Master Den, the brains behind Melbourne venues Izakaya Den and Hihou, has announced the group’s latest venture that will pop up for a limited time this winter.
Master Den’s Poppu Uppu will open on 20 June, offering a Japanese hot pot experience for Melbournians throughout winter.
The menu features a variety of hot pots that guests make themselves at the table guided by staff. The shabu shabu features a konbu flavoured broth with a plate of wagyu rump, topside and sirloin , with the option to add speciality cuts like rump cap, scotch fillet and Japanese favourite, cube roll.
The Hokkaido-style seafood nabe has a light miso-flavoured broth and is filled with Tasmanian salmon fillet, local mussels and Mackerel, or add local flathead fillets, New Zealand pippies, Coffin Bay Oysters, Crystal Bay prawns and Harvey Bay scallops.
The special mushroom hot pot comes with a konbu, sake and soy flavoured broth, silken tofu, and a selection of Japanese mushrooms including shiitake, enoki, shimeji, oyster, and king brown.
All three hot pot varieties are served with an assortment of vegetables and accompaniments such as wombok potato, spring onion, house-made special sauce and and yuzu koshu. The hot pots are finished with Udon noodles, handmade by head chef Yosuke Furukawa.
Snacks will include sansho pepper edamame, coffee-cured salmon sashimi, tofu and shitake mushroom rice puff tempura and a cameo appearance of Hihou’s fried chicken.
“What better winter experience than sharing a hot pot with someone you love, a group of your friends or family, on a cold Melbourne night,” says co-owner Simon Denton. “It’s comfort food at its best – fun, unpretentious, and full of flavour and ritual.”
The drinks list features cocktails, local and Japanese craft beers, wine and sake.
