saboten

good ambience and good food. such a steal using zomato gold! having 2 full sets for a price of one! our 1 yr old liked the crunchiness of the tenderloin katsu withriceand miso soup! order the tenderloin as it's really tender! what i didn't like is how slow they work on the waiting list. you can see vacant seats but they are not allowing people to enter. if i hadnt ask the receptionist, they wouldnt give me the vacant seat yet!

superb tenderloin katsu! katsu sauce is perfect! unli soup, cabbage andriceis sulit. recently tried their strawberry shortcake and it’s delicious! love that they’re on zomato gold.

service was slow waited an hour for our orders. and staff gave us extraricewhen we asked for spoons. even asking for the bill took almost 30 minutes. good dood though!

food: we ordered the large tenderloin set and it was very good. the meat was tender and juicy with a bit of crisp from the breading. i was pleasantly surprised that they cut it in squares, because its easier to eat. the shredded cabbage was fresh and good with their sesame dressing, which is sweeter compared to the other japanese restaurants we've tried. theirricewas sticky and the miso soup was also good.

staff: they were very respectful, responsive, and knew the menu well when we asked for recommendations.

ambiance: the interiors gave a light feeling and the space was well decorated with japanese elements. i love the area with the rock path 😍

overall: great experience

saboten originated from shinjuku, tokyo which is famous for their tonkatsu. it was brought to the philippines by the raintree restaurant who also brought chelsea kitchen, providore, museum café, chotto matte and terraz.

upon entering the restaurant, you can feel the modern japanese vibe of the restaurant. they also have outside sittings for those who want to dine in al fresco. just like other japanese restaurants, they also serve complimentary house tea for every guests.

special note: all the meal sets comes with unlimited miso soup, steamed rice, cabbage and pickles.
for me, this justified the prices of their foods.

katsu curry tenderloin set - served with cabbage, pickles, radish and miso soup.

miso katsu tenderloin set - the tonkatsu was served withriceand hot miso soup which was an original taste from nagoya. this is my personal favorite. if you want something quite different, try this.

grated radish tenderloin set – one of their most popular menu. this dish was served with ponzu sauce, shredded cabbage, pickles, rice, and miso soup. ponzu sauce is citrus-based sauce with shoyu.

all the katsu were crispy on the outside yet soft, juicy and flavorful on the inside. the perfect way to enjoy your katsu!

some people prefer mixing the cabbage with sesame dressing and citrus sauce but i prefer using the sesame dressing alone. their sesame sauce has the right amount of sweet and creamy flavor.

chocolate hazelnut cream cake – a simple looking cake with a luxurious taste. the hazelnut bits gave added texture and flavor to the already sumptuous chocolate cake. i can call this “a heaven in disguise”. 

vanilla ice cream with black honey and green tea ice cream with soybean sprinkles - the ice cream was not too sweet and just perfect after having your japanese meal fix.

food ratings:

katsu curry tenderloin set: 4.5/5
miso katsu tenderloin set: 5/5
grated radish tenderloin set: 4/5
chocolate hazelnut cream cake: 5/5
vanilla ice cream with black honey: 4/5
green tea ice cream with soybean sprinkles: 4/5

ambiance: 5/5
service: 5/5
value for money: 4/5

this for me is the best japanese restaurant in the metropolis that offers serene ambiance, appetizing menu, and super delicious bento/set meals. highly recommended is their specialty set named yuki or snow. this bento is served with unlimited cabbage and pickles for the sides, two salads, pork loin or chicken karaage as appetizers, unlimitedriceand miso soup, two deep-fried shrimp and one rolled cutlet for the main dish. you can choose from asparagus, cheese, or plum cutlet. lastly, it also comes with a dessert of either vanilla or green tea ice cream to complete your dainty meal. . aside from this, you can also choose from the other two specialty sets of tsuki (moon) and hana (flower), and other signature set menus to cater your taste and appetite. lastly, you can maximize your dining experience with their 1+1 o food every you dine at saboten using your zomato gold membership.

love saboten! the quality, the sauces. always leaves me full and satisfied. their cabbage salad is pretty simple but i can't seem to get enough of it. perfect combination with their meat! i would've had it as aricesubstitute but theirricewas perfect too so couldn't help but finish my bowl.

tried their melon yakult and it's a yummy twist to an old childhood favorite. perfect for hot days. :)

gold offer: for any set meal, you can select any meat from their ala carte menu. the catch is you can't share your initial unlimitedriceand sides with another person. so if you intend to eat as a pair, add an additionalriceset. i think it was just 250 something. :)

this is our go to japanese place

must try:
the unlimited cabbage,riceand miso soup
anything they fry here is yum, recommended is the chicken cutlet set
curry chicken set
clay pot chicken set

place is usually packed on weekends

staff are attentive and courteous

price is fair to what you would get plus the zomato gold promo!

not really a 1+1 deal on food, large tonkatsu set only gets you an ala carte medium tonkatsu with noriceand cabbage. you have to pay extra forriceand the cabbage for your "+1" meal

good food if you are carving for katsu. 1 tenderloin meal set for a free 1 loin ala carte. need to pay additonal 100php forriceof companion. food quality (katsu) is same as yabu. would like to have a dessert like fruits and option for brownricejust like yabu. staff, not very attentive since we came at 3pm in the afternoon... and hope that in the future the staff would at least wash hands or eat mint after yosi/smoking break.

plus 1 is from a select menu, add 200 to get free miso andriceand cabbage

i ordered katsu curry when my family decided to eat here in saboten. it was already my 5th time to dine here and i can say that the food they offer never really disappoint. what made it more worth it was the unlimitedriceand miso soup. the cabbage with kewpie dressing made it even worth it. we will definitely go back to this place.

good katsu sets, good service. however, their 1+1 on food doesn't apply to katsu sets. they've changed their policy so the sets can't be availed for the +1 anymore. the free is just for katsu alone, and you need to add a little under p300 if you want the refillablericeand veggies to go with it.

starting off to say i love saboten. i love the food and the service. staff is attentive and quick to fulfill orders and refills. when i found out they were on zomato gold, i was really excited. since then, eating st saboten has become sort of a default; a no-brainer. i’m just here to express that i was disappointed that they’ve changed their terms.

instead of being able to order a large loin set for instance and order the same as the plus one, they have come up with an ala carte menu for the plus one for zomato gold. the ala carte comes with just the katsu. unlimitedriceis an additional php 100, unlimitedricewith soup and sides at an additional php 220. correct me if i’m wrong but it comes down to just php 100 in savings, not a true 1+1 deal on food.

i’ll continue to eat at saboten, albeit not as often as i used to and i’ll eat with less joy than i used to :(

undoubtedly, food is good! we ordered the shrimp fry sets, the set looked small but surprisingly too filling! the shrimps are big and fresh, and well cooked without being oily. our zomato gold comes free with a katsu ala carte, which i also liked better than other famous katsu shops. all sets comes with miso soup, unlimitedriceand cabbage and pickled veg.

on the negative side, zomato gold 1+1 does not apply to sets but only to ala carte, in this case only 3 options to choose from as everything on the menu comes in sets.