Diary of a SubUrban Housewife

Meat Facial

My sister picked me up to go to lunch today. We decided to go to Little Tokyo, which is about a five minute drive from my office.

We are off our formerly favorite sushi place because it's been downgraded to a B rating and I don't care who you are or how cast-iron your intestinal tract; eating sushi at a restaurant that has a B rating is just plain old stupid.

Then there's the conveyor belt sushi place. They specialize in rolls, and it's quite yummy, but last time I went there all the rolls disintegrated, leaving me and my lunch companion covered in sticky rice. So conveyor belt sushi is off the list for now too.

So, we decided on Shabu Shabu. There's a place my sister has been raving about. It seemed like a good idea to try it.

For those of you in perhaps Iowa, where there might not be Shabu Shabu, the deal is that you get a plate of thinly slice raw meat and a plate of raw veggies. In front of you is a steaming pot of boiling broth. Then you put your raw food in the hot broth and *poof* it's cooked and you eat it.

I think I forgot to mention that it's about 98 degrees in Downtown Los Angeles today. I think I also forgot to mention that the Shabu Shabu place is not air conditioned.

So there we sit, in a restaurant packed with people. Hot people. Non-air-conditioned people. Steaming hot bowls of broth surrounding us. It was absolutely delicious but perhaps a poor seasonal choice. We both felt like we'd had facials, meat facials, by the time we left.

I think in the future I will limit my Shabu Shabu eating to winter.

Posted by beth at August 12, 2003 01:50 PM