When it comes to Shabu-shabu my personal favorite is Choi City's eat-all-you-can lunch. For less than P400, you get a really tasty broth, nice dipping sauce and all the fix-ins you want for the soup.
Choi City is also the only place I know where I can get a fresh taho dessert all-day and everyday. So it usually makes going there to eat extra special. Their taho comes in a small wooden bucket. And you get to scoop it out yourself -- hot and clean (very important) -- and add as much syrup and sago balls as your little-child-of-the-Philippines' heart desires. It's really quite the experience. A very happy experience.
Fun Trivia: Shabu-shabu means "swish swish" in English. It sounds funny but I'm not kidding. I saw this in a legitimate food program on TV. And apparently the name comes from you swish swishing the food in the boiling broth. :)
Yesterday I finally got to try eating at Taiwan Shabu Shabu near Parklane Hotel and Sweet Little Things. I've passed by Taiwan Shabu Shabu a few times now and I've always been interested to try it. Yesterday, I finally got the chance. The word around town was that it was good place but expensive.
Unlike Choi City there was no choice of broths. You only got one kind and you simply had to choose your platter of choice -- A, B, C for small, medium, or large respectively.
The platter was okay. At P680 supposedly for two people, it was more than enough for our group of four. The broth was nice and light. There are also fresh sea foods such as shrimp, cray fish, squid and oysters which Choi City doesn't offer. As part of the platter, they even offer a delightful coffee jelly with milk dessert that ends the meal nicely and freshens your palette. The meal was really very nice. And I was very satisfied. The price was not as bad as I originally thought as well, which was a good surpirse.
However, the beef quality, the fish ball options (my favorites!), tasty broth, price and all-you-can-eat factor of Choi City's Shabu Shabu just can't be beat.
Choi City wins this one.
