PrintDoes anyone know the real Kobe Wagyu story?
I walked by a restaurant in NY that says it has real Kobe. They are selling it for $26/oz. !!!!! I checked how much it costs elsewhere and found this to be much more than the norm. Then, I found this.
He says its illegal to import ANY beef from Japan. Is this still true?
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5 Comments:
Basically, I want to know this:
- is it still illegal to import beef from Japan?
- if so, are all the restaurants selling their Kobe beef guilty of lying to us, exploiting the marketing hype around the Kobe name to rip us off?
- has anyone here had beef described as being imported Kobe Wagyu? How much did it cost for what size steak?
Thanks for your insights! I would be fine with American Wagyu, I just want to know what the real deal is. I'd hate to go out and pay a little (read: MUCH) more for something touted as Kobe, only to learn that I was being duped. $26/oz. seems obscenely expensive. At that price, a 10oz. steak would end up costing as much as an entire dinner at Per Se. The restaurant in question btw is BLT on 57th.
seyo at 4:25PM on 08/20/07
This is from Lobel's (a NY butcher) and explains what Wagyu is and what it isn't (you'll have to click some links inside the page):
http://www.lobels.com/store/main/wagyumain.asp
Just remember -- Kobe is a town in Japan, Wagyu is a breed of cattle. There are ranches in America that are producing very good Wagyu, but it isn't "Kobe Wagyu" or "Kobe beef."
As to the question of getting real Kobe Wagyu in the US, I hadn't ever heard of a ban.
Dominic
the zen kitchen
dvchurch at 8:27AM on 08/21/07
Thanks. Yes, I understand that Wagyu is the breed, and Kobe is the region. What I am confused about is restaurants that say, on the same menu, that they have both Kobe beef and American Wagyu. That would imply to me that the Kobe was actually from Kobe. However, according to that article I linked to, Japan had it's first case of Mad Cow Disease (BSE) in September 2001 and many countries including the US and Australia banned importing their meat. But that was 6 years ago now, so, it is possible the ban has been lifted...
So my questions remain: is it legal now to import Japanese beef? If not, why do restaurants describe their meat as Kobe beef, and not simply as Wagyu? If you do find real Kobe, how much does it cost? (I guess if it's illegal here, it can cost just about as much as anyone will pay for it since it's a blackmarket item.)
seyo at 10:07AM on 08/21/07
It (the real stuff) was allowed back into the US in December of 2005. As to whether it's better than American Wagyu, I guess that is a matter of taste. Kobe from Japan is so heavily marbled that it practically has more fat than lean. American Wagyu tends not to be so heavily marbled -- though it is much more marbled than even USDA Prime cuts.
My guess on the nomenclature is that the USDA hasn't set any regulations on the term "Kobe" so restaurants can use it at their leisure.
As to cost, 1-800-kobebeef.com is selling a 6 ounce filet mignon for $120. Definitely pricey!
Dominic
the zen kitchen
dvchurch at 9:52PM on 08/21/07
Thank you!
seyo at 12:31AM on 08/22/07