Tabu ShabuFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Tabu Shabu franchise requires a total initial investment of $281K – $726K, including a $35K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2023 FDD, average unit revenue was $966K[2]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2023 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $281K – $726K
- 16th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $966K
- 9th pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 7th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 8
- 18th pct Service Resta…
- SBA default
- N/A
Quick verdict · Full-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Full-Service Restaurants avg · No shading = within ±15% · Red = >15% below avg · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Franchised units fell from 4 to 1 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
53% cash-on-cash return (based on P&L Bottom Line). Above the 20% threshold most investors target.
Bottom line
- Total investment $281K – $726K including a $35K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $966K/year (median $1.0M), with an estimated 53% cash-on-cash return (based on P&L Bottom Line).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 33/100.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Tabu Shabu Holdings, LLC
- Ultimate parent
- Tabu Shabu Restaurant, LLC
- CEO title
- Founder and Chief Executive Officer
- Jeff Chon
- Founder active
- Yes
- Original founder still leading the business
- Incorporated in
- CA
- HQ
- 170 E 17th St #200C, Costa Mesa, California 92627
- Auditor
- Schild & Co., Inc.
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $81K
- vs $149K prior year
Overview
About
Franchisees operate Tabu Shabu hot pot restaurants, a table-top cooking experience where customers simmer raw proteins and vegetables in seasoned broths. Daily operations include managing ingredient inventory (particularly fresh proteins with short shelf lives), staff training on specialized table equipment and safety, and creating an authentic dining ambiance. Revenue is highly dependent on managing food costs, table turnover rates, and beverage sales in a labor-intensive format.
- CEO
- Jeff Chon
- Headquarters
- CA
- Founded
- 2016
- FDD year
- 2023
- States available
- 2
FDD Item 7 · 2023 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $35K | $35K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $25K | $50K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $221K | $641K |
| Total initial investment | $281K | $726K |
Source: Tabu Shabu 2023 FDD, Items 5 and 7[2]. “Equipment, build-out, other” is computed as total minus disclosed line items above.
Single-unit · estimated
Returns at a glance
Indicative numbers using FDD Item 7 / Item 19 inputs and category-benchmarked cost ratios. Full single-unit, 25-unit portfolio, and LBO models (with every input editable to stress-test your own scenario) live on the financials page.
Store EBITDA · annual
$116K
12.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
21%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
4.7 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $281K – $726K
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $25K – $50K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $35K – $35K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 1.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 6.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
- Payback period
- 1.9 yrs
- From FDD / Item 19
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 1.0% of gross sales |
| Training fee | $300 |
| Transfer fee | $3K |
| Renewal fee | $5K |
| Total fee load | 6.0% of rev |
A 6.0% total fee load is unusually lean. More of each revenue dollar stays with the franchisee.
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $966K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $1.0M
- Avg p&l bottom line
- $268K
- Reported as P&L Bottom Line in FDD Item 19
- Cash-on-cash
- 53.2%
- Based on P&L Bottom Line / investment midpoint
- Item 19 type
- gross_sales
- Sample size
- 7 units
- vs category median 13
- Range (low → high)
- $410K→$1.4M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Reporting year
- 2022
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Transparency
- 10 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · above
Compared against 1264 Full-Service Restaurants brands
vs Full-Service Restaurants averages
How Tabu Shabu Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 8
- Opened
- 1
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 4
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 50%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 1.0%
- Net growth (yr3)
- +33.3%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- Outlier (see FDD)
- Likely small-sample artifact
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Projected new
- 2
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 2 states reported
The Territory Map
FDD Item 12 reports the state count, but the specific list isn't in our current data. The map will appear once we re-extract from the FDD or enough franchisee contacts are available.
2
states with franchisees (per FDD Item 12)
Fast growth in a small system. Newer franchisors expanding quickly may not yet have the support infrastructure of larger systems.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA loan disclosures. This brand has only 1 7(a) loan on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 1
- Loan volume
- $515K
- Median loan
- $515K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- N/A
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- N/A
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 1
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Tabu Shabu's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 1 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 1 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 1-year lending trend
Instant access. No subscription.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Tabu Shabu presents caution-level risk: micro-franchise system with unverified unit economics, franchisor going concern status, and minimal scale to support infrastructure or handle franchisee failures.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation required to be disclosed
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Schild & Co., Inc.
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: No
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 33 / 100 rating
- 01HIGHGoing Concern status indicates franchisor financial instability despite positive unit-level economics
- 02MINOROnly 8 units total with 33.3% YoY growth suggests an extremely early-stage system vulnerable to collapse
- 03MINORWide investment range ($281k-$726k) without clear disclosure of what drives the variance
- 04MINORNo Item 19 financial performance representation limits ability to verify claimed $965k avg revenue and $268k net income figures
- 05MINOR5% royalty on $965k average revenue yields only ~$48k annually per unit to support franchisor operations across 8 locations
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 2 |
| Territory type | Radius/Boundaries |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 10 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Costa Mesa, California |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | California |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 30 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 46 hrs
- Field support
- 40 hrs/yr
- On-site visits per year
- POS system
- Aloha
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Aloha
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
4 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Tabu Shabu · FDD (2023) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Tabu Shabu franchise?
The total investment to open a Tabu Shabu franchise ranges from $281K – $726K, with an initial franchise fee of $35K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Tabu Shabu franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Tabu Shabu FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $966K. The median is $1.0M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Tabu Shabu's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Tabu Shabu (fewer than 10 loans on file). Charge-off rates are one way to gauge franchise risk, but not all franchise loans go through the SBA program. We recommend reviewing turnover and closure data in the FDD and speaking with current franchisees.
How many Tabu Shabu franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Tabu Shabu has 8 total units in the United States, including 4 franchised units and 4 company-owned units. 1 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Tabu Shabu a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Tabu Shabu as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 33 out of 100, based on our analysis of investment costs, revenue data, SBA loan performance, and growth trends. Our rating is based solely on publicly available FDD and government data; we recommend speaking with current franchisees before making any investment decision. This is not investment advice.
Data sourced from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) FOIA records. Not financial advice.
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Data extracted from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) loan disclosures (FOIA). This information is provided for research purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or investment advice. Verify all figures with the franchisor's current Franchise Disclosure Document before making any investment decision.