KaGaYa

We brought brother here over the weekend for a birthday dinner. It’s some place I’ve been wanting to try and this was the perfect opportunity.
For the most part, the menu is no frills. All entrees come with two appetizers, a soup, your protein choice, veggies and dessert. Four of the five of us went with the Prime beef course while the birthday boy got the Combo (prime beef and seafood).
In a nutshell:
— Presentation is beautiful especially when they give you your platter of veggies for five people. It’s a mountain of veggies with nary a browned leaf in sight.
— Though mostly pre-​made, the apps were delicious. (Crab cake was a tad crabbier than hubby could handle so birthday boy benefited from that.)
— If you sit at a table, everyone shares a pot. A little unwieldy for the 5^th person but we made it work.
— They are slightly understaffed; water refills were a little tough to come by. Oddly enough, we did feel a little hurried when they would come by to throw the rest of our veggies and our noodles in instead of letting us go at our own pace.
— Sauces are good; goma sauce tasted like it was actually made of sesame which is refreshing (other places use peanut butter).
— Everyone is nice. The dude working wasn’t as friendly but he was very obliging.
— The zosui (rice porridge) was delicious afterwards.
— It’s a little cramped. Hubby and I sat on the outside seats at a table and were constantly being bumped by people walking by; eventually we ate hunched over a little.
— Desserts were delicious though VERY tiny. Far from full sized; think little 2″ ramekins that have only about half and inch of crème brûlée in the bottom.
Final thoughts: Great place to come for a special occasion but for straight shabu shabu, I’d rather go to a regular shabu shabu place. I did enjoy the meal, though!

Id rather not say… And I will not be coming back to this place.

Luxury shabu shabu, with three appetizers and desert. The wagyu beef is very high quality as well as all other ingredients. Porridge is very delicious!
Excellent service with great chef. Parking is a big problem during weekend.

Best shabu shabu place in LA!
· Service-​excellent
· Parking-​3 dollars
· Price-​pricy
· Must order-​Best wagyu beef!

if I may, I want to point out that KaYaGa presents itself to be in the style of kaiseki ryori. That means this is not a izakaya, where you get drunk, consume loads of food, and get loud with your friends. That means if there’s a sign stating no cell phone then you shouldn’t take selfies or test your DSLR’s burst mode at the counter. I know you want to document all this but trust me, you’ll probably appreciate and remember this better with a humble heart. For those who fails to appreciate this, please stay away.
At KaGaYa you will find one of the best shabu shabu experience on the west coast. Orchestrated by chef and owner Masato Kagaya, KaGaYa is a complete dining experience with wanmori based on seasonal ingredient, A5 Wagyu, zosui, and competent desserts.
Masa-​san prepared the dishes himself from soup to nuts, i.e., he will personally slice your order of Wagyu, which in my humble opinion (and perhaps stating the obvious here) is the best choice on the menu.
At ~80% premium, some may find it difficult to stomach the price over USDA Prime Rib but your taste bud will certainly welcome the extra marbling. (I apologize,) once you go A5, you can’t go back (?).
The meal typically starts with some sashimi then seafood soup using what’s in season. The flavors are delicate and cooked to perfection. The wanmori is always made fresh and the precision allows the fish’s texture to be spot on.
For the main event, I recommend starting with some mushroom and vegetable to add depth to the broth. Then once the broth reaches a slightly higher temperature then you can open the flood gate on devouring the wagyu.
It is imperative that you practice shabu shabu correctly and don’t over-​cooked the beef beyond medium-​rare. *It’s also worth noting that the broth will not reach a violent boiling point. Keep it minimalist — don’t overcook the wagyu (or anything), apply ponzu to protein and goma-​dare to vegetable.
I really enjoy zozui at the end of the meal and would go as far as not over-​order the meat to save room for it. The little bits of plum, the little touch of ginger juice, and the egg add so much depth to this comforting finale. For the sentimental ones, it’ll surely be reminiscent of o-bachan’s porridge from your childhood. there are no brakes on the feel train…
Could KaGaYa’s experience get any better? yeah maybe with Kobe beef, sauces handcrafted in-​house, and a patisserie… but that’s not at all necessary. as it stands, it’s the most enjoyable, and delicious shabu shabu specialist in LA. plus don’t overlook the sheer dedication and precision Masa-​san puts in day in and day out. that itself is worth admiring if the food itself isn’t convincing enough for you.

Amazing service, amazing food. Definitely one of the finest quality meat choices for Shabu and wasn’t disappointed at all. The dessert options are awesome (definitely recommend the apple pie or crème brûlée).
However, it’s hard for me and friends to make this a common go to spot because it just takes so long to complete the course! They bring everything out so slow and before we realized it we’ve spent 3 hours eating shabu. I must say though, their premium wb is like butter in your mouth. But prepare for the long-​ness of this meal!

BEST SHABU I’VE EVER HAD!
When we came, we received 3 small appetizers each with our order. I hear the apps change from time to time, so it’s great if you like surprises. Just know that no matter which shabu you choose, you WILL get full. On top of the apps and the actual shabu, they make either porridge or udon for you after you’re done with your broth. Then, when you’re full to the max, there’s DESSERT! Your choice between 5, and it’s included in that price you see on the shabu page! What what!
We got the beef and the seafood shabus. Both are stellar and, of course, filling. We also got a half a side of wagyu, which literally just melts in your mouth. Great to try, but as with any wagyu, it’s very pricey.
Loved coming here, and they have won a lifetime customer with me.
Parking is validated and will be $ 3 for three hours. Also, make sure you make reservations because it seems like everyone that came in had one.

Considered by many to be the best Shabu around. My first visit and I agree.
Location — Inside the Honda Plaza on the east side of Little Tokyo. A couple of doors down from Sushi Gen. Many other dining establishments in the Plaza. Very minimalistic décor in a tidy space.
Parking — They have a pay parking lot $ 3 (discount with validation). Entrance is on 2^nd Street. Across the street from Office Depot.
Reservations — I walked up solo on a Friday night around 9pm. They close at 10:30. Waited almost 30 minutes for a place at the bar. Another couple came in later and sat right down. I had a backup plan in case they were to busy. From others — Reservations are necessary and even then your place may not be ready at the time indicated. Best to get a seat at the bar. At the tables there is only one pot so it must be shared by everyone.
Staff — Polite, quiet, effective.
Food — Shabu is all about the beef so my visit went with the best = Premium Wagyu.
A dinner set with three appetizers, rice or noodles soup after main and choice of dessert.
Appetizers 1. monkfish sashimi 2. kampachi sashimi 3. Fried chilean seabass.
Main — 10 slices of beef with incredible marbling, color Call it A5 = highest grades of beef in Japan (out of 15). Vegetables, noodles and tofu on side. Ponzu and Goma sauce. This is not a stew so do not throw everything in the pot especially the beef. If your beef is brown on the way to your mouth… you are doing it wrong. My method I splash it into the broth 2 or 3 times and eat it either plain (this is the way to truly appreciate the beef) or the smallest dip of ponzu. Save the sauce for the vegetables and tofu. The beef must truly be experienced. No words or description can truly describe the amazing sensation when the beef hits your tongue and it melts into goodness.
Noodles — they will strain the broth into a bowl and add rice or noodles. The noodles were al dente. The noodles were good and filling if you didn’t have enough to eat.
Dessert — Green tea mousse, light and subtle. A nice ending to the set.
Prices — Expensive. The premium wagyu is $ 128 /​USDA prime $ 43. They have other a different prices in between with options for seafood, combo with seafood. All dinners come as a set with the above accompaniments. I will try the regular wagyu beef next time at $ 108.
Overall — If you truly appreciate shabu with high grade beef, then this is an incredible experience.

I love coming back to Kagaya. This is my all time favorite shabu shabu place.
We made a 7:30 reservation but didn’t get seated until 8. The restaurant needs to better manage the reservation time table. I took off one star because of this.
Food was delicious as usual, from appetizers to desserts! This time we ordered 4 sets of Wagyu beef dinner sets. Beef was so tender and melted in my mouth. One of my favorites was the porridge at the end. They added rice to the shabu shabu broth and turned it into porridge. Yummy! And can’t forget about the dessert! The banana pie and cream brûlée was so good!
I would definitely visit again soon~

Wow! I have never seen like this Shabu Shabu before. They have some differentiation between taste and set menu and service. I would like to visit here again.

After being a loyal Kagaya customer for 10 years or so I’m finally getting down to writing a review.
It’s my opinion that Kagaya is easily the best Shabu Shabu restaurant I’ve been to in Los Angeles. It compares well with the places I’ve been to in Japan and the only fault I can find with it is that their beef isn’t as good. But that being said this is America and Kagaya’s beef far outshines most of the disgusting gristle that you get at the other Shabu Shabu restaurants In LA. Chef Masa’s ponzo and sesame sauces are extraordinary and the equal of any on planet earth. The vegetables accompanying the Shabu Shabu are fresh and perfect. The Kaiseki style appetizers always please. The Sanmori bowl warms the soul and the Zosui makes you wish you had an extra stomach so you could enjoy it all (thankfully they will sort out your un eaten portion for takeaway.) The Desserts there are a perfect size and really well done. The green tea moose is one of my favorite desserts in LA.
Kagaya is expensive but truthfully it’s the only game in town. I don’t what i’m going to to do when Masa retires. Probably move to Tokyo.

Went there with friends on a tuesday night. Service was great. Food was excellent. Especially the appetizers, very thoughtful and tasty. Unfortunately, the pot just couldn’t bring to a boil, which is a little disappointed. I have to admit that the meat is very high quality. Good experience but a little over priced.

It is a small restaurant but neat and clean. It is bit pricey, but worth for ordering the beef. The meat is tender and mets in your mouth. It includes 3 appetizers, soup and dessert (per person). They will make the hotpot soup into porridge or with udon.
Just the seafood set isn’t that impressive.

This shabu shabu place is amazing. I always get crazy full after eating here. Three appetizers in the beginning. One cold dish, soup, and hot dish. Then the main course the veggies and beef/​seafood. After the shabu shabu they serve porridge. And can’t forget about the dessert! Hehe all their desserts are good. I usually get the banana pie. The ambiance is nice and feels like the most fancy shabu shabu I’ve been to. Haha It’s worth at least trying once especially for a special occasion.
Enjoy the yummy food! (:

It’s good quality hotpot and meat, but similar to Korean wagyu hotpot with ¹⁄₃ of the price.
Ambient is nice and quiet.

The quality of service and food is top-​tier and very much what you would expect when dining in Japan.
I usually go for the cheapest beef option which still comes to about $ 50 before tax and tip, but it’s totally worth what you pay for. The meal comes with a huge plate of veggies and meat for dipping pleasure and you receive two appetizers and a dessert! And, they turn your soup into a rice porridge (which you can take home to-​go) or into an udon noodle soup (you can’t take this one home.) The crème brûlée and the banana cream pie are a must!
Say «hi» to Ayumi! She’s the sweetest :)

I’m not a fan of shabu shabu and especially when it comes to food I have to cook myself. In this case, I have to admit the beef was very good quality, so soft and tender and I left here full and not feeling icky which is rare.
Food:
It’s all about the sauce, ’bout the sauce, no trouble…
Soups:
A: Porridge — I hate porridge, that’s for sick ppl. Especially I just finished scarfing down fine meats and filled to the max, why do I need porridge? I barely touched it so we ended up togoing it and had it for the next day — wonderful! I love the ginger (which I normally don’t) mixed with a hit of sourness
B: Noodle Soup — sooo full, the food kept coming! Basic but was easy to eat. I like fat noodles
Their desserts are amazing:
A-​: Strawberry sorbet — it’s not as smooth but you can see the ice pellets
A: Green Tea Mousse– sooo creamy and the right amount of sweetness
A+: Apple a la Mode: At first I heard apple pie and shook my head no but the ice-​cream came out on crispy flakes sitting over caramel syrup… heavens! man, the bf always knows the right one to pick.

Hidden gem.
Celebrated last 3 birthdays here and always the most pleasant experience.
Incredible quality and such professional service.
Can’t go wrong with their prefix course & Wagyu or seafood.
Make sure to make your reservation at least 2 – 3 weeks ahead.

I was impressed with KaGaYa. As other reviews say, the food is all top quality, and really good. The service is fast and efficient, but we did have to ask two times for refills on water. It was nice to sit at the bar and watch the chef work his magic. I like the fact that there are limited choices, and you are basically eating whatever the chef has prepared for the day.
Our appetizers were a Tofu and a Spicy fish. My wife was hoping for a sashimi type of appetizer, but that was not the choice for the evening.
Why 4 stars and not 5? As other reviews say, the prices are a bit high. You do get quality, but it seems as though it is still quite steep for Shabu Shabu. Also, the service was nothing special. It is basically a place where they want you in-​and-​out, so don’t expect anything over the basics.
I probably won’t be back to KaGaYa for a while, but it is definitely on the list of places that I would one day come back to. It is a solid 4 stars.

Kagaya was a nice change of pace, from the standard Taiwanese, Vietnamese and Thai hot pot restaurants that I’ve frequented. That’s because it isn’t your typical hot pot, rather it’s a more delicate counterpart of Japanese shabu shabu.
The service was outstanding. As we were seated we were greeted w/​hot towels to cleanse our face and hands. The servers always made sure our table was clean and tidy.
Our meal came w/​soup, 2 appetizers, prime rib and dessert. Everything was perfectly executed. I didn’t think the seafood or Wagyu would be worth it much. There were hardly any pieces for seafood, and the Wagyu would have shriveled up in the hot broth, so we stuck w/​the basic meat option.
Surprisingly, I was rather full at the end of our 5-​course meal. I did however, squeeze in some gelato and a cronut before our meal just in case I wouldn’t be. But now that I think about it, I could have done w/​out dessert first just so that I can thoroughly enjoy my meal more (well.just, maybeeeee).
For a group of 11, the total came to be about $ 86.00 per person. It was good, but not something I would care to go back and pay for again. The quality was definitely there, and I know I can’t compare it to a steakhouse, but for that price I’d rather blow my $$ on one. I think my group kinda felt the same way, but it was an overall good experience. It’s just something I would save for a special occasion, and for sure not your every day meal.

This is shabu shabu to the max. The quality of the meat and each of the dishes that come with each order is so amazing. Yes, it is a little pricy compared to every other shabu shabu restaurant I’ve been to, but it is also worth every penny!
=THE SHABU SHABU MEAL=
You pick the type of meat you wish to order, we stuck with the least expensive, USDA Prime Rib at $ 48 per person. It sounds like a lot for shabu shabu, but each order comes with 2 seasonal appetizers, wanmori bowl soup, fresh vegetables, pickled vegetables, an option of udon or rice noodle soup (with your left over soup broth), and a dessert! That, plus the quality of each dish that comes out is superb!
The prime rib was so beautiful already, I can’t even imagine how heavenly the wagyu must taste! The marbling was plentiful, and the tenderness of the beef after it’s been swished around in hot soup was perfect! If you look behind the cashier or the bar, you can see that they slice the fresh meat to order! None of that pre-​packaged stuff. You know you’re getting a great quality meat here. Then the sesame sauce for the meat and the ponzu sauce for the vegetables were delicious as well. A perfect addition to the shabu shabu.
The wanmori soup we had was shrimp and egg tofu. Our appetizers were spicy swordfish and tuna tataki, both of which pretty much just melted in my mouth! We chose to turn our soup into Udon noodle soup. They prepare it in the back, bring the entire pot back and serve it in front of you. It was such a great way start wrapping up the meal, and to not waste soup. For desserts we ordered the Crème Brûlée and the Apple Pie. Just sweet enough and had me crying for more. Both were exquisite and a perfect ending to the experience!
=SERVICE=
Sublime! They were the friendliest and sweetest group of Japanese servers ever! They came by SO often to clear our soup, as well as to make sure we had everything we needed. My friend swore it was JUST like Japan when she visited there!
=FINAL VERDICT=
While I won’t be coming here too often for shabu shabu because it’s a little pricier than what I’d normally pay, it’s still ranked as number 1! Quality is EVERYTHING here, and so is service. KaGaYa nails both on the head! If you’re looking for fine dining shabu shabu, look no further!

Sometimes, on your birthday you want to get dressed up and be wined and dined at a place where the waiter asks if you want bottled water or puts a strong emphasis on ‘tap’ water. Other times, you just want to keep it comfortable for your soul and conscious so you’d prefer a simple meal but not wanting that simple meal to take away from that special day. This place is the definition of fancy but not fancy.
My best friend took me here for my birthday and I enjoyed every inch of it. Starting from the 3 course menu to the porridge they make at the end. The appetizer and dessert changes on a daily basis which obviously keeps it exciting.
*We came dressed in summer casual clothes while experiencing a gourmet style dinner *

It’s been a couple of years since we last patronized KaGaYa. We were trying to get in a late night sushi dinner next door but the wait was too long after a long drive from the Bay Area. So we walked in (no wait) for some delicious Shabu Shabu instead.
KaGaYa is just as good as it was two years ago when I first reviewed it. The service is exceptional. No wonder this still one of the favorite places on Unilocal.It’s simple and pricy but you get great quality and service. The appetizers are just perfect lead up to the main course of Wagyu Beef Shabu. This place is the best Shabu in Los Angeles.