Mokkoji Shabu Shabu Bar

This place has really upped the service throughout the last couple years. I saw that Damien got called out recently about a «shitty» attitude and I just want to add that he is the reason why I enjoy this place so much.
He is my usual server and I love his company. He moves quick and shows that he really loves his job at mokkojis.
He is upbeat and accommodating. He brings the restaurant to life and leads the others towards that attitude as well.
My personal favorite entrée is still the salmon. The beef belly gets a little heavy at times, but it’s good every once in a while.
Goma is still God sent.

Probably my favorite Shabu Shabu place in Orange County so far.
The pork belly is out of this world.
Service is wonderful!

Absolutely love! I would say this is zeeee best shabu I’ve had so far… I got the toro and it was ahh-​mazing! The spicy soup was yummy too. Everything was good damn. Just had it today and can’t wait to go back already.
Regular lunch toro beef belly shabu was about $ 12! I can def get use to that! My fav go to place for shabu!
Customer service was great. Bar and table seating.

I was hanging out with a couple of friends for Valentines day and our usual shabu place was closed so I searched on Unilocal for another shabu restaurant for lunch. I found this place just down the street and I’m glad I did. It was pretty easy to find with some navigational help from my friend. It’s right in between a Starbucks and a Phở restaurant. The place is really cool inside. There’s a lot of cool artwork and a few chalkboards with menu and drink specials on them. I signed us in and we waited a little less than ten minutes for our table. Once the table was cleared and set up the host said we could take a seat.
This wasn’t our first shabu experience, but it was our first time here, so our waiter showed us the ropes a bit. He ground all our sesame seeds for the goma sauce and even added a drop of spicy sauce to it so we could try it. It was strong, but it went well with the goma. He answered all of our questions about the menu. We were a little confused about the combo plates, but he explained it very well to us. We ended up getting one shared order of Soto Momo wagyu beef, one order of lamb and I just had to get their pork bun. With our shabu, we all got original broth, and my friends got rice. I skipped out on the rice, keeping to my low carb diet.
First we got our sauces, next the broth came, we each got our own pot and then we got our beautiful bouquet of veggies. It was so pretty, I almost didn’t want to eat it. There was a good variety of veggies in our little pots. They had the usual enoki, Napa cabbage, tofu and a small portion of udon, but there was also squash, cilantro, broccoli, carrots and kale. Once our hot pots started boiling we put our veggies in. I sampled some of the cabbage with our sauces. I liked the goma with a kick and the ponzu had a nice tang. Both of our freshly sliced meats came at the same time and we dug in. We all tried the lamb first since none of us had lamb hot pot before. I eat lamb during holidays like Christmas and Easter so it wasn’t such a big deal for me. The lamb was good, I liked that it was marinated in some herbs that gave it a fresh flavor to help with the gameiness. The lamb was kinda hard to handle with chopsticks though, it fell apart the moment you picked it up, which was kinda annoying. It was the beef that was my favorite. It wasn’t as fatty as I would like, but it had good flavor. It was a little tough if you kept it in the hot pot for too long so I tried to cook it pretty rare. Our pork bun came last, our waiter said he forgot to put it in, apologized and asked if we still wanted it even though we had our shabu. I told him we still wanted it so he put the order in. We got it near the end of our meal. It was only one very nicely made pork bun. It had Sriracha mayo on it, cilantro, pickled radish, pickled jalapeño, perilla (sesame leaf) and a fatty piece of pork. A very Korean pork bun. I got the first bite and it was amazing. The soft warm bun, crunchy pickled veggies, creamy and spicy sriracha mayo and fatty, juicy pork melded together in a single bite, One of the best pork buns I’ve. I shared it with my friends and they agreed.
I was surprised that at the end of the meal I was full. It’s rare for me to be completely satisfied after a shabu meal, but this one hit the spot. I really like this place, the ambiance was cool, service was great and the food hit the spot. I will totally come back, next time I might try their beef belly.

Very busy at lunch. I encourage reservations for large groups (over 4).
Jason provided phenomenal service for our party of 8. Another server also checked on us regularly so that all of our needs were met.
Variety of broths to choose from. All except the chicken and beef broths are vegetarian. I found the original broth to be somewhat tasteless; I will probably try the miso next time or perhaps throw all caution to the wind and try the spicy (my friends will read this and say «sure, that’s gonna happen» but you never know; I might!)
The vegetarian lunch includes fresh and beautifully presented Napa cabbage, sesame leaves, cilantro, kale, carrot, broccoli, udon noodles, tofu and rice. The rice was described as mixed between white and brown but I found it to be almost exclusively white.
We received our food without delay and Jason was quick to process our bill; they seem to clearly get that people need to move quickly at lunchtime.

Okay okay. Everything is is so damn good. Occasionally I would have a bad experience but overall service has gotten better. The wait is still long during peak hours but worth. I like how they expanded their broth selection. I’ve discovered shrimp paste at Mokkoji! So gooooood. When I order shrimp, I ask for shrimp paste only. I would try to come during off hours to avoid a wait.
Drink that goma sauce. I would.

MY NEW FAVORITE SHABU!!!
**2016 Unilocal 100 CA CHALLENGE #9**
I have been wanting to try this darn shabu shabu for over a YEAR I feel like! The moment you walk in you are greeted right away! There’s an area for you to sign in for a table so that they could call your name when a table it ready & set for you. I will have to say it’s a small area of space but it definitely seems a lot BIGGER than most shabu places I have been too.
I felt like we had multiple servers taking care of us so I assume they Pool everything & work together as a team! Service was AMAZING & we ALWAYS had everything that we needed at all time. The main interation was w/​MIKEY & ASHLEY (i only know cuz thata what the reciept said for names) We had a party of 7 so I was impressed we were all able to sit together as well in a dinner table setting & not a bar top.
The pricing for the food in my opinion is pretty GOOD for the amount of food that you get! Especially the ADD-​ON meats! The sauces are freaken AMAZEBALLS! They also give you sesame seeds that you grind up then they add GOMA sauce which by far the BEST I have tasted as I typically never use the goma sauce because it is not to my liking typically. The PONZU citrus aged soy is even better which I could literally drizzle all over my rice… & the rice… a mix of brown & white! LOVE IT!!! one more PLUS there is ENDLESS cabbage & bok choy refills.
FATTY BELLY DINNER $ 16.98 — this one only comes in the 10pc. Choice & the presentation itself is gorgeous w/​it’s vibrant meat red color w/​the fatty white parts & drizzled w/​what looks like sesame oil? & shaved daikon raddish.
MOKOJI FLAT IRON DINNER $ 15.98 — multiple piece selection but I got 10pc. & it was plenty for me! Still tender & good w/​good flavors.
GARLIC EDAMAME $ 3.00 — this was decent. I wouldn’t say I would order it again, but it was nice to try.
PORK BELLY BUN $ 4.00 — this was a single rice bun filled w/​a juicy pork belly w/​jalapeño & some other stuff. A little sweet, crunchy, fatty, savory, chewy all in every bite.
SHISHITO PEPPERS $ 4.00 — just peppers… the sauce that it came w/​was a little bland for my taste, but amazing w/​the ponzu citrus age soy sauce!
MOZZI $ 3.00 — this is an add on side thing to add to your shabu & it is rice cake filled w/​mozzarella cheese! I freaken loved it! It was something fun & chewy to add to my soup & to eat at the end w/​the seasoned broth.
PORK BELLY SIDE $ 8.00 — not bad but I have tasted better pork belly slices, but it did add a nice flavor to the broth.
BEEF BELLY SIDE $ 8.00 — honestly the give a CRAP LOAD for a side order or beef belly. It look ALMOST as much as the dinner portion! Love it since I ordered the MOKKOJI CUT.
OVERALL… I’m obsessed & will keep my business here from now on until I am shown another better place!

I have a real love for hot pot aka shabu shabu I don’t tend to eat it a lot in this area besides boiling point and jazz cat but this place is pretty amazing.
Its trendy, nicely decorated compared to another shabu shabu place locations. When its packed you’ll probably have to wait a while for a table. One of the negatives is on the weekends you have to pay for dinner prices. The quality of meat is totally worth it. I like the toro beef with is a fatty beef its fatty without being tiring in taste. I also like that with the spicy sukiyaki adds more depth than regular Japanese shabu shabu.
Make sure to add for squid ink porridge at the end of your meal and try not to fill up on too much food. A lot of people said it was free it sucked a little that they charged extra for it. Overall a bit pricey but I like the good food and good service will definitely come back.

SO GOOD!!! I’ve only heard good things about Mokkoji and finally found the time to check it out. Great price. Great food. Excellent Service! I loved our waiter :) He always had a smile on his face and was super friendly and helpful.
My family got three Toro dinner sets and one large Soto Moto (I think that’s how you spell it) dinner. I had the spicy sukiyaki soup base and loved it. The Toro only comes in one size but rest assured, you’re going to be full. My uncle usually eats a lot when he’s hungry and even he couldn’t help us finish our Toro meat! Their bok choy, kale, and cabbage are AYCE – just ask your waiter if they don’t mention it. But yeah! Come here for a great time at a really affordable price. What I liked most about their Toro (their most popular) is that it wasn’t rough or tough to chew on. Most cheaper shabu places have rougher cuts of beef either because they freeze it or just to save costs. But Mokkoji isn’t!
We were so full by the end of the dinner that we only ordered one bowl of squid ink porridge (or was it congee?). It was very good but sadly, we couldn’t finish it because we were so full. I’d definitely recommend mokkoji to ANYONE! Definitely worth it and will most definitely be back :)

Rudely awaken by the echoing dings of my phone from «Whatsapp»… The room is bright and a throbbing sensation lurks in my cerebral cortex… «why the hell am I so dam parched?» …Crap! I’m hung over again.
Off to Mokkoji I go !! It is a far better remedy to any hang over cure that your ancestors have passed down to you!
I usually order the choice beef. It comes with an abundance of assorted vegetables and the portions are more than accommodating. Udon to conclude my meal and I am good as new! The staff is always super welcoming and attentive.
I will be back Sunday morning, I have a birthday this Saturday…

This was my first shabu shabu experience and it definitely did not disappoint! From start to finish there was amazing service and the food tasted way better than I expected. Coming from a family that eats homemade hot pot, a lot of hot pot establishments disappoint me because the broth is just not flavorful enough. Not going to lie, I was worried Mokkoji would have been bland and a waste of money as well. So glad it wasn’t!
Your order comes with your choice of broth, meat, assorted vegetables!
:Broths:
Original
Spicy
Chicken
Miso
Spicy Miso
Chipotle Miso
Sukiyaki (w/​egg)
Spicy Sukiyaki
Fire Crab
Make your own
:Meat:
Prime Black Angus
Imperial Wagyu: Soto Momo, Kataroshin, or Zabuton
Beef Toro «Fatty Belly»
:Assorted Vegetables:
Cabbage
Bokchoy
Carrots
Tofu
Spinach
Enoki Mushrooms
Udon Noodles.
I ordered the Spicy Miso broth with Beef Belly and it was an amazing deal for $ 16! The housemade sauces, Ponzu Sauce and Goma Sauce, are a must for dipping your beef belly in. I honestly had no idea what I was doing and basically copied my friend’s every move. And don’t forget to order rice! It’s a mix of white and brown rice, though it’s mostly white rice! By the end of the meal I was stufffffffffffed. Definitely worth my money.

I LOVE THIS PLACE! If it was a little bit closer to me I’d probably be here everyday! What I like about this place is they have many different types of broths for you to choose from. My all time favorite is spicy miso. Beware: it IS spicy! I normally can handle a lot of spice and this has just the right kick. For meat, I love the «toro» aka beef belly. The more fat, the better! At the end of your meal they make porridge for you with what is left. I love the squid ink. Sounds nasty, but it is actually really good.
So why dock 1 star? The service is hit or miss. Other than that, this place is worth a trip!

i’m sad to say that the wagyu beef belly has changed. it’s either the supplier or the grade of beef. i haven’t confirmed it but the taste and texture and even the look of it is all wrong. the meat looks well marbled and so you would think that it would be melt-​in-​your-​mouth good but it’s tough and chewy. what the heck mokkoji? this was my favorite meat and my favorite shabu shop because of their unique goma sauce. but if i can’t count on the beef belly to be consistently good as before then i see no point in returning. they raised prices this year which was expected and are charging extra for the porridge they used to throw in for free before. so sad. the portions were shrinking each time i have eaten there too. there’s really just the goma sauce that stands them apart. i’m saddened to think i’ll need to venture out and try other shabu places.