The date 11/11/11 (November 11, 2011) is a tad more especial for me, more than it’s visual appeal, as it marked this blog’s third anniversary.  It is also the last Friday before my first 32K at Run United 3 so it’s the best time to carbo-load—and for this special day I picked the latest addition to SM Megamall’s restaurants, Yabu, on its opening day.

Yabu is a Japanese restaurant on the second floor of SM Megamall Atrium, and it prides itself with its “authentic” katsu.  With that I of course got a katsu—chicken katsudon to be specific.  But first I started with two of their appetizers: wakame (seaweed) and tofu.

Overall, Yabu is an excellent place to eat, and their claim to being “The House of Katsu” is quite valid for my taste.  I never really enjoyed eating seaweed so I was surprised that I loved their wakame.  Their tofu is also good and its sauce reminds me a lot of our local taho, except for the taste of course.  The chicken katsu is really good; the breading is just right and the raw egg’s white make for an excellent texture and taste.  The miso soup is also good but the serving of the fruit sidings is a bit petite, but you’d be too stuffed to complain!

Food aside, Yabu has a pretty good ambiance matched with an excellent service to boast.  Food was served comparatively faster than other similar restaurants.  I was just halfway through my appetizer when my main course arrived.  Seats on the sides were also cozy, but the “backless” ones in the center aisle aren’t so bad either.  Price-wise, Yabu is quite reasonable considering that their serving size is good, and they don’t add service charges to your tab (so make sure to leave some tip!).  Too bad though that my stomach isn’t as bottomless as some of their drinks as I would’ve wanted to try more of their dishes.  I’ll be back, Yabu!

Official shots (posted with permission from Yabu):

* The poorer quality photos were taken with my Blackberry Curve 3G while the better ones are courtesy of Yabu, posted with permission.