Lamb Shabu

I honestly cannot say enough about the restaurant scene in Japan. It’s diverse, it’s high in quality, and you will find great places to eat everywhere you go. And when I say everywhere, I mean it – from the obvious places like the department store or sidewalk vendor to the less apparent like the unassuming building next door. A great example was Lamb Shabu, a small, intimate restaurant nestled inconspicuously in one of Ginza’s low-rises.

During my stay in Tokyo, I couldn’t help but notice how discreet so many restaurants were, tucked away on, say, the fifth or sixth floor in one of the thousands of low-rises in the city. If you weren’t in the know, you’d miss out on some great meals because where some of these places are located, you’d never think twice about looking. Lamb Shabu was a perfect example - I could have easily mistaken it for some whole-in-the-wall.

In this regard, Japan is a lot different from the States where promotion and advertising rule. To me it seems that American restaurant owners adopt a really aggressive style with huge banners and neon lights outside their storefronts, almost screaming to any joe-schmo to come in and spend some money.

The Japanese seem to have a different approach that is more mild-mannered, perhaps even elitist you could say. A lot of Japanese restaurants don’t care to serve just anyone. They don’t intend on rapidly expanding, franchising the brand to the next guy who wants a piece of the action. Their main form of marketing is not the loud, blaring lights of blue neon, but rather the positive word-of-mouth spread by real gourmands, foodies who truly appreciate the quality the restaurants achieve by keeping operations small and who return religiously because they know the next dining experience will be as good as the last.

I can’t say which approach is better or worse. Both are certainly different, and they really have to be since the competitive landscape in each country is so different. In Japan, restaurant owners face a more discerning food-eating public who have grown accustomed to the high quality of food served at the multitude of fine establishments throughout the country. They must differentiate and continually impress in order to keep customers coming back. Meanwhile, in the States, Americans grow up on a steady diet of hamburgers and hotdogs. It’s no wonder then that fine dining comprises such a small percentage of the American market. American restaurateurs can afford to be less exacting when it comes to their product offering.

While in Japan, I had several great meals at a number of restaurants, but I’d have to say that Lamb Shabu was definitely near the top of my list. Lamb Shabu, as its name implies, specializes in lamb rather than beef or pork found more commonly at most shabu shabu restaurants.

Our meal started off with a number of small plates, including edamame, rice rolls, and pickled vegetables. Since we opted for the all-you-can-eat deal, we could have as much lamb and as many of the side dishes as we desired.

The quality of the lamb meat was fantastic. The meat came served on trays as shown above and was semi-frozen so the meat could be shaved ultra-thin. The lamb was really fresh and you could eat it raw if you so desired. A lot of people don’t like lamb because of its gamey nature, but there was no such odor with this lamb.

I never ate a lot of shabu shabu before but having tried it a few times now, I can see why it’s such a hit among the Japanese and Asians in general. It’s simple, satisfying, and extremely healthy too. Overall, I was really pleased by the meal at Lamb Shabu and grateful that the Miyake family took me there because the lamb variation is quite unique. The meal at Lamb Shabu was fantastic, and it’s no wonder that it recently won an award for best new restaurant in Ginza.