Shaab Japanese Restaurant

(626) 683-1150

77 N Raymond Ave
Pasadena, CA 91103 34.1471 -118.1491

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Neighborhood: West Central

Last updated 9.05.09

Category:

Restaurants

Payment Methods:

Carte Blanche, American Express, Visa, Discover, Diners Club, MasterCard

Cuisine:

Japanese

food quality
69.84000205993652% positive
  1. Shaab is a local favorite with my family since it is one of the few authentic Japanese restaurants this side of town.
  2. The food is delicious and of very high quality, the portions are plentiful, and it's all reasonably priced with most dishes coming in around $6.95.
  3. love their Wed lunch special spicy tuna
  4. The sushi was mediocre at best.
  5. I'm not sure about the other reviewers, but we've never had a bad experience with not-fresh sushi.
  6. Had a meal of unfresh fish and bad service.
  7. Over priced and a little scary to get bad sushi.
  8. Shaab offers great quality food at reasonable prices.
  9. The rest of the food is mediocre- if you want good shabu shabu try japan town-- its 10 minutes away.
  10. Not a fresh Place
  11. The service can be slow, but the food makes up for it.
  12. good food
  13. The lunch menu offers a great selection of authentic Japanese cuisine.
  14. inexpensive authentic food
  15. Great sushi - an Old Town favorite
  16. The fish is fresh.
  17. The specials are great, the food is moderately priced and the sushi is excellent.
  18. good food, amazing prices, bad service
  19. the food was decent, so was the price.
  20. However, my last visit was very disappointing - it took 30 minutes to get our food, our rice was served cold, and we had to repeatedly ask for water (which came in dirty glasses).
  21. Seating was slow, service was slower, and they gave us the check before they even finished giving us the food.
menu variety
100.0% positive
  1. The lunch menu offers a great selection of authentic Japanese cuisine.
overall
100.0% positive
  1. great place to have lunch before shopping in O Old Town, or taking a best friend for dinner and saki.
service
23.8100004196167% positive
  1. good food, amazing prices, bad service
  2. The service was awful!
  3. Great value, Improved service
  4. The downside is slow service.
  5. The service can be slow, but the food makes up for it.
  6. Had a meal of unfresh fish and bad service.
  7. Seating was slow, service was slower, and they gave us the check before they even finished giving us the food.
value
94.44000244140625% positive
  1. The food is delicious and of very high quality, the portions are plentiful, and it's all reasonably priced with most dishes coming in around $6.95.
  2. good food, amazing prices, bad service
  3. Great value, Improved service
  4. the food was decent, so was the price.
  5. Shaab offers great quality food at reasonable prices.
  6. inexpensive authentic food
wait time
20.0% positive
  1. Seating was slow, service was slower, and they gave us the check before they even finished giving us the food.
  2. The service can be slow, but the food makes up for it.
  3. The rest of the food is mediocre- if you want good shabu shabu try japan town-- its 10 minutes away.
  4. The downside is slow service.
  5. However, my last visit was very disappointing - it took 30 minutes to get our food, our rice was served cold, and we had to repeatedly ask for water (which came in dirty glasses).
5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

10/21/07

Great value, Improved service

by mlv2001

We have been a long time customer and seen this place from the start. They have improved the service by adding more staffs and it reflects in the speed. They offer many choices for shabu shabu which is an added value.

1 Star Rating: Poor

08/11/07

Can't understand why it was so busy there

by cailin120

$85 for one order of seafood shabu shabu and a lot of teeny tiny sushi for 2 ppl that we waited close to 40 minutes for. We weren't even full at the end of the meal. The sushi was mediocre at best.

4 Star Rating: Recommended

07/16/07

Good place to go for shabu shabu.

by tulip333

I have been to this restaurant on a few occasions for the shabu-shabu, and have enjoyed it every time. When you go there, be sure to call in advance and request to be seated at the counter so that you have your own cooking ware to prepare your food in. My friends requested the spicy miso, but I requested the regular dashi. Our meal included a plate of finely sliced meat, tofu, shiitake, napa cabbage, and rice noodles. We also received a bowl of rice and two different dipping sauces. One sauce was shoyu (soy sauce) based while the second sauce was a type of peanut sauce. Both sauces were good, but I liked the shoyu one slightly better.

1 Star Rating: Poor

01/03/07

Shaabby Shaabby

by curiousoranj

I hardly use the phrase, "I am never coming to this place again", but I believe Shaab Restaurant deserves this honor in spades. The service was awful! Seating was slow, service was slower, and they gave us the check before they even finished giving us the food. My Shabu Shabu came out in several courses (Shabu Shabu is NOT supposed to come out in courses!), and the wait was not worth it. Truly an awful Experience.

Next time I'll just poke my eye with a chopstick and get it over with.

  • Pros: price (kinda)
  • Cons: HORRIBLE SERVICE!
4 Star Rating: Recommended

05/05/06

Great Food but Slow Service

by tabemono

Shaab is a local favorite with my family since it is one of the few authentic Japanese restaurants this side of town. Prices for lunch are extremely reasonable and a personal favorite is the shabu shabu (only served for lunch on Saturdays, throughout the week for dinner)

However, my last visit was very disappointing - it took 30 minutes to get our food, our rice was served cold, and we had to repeatedly ask for water (which came in dirty glasses). In addition, the waitress lacked serving skills, reaching across us to set the table and serving our trays upside down.

If you manage to get to the resturant early or when there are few patrons, Shaab is well worth the visit. Otherwise, be prepared to stand out in the street for your table, as there is no waiting area inside.

  • Pros: inexpensive, parking
  • Cons: slow staff, no waiting area

The Details on Shaab Japanese Restaurant

Place Categories:

  • good quality food
  • bad service
  • mediocre sushi
  • extremely reasonable prices
  • favorite shabu
  • never bad experience
  • fresh fish
  • favorite shaab
  • great specials
  • great value
  • love wed lunch special spicy tuna
  • great improved service
  • authentic japanese restaurants
  • great lunch
  • dirty glasses
  • slow seating
  • good sauces
  • great place
  • authentic japanese cuisine
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