An absolute must eat in Hong Kong! Come for the crunch…read more
Prior to Saboten, I have never actually had good tonkatsu. In my experience, all tonkatsu was flat and soggy, so it never appeared appetizing to me. But Saboten and a visit to Japan opened my eyes and my ears (that crunch!). The tonkatsu here is juicy, tender, glistening white pork surrounded by a golden brown, super crispy deep fried delicious crunchy crust! The first bite totally changed my perspective on this dish.
The whole meal from beginning to end is just filled with so many textures and tastes, it's such a good, comprehensive, satisfying meal!
You are seated comfortably and offered UNLIMITED cabbage salad with picked veggies. Then you get a small, cute bowl of sesame seeds and a small pestle (surikogi) to crush your sesame. Once you've had your fun crushing your sesame, you can assemble your cabbage, pickled veggies and sesame into a salad and top with the creamy sesame dressing (the best!). The unlimited/all you can eat cabbage salad is served to you throughout your meal. It pairs perfectly with your tonkatsu and lightens up your meal. You will certainly eat a ton of this, more cabbage than you've ever eaten in one sitting. And rightly so because I would enjoy it as a meal alone!
There is a good variety of tonkatsu here; something to suit everyone's taste. The tonkatsu can be eaten as-is with rice, or in a curry, or topped with radish, etc. There are even combo options that have different mixes of shrimp, oysters, etc. with a smaller portion of tonkatsu. My favorite option is the tonkatsu & roll combo. You must order the roll, it's unique: a small ball of pork with filling. Sooo good. There are three options, but ham & cheese is my favorite. The tonkatsu is served on a mini tonkatsu rack so that it is crispy all around. Your table will have all the accoutrements: mustard, tonkatsu sauce, salad dressing, etc. You really won't need much else. (I don't think I've ever written tonkatsu so many times in my life, but this restaurant will make you so excited about it!)
It's located in the busybusybusy-ness of Causeway Bay and while there are endless food options here, you will not be disappointed when you try Saboten. This may be the best tonkatsu outside of Japan. The restaurant is clean, roomy, comfortable. Service has always been attentive and quick; keep the cabbage coming! And as I've clearly illustrated above, the food is amazing, every time.
Don't forget to get your stamp card stamped so you can come back for more crunch!