SHABUMi

So Young Chon

High quality meat and absolutely impeccable service.

Mike R

This place offers all you can eat for both hotpot and Korean BBQ. I did the Korean BBQ and my fiance did the hotpot. We were allowed to share food. Meats are delicious! Both hotpot and Korean BBQ are $39.99 per person.

Jose Hernandez

First of all, I have never been to a hotpot all you can eat restaurant. With that out of the way I enjoyed the service and setup of the picking your soup base, meats, vegetables, and sea food. They call it a salad bar which ranges from noodles, vegetables to seafoods with a range of sauces. My favorite sauce being the peanut sauce. Of course you can't have meat leftovers or you will get charged but the meats alone are thinly cut which spills premium and cook in the pot in a matter of seconds. I didn't feel pressured to get out as they close really late. Some things that I feel can be improved is to inform us what meats are which since I had trouble figuring the names of each meat. Another improvement which is minor is to inform us on the knob for the stove to turn it down if it's boiling hot or turn it high if it's not that hot. I really enjoyed the atmosphere and fresh food since it was a rainy day.

Rosey Gutierrez

Meat is outstanding quality and the sauces and side dishes are delicious. Service is prompt and you get served pretty quickly. The inside is very clean and I love that you each get an individual little pot. My husband loves seafood but I'm not a big fan and fishy broth puts me off. This made it a complete non issue. Selection is good, I do wish they had a pork broth, but the house broth was good, husband had miso and he was happy with it as well. I was at HaiDiLao a week ago and it was very pricy. This place was a bargain in comparison, and we left very happy! Please check it out, you won't be disappointed!

Margaret Kellogg

This restaurant is still as outstanding, they now offer bbq as well. My husband and I love each getting bbq and shabu and sharing bites of each. Our favorite bbq items are the beef belly, rib fingers. Pork belly and chuck steak. The wait staff is attentive, and helpful. Its all around a great experience. Very yummy shabu shabu restaurant. Choice of 5 different soups. Fresh meat you can watch being cut. 9 different choices. Every option is delicious, but 4,7,&9 are my personal favorites. Big vegetable, dumplings, seafood, and sauce selection. Everything is very fresh. Loved that they had shrimp, crab legs, and crawfish. There was also a hot food buffet with fried rice and orange chicken. Bibimap sushi rolls too. The service is great. We had 3 waitresses attending to us and never had to push the service button, despite being slightly busy. The owner came by to check on us and make conversation. The restaurant was very clean and decor was new. It has been open about three months, and is starting out with a bang. We will definitely be back very soon.

JK

Shabumi is an amazing spot for shabu-shabu lovers! The ingredients are always fresh, and they offer a great selection of meats and broths to choose from. I was especially impressed by the variety of vegetables and seafood options, allowing you to customize your meal to your liking. The staff is friendly and attentive, making the dining experience even more enjoyable. Whether you're new to shabu-shabu or a seasoned pro, their clear menu and helpful explanations make it easy to enjoy. The clean, modern atmosphere is a nice bonus. I'll definitely be coming back—highly recommend!

Daniela Alvarado

Oh my gosh where do I start! First I was wanting to try a new hot pot place and this place looked so good! I love the fact that they have a buffet style bar for their veggies and sides. So we sat down and then I saw they also had an option for Korean bbq! So you can either have hot pot or Korean bbq!! That's amazing!! The meat selection is great! And the broth was delicious! The veggies and dumplings were delicious also and over all I just enjoyed it here so much! I can't wait to come back!

This place is great. Didn't try the hotpot, but the bbq was amazing. It was my first time at a place like this. Our server, Debbie, was fantastic. She noticed that we were new to this because we were just cooking and eating the meat plain. She grabbed a bunch of sauces and veggies from the salad/sides bar and went to town showing us how it is supposed to be done. The flavor combinations were fantastic. They were all very helpful and the place had a great vibe. I will definitely be coming back.

Great selection of meats, open bar had plenty of seafood and sides. Both the hot pot and bbq were excellent.

We had such a great experience here! The service was excellent from start to finish. The staff is incredibly attentive and genuinely friendly! they check in often, refill items quickly, and make sure you have everything you need without being intrusive. You can tell they really care about their guests’ experience. The food was delicious, with a great selection for both hot pot and Korean BBQ. Everything tasted fresh and flavorful, and the quality was consistent throughout the meal. The restaurant itself is also very clean and well-maintained, which makes the experience even more enjoyable. The only small thing to note is that on busy nights and weekends, they can have a bit of a hard time keeping up with the side bar but that’s honestly understandable given how packed they get. Even during the rush, the staff remains kind and hardworking. Overall, a fantastic spot with great food and even better service. Definitely deserves five stars and we’ll absolutely be back!

Visited Shabumi for the first time yesterday and had an excellent meal. Service was great as was the food! My son and I both chose Hot Pot, my husband chose Kbbq. You are allowed to share which is awesome. The kbbq was delicious. All meats and veggies were fresh, sauce bar was excellent as well.. loved the garlic w serranos. Will definitely return!

I come here all the time and at this point it’s one of my comfort spots in San Diego. First of all, it’s BOTH KBBQ and hotpot, which already puts it above most places. And the fact that each person gets their own grill and their own pot? Elite. I don’t have to negotiate broth choices, spice levels, or cooking pace with anyone. No sharing anxiety. No waiting for someone to stop overcooking the meat. Just autonomy. I always get the miso broth and it never disappoints. It’s rich but not heavy, flavorful without being overly salty, and it actually tastes layered — not like powdered soup base pretending to be miso. It’s my go-to every single time. The meat quality is solid, the veggies are fresh, and the whole setup just feels clean and organized. It doesn’t feel chaotic like some all-you-can-eat places. You can actually relax and enjoy the experience. Also, if you know how to build a sauce, this is your playground. It’s the kind of place where you show up hungry and leave questioning your life choices in the best way. I’ve gone with friends, on chill nights, after workouts — it always hits. If you like control over your food, love hotpot, love KBBQ, or just love eating a slightly unhinged amount of protein… this is your spot. 10/10. I will continue to emotionally support this establishment with my money.

We did hot pot and it was delicious! Love the flexibility in choice of hot pot or bbq between individuals, really nice buffet of add-ins, great sauces!

If you're looking for a fun and delicious dining experience, this Korean BBQ and hot pot spot is a must-visit. The quality of the meat was top-notch—tender, flavorful, and perfectly marinated. We especially loved the beef belly for the BBQ, and the seafood selection for the hot pot was super fresh. The broth options were rich and flavorful, and there were tons of veggies, noodles, and dipping sauces to mix and match. Everything was well-organized and clean, and the staff were attentive, friendly, and quick to help with anything we needed. Highly recommend for a date night, family dinner, or group outing. We’ll definitely be coming back!

Candice Cano

Visited Shabumi for the first time yesterday and had an excellent meal. Service was great as was the food! My son and I both chose Hot Pot, my husband chose Kbbq. You are allowed to share which is awesome. The kbbq was delicious. All meats and veggies were fresh, sauce bar was excellent as well.. loved the garlic w serranos. Will definitely return!

Rachel Reyes

If you're looking for a fun and delicious dining experience, this Korean BBQ and hot pot spot is a must-visit. The quality of the meat was top-notch—tender, flavorful, and perfectly marinated. We especially loved the beef belly for the BBQ, and the seafood selection for the hot pot was super fresh. The broth options were rich and flavorful, and there were tons of veggies, noodles, and dipping sauces to mix and match. Everything was well-organized and clean, and the staff were attentive, friendly, and quick to help with anything we needed. Highly recommend for a date night, family dinner, or group outing. We’ll definitely be coming back!

Todd Jewell

This place is great. Didn't try the hotpot, but the bbq was amazing. It was my first time at a place like this. Our server, Debbie, was fantastic. She noticed that we were new to this because we were just cooking and eating the meat plain. She grabbed a bunch of sauces and veggies from the salad/sides bar and went to town showing us how it is supposed to be done. The flavor combinations were fantastic. They were all very helpful and the place had a great vibe. I will definitely be coming back.

This place was fun! They did have a wait but it was Saturday night. They had a great selection at the salad bar including seafood! The broth is bland, at least the chicken one. But there are tons of sauces and kimchi to add. And if you mix the broth with soy it’s less bland. Everything at the salad bar was very fresh. There was seafood, veggies, sushi rolls, several types of noodles and mushrooms. See pictures. However, the mochi was frostbit and expired 🙁 It’s pricey, $30 for lunch and $40 for dinner but it’s all you can eat meat and salad bar! They will bring you more broth too if needed. And they serve the meat with rice. Plus they had half off alcoholic drinks from 8 pm to close. I would eat there again 😋

What do you do when you want KBBQ but your wife wants hot pot shabu shabu? You come to Shabumi where each member of your party gets to choose between bbq or hot pot. This was our 2nd time here and my wife loves getting to have affordable hotpot while I get to eat bbq. The bbq meats are definitely cut thicker than the shabu shabu. The only downside is if you keep ordering the same meat over and over again, the quality of it worsens. So the first couple orders are tender and great quality, over time more tough and chewy. My wife loves the recommended kombu broth and adds hot sesame chili oil and green onion from the bar to it. The self serve protein seafood veggies sides bar is pretty extensive. Parking can get a little tight at times in the crowded lot but never had any problems.

I am all about the service and the cleanliness of the restaurant which they do a good job of here! Each table has a button by it on the wall, the staff always comes within 1 minute of me pressing the button, they are really polite and helpful, they always make sure that we are doing alright! They have a good selection of vegetables, meat and sauces! They also have some pre-cooked food but most of it has been sitting there for a while, the noodles are all stuck together. The quality of meat is great! They have a meat slicing machine, you can see how they cut your meat and it is fresh! You can see their good service from the last picture, there was an elderly couple outside waiting for their seat, the staff brought out a heat lamp to keep them warm while they were waiting, it was really sweet of them! However I still think this place is a little too pricey that’s why I gave them 4 stars instead of 5.

VT

What do you do when you want KBBQ but your wife wants hot pot shabu shabu? You come to Shabumi where each member of your party gets to choose between bbq or hot pot. This was our 2nd time here and my wife loves getting to have affordable hotpot while I get to eat bbq. The bbq meats are definitely cut thicker than the shabu shabu. The only downside is if you keep ordering the same meat over and over again, the quality of it worsens. So the first couple orders are tender and great quality, over time more tough and chewy. My wife loves the recommended kombu broth and adds hot sesame chili oil and green onion from the bar to it. The self serve protein seafood veggies sides bar is pretty extensive. Parking can get a little tight at times in the crowded lot but never had any problems.

Maxine

I am all about the service and the cleanliness of the restaurant which they do a good job of here! Each table has a button by it on the wall, the staff always comes within 1 minute of me pressing the button, they are really polite and helpful, they always make sure that we are doing alright! They have a good selection of vegetables, meat and sauces! They also have some pre-cooked food but most of it has been sitting there for a while, the noodles are all stuck together. The quality of meat is great! They have a meat slicing machine, you can see how they cut your meat and it is fresh! You can see their good service from the last picture, there was an elderly couple outside waiting for their seat, the staff brought out a heat lamp to keep them warm while they were waiting, it was really sweet of them! However I still think this place is a little too pricey that’s why I gave them 4 stars instead of 5.

Drisana Moss

This place was fun! They did have a wait but it was Saturday night. They had a great selection at the salad bar including seafood! The broth is bland, at least the chicken one. But there are tons of sauces and kimchi to add. And if you mix the broth with soy it’s less bland. Everything at the salad bar was very fresh. There was seafood, veggies, sushi rolls, several types of noodles and mushrooms. See pictures. However, the mochi was frostbit and expired 🙁 It’s pricey, $30 for lunch and $40 for dinner but it’s all you can eat meat and salad bar! They will bring you more broth too if needed. And they serve the meat with rice. Plus they had half off alcoholic drinks from 8 pm to close. I would eat there again 😋

Our Go-To Hot Pot Spot! 🥩🥗 ⭐⭐⭐⭐ ​Shabumi is amazing, and we always go here whenever we’re craving hot pot! The meat and veggie options are always fresh, and the selection is massive. ​What keeps us coming back: ​The Staff: They are truly incredible. They are so attentive and proactive, always asking what else we need or want to order. ​Kid-Friendly: We love bringing the family here; the team is very welcoming to children. ​The Vibe: It’s a very clean and well-maintained space. ​Pro-Tips for Diners: ​Timing is everything: We love a quiet weekday lunch. Evenings and weekends get very busy, and because it’s so full of bubbling pots, the air can get quite "moist"/steamy. ​A Note for Management: We really appreciate how clean you keep the restaurant, but using Fabuloso near the kitchen during dining hours is a bit much. The strong scent makes it hard to enjoy the smell of the delicious food! An unscented cleaner during service would be perfect. ​We love this place and will definitely be back again soon!

My Le

We had called on Tuesday after we heard about CA being in the purple tier and if they were going to offer outdoor seating. They had told us outdoor seating wasn’t available until next Sunday but to our surprised, when we arrived today, there was a tent! We were able to put the table of 4 together to seat our party of 6. The outside set up was wonderful. Socially distanced tables and great air quality. Didn’t need a heater since the tent generates heat with all the cooking. I have mixed reviews of this place because it’s awesome that they offer bbq and hotpot in one restaurant. The pot is shared between two people with a divider so you can have two soup base. It’s also all you can eat. To start out, you tell them your choice of meat and they will bring out two trays of that particular meat per person. Then a veggie tray and a seafood tray. After that you continue ordering by telling them what you want. It came to a point where we asked for one tray not the automatic two. What I love is that the meats are finely sliced and layered on the tray. It makes the meat quick to cook and tastes so much better compared to places with thick cuts. It also allows you to eat a lot more as you don’t get full quickly. The veggie tray consisted of variety of carrots, pumpkin, cucumber, broccoli, mushroom, and other greens. Seafood tray came with muscles, clams, shumai, fish cake, crab, shrimp, dumpling, octopus, squid. The quality of food was great but the soup base was off. To have a good hot pot experience, you also need the broth to be on par. They have the broth premade in a pitcher and they use that to pour it into the pot. We had miso base and it was watery with no miso paste. We had the spicy house base and it was just spice and water. Then the spicy tomato base was like water and a can of tomato sauce but it was watered down. We were disappointed in the base quality. Then our pot took a long time to boil and it was because our butane was low. So they exchanged it for a full one. We asked for more miso paste and they ended up being the pitcher to pour more broth. This time around, it tasted better and she said maybe it was because the last batch was the end of the pot and it wasn’t mixed correctly. Another disappointment due to CoVId is that you can’t make your own sauces and limited to choices. She did bring out peanut sauce, ponzu sauce, chili garlic and even soy sauce. Mixing ponzu, peanut, and chili together was a great combo for dipping.

Expensive. Slow and inattentive service. Meat was not fresh nor tasty. If you like the hotpot here then you haven’t really had a good hotpot. You are missing out. You really need to know to how mix the soup with other spices unlike other hotpot restaurants where the soup is already mixed with flavorful spices. I think my wife liked it but me and the kids didn’t and we had KBB before that was much better.

K K

Expensive. Slow and inattentive service. Meat was not fresh nor tasty. If you like the hotpot here then you haven’t really had a good hotpot. You are missing out. You really need to know to how mix the soup with other spices unlike other hotpot restaurants where the soup is already mixed with flavorful spices. I think my wife liked it but me and the kids didn’t and we had KBB before that was much better.

Felicity

It was a very pricey meal just for someone to bring out food and wash the dishes. I was hoping for quality hotpot food, but it was very disappointing. Meats were thinly sliced with great presentation. 7 beef selections, half of them were edible and half way decent, but the rest were awful. The beef brisket tasted rotten!! Please don't pick the brisket. I tried both beef bone and the original broths, and they were BLAND and lack of salt. If you want soy sauce, you have to go get it. There was an area where they put different sauces for you to "make your own delicious broth." That area was so dirty you could only wish you brought your own soy sauce. It was a rainy day, and they put buckets throughout the restaurant to catch the water. The floor was slippery and so if you bring your 90 year old grandmother here, be sure that she wears her non-slip shoes. My recommendations for this store are as follows: improve the quality of meat, maintain a clean bathroom, deep clean the floor and remove grease, defrost the meat/fishballs/clams at the salad bar beforehand, provide individual/unique sauces at each table... Otherwise, great service.

Honestly couldn't say much about the place to leave a higher review but it was on my bucket list and came in for my birthday. Table of three me my mother and daughter. They wanted to charge my daughter for a whole buffet when we simply just wanted to get rice for her - my daughter is 5 years of age. So we left. If you travel east down Balboa you'll find convoy just a 5 minute drive. You'll find way better options when it comes to hot pot with a better atmosphere & service

Martin Finete

Honestly couldn't say much about the place to leave a higher review but it was on my bucket list and came in for my birthday. Table of three me my mother and daughter. They wanted to charge my daughter for a whole buffet when we simply just wanted to get rice for her - my daughter is 5 years of age. So we left. If you travel east down Balboa you'll find convoy just a 5 minute drive. You'll find way better options when it comes to hot pot with a better atmosphere & service