The "Godfather of Steak" Deng Youkui ventures into hot pot — using premium steak meat as hot pot ingredients!

▲The "Godfather of Steak" Deng Youkui has ventured into the hot pot business!

Reported and photographed by Huang Shiyuan, Taipei

The "Godfather of Steak" Deng Youkui has ventured into the hot pot business — what kind of spark will this create? Located in the alleys of Siwei Road, Da’an District,Danny's WhatsNabethe restaurant has a low-key appearance, and you might easily miss it if you’re not looking carefully. But the ingredients used are all top-tier steak meat, with three types of steak to choose from: American premium ribeye tenderloin, American premium ribeye, and Australian full-blood wagyu ribeye.

Deng Youkui, who has already opened multiple steak restaurants, said he has been thinking about how to break through and innovate. After several inspirational trips to Japan, he felt that Japanese-style hot pot was a business model worth trying.Su Yukai, the head chef of Danny's WhatsNabe, explained that most hot pot restaurants boil all the ingredients together, which can cause the ingredients to lose their original flavors, while the broth becomes murky with impurities due to prolonged boiling. Therefore, at Danny's WhatsNabe, the broth is simply made with water enhanced with kombu, and ingredients are briefly dipped in the boiling water to preserve their purest taste.

▲The beef at Danny's WhatsNabe is ready to eat in just 3 seconds!

The main dishes at Danny's WhatsNabe include American premium ribeye tenderloin, American premium ribeye, and Australian full-blood wagyu ribeye — all steak-grade. But unlike most of Deng Youkui’s previous restaurants, the beef here is not aged but served as fresh as possible. Su Yukai said that thinly sliced beef only needs to be dipped for 3 seconds, and when it turns a pinkish hue, it is at its most tender and delicious. In addition to seasoning with sea salt, you can also dip it in the store’s sesame sauce, which tastes quite good.

Besides beef, another highlight at Danny's WhatsNabe is seafood. The seafood platter mainly includes fish, shellfish, and shrimp. Head chef Su Yukai, who previously worked for years at the Japanese restaurant Mitsui, personally selects all the seafood at Danny's WhatsNabe. Even if he can’t be there in person, he uses his phone or messaging apps to choose the ingredients. Despite often working until nearly midnight, Su Yukai has to wake up at 4 a.m. every day to pick the seafood.

▲The fish, shrimp, and shellfish in the seafood platter are all personally selected by the chef.

Su Yukai said that to provide the best ingredients to customers, all the seafood here is wild, not farmed, and over 90% is live seafood. Because the ingredients are so fresh, the Nabe seafood doesn’t even need sauce to taste delicious — you can enjoy the most original ocean flavor and sweetness. If you prefer a stronger taste, you can dip it in the vinegar sauce provided by the store.

▲In addition to the ingredients, Deng Youkui also pays close attention to the hardware. To ensure the ingredients heat evenly and quickly, he specially ordered rapid-heat-conducting red copper hot pots from Japan.

Besides using only water for blanching, the dining sequence at Danny's WhatsNabe is also unique. Appetizers are served first, followed by the main dishes. If you order seafood, it is recommended to eat that first, then vegetables, udon noodles, and dessert. Additionally, Danny's WhatsNabe offers table-side service, mainly considering that different ingredients have varying cooking times, allowing staff to manage it better so customers can fully enjoy the flavors. For example, beef is ready in just 3 seconds, scallops take about 3–5 seconds, scallop adductors about 30–40 seconds, and shrimp take a bit longer, around 1 minute.

Dnny’s WhatsNabe shop info:
Valid every day, includes appetizers, starters, main courses, vegetable platters, and desserts

Lunch set price starts from NT$1,380 + 10%
Evening set price starts from NT$1,680 + 10%
Phone: 02-2704-1717
Address: 1F, No. 17, Lane 52, Siwei Rd., Da’an District, Taipei City


▲Appetizers.


▲Starter: Abalone simmered in dashi.


▲Main dish: American premium ribeye steak.


▲Vegetable platter, including garland chrysanthemum, tofu, king oyster mushrooms, fried tofu skin, Japanese leeks, and麻|臁＜/strong>


▲Dessert: Dorayaki (Japanese pancake)