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Wasabi Bistro

3.9 (69 reviews)
ModerateHot Pot, Buffets
Open • 12:00 pm - 10:00 PM

Order Wasabi Bistro Takeout or Delivery

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WASABI BISTRO ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Good for groups
Dogs allowed

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Recommended Reviews - Wasabi Bistro

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Original broth and satay broth
Mike C.

A friend called and asked me to join him for a weeknight hot pot dinner. Given the recent cold nights, I was more than willing and able. I knew this block very well for many years but, after Five Happiness closed last spring, I have not ventured here other than a bite at the Korean BBQ staple next door. I drove by the day before our dinner and noticed the sign and made a point to read the reviews on Yelp to prep myself. My friend was working in the area and, since the restaurant opened throughout the day, we agreed to meet here between 4:30 and 4:45 pm to beat the dinner rush. I found a metered parking space three spots before the restaurant and fed it till the 6 pm enforcement time. I studied the window menus (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q&start=24&select=XKPkDYvwWxLIydl8zcW9uA), (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q&start=24&select=vieSU3e6VjGw__fYyrOSkw), (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q&start=24&select=4Z6BgdvH8AEPbVI8NPPxlA), while waiting for my friend. A short time later, my friend arrived and we walked in. There was only one occupied booth on the far right with customers. The greeter/waiter pointed us to a booth on the right. We sat down and saw the paper menu on the induction burner with a pen and we knew what to do. Since the pot allowed us to choose two broths my friend chose the original while I opted for the satay. After checking those boxes, I read off the menu items to my friend and checked the items that we wanted from their two-sided menu page with the provided pencil. The waiter chuckled as he advised me that we didn't have to order at one time. We then alternated going to the sauce station (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q&start=24&select=nQEdeC1p_fY3cPesiiNt-Q) to customize our dipping sauces. I then made my way to the rear right corner to two refrigerators holding canned drinks that are included in our meal. I was pleasantly surprised to find a good variety of sodas, Asian brand drinks (soy bean milk, lemon tea drink, etc.), popular soda brands, and Hawaiian sodas and brought a can of guava soda to our table. As we did this, our waiter brought us our soup pot (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q&start=24&select=kr3nxvwUKmS2Dfbb9z4H5g), substantial and the size of a literal pot. For cooked foods, we ordered a variety of items including the Shanghai dumplings (xiao lung bao) (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q&start=24&select=QOYtVKSZWRhtcU4AK-8FPw), green onion pancakes (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q&start=24&select=CplJtNOwBYlH3cIgifVBJw). For the dinner service, salmon sashimi and Hokkaido scallop (one per customer) (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q&start=24&select=yf1ZDx_kqqc7jj3LaI75oQ) were offered. Our raw food selection included various meats with vegetables (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q&start=24&select=-At31JOcqJ1lmTQfFT-EnQ) and seafood and meat balls, enoki, wood ears, radishes, and tofu (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q&start=24&select=J86vCDrFrWhXnA6_QsUCfw). We took our time cooking the raw foods as they came, gnoshing on the prepped foods as they came. My friend chose to cook his ramen noodles early on while I waited towards the end of our meal to cook my udon. Needless to say, we both were stuffed, for me slightly uncomfortably so. We both passed on the ice cream station which is near the entrance. As we dined, other parties of two to four came to dine here. There was one unfortunate incident with a large party as we were seated. The group was mostly hearing impaired but they were not familiar with the restaurant concept and would not need to the waiter's offer to order on their behalf. Besides having dietary restrictions for their party of twelve, several guests became frustrated so they left, despite the waiter bringing some food for them to try first. The waiter remained patient and did not charge them or get angry despite not charging them anything for what was brought. My friend and I enjoyed our meal and finished most everything. I only left a small bowl of unfinished udon in soup. Midway through our meal, out waiting told us that we didn't need to order everything at once and could have paced ourselves. Will do that on our next visit. *** Background, they are actually the Grand Hot Pot that used to be near Arguello. The property owner refused to renew the lease. It turns out that I have tried their satellite location in Pacifica which we also enjoyed.

Half and half split pot
Jessica L.

Fun all you can eat/drink hotpot place with chill (early) or lively (late) vibes! Same menu as grand hotpot - we always get the half and half split pot, which has spicy and flavorful nonspicy broths. They don't limit you on number of dishes per round, and they adjust the amount per plate based on the number of people at the table. I really loved this because it meant I got to eat a bit of everything I wanted, and we didn't have to interrupt our eating by reordering! Their aycd is Sapporo, sake, or wine, but they also have a huge selection of non alcoholic drinks like soda and yummy classic Chinese soft drinks included as well. We visited on a Saturday evening around 6:30, and it wasn't busy at all, but it picks up later in the evening for sure. They have self service ice cream too! Service was quick and attentive, and we didn't feel rushed at all. Meats aren't too fatty either, and they have a great selection of meats, seafood, veggies, sides, and noodles. Will definitely return!

Green Onion Pan Cake -- dry cardboard
Cathrin P C.

Wasabi Bistro is an AYCE+D hotpot + appetizer restaurant. They no longer serve sushi or a la cart items. We came for lunch $24.98 which is from 12pm-4pm. More items are available during dinner hours but honestly I don't think you're missing out on that much. We arrived around 3pm and were seated with no problems. For our soup base, we tried: *House Spicy Curry *Tonkatsu ~Neither was that flavorful and the curry was definitely NOT spicy!! For a full list of items we ordered, check out my pics. I didn't find anything to be really good. Sadly it just tasted like standard cheap buffet stuff. XLBs were terrible. Green onion pancakes tasted like greasy cardboard. The meats were okay. We ordered: lamb shoulder slices, fatty supreme beef, pork belly, beef trip, frog legs, fish fillet, and clams. You should definitely skip: mixed tempura, spring rolls, and pot stickers. There is a sauce bar and you might need it to give your meats some depth. There is also ice cream located in an odd area. They had red bean, matcha, black sesame and vanilla. They're not high quality by any means but I would go with the red bean and skip the rest. Restaurant seats like a typical Chinese restaurant with booths for hotpot cooking. Metered parking around the area or if you're persistent and don't mind walking, you can drive out a little more to the residential neighborhood. Service was adequate. I think everyone comes here because of the unlimited drinks, which you can help yourself to.

Normal and spicy combo
Nicole M.

All you can eat food on happy hour with the option to add all you can drink sake! This was awesome and a great place to go with friends and family. We ordered a bunch and the service was excellent

Thiri T.

Very family friendly! We came here for AYCE $36/person hot pot to celebrate a birthday, and birthday actually eats free with valid ID! AYCE includes an assortment of high quality beef cuts, seafood, veggies, cooked entrees, non alcoholic drinks like soymilk and grass jelly, alcohol like sake, beer, and wine, and also complimentary ice cream buffet! All of the meat was very high quality and complimented well with the broth. I definitely recommend sticking to the classics with the original and spicy. My picky eater dad really enjoyed their prawns and fish, and even mentioned wanting to go back for their original soup base! He was a huge fan, and a happy dad is a happy daughter. My family was also a fan of the sashimi and honey walnut shrimp which is included in AYCE. Feel free to wrap up your meal with Asian influenced ice cream flavors like black sesame and mango! The service was also polite and efficient, and we'll definitely be back. I'm excited to have found this gem.

Dinner was Yummy
Joseph A.

The food is okay and at a mid range price point, but I think the strength of WB is their $10 for 90 minute drinking deal , and their late hours. My order was take out with Miso, some Roll, Sashimi, and Tempura it was good and filling for a late Dinner. If you opt to eat in the space has a good energy, the drink deal is hard to beat, you can get a steady stream of plates to counter the Liquor, and it's open till about 2am. For take out they also have the standard entrees, but its a nice option to have in the Avenues if you do not want to order delivery or head downtown. Also after 9pm parking is easy :)

Big pot of soup, also can have two soup in one pot
Helen L.

Love this place because they are so reasonably priced and it includes drinks and ice cream. Food was fresh. Soup base was good. Overall so enjoyable. Pace yourself. Ask them you want less of everything because you dont want to waste food. Top 8 of my favorites: vegetarian green dumpling, house made fish paste, free sodas (chinese sodas), free ice cream, tripe, a lot of meat,including pork tongue, fresh clams, chicken katsu, skip ragoo, skip green onion bread ( you fill up). Just need a few more community chopsticks. Come between 12 noon to 4 pm for a feast $23.99. If over 65 years old, you get $2 off. . Dinner has additional dishes $33.99. So worth it. Gather your friends for a big table. Credit card fee is about $1.75. Hard to find parking. There's always paid parking at Smart & Final.

Apparently they have a time machine that takes you back to San Francisco circa 2009...
Mike V.

Where to begin (other than the time machine they have that takes you back to 2009 with the 10 dollar all you can drink sake beer and wine deal). First, this is better than their Castro location, I do love that place, but I'm sorry, it is. The omakase can be solid. We had a nice range of tuna including culminating with some surprisingly great toro. The fresh wasabi was also a nice touch for this place. Our favorite rolls are not the ones we would have chosen based on the descriptions but Castro and Snow White were amazing. We've been back twice now before trivia (Bitter End Tuesdays is one block away) and will continue to do so until hell freezes over or COVID returns.

Spicy tuna rolls, California rolls and ???(can't remember the top one) with ginger and wasabi
Ann C.

We found this restaurant via Yelp reading the reviews and checking out the menu. A big plus was that it was open when we were hungry for food (it was almost 10pm) on a Saturday night. Parking was impossible since it's located on a busy street (no parking even at 10pm) so I dropped off my kids to order in the restaurant for take out and I drove around the block/area for about 5 minutes when I got lucky enough to get a parking spot a few spots down from the restaurant till our order was ready. When they got in the car, the food smelled so good. We couldn't wait till we got back to our hotel room to eat. We got spicy tuna rolls, California rolls and another kind of roll but I can't remember which one (LOL), and main entrees of: 2 orders of the the rib eye steak teriyaki (this was by far the best dish bcuz the meat was sooooooo tender), chicken katsu - these entrees came with salad, miso soup and rice. Everything was so good! We'll definitely come back when we're in San Francisco again. Loved the food and the late night hours. We didn't get any drinks but if you eat in the restaurant, there was a great deal of $10 all you can drink sake, beer and wine.

Outside
Pandora T.

Wasabi bistro reopen again and it looks like they relocated the Grand hot pot and combined together, so now this place call "Wasabi bistro grand hot pot" AYCE (included drink) is super great deal! especially at lunch time(12-4pm), it's only $23.99/person! They have a lot of choice of meat, veggie and appetizer. And also many choices of beverage which all you can drink too! You can choose 2 flavors of soup from 13 flavors (minimum 2 people)and mix the sauce yourself. Before you done, don't forget to grab some icecream to make your meal perfect done!! You can take it yourself and they have up to 4 flavors. The quality of food is pretty good. Their soups were tasty and service was good for my first time but the second time, they might need improve it (our server forgot put the order on back page of the menu and forgot our bill but it's not a big deal). Now this place has become my new favorite restaurant in SF!!

Rachel G.

This is not the same as the wasabi bistro in the Castro. They still have the all you can drink option but it's only beer and the only food option is all you can eat hot pot. It was all pretty tasty but just prepare yourself going into it. You are about to have a lot of liquid. Service was fast and they would provide more beers or menu items when asked.

Zena K.

My partner and I were in search of a new causal sushi spot when this places popped up in my search. We were intrigued so decided to give it a try. We rolled in about 6:34 PM on a Tuesday and we were the only customers there. We honestly enjoyed the quiet atmosphere mixed in with the hanging twinkling lights and typical casual sushi restaurant. Some of our highlights were definitely the garlic edamame (great flavor), the spider hand roll, and the pink lady roll. We also purchased the unfiltered cold lychee sake which was some of the best sake we've had. Service was polite and we had a pretty positive experience with our food here. However it's important to note, the cost isn't much different than other similar restaurants. Would I come here again? Yes.

Double Hamachi Roll

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Was solid and very reasonable priced. Enjoyed all things. Super fresh and nice people and very generous portions

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Ask the Community - Wasabi Bistro

Do u have all h can eat sushi?

No, but they do have all you can drink for 90 minutes--sake, soju drinks or beer

Don’t See Your Question? Ask Away!

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I have been a repeat customer at the shabu house and I can't get enough of the golden chicken…read morebroth. They made the broth in house and it was flavorful. The owner is charismatic and I love to chat with her every time I come. The wagyu was nicely marbled even for basic tier all-you-can-eat. The tempura Oreo was a nice surprise at the end of the meal--classic fried Oreo with a nice crunch and strawberry drizzle. It's a good place to come back to scratch the shabu itch.

don't even know where to start. This place completely blew me away…read more First, the service. Irene made this entire experience unforgettable. She was so warm, friendly, and genuinely helpful. It honestly felt like we were ordering with a friend who just happens to know the entire menu inside and out. She gave amazing recommendations and even told us she makes the hot sauce from scratch (which... you can taste the difference). That level of care really set the tone for the whole night. Now the food... not a single miss. Seriously, not one thing we didn't like. We went with the Ultra menu ($108), which includes lobster, and it was 100% worth it. For broths, we chose the Tom Yum and Tonkotsu. Both were rich, flavorful, and perfect in completely different ways. The meat selection was incredible, especially the wagyu options, they literally melt in your mouth. You can tell the quality is top tier. The flame-torched wagyu nigiri was absolutely out of this world--perfectly balanced and paired with a wasabi powder that elevated every bite. We also had the hamachi cloud, which was so fresh, flavorful, and had the perfect crunch--such a standout dish. And the spicy clams? Easily one of our favorites. Super fresh, super tasty, and packed with flavor. Beyond the food, the entire staff made us feel genuinely welcomed, which made the experience even better. The location is perfect. It's right in the center of Japantown. Inside they have a bar where you can sit and talk with the servers face-to-face. And it's a great spot to people watch while you eat. I truly cannot recommend this place enough. Between the incredible quality, the variety, and the next-level service. This is a spot I'll be coming back to again and again (and yes, I'll absolutely be asking for Irene).

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I came back to Hotpot Champ after trying it a while back, and the setup has changed quite a bit…read morefrom when they had just opened. On my previous visit, we would check off what we wanted on a menu, hand it to the server, and everything would be brought to the table. They also had sides set out along with a guide showing different ways to make your own dipping sauces. Now, meats are ordered through an iPad, while noodles, vegetables, mushrooms, meatballs, dumplings, eggs, quail eggs, tofu, and other hot pot items are self-serve. I'm a little torn about the changes. The self-serve setup is convenient because you can grab what you want whenever you're ready, but I preferred some of what they offered before. I remember the meatballs being fresher, and they used to have actual shrimp, whereas the shrimp option now is more of a shrimp paste. The soup bases were still just as delicious as I remembered. We chose the Sichuan spicy at medium spice and the tonkotsu. The Sichuan was flavorful with a heat that builds as you eat--medium was already plenty spicy for us and will definitely open up your sinuses! The tonkotsu was creamy, savory, and comforting. I actually prefer the tonkotsu over the chicken soup base they used to have, and having both gave us a nice balance between spicy and mild. We were also really looking forward to the lamb, but unfortunately they had already run out by around 9 PM. Hopefully coming a little earlier next time will solve that! The staff were really nice and seemed to be doing their best despite how busy they were. Our meats arrived before our soup bases, but they apologized for the delay, which we appreciated. We noticed the staff doing a little bit of everything--serving tables, bussing, and helping at the front with hosting--so there were times when it was difficult to find someone if we had a question. Whenever we did get someone's attention, though, they were friendly and helpful. People were still coming in during the last couple of hours, so the staff definitely had their hands full. Overall, we enjoyed our dinner. Hotpot Champ is different from what I remembered, and while there are a few things I preferred about the old setup, I can also appreciate the convenience of the new one. Most importantly, the soup bases are still delicious, and the tonkotsu was a welcome change. We'd come back again--hopefully a little earlier next time so we can get our lamb!

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3.8(1.1k reviews)
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•$$$

YakiniQ really said "leave hungry? never heard of her."…read more Pulled up with my homie Jun because this man treated me to lobster last time and you already know... Asians keep receipts but in a wholesome way We don't split love, we rotate blessings. For $49.99/person, this AYCE Korean BBQ was straight violating my self-control. The short ribs?? HELLA BUSSIN. Like actually criminal. Every bite had me ascending like a TikTok food review in 4K. Meat so juicy I almost stood up and thanked the cow personally. The grill smoke got us smelling like seasoned warriors walking outta there but honestly worth it. Staff kept the meats coming faster than my auntie asking why I'm still single. And let me put y'all onto some elite Chinese vocabulary real quick: "好吃到舔手指" (hǎo chī dào tiǎn shǒu zhǐ) = "so good you lick your fingers." That's EXACTLY the vibe. Finger-licking good fr fr. YakiniQ got me fighting for my life, unbuttoning my pants in the parking lot, and already planning my return. 10/10. No crumbs left. Their "Red Hot" peanut sauce is the carry here - no doubt. Highly recommend with my utmost respectful regards!

Horrible meat quality and even worse service quality…read more Imagine being first in line with a party of 2 and then watching a party of 3 and another party of 2 getting sat before you. Well we didn't need to imagine because we watched it happen in front of our faces. The party of 3 actually got their food and the other party of 2 got their side dishes before we even got our water. You literally have a Yelp waitlist to help you stay organized and all you have to do is follow it. Somehow they still managed to fuck that up. We got the premium AYCE--expecting some higher quality meat. We were deeply disappointed. The SF Cut Short rib was the saddest short rib I have ever seen. There was little to no meat on the bone. The ribeye was extremely thin. Not even a full minute of cooking on both sides and it was well done. At this point I turned the heat down to the lowest setting. The short rib bites were filled with tendons and ridiculously hard to cut much less chew. The boneless short rib and the ribeye caps were skinnier than a coke addict. 10 seconds on each side and they were basically well done. That was the end of round 1--I thought I was being hangry and grumpy so I tried to let them get their redemption. Hahaha or so I thought. We got the miso pork belly which somehow managed to burn itself on the side of the grill while the center part was still raw. I put two pieces on the grill. Clearly the meat cutter didn't know what they were doing because while one looked like it had cancer causing blackness on it the other one was still more raw than a dog. I guess they just can't cut the meat uniformly even. The beef tongue was also extremely thin and burned immediately when put on the grill. It's Korean BBQ--your restaurant and chefs don't even cook the meat. How can you not know how to cut meat properly? Not to mention paying extra for "premium" meat only to have the exact same quality as the rest of your meat. I would recommend this place to anybody who wants their Korean BBQ experience ruined. Honestly come here for your first or second time at Korean BBQ and then go somewhere else and you will be GLAD that the other place exists. YaqiniQ BBQ is by far the worst KBBQ I have been to.

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Yakiniq - Short ribs

Short ribs

Yakiniq
Yakiniq - Seafood pancake

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Seafood pancake

Wasabi Bistro - hotpot - Updated October 2026

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