"Hailing from Shinjuku, Tokyo, Saboten first opened its doors in 1966 with the goal of serving the best Tonkatsu one could ever taste and experience. Now, it has flourished into one of the largest Tonkatsu chains with over 500 shops in Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong, Canada, China and now, the Philippines. Raintree Restaurants, which operates a collection of innovative and successful dining outlets, now partners with Saboten to bring the famed mouthwatering signature Tonkatsu to the Manila for the very first time." —Raintree Restaurants
The word "express" in Saboten Express is most likely to say that it's a mini version of the Saboten Restaurant main branch that you can easly take your orders specially for take out orders.
The flavors, the seasoning, the ingredients and even the smallest details of foods are all originated from the original branch of Saboten in Japan.
Saboten Express is located at 5/L at SM Megamall Food Hall. It's a grab a food, or to-go food if you want to take out and bring it to your wok or home.
They have their main branch at Serendra but it's a buffet-like restaurant with unlimited side dishes and unlimited soup.
We ordered our foods. They have lots of tonkatsu and it's hard to choose since all the things in the menu are all mouth-watering.
We waited for our order at of course, in one of the tables in the food hall.
We got our food and we are amazed how big is the serving of each meal. I never thought it would be that much.
We tried four varieties of their tonkatsu. Every meal comes with free miso soup and pickles.
Tenderloin Katsu Set
P265
This is one of their biggest meal. The tonkatsu with shredded cabbage is good for 2 person plus the original tonkatsu sauce made from Japan's original ingredients. Some of us know that the typical sauce of the shredded cabbage is mayonnaise but they offer different sauce, it's also the original sauce made from Japan's original ingredients.
Rating: ★★★★ (4/5)
Traditional Chicken Katsudon
P265
This katsu is made from chicken. It's a rice in a bowl with the katsudon. The rice is mixed with seasonings and egg to make it tastier but it's a typical tonkatsu. You can add side dish like tofu. This is also a big meal.
Rating: ★★★ (3/5)
Pepper Sauce Tenderloin Katsudon
P245
One of their premium tonkatsu. The taste of the pepper sauce will melt in your mouth. This is also a big bowl of rice. You can pair it up with the side dish, cabbage with yuzu dressing dip.
Rating: ★★★★ (4/5)
Chicken Katsu Curry
P285
Last but not the least, this is definitely my favorite among the four. I'm not into curry but when I tasted their Katsu curry, ugh! It tastes different from typical curry that I've tasted before. It has a mild spicy level but anyone who hates spicy will still be able to eat this because of it's "curry" feels-taste.
I actually love the curry sauce so I even use it as a dip of tonkatsu and it really tastes good.
Rating: ★★★★★ (5/5)
SIDE DISHES:
We tried two of their side dishes
Agedashi Tofu
P99
Rating: ★★★ (3/5)
Agedashi tofu is not your typical tofu. It is crispy deep fried tofu that is usually vegan. It's a big serving of three pieces tofu.
Crab Cream Croquette
P39
Rating: ★★★★★ (5/5)
Made with bread crumbs, these croquette is a crispy dish yet creamy inside. The tastes of the crab melts in my mouth and to those people who loves seafoods will surely love this.
They also offers sandwich filled with tonkatsu. There are three fillings such as Tenderloin, Loin and what we tried is Chicken.
It's a heavy meal actually. It's very convenient for take-out orders since you can bite it while doing something or even if you're in your way to work or school.
Chicken Katsu Sandwich
P129
Rating: ★★★★ (4/5)
(Jona & Chelsea, IG: chelsea_3kings)
We really enjoyed the food. Happy tummy, happy face and happy experience.
BRANCHES:
Saboten Express
SM Megamall 5/L Food Hall
Saboten
Ground Floor, Serendra
Bonifacio Global City, Taguig, Philippines
Tel. No.: +632-625-2000 or 2888
Thank you so much to Miss Michele Magtoto of Raintree Restaurants for accomodating us and also for being so kind and happy to talk with.
Check them out for other restaurants:
or visit their instagram account
"As a restaurant family that complements your own lifestyle, Raintree Restaurants is committed to providing a pleasurable social and gustatory experience. We intend to do this by ensuring that only top-quality food items come out of our kitchens while our service teams give you the care and hospitable treatment you so rightfully deserve." —Raintree Restaurants
