers to keep your jackets from getting smelly is a nice touch.
I probably would have rated Urban Shabu 4 or 4.5, but the one thing that REALLY turned us off from our meal was the huge cockroach we saw scampering up the wall less than 1 foot away from us about 15 minutes before we were about to leave. It was disgusting. I’m not talking about a tiny bug either, but a full size cockroach. We heard that the restaurant upstairs has (had?) infestation problems in the past, but that’s certainly no excuse for Urban Shabu. It’s a shame because this place was a fairly good hot pot restaurant too. That said, I’d probablyyyyyy come back (ack! I’m saying this very hesitantly). but not before they fix some major issues: bugs and portion standardization.

Urban Shabu is excellent. If you’re a hot pot regular, you need to try this place.
The restaurant interior is clean and modern, with marble tabletops, contemporary plates and cutlery, new age chandeliers, and a «Bön Appetit» sign hovering over the sauces. The place is almost overrun with servers, who are ready to help you from the moment you enter the restaurant until you step outside the door.
We arrived around 7:15pm on a Thursday evening and were immediately seated. The restaurant, though fairly steady, wasn’t nearly busy enough to be full. This is partly because the place is huge — similar to Kings — but also because weekend evenings are usually the most popular hot pot times.
We ordered our broth (HK Style Satay for myself; Tom Yum for Kylie) and a bottle of pinot noir (I love wine and hot pot). The servers checked on us a million times before we handed in our list of food items, but they weren’t intrusive. They came by with an inquisitive look and could be sent off with a small shake of the head. At other restaurants, servers who come by too often can be annoying; at Urban Shabu, they’re simply poised and ready to bring you what you need.
Once we got our food, though, they left us to it — hovering nearby just in case.
A note on the broth, before I get to the food: the satay soup is lovely. If you’re allergic to peanuts, you’re out of luck — it’s as good as my favourite coconut satay broth from Bangkok Restaurant. The tom yum soup has a little more of a tangy taste, but it’s delicious, too. With items like these on the menu, why would you even consider ordering the (boring) chicken broth?
We ordered way too much food, as I’m wont to do at hot pot. Everything was fresh and of a great quality, and they definitely don’t skimp on the servings!
My favourites generally include the angus beef, marble beef, lobster balls, and crab sticks. I’m not too adventurous when it comes to hot pot, simply because I know what I like. I tried a mash, which wasn’t to my tastes, and I had a few mussels, which (in my opinion) taste better when steamed in a red wine sauce. The fish balls were the same as everywhere else and the shrimp balls pleasantly reminded me of xia jiao (a dim sum dumpling).
Overall, I think I’ve found my new favourite hot pot joint. I still love Bangkok Restaurant’s food and the owners there are lovely, but Urban Shabu has so much of the modern China feel and has many more items to choose from. Bangkok is a hidden gem; Urban Shabu is a well-​known hotspot.
At $ 26 a person, it’s pretty much the same price-​wise as every other hot pot restaurant in the city. For two of us, with upgraded soup and a bottle of wine, it came to about $ 90. Not too shabby, Shabu. Not too shabby.