A Review of Sabu Yakiniku, a Traditional Japanese Yakiniku Restaurant, near BTS Thong Lo @Hotel Nikko Bangkok
For those who are looking for a yakiniku restaurant, you must not miss Sabu Yakiniku, a Traditional Japanese yakiniku restaurant serving premium grilled beef. Interestingly, they imported the traditional style of grilling and eating meat from Japan. Moreover, a specialty of this restaurant is that they always select beef from good beef cattle breeds that are raised meticulously by the Japanese in every process and have never been exported outside Japan but they export to this restaurant. Therefore, premium beef lovers shouldn’t miss it!
Sabu Yakiniku, Japanese Premium Grilled Beef @Hotel Nikko Bangkok in the Sukhumvit Area
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Ways to Go
Sabu Yakiniku is in the Ginza Thonglor area on the 3th floor of Hotel Nikko Bangkok.
For people who use public transportation, you can go by BTS Skytrain and get off at the BTS Thong Lo (Exit 3).
In the case customers go there by car, you can come from Asok Montri Road, turn left into Sukhumvit Road when arriving at Asoke Intersection, go straight to Sukhumvit 55 Alley, turn into the hotel, park the car at its car park, take the elevator up to the 3rd floor, turn right, go straight a bit, turn left, and then you will see the restaurant.
Environments inside the Restaurant
When you go inside the restaurant, you will feel the Japanese spirit because this place is decorated with dark tones and minimalist wood furniture in the Japanese style, which makes the restaurant wide and comfortable. Furthermore, its seats are elevated wooden boxes with thin floor cushions. Each table and the restaurant can accommodate customers up to 4 and 60 people respectively.
As Ryoii members have been to the restaurant at noon on a weekday, there were not many customers so it offered calmness and a peaceful atmosphere. However, on Friday or Saturday at night and Saturday or Sunday at noon, there will always be a lot of customers. Hence, we recommend you make a reservation by phone before going there.
Dishes and their Prices
The restaurant serves a la carte yakiniku, and its main dish is Yukifuri wagyu beef. For those who do not eat beef, there are still marinated premium pork and chicken to choose from. Besides yakiniku, the restaurant also has main dishes (noodles and rice), appetizers (soup, salad, and snacks), and desserts.
How to eat yakiniku in this restaurant’s style, which is Momidare style like the Japanese franchise, is different from others’ styles. They will marinate beef before grilling and let customers eat it with wasabi so they won’t serve any sauces. Anyway, there are both marinated beef in the Japanese style with a mellow taste and dry-cured beef with many sauces that customers can choose from.
Moreover, the restaurant selects Yukifuri wagyu beef from Obanazawa City, Yamagata Prefecture, Japan where its beef and suitable and special weather for breeding beef cattle are famous. Therefore, it’s the reason why Yukifuri wagyu beef is soft and tender, not like normal beef. Surprisingly, Yukifuri wagyu beef has never been exported outside Japan so it can be said that it’s hard to find this anywhere else.
Its open hours are divided into 2 periods of time: at noon (11:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.) and in the evening (5:00 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.). The restaurant will serve different dishes depending on each period of time.
At noon, there are some dishes serving as a lunch set that contains the main dish, salad, soup, and dessert.
On the other hand, in the evening, only the main dish will be served. In case you want to order other dishes, you can still do it.
Moriawase (A Set of 5 Kinds of Beef) (2,480 Baht)
Moriawase (A Set of 5 Kinds of Beef) or Special Sabuchan Moriawase is for one who loves to eat various kinds of meat because this set contains both marbled wagyu meat and red meat. We guarantee that Wagyu lovers won’t be tired of it for sure!
Tokujyou Karubi
Tokujyou Karubi is the best marbled meat of the day. Whether it is marinated or dry-cured, this will surely impress meat lovers.
Tokujyou Rousu
Tokujyou Rousu is red meat that has a better smell than marbled one because red meat consists of a lot of protein and tenderness.
Jyou Karubi
Jyou Karubi, marbled short ribs, is a popular dish as its balance of meat and fat is good.
Jyou Rousu
Jyou Rousu is low-fat meat so Wagyu lovers who don’t like marbled meat must try this!
Nami Rousu
Nami Rousu is a dish depending on the chef’s decision whether it will be Karubi or Rousu. Either the former or the latter is soft and tender like other dishes.
Wagyu Yukke (480 Baht)
Wagyu Yukke is made from Japanese A5 Wagyu Beef topped with raw salted egg yolk, white sesame, and sliced scallions. You can eat it by mixing the egg yolk with other ingredients without grilling. If you try it, you will love the premium Wagyu beef in this dish for sure.
(Marinated) Tokujyou Karubi (980 Baht)
Customers can choose to eat either marinated or dry-cured Tokujyou Karubi. If you order it as a one-dish meal, you will get more meat. Normally, this dish weighs about 80-90 grams. Today, the restaurant serves it in a marinated way without any sauce but we can still enjoy the richness of the meat.
Tokujyou Rousu (Premium Wagyu Sirloin) (980 Baht)
Premium less-marbled A5 wagyu sirloin is soft, smooth, and low-fat and extremely suits those who don’t like marbled beef. This dish is dry-cured so customers can eat it with both wasabi and sauce. However, if you want to try eating it in the Momidare style, the restaurant still has the marinated one to choose from.
Tokujyou Karubi (Premium Wagyu Short Ribs) (980 Baht)
Premium well-marbled A5 wagyu short ribs are marinated in the Japanese style with Japanese sauce until their flavor is more intense. Hence, when you eat this kind of beef, you will taste the flavor of juicy beef.
Diced Kamui Gyu (1,500 Baht)
This is the newest dish of this restaurant. They will dice Kamui Gyu or Hokkaido wagyu beef into small pieces and cure it with salt and peppers, which can be eaten with sauce or wasabi.
Gyu Tan (Thick-sliced Beef Tongue) (450 Baht)
The dish serves tender and smooth beef tongue with a side dish, lemon. It will be more delicious if you use a lemon to wipe the grill before grilling or squeeze a lemon on top of the tongue after grilling.
Wagyu Yakisuki (750 Baht)
This is one of the recommended dishes that you should try. The restaurant serves thick-sliced wagyu sirloin seasoned like sukiyaki with a fresh raw egg. After you grill the meat until it’s perfectly cooked, you just put it into the egg and then can taste the rich flavor of the raw egg and the sweetness of the meat.
Wagyu Yaki Shabu (700 Baht)
Thin-sliced wagyu beef is topped with grated radish, chopped scallion, and ponzu sauce. While you are eating each piece of this dish, you will feel that its taste is like shabu. Moreover, the secret of this dish is how it’s grilled. You should fold the meat and grill just one side until it’s cooked to keep the condiments on top and get their full taste.
The Secret of Wagyu Yaki Shabu Is to Fold the Meat And Then Grill It to Keep its Condiments
Kurobuta Pork Steak (260 Baht)
We believe that Dry-Aged Kurobuta pork aka Kurobuta Pork Steak, which is made from pork neck, can attract those who don’t eat meat. Therefore, if you like to eat firm pork with strong flavors, you must not miss this one!
Kata Rousu (Kurobuta Pork Collar) (190 Baht)
This is another good choice for people who don’t eat meat. They will slice the pork collar into well-marbled thin pieces and marinate it with the special sauce from the restaurant’s recipe. Hence, you will taste the juiciness of the pork full of sauce.
Torimono (Premium Chicken) (180 Baht)
Those who don’t eat meat will also love this dish as you can taste marinated premium chicken with sauce from the same recipe as Kurobuta pork collar’s recipe.
A5 Wagyu Sushi (520 Baht)
It’s big sushi with sweet meat covering Japanese rice, which seems to be created for sushi lovers!
Roasted Beef Don (380 Baht)
Let’s move to Roasted Beef Don, the Japanese-style roasted beef with rice. The roasted beef of this restaurant is perfectly cooked, juicy, and very big served with a sauce that customers can put in whenever they want.
Oyakodon (Japanese Chicken and Egg Rice Bowl) (260 Baht)
Another dish of the restaurant that can attract one who doesn’t eat meat is Oyakodon or Japanese chicken and egg rice bowl. In the dish, there is tender chicken topped with poached eggs, onions, and sliced scallion.
Salad
Besides Yakiniku dishes, the restaurant still has many kinds of salad: Lettuce Salad (120 Baht) which contains salad greens, carrot, red and green coral lettuce, red cabbage, cherry tomatoes, Japanese scallion, sour, sweet, and salted vinegar salad dressing that can keep customers away from greasiness and Tofu Salad (150 Baht) which consists of various salad greens, namely, red and green coral lettuce and cherry tomatoes topped with Japanese tofu with salad dressing and good-smelling sesames. These side dishes are extremely suitable for eating with main dishes.
Lettuce Salad (120 Baht) Allowing You to Enjoy Various Kinds of Vegetables with Flavorful Vinegar Salad Dressing
Tofu Salad (150 Baht) Providing You with Not Only Vegetables but Also Delicious Tofu and Good-smelling Sesames
Namuru (160 Baht)
In Namuru or Seasoned Vegetables from the restaurant’s recipe, there are Japanese vinegared carrots, bean sprouts with sesame oil and salt, Chinese spinach with sesame oil and Korean chili, and golden needle mushroom with gochujang.
Kokuuma Tail Soup (Oxtail Soup)
The last savoury dish that can captivate meat lovers is Kokuuma Tail Soup or oxtail soup. They have 2 flavors to choose from: Original-flavored Oxtail Soup (300 Baht) served with hot soup, vegetables, and stewed beef and Spicy Oxtail Soup (300 Baht) for those who enjoy tangy flavors. Although you order original-flavored oxtail soup, you can also order chili to season the soup.
Original-flavored Oxtail Soup (300 Baht) Providing You with a Heavenly Taste of Stewed beef, Hot soup, and Vegetables
Ice Cream (80 Baht)
The restaurant still has 3 flavors of ready-to-serve ice cream that customers can choose to enjoy: yogurt, matcha, and lychee flavors.
Yogurt-flavored Ice Cream (Left), Matcha-flavored Ice Cream (Top), and Lychee-flavored Ice Cream (Right)
Assessment and Rating
Type of Assessment |
Point |
Taste |
4.20 |
Environment |
4.00 |
Worthiness |
4.00 |
Average Point |
4.066 |
Taste Summary
Moriawase (A Set of 5 Kinds of Beef): This hugely meets the needs of marbled meat and red meat lovers. Tokujyou Karubi is the best marbled meat of the day that allows eaters to enjoy the fat in the meat. Tokujyou Rousu is a chewy, tender, and good-smelling red meat. Jyou Karubi is a chewy short rib that doesn’t have too much fat. Jyou Rousu is Japanese meat that is easy to chew. Lastly, Nami Karubi is another interesting dish in this set, which contains super tender meat.
Kurobuta Pork Steak: It is a juicy and delicious dry-aged pork neck with rich flavors.
(Marinated) Tokujyou Karubi: This is marbled meat marinated in a rich sauce so the customers can eat it without dipping any other sauces.
Wagyu Yukke: The dish has juicy raw Japanese A5 Wagyu beef topped with raw salted egg yolk, white sesame, and sliced scallions. The recommended way to eat is to pinch 2-3 pieces of chewy beef for one bite. You will surely love raw beef if you try this one.
A5 Wagyu Sushi: The sushi is big and topped with bite-sized tender Wagyu beef. Therefore, it’s not an exaggeration to say that it’s premium sushi.
Lettuce Salad: There are various kinds of lettuce and sour and sweet salad dressing that are so delicious and good for your health.
Namuru: This serves 4 kinds of seasoned vegetables: Japanese vinegared carrot, bean sprouts with sesame oil and salt, Chinese spinach with sesame oil and Korean chili, and golden needle mushroom with gochujang. The flavors of each kind of it are the same because all seasoned vegetables contain the same smell and come from the restaurant’s recipe.
Tokujyou Rousu: The marbled beef is chewy and firm. We would like to recommend this dish to people who don’t eat meat with much fat. However, the meat is a bit sticky because it’s grilled for a long time and cut into thick pieces. As the meat consists of a strong smell of peppers, those who don’t like its smell may not smell the meat’s scent. Moreover, wasabi is not too spicy so it’s easy to eat and can enhance the flavor of the meat.
Tokujyou Karubi: It’s well-marbled meat that is more tender than other dishes. Moreover, it’s marinated with rich sauce which can make the meat soft, flavorful, and mellow. Nevertheless, if you continuously eat it, you can taste a bit of a sour flavor.
Gyu Tan: The dish is chewy and tender meat with a bit of salted flavor and a smell of pepper.
Wagyu Yakisuki: The meat with less marbling will not make customers greasy. As it’s sliced into thin pieces, the meat won't be sticky though they grill it for a long time. A raw egg is fresh, stretchy, and not fishy. The flavors of the meat go well with the egg’s flavor because there are both rich tastes of the egg and the sweetness of the meat. It’s one of the dishes that we want you to try.
Wagyu Yaki Shabu: The thin-sliced meat is not too chewy. Moreover, as its condiment is sour, it can prevent greasy flavors from other dishes.
Kata Rousu: The medium-size low-fat meat is tender, not sticky. Furthermore, it’s marinated so customers can taste a bit of the salted flavor of the rich sauce.
Torimino: Premium chicken is soft because it’s marinated with rich sauce from the same recipe as Kurobuta pork collar’s recipe.
Kokuuma Tail Soup: It’s served warm in a big bowl with vegetables and a lot of beef for 2-3 people. Vegetables and stewed beef with a little fat are boiled until it’s soft. The taste of the soup is not too spicy so those who cannot handle spicy foods can eat this dish to prevent greasiness.
Matcha-flavored Ice Cream: We can taste the bitter-sweet flavor and smell the scent of matcha green tea so this extremely suits people who love rich matcha.
Lychee-flavored Ice Cream: The ice cream that has a good smell and taste of lychee is not too sour and can help us eradicate greasiness from meat. It’s a great choice for people who like to eat fruits and desserts.
Yogurt-flavored Ice Cream: It’s sour like yogurts, not too sweet and sour. We can feel the rich taste of yogurt and blueberries, which makes the dish more flavorful.
Outstanding Points of Sabu Yakiniku
1. Sabu Yakiniku is a Japanese Yakiniku restaurant that suits many people, especially meat lovers because there is much high-quality beef to choose from. Moreover, it’s marinated with rich sauce until it’s juicy and full of rich flavors.
2. Besides Yakiniku, the restaurant still has one-dish meals (noodles and rice) and appetizers (soup and salad), which can allow you to choose various kinds of dishes, not only Yakiniku.
3. The tastes of each dish are so unique and outstanding, whether it be Yakiniku, soup, or desserts. Therefore, it can be said that this restaurant can make every dish very well.
4. The restaurant suits for eating as the environment inside the restaurant is wide and comfortable, moreover, it’s decorated in a minimalist style, which allows customers to enjoy the environment in the Japanese style.
5. The restaurant is located near BTS Thong Lo so it’s convenient for people who go there by public transportation.
6. There is also a car park inside Hotel Nikko Bangkok for customers who go there by car.
Additional Information and Recommendations
1. There are not many desserts to choose from since the restaurant now has just 3 flavors of ready-to-serve ice cream: yogurt, matcha, and lychee flavors.
2. The prices do not include the 7% VAT and the 10% service charge.
3. Open hours of Sabu Yakiniku are 11:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m.-9:30 p.m. For more information, please call 082-722-7888.
We would like to say that the premium beef of Sabu Yakiniku has high quality. Moreover, the restaurant is also famous for how to eat in the Japanese style. Hence, if you like to eat Yakiniku or beef, want to try premium beef imported from Japan, and fall in love with eating in the Japanese style, you must not miss Sabu Yakiniku at Thong Lo!!
