kobe beef

first i'd like to ask if kobe beef is worth its price because 150$ as i hear per average is much. second, if there is a place in tokyo or kobe where a kobe beef dinner can be reasonably priced but good quality.

I can't tell you where to get kobe beef in tokyo but I've tried Kobe beef once and it was the best beef I've ever tasted! The meat was so tender, juicy and very high in fat content. It just melts when you pop it into your mouth. Sorry that I suck in describing the taste. I would recommend you to try it at least once. Expensive but totally worth it.

I was in Kobe and our friend took us up one the many mountains to a small restaurant which served Kobe beef. It was sooo good. We split about a 6 oz portion and had 2 orders of shabu shabu and for 4 of us we were stuffed for less than $200. Check out smaller out of the way spots if you can as they are so economical.

where is that mountain restaurant??could u tell me? maybe i could find my way there!

If I remember rightly, Seryna is the restaurant where
Tom Cruise enjoys having Kobe beef
every time he comes to Tokyo.

http://www.seryna.co.jp/shop/ginza-e.html

Why is Kobe beef so expensive in japan?

You would think that if the demand is so great, other investors would find some proper land and invest to make grade A japanese beef at a lower price and take a share of the market.

If anyone could do it the japanese could.

Anyone have any ideas?

To SB - what u said makes complete economical sense and it is already being implemented. A lot of wagyu beef of varying degrees of marbling and ranging from full blood to half breeds and the F2-F3+ breeds in between are being bred in Australia and US and sold to Japan. Buying black fur wagyu beef in Japan doesn't guarantee they come from Japan unless the origin is stated clearly. Just to confuse matters more, buying and consuming black fur wagyu beef within Australia doesn't guarantee that it is full blood (exactly same hereditary line to Kobe beef), whereas buying Australian wagyu beef in Japan its always full blood otherwise it can't be labeled as such in Japan.

Kobe beef is so expensive because the name has been glorified by the press and chefs globally. The gene differences between Kobe Beef and black fur wagyu beef from other regions or countries is virtually zero. They almost all originated from Kobe/Hyogo region. The price difference however is huge due to name alone plus the fact it all originated from Kobe, also noting the possibility that Kobe beef probably have a better feeding program and as such on average has higher marbling scores.

As a side note, I believe there's probably a bigger gene difference between white Australians, British and American humans.

If I can afford Kobe Beef, I'll rather pay the same to buy Matsuzaka Beef �¼�â‹� because it has better meat quality, similar breeding program and more tender, noticeably more pinkish meat, and guaranteed to be from the female. Same gene as Kobe.

Or Yamagata's •Ä‘ò‹� which wins awards all the time during contests, even over Kobe Beef, has apparently better beef taste and used to be slightly cheaper. Same bloodline as well, just different ways of raising it and different prefecture.

There is nearly no difference in taste between normal but A5 grade Black Fur Wagyu compared to A5 grade Kobe Beef. I know which one I'll buy for nearly half the price of the other!

I mentioned the white British, American and Australians because, to say that Kobe beef is the best, is actually similar to saying the British is worth more than the other two, just because it was the origin of the gene.

However I don't know which monkeys the original British descended from.

I had some Ishigaki beef in Naha, Okinawa and thought that it was delicious. The price was reasonable. I've read that at the G8 conference in Okinawa a few years ago, they served Ishigaki beef instead of Kobe beef and it was well received.

George,
Most Americans have mixed heritage and therefore do not know from which monkey they originated. For instance, I am German, English, Irish, and Scottish.

Have to try to get a hold of my friend. I had a card from the restaurant, but you know how that is..... anyways, it was a small place where there were about 15 parking spots and I would figure about 20mins from the port. We had our own tatami room for 5 of us (4 adults and a 2 yrs old) Leave your e-mail up and I'll send ya a couple of pics of the food.

YOu can try Hida beef if you think Kobe beef is expensive. You can eat Hida beef in Takayama, Ogimachi and maybe Nagoya. It is also very delicious. Google it.

Where can I have Hida beef dinner in Tokyo (preferably in Japanese or Teppanyaki restaurant)?

Thank you.

For good, relatively inexpensive kobe beef in Tokyo, check out Satou Steakhouse in Kichijoji (sp?).

There prices start around 1200 yen to 5000 yen for Kobe beef lunch set, depending the cut of beef you get. I have had the 5,000 yen set and the 6-7 oz Matzuzaka wagyu was probably the greatest flavour I have ever put in my mouth, and I have ate at some nice places.

Only Caution: the place is super small. (Like seating for 15 ppl at one time) Be prepared to wait.

But you owe it yourself to have Kobe beef once in your life. It is a sensation that you will never replicate in your mouth. (Although otoro comes close)

Matsuzaka beef is awesome.

Actually I think one of the best tasting meat I ever had was a piece of grilled very well marbled Kumamoto Horse meat.

Oh my god, that flavour. You wouldnt believe it, it had a gamey taste to it as well and was so unique. You got to try the marbled variety however, the normal ones are rather bland just like non-marbled beef relatively speaking. Its got a tough texture though so overall I'll still put Wagyu beef on the first step on the podium.

And whales. It has an unforgettable flavour as well.

And then there's Kurobuta which is one of the strangest smelling meat in Japan. I can't stand the smell but the taste is a diff matter altogether, just unbelievably tasty.

I feel sinful for having tried all these meat.

I've tried Yonezawa beef, Matsuzaka beef, and Kobe beef and I prefer them in that order.

The Yonezawa beef seemed 50% marbled fat so it was like eating a fat sponge. The Matsuzaka didn't impress me that much while eating it, but my impression of it got better as time went on. It seems to have more actual 'meat' than Yonezawa beef. I know it's not recommended (due to cost), but I ate Matsuzaka beef when I was in Matsuzaka city. I thought Kobe beef was overrated, but it could have been the restaurant (though I did eat it in that big shopping mall at Kobe port - from a restaurant with a certificate of authenticity).

I hope to try Hida beef the next time I am in Takayama, as well as Ikeda beef in Hokkaido. Either way, at 5000-6500 yen a shot for lunch, Whew! But I highly recommend people do try these beef at least once in your life.

Agree with Clevor on that wagyu beef tasting order completely.
I actually thought my Matsuzaka beef had more fat for some reason but the Yonezawa tasted better. Not much difference really.

Kobe was over-rated for certain.

. . . thread up because you can add Lake Towada beef to the list (I think it's derived from Takka Town in Aomori.

I just came back from Lake Towada and at Tsuta Onsen on the way back to Aomori, I ate a teishoku at the restaurant there. The waitress said it was Lake Towada beef, which I have never heard of.

In any case, I received a plate of thinly sliced beef grilled in teriyaki sauce (like yakiniku) sprinkled with sesame seeds. I must say it was quite possibly the most delicious yakiniku I've eaten. It was a combination of the grilled fat flavor, the meat texture, and the sauce. I was too embarrassed to order a 2nd round (only 1500 yen for the teishoku after all).

The pieces of meat where 2-3" square and fringed with a ribbon of fat. But I ate a lean piece and it still tasted obscene: that grilled fat taste that brings guilt feelings over cholesterol.

Next time I visit Aomori, I'm definitely checking out Takka Town for the beef.

. . . name of the town is Takko Town. Must have been the garlic in the sauce (or beef) too:

http://www.hi-net.ne.jp/~kikaku/festival.htm

hi does anyone know how to go to Satou Steakhouse in Kichijoji (sp?). ? or are there any other places for wagyu?

I believe that it is a 5 to 10 min walk North of Kichijoji station in Musashino,Tokyo,Japan. It is on the second floor of what may look like a butcher shop / meat market.