Japanese hot pot warms the soul at Ichi Shabu at Campus Pointe across from Fresno State.<\/p>\n
“Ichi has a couple of meanings,” says owner Jason Lin. “In Japanese, it means ‘number one.’ In Chinese, it is ‘Ichi,’ meaning ‘together.'”<\/p>\n
Thinly sliced meat, from A5 Wagyu to short rib and ribeye, cooks quickly in your choice of broth.<\/p>\n
“For most beef, all the beef only needs about five seconds,” Lin said. “For chicken, about 10. It’s a lot faster than what people think.”<\/p>\n
We were mesmerized watching Executive Chef Kevin Vang carefully craft the egg “tornado.” It topped Wagyu fried rice, enhanced with curry sauce and furikake.<\/p>\n
Asian cuisine comes with a crunch.<\/p>\n
“There’s always fried egg roll,” Lin said.<\/p>\n
Lin also showed us the chizu curry katsu, which is a chicken katsu with Havarti cheese.<\/p>\n
“We like to add a little pizzazz tableside with the melted cheese at the table,” he said.<\/p>\n
He also showed us the sukiyaki donburi, which is a rice bowl.<\/p>\n
Mocktails are popular.<\/p>\n
“As generations go, we are finding that many people are looking for non-alcoholic options,” says John Ramirez, Ichi Shabu Operating Partner.<\/p>\n
“Sometimes I think people are intimidated to cook, but once we educate them one time, they come back and say, ‘I got this.'”Lin said.<\/p>\n
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