Yufumabushi Shin - Absolute Best Must Eat Beef Mabushi in Yufuin
A layer of thinly sliced wagyu beef covered the entire surface of the rice in this Bungo Beef Mabushi.
Something you don’t really think of when you think of Japanese food is clay pot rice, but when you’re in Yufuin, the hidden onsen hot spring paradise of Kyushu, Yufumabushi Shin clay pot rice should be the only thing you are thinking about when it comes to food
Easily the best place to eat beef mabushi can be found right here in Yufuin, which is awesome because Yufumabushi Shin is also a must eat restaurant while you are in Yufuin.
There are two branches, I dined at the Yufumabushi Shin Ekimae Branch, which is near the train station. The other branch is the Yufumabushi Kinrinko Honten Branch near lake Kinkin, a popular tourist destination.
If you are interested in other to see and do in Yufuin then check out this Ultimate Yufuin Travel Guide I’ve written for you here, it contains all the details and information you’ll need for traveling in this beautiful town, including things like “What to eat” or “Where to stay” and most importantly “How to get there”
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An Army of Mabushi Clay Pot Rice
The skill and experience you must have to be able to keep track of all of those mabushi clay pots…
My parents and I arrived at Yufumabushi shin at around lunch time, that was a big mistake as the queue was very long, we had to wait outside on the stairs leading up to the restaurant, and that wasn’t it, we also had to wait inside before we got properly seated.
All in all the wait was about an hour long, so don’t come here when you are on an empty stomach as you’ll might become a little hangry like I did…
But the long wait times also mean that the food is going to be spectacular as locals and tourists alike flock to eat the absolute best beef claypot rice in probably all of Japan(?).
Anyways, once we got in we were greeted with a literally army of claypots roasting away on the LARGEST stovetops I have ever seen.
The clay pots are cooked fresh and I saw the chef put the meat straight into the pot along with the boiling rice so the rice could absorb all that delicious beef juice, imagine the flavor!
The Yufumabushi Shin Menu
There is not a lot to choose from but that means that Yufumabushi Shin has perfected their menu.
The menu at Yufumabushi Shin is small but concise, only focusing on clay pot rice (called mabushi). There are 3 protein options to choose from for your mabushi clay pot rice.
Bungo-Gyu Mabushi - Beef (Bungo meaning Wagyu Beef from Oita Prefecture)
Jidory Mabushi - Chicken
Hitsumabushi - Eel/Unagi
The obvious choice would of course be either beef mabushi or eel mabushi, but don’t skimp on the chicken! Although we didn’t order it, I’ve heard from other reviews that the chicken mabushi is very delicious in it’s own right.
Each dish is served as a set menu with soup, pickled vegetables, appetizers, and seasonings all included.
The other portion of the menu are appetizers which are basically the 3 protein options on their own, if you want more meat in your mabushi clay pot rice or you just wanna snack on them then you have the option to order more.
Pricing
The pricing is a little on the expensive side in my opinion coming in at 2500 JPY or roughly 18 USD but I would say that it is worth it as you get some appetizers and condiments on the side as well.
An Assortment of Refreshing Appetizers
What a nice spread of tasty foods. It was fun to discover what eat dish is.
Our Yufumabushi Shin meal started off with a plate of appetizers!
Now I would be lying if I said I was able to tell you what all of these things are, so I’ll try my best to explain assortment of different dishes on this plate. All the appetizers were serve cold.
Firs up we got the Yam/Konjac/Red Bean Jelly with sweet sauce, now I have absolutely no idea what that jelly is made out of and researching on the interwebs didn’t give me an answer as well… It tasted very smooth, sweet, and yam-like, the sweet sauce was also mild but refreshing, I think it was a plum sauce.
Second is the Okra Salad. Personally, I hate Okra because of the slimy and saliva-y texture, but I had a little taste and it was alright.
Next are a variety of Root Salads, Bamboo, Lotus Root, Burdock, etc… These are very refreshing and also very crunchy, the lotus root was very sweet.
Then there were things like Fish Cake, Taro Balls (I quite like these), and Tamagoyaki, also known as a Japanese omelette.
There were also Veggie Chips which I thought was a bit funny and didn’t fit in to the whole aesthetic, but hey they’re there.
Bungo Beef Mabushi
“Come on James when will you stop talking and get to the eating?”
This is what we’ve all been waiting for, the Bungo Beef Mabushi Clay Pot Rice in all it’s juicy beefy glory! My father and I ordered the beef, because we are heavy meat eaters (I respectfully apologize to the vegans), while my mother ordered the unagi or hitsumabushi.
When the claypot was served I can’t help but be excited, the pot itself was pretty big, it could easily hold around 2 portions of mabushi.
But when the waitress opened the lid, oh my lord. A sheet of thinly sliced Bungo Beef was look at me with its juicy and glistening stare. And guys, the marbling on these slices of beef is like a work of art, you can see the patterns of fat running through the beautifully cooked medium rare pink beef.
Seasonings, Condiments, and Pickles
There is almost too much to handle here, everything is labelled in Japanese as well, don’t know what is what…
Alright alright, I know you guys want to start eating but before that I need to explain a few of the condiments on offer as it will become important soon.
On the seasoning and sauces side of the condiments you get a whole high school group project’s worth of members to choose from.
First up are the sauces, you’ll get a few types of sauces ranging from a salty soy sauce to a sweet dark soy sauce. Some are even specialty sauces from Yufuin.
Next up are seasonings like black pepper, wasabi salt, and a spicy chili yuzu paste
These are probably the most colorful and vibrant pickles I’ve ever seen.
On the other side of the condiment spectrum are the pickled vegetables, you’ll find familiar things like cucumbers, cabbages, and carrots, in addition to more unique things like pickled wood ear mushrooms and pickled mustard greens.
How to Eat and Fully Enjoy Yufu Mabushi
Right, here is where the condiments and pickles come in to play, believe it or not, there is a specific methodology to how you are suppose to enjoy your bowl of Yufumabushi shin clay pot rice.
I’m not sure if this method applies to all restaurants and stores serving mabushi or if it’s just specific to this particular restaurant here in Yufuin but nonetheless it’s an optional thing but it does serve to enhance your enjoyment of the meal if you choose to follow it.
So lets go through it together!
Serving 1: Mix and Enjoy as is
Mix it up to incorporate all the delicious flavors.
The first step (or rather serving) is to mix the rice and beef enjoy the mabushi clay pot rice as is.
But don’t make the mistake of dining directly from the mabushi clay pot! You’re suppose to scoop a portion into a smaller bowl to enjoy.
Doesn’t that just look lovely?
This first step is for you to enjoy the pure flavors of the mabushi clay pot rice.
The highlight in this serving definitely has to be the rice (sorry bungo beef…), It’s extremely rich in flavor from being steamed and cooked with the bungo beef. Every grain of rice is covered in beef juices and exudes an aromatic beefy aroma.
It’s Japanese rice as well, where the grain are plump and a little chewy, making this a very hearty bowl of food.
Of course the bungo beef tastes superb as well, tender and fatty, with a good beefy flavor, not too intense however.
Serving 2: Add seasoning and Pickles
All seasoned up, this mabushi has now graduated to the next level of deliciousness.
The second serving of Yufumabushi Shin clay pot rice allows you to be more creative! Here is where you can add your pickles and Yufuin specialty sauces to enhance the flavor or tweak the mabushi to your liking.
I like a bit of sourness and spice to my rice bowls, so I added some pickled cabbages, wood ear mushrooms, and mustard greens.
Sprinkle on some black pepper and a dollop of chili paste to round everything together, and that is one delicious bowl of bungo beef mabushi ready for me to devour!
Serving 3: Ochazuke!
Don’t knock it till you try it, this is the most comforting bowl of rice I’ve ever had.
The last serving is to create what is called an Ochazuke, serve yourself a portion and decorated with your pickles and condiments as you would in the previous serving. Now this time you pour in a special dashi-shiro broth (white soup stock) to create a sort of congee type dish.
This serving was actually my favorite as the soup turned the mabushi into a very comforting dish, although eating it in this Ochazuke form does dilute the flavor somewhat, but adding the spicy yuzu chili paste and the pickles does help to enhance the flavor.
Getting to Yufumabushi Shin
Yufumabushi shin has two outlets in Yufuin, one located near the main Yufuin train station (aptly named the Ekimae branch, meaning “near train station”) and one nearby Kinrin Lake, a popular tourist attraction in Yufuin.
Whichever branch you choose, you can expect to wait a while before you actually get seated, about an hour or more especially during peak lunch service. Yufumabushi shin does accept reservations however.
This Yufumabushi shin review is part of my Ultimate Yufuin Travel Guide article, if you are interesting in exploring more of what this beautiful natural onsen hot spring town has to offer then click the link about to learn more. The article has all the details you need to kickstart your adventure in Yufuin!
Conclusion
Pros
Deliciously tender and juicy Oita wagyu beef. The other proteins are also good.
The rice is cooked along with the protein so that it can absorb all of the meat’s delicious aromas and juices.
Pricing is quite ok for what you are getting.
A lot of condiments and pickles for you to customize the mabushi to your liking, plus included appetizers.
Cons
Really long wait times if you come during peak hours or did not make a reservation.
The flavors can be too bland or mild for some palates.
Overall I would definitely recommend you come to try Yufumabushi Shin whenever you are in Yufuin, in fact you would be doing a disservice if you don’t, it’s literally the best and must eat things in Yufuin. From the deliciously tender and juicy wagyu beef, to the aromatic rice. Plus you get a bunch of appetizers and condiments to customize the mabushi to your liking. The pricing is also fair for the amount of food and quality you are getting.
What I will have to deduct points on however, is the really long wait times and for some, the taste can be a bit underwhelming especially if you came from sipping a porky and salty bowl of ramen broth.
Yufu Mabushi Shin | 8.5 / 10
Yufumabushi Shin Yufuin Ekimae Branch Details
Phone: +81 97 784 5825
Location: 5-3 Yufuincho Kawakita, Yufu, Oita 879-5114, Japan
Opening Hours: 10:30AM - 7:30PM | Mon - Sun
Pricing: ~2500 JPY (or 18 USD) | $$
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