Two-color kalguksu shabu-shabu near Gajeong Station, Incheon: Shabuway

I was craving shabu-shabu for weekend lunch, so I headed to Shabuway in Ruwon City. Shabu-shabu lets you eat plenty of vegetables and mix and match meat and broth to your taste, so it's a great pick when choosing a menu for a group. Shabuway is especially known for its all-you-can-eat meat, and I'd heard a lot of good things about the quality. Time to eat lots and lots of meat, haha~

What does Shabuway Ruwon City Cheongna Branch look like inside? A polished all-white dining room

The moment I walked into Shabuway Ruwon City Cheongna Branch, the first thing I noticed was how clean and upscale the white interior felt. The tables and chairs were all matched for a unified look, giving off a café-like atmosphere. The tables were also spaced far apart, so I could eat comfortably without worrying about other diners.

It seemed like there was a birthday party happening that day. A group of about 20–30 people had taken over one whole side of the space, using it almost like a private room. It was pretty impressive that such a large open area could be used like a room. If you have a group gathering or birthday party, this place seems like a great fit.

Hours and prices at Shabuway: half regular, half spicy broth

Shabu-shabu is really a menu that's best enjoyed with a group — family outings, meals with friends — so if you're looking for a place like that in Ruwon City, this seemed like a solid option. After we sat down, we picked our broth first. We ordered half regular, half spicy. The spicy broth costs an extra ₩2,000, but it felt like a waste to only get one kind, so we went half and half.

Is the all-you-can-eat meat any good? Thin slices, cooked just briefly

At Shabuway, the meat is all-you-can-eat, so you can bring as much as you want. Honestly, when I hear "all-you-can-eat," I usually expect to have to compromise on meat quality somewhat, but the meat here is genuinely good!! If you cook it too long it can get tough, so I lightly cooked the thin slices in the broth, and they came out tender and delicious. Best of all, you can just go grab more meat whenever you want — with shabu-shabu, the meat often runs out faster than the vegetables, but here you just bring more the moment you run low, so if you love meat, there's nothing better!!

Serving premium-grade meat seems to be Shabuway's biggest strength.

What is on the salad bar buffet that comes with the shabu-shabu?

At Shabuway, it's not just the meat that's all-you-can-eat — there's also a buffet of side dishes to go with your shabu-shabu. Granted, if you're picturing a full-scale buffet, the variety isn't huge. But if you think of it as a salad bar attached to your shabu-shabu, it actually felt like there was a pretty decent range of dishes worth eating.

There was everything from salad and vegetables to simple side dishes, so it was easy to grab something different between rounds of shabu-shabu. Personally, what I really liked was that everything was genuinely tasty! At a lot of buffets, there's a wide variety but some dishes you never touch — here, I actually enjoyed most of what I brought back to the table.

The salad bar also had basic rice wraps ready to go, but I skipped them this time since I needed room for more meat~

When you're eating vegetables and meat non-stop through shabu-shabu, you start craving other things partway through, and it was nice being able to just grab whatever you wanted from the salad bar. Even though it was a busy weekend lunch with a lot of people, staff kept refilling dishes the moment they ran low, so I never had to wait around for an empty tray to get restocked. If you don't go in expecting a full buffet experience but think of it as a bonus salad bar to enjoy alongside your shabu-shabu, it was excellent haha~

Signature two-color kalguksu: order extra broth first

We were coming into the home stretch, and there was no way I could skip the signature two-color kalguksu (noodle soup).

They put in one noodle of each color, but once they were in the pot you honestly couldn't tell them apart, haha. The noodles were chewy and really delicious. The only thing was, I hadn't added more broth beforehand, so it ended up a bit salty, ㅠㅠ. Definitely add more broth before you put the noodles in!!

Dessert at Shabuway: black sapphire grapes and chocolate

I wrapped things up with fruit for dessert. I was genuinely surprised to spot pricey black sapphire grapes sitting right there in the fruit corner~ I was too full to eat much, but finishing off with fruit and chocolate left me in a great mood.

Is Shabuway Ruwon City Cheongna Branch worth a visit?

Visiting this time, what stood out about Shabuway was the all-you-can-eat meat and how quickly dishes got refilled. And the fact that "all-you-can-eat" didn't mean low-quality meat — it was genuinely premium-grade!! Weekday lunch is just ₩18,000, so it's easy on the wallet~ If you're looking for a place near Gajeong Station for a weekend family meal or a get-together with friends, I'd recommend this shabu-shabu spot, Shabuway.