SPOILER ALERT: I AM IN LOVE WITH YABU
Some time back, Yabu had a giveaway where all you have to do is follow them on Twitter and Instagram and then comment your usernames on the post of the giveaway. I never win at these things so I normally wouldn't even bother joining but since I already follow Yabu on Twitter and Instagram and all I have to do is to comment my name and usernames then I joined. I went on with my merry way until I came across the announcement of the winners and this happened:
 |
| Winner #12 seems like a cool person. |
We used the GCs I won when my parents picked me up from school last saturday for my birthday dinner since we didn't get to see each other much on my actual birthday. This will already my 3rd time eating at Yabu and I already knew that there will be a waiting period before you get seated. The past two times I ate there, the wait wasn't long so we didn't plan ahead and ended up being 21st in line to be seated. I really love Yabu and my dad wanted to try it out too so we agreed to wait.
 |
| We don't need no menu |
We waited so long that we already have our orders by the time they sat us down. I must have looked like a rabid Yabu fangirl when I said, "We're ready to order." when they're not even done putting down the menus.
 |
| Menchi Katsu |
I ordered the Menchi Katsu set because it is the only meat katsu that I am confident I can bite through with my new braces and all. Also, because it is ground pork and beef stuffed with cheese. It was good. Soooo good. The crispyness of the breading, the juicyness of the meat, and the flavor with the melted cheese are perfect. I love the taste so much, I didn't want to dip it in the katsu sauce that I slaved on while waiting for the meal.
 |
| Kurobuta Premium Set |
My dad got the Kurobuta Premium Set and Yabu does not use the term premium lightly. It is the most expensive pork katsu available in the menu. 90g will already cost you about 500 bucks. It is made from Kurobuta pork which comes from the Berkshire pig and apparently is the Rolls Royce of pork. I did some more research and apparently, Berkshire pigs are so rare that in 2008 there are only 300 known sows in the world. Another amazing fact is that the ones available in Japan can be traced back from the gift given to Japan by English Royalty. You're basically eating royalty here! My dad really loved this one.
 |
| Close up of the slice of Kurobuta on the far left |
In an act of paternal love that all fathers must do, my dad gave me a slice of the kurobuta and that was the best thing that ever happened to me that day. As soon as I took a bite, I felt like I was one with the universe. I felt like nothing else existed but me and that morsel of pork. It was the most tender, flavorful, and juiciest pork I have ever tasted. Even the fat was so good, I wouldn't mind if it created fatty deposits in my arteries. It was so tender, it was almost as soft as my menchi katsu! The flavor was so good that I wondered, "If this is pork, what have I been eating before?" So put eating kurobuta pork in your bucket list if you haven't yet.
 |
| Original Katsudon Set |
My brother loves katsudon so it's no surprise that he ordered this one. I didn't get to taste it but according to him, it was good.
 |
| Seafood Katsu Set 1 |
My mom originally wanted the Seafood Katsu Set 2 (salmon, oyster, soft shell crab, and black tiger prawn) because she tried the Salmon Katsu before and she really liked it but wanted to try the other seafood options. Unfortunately, we were told that the salmon was already sold out so she opted for the Seafood Katsu Set 1 which has cream dory, tiger prawn, scallop, and oyster. The set comes with tartar sauce for the dory and tempura sauce for the tiger prawn. I only tasted the scallop which is good. It is soft and sweet. I really like how big it is too. My mom had no complaints with her choice.
 |
| Black and White Sesame seeds |
You will not get bored while waiting for your food at Yabu because you will be preoccupied by these babies. You have to grind them and then add tonkatsu sauce.
 |
| Tis the seasonings |
There was a new addition to the cabbage dressing since I last went to Yabu. I forgot to ask what it really is but it tasted like some sort of wasabi flavored dressing. I didn't eat much of the cabbage as much as I used to because eating it is such a hassle to the braces. My parents loved it though.
 |
| Why bother ordering a drink when you have unli miso soup? |
The best change in Yabu since my last visit was the unlimited miso soup. I managed to finish two bowls and I only noticed afterwards that I didn't even drink anything during the meal. I love their miso soup, it makes miso happy.
 |
|
A set usually includes unlimited Japanese rice or organic brown rice. I originally wanted to try the brown rice but in my hurry to order food, I forgot to say that I wanted brown rice. My brother suggested I ask for brown rice on my refill but I didn't get the chance to as I couldn't even finish that one bowl of rice. There is also unlimited cabbage which was once my favorite unli something of Yabu (unli miso soup is now my favorite). You could put any of the three dressings I mentioned before. Of course, unlimited miso soup. There are also pickled vegetables and fresh fruits. For about Php350++ I think that's worth your money.
 |
| And yes, may baon akong nutella |
 |
| Victory never tasted so good |
 |
| I always have nutella with me. Always. |
After declaring that I am about to go into foodcoma, I saw this in MOA:
 |
| Merry Moo! |
I stopped in my tracks because it is my personal principle to always buy Salted Caramel from Merry Moo whenever I come across it. Merry Moo's Salted Caramel flavor is the epitome of sweet and salty. The first time I had it, it tasted like how I imagine heaven would taste like. So regardless of my full stomach, I soldiered on and ate my salted caramel. No regrets.
