This post was written in 2006. Shop details and prices may have changed since then.
I went to a Japanese-style steak restaurant in the Makuhari Prince Hotel. It isn’t a particularly famous place, but
maybe because it’s a hotel restaurant, it was better than average. I booked a private room, and each table gets its own chef
who cooks right in front of you. It really had the feel of a proper steak house.
We ordered the course menu, so things kick off with a salad.
The vegetables were nice and fresh. Just right as an appetizer.
There were two kinds of sauce, and, well… both were so-so.
A crab croquette. Tastier than at most croquette specialists, but croquettes aren’t what this place is about…
That was it for the starters, and the main dishes slowly start coming out.
Lobster and scallops go on the iron griddle.
Then a pot goes on.
A little later the bouillabaisse is ready! The seafood was fresh, but the broth was a bit weak. Probably because everything was cooked separately…
More grilling. Mushrooms, tofu and vegetables. The meat you see in the back is three portions of wagyu.
If you wanted to fill up on meat alone… it would cost an absolute fortune…
Finally the steak goes on. The meat was so tender that it cut like butter the moment the knife touched it.
What was grilled earlier is already on the plate. The chef divides everything up neatly and serves it onto our plates.
They must use good ingredients, because it tasted better than average.
The meat is cooking nicely. I asked for well-done, but I’m now wondering whether I should have had it rare.
The chef’s skills are something else. The chopped-up bits of meat on the right later turn into a snack to go with drinks.
As expected the plating isn’t much to look at, but the meat is done and served.
Out comes the rice and soup set. It’s way too pricey to fill up on meat alone, you know…
The black pieces are that chopped meat from before. They render down the fatty part, and it has a lovely texture, crunchy like a snack.
The chef said to have it with drinks.
Dessert… pretty ordinary.
If you really want to enjoy top-grade wagyu, I think steak is the best way to eat it.
It melts in your mouth, on a par with otoro… but it’s so expensive.
It’s nice that the chef cooks so diligently, but just when a conversation is getting going he comes in
and starts cooking, so it’s not the right atmosphere for serious or personal talk.
A very satisfying dinner.