I have and it is incredible! I had a 12 oz. NY strip at Chops in Atlanta. It cost $75 and was worth every penny. Never have I tasted anything so good. I cannot wait to get my next check so I can order some.
I have, too. Bluestem in KC serves it often, and I had a Flat Iron steak. But did you have honest to goodness Kobe beef (from Kobe), or was it Waygu, which is the same style beef and breed of cattle, but raised in America? Judging by the price, it was probably the later, not that it really matters. Fantastic stuff, really. Dean and Deluca's carries it retail. If/when I ever open my own butcher shop, I will too. http://confessionsofabutcher.blogspot.com
I had Wagyu..... But is was DAMN GOOD!!!!! I wonder if the real deal is really that much better. I hope to find out some day.
The stuff cut like butter. It had a nutty earthy flavor that the best of the dry aged steaks that I have ever eaten can only strive for. I didn't even have to chew it.
"I shared a story the other day during a press conference where I talked about a dinner I had with Prime Minister Koizumi of Japan. And we're eating Kobe beef. I don't know whether it's grown here in Minnesota or not, but it's real good." - W
I had Kobe style beef from this ranch near Austin. http://www.austinchronicle.com/issues/dispatch/2001-11-16/food_feature.html I just found out from this site that it was actually only 75% waygu beef!
That is marbling and is different than the fat that would surrond a loin. It melts away leaving the most succulent beef I have ever had the pleasure of eating.
I've never had it, but I've heard Wagyu called the foie gras of steaks. Having read production details, I don't see how Kobe would be that much better just by virtue of it being Kobe beef.
echoing what he said, marbling is actually monounsaturated, unlike tallow, and causes the meat to be tender, but not greasy, fatty, etc. Part of the reason of Wagyu (Wa is japanese for Japanese, Gyu means cow) is not just the method, but also the breed. The same method with Angus or Herford, etc., will probably produce very fine Choice or Prime beef, but the Wagyu is superior (and kinda funny looking, too, if you've ever seen one).
I just asked Dignan23, who is sitting right next to me if he'd ever had Kobe beef. He shuddered in disgust because he heard something different.
I have had Kobe beef on three occasions now: Nobu in Beverly Hills (seared, chopped & served in a salad) Joe's in Venice (Petite Filet in with Plum Wine Sauce) Boa Steak House in Las Vegas (12oz Filet) All I can say is that it is even more tender than American Angus...and even more tasteless. It has no character whatsover...and is only fit for people who want to throw their money away and pretend that they are foodies. I prefer gamier meats. I will take a New Zealand, Argentinian or Sonoran Grass Fed Ribeye or Skirt Steak any day of the week.
I've had it twice - in Kobe during the last World Cup and earlier this year in Tokyo. The one I had in Kobe was amazing, buttery and soft, but intensely flavorful, rivaling some of the best Argentine beef I've had. (Without that gaminess, which to me can taste a bit like, for a lack of a better word, barn.) It was served in tiny cubes with slivers of fried garlic on top of each one. The last time I had it I purchased it from a butcher in Tokyo and cooked it at our rented apartment. It was a little chewier, as I screwed the cooking up a bit, but it was still fantastic. I've had American Wagyu "Kobe-style" beef and it is nowhere similar. It's marbled, yes, but pales in comparison to the original. However, it's just a matter of time before we find it on our plates as the FDA has just lifted the ban on importing Japanese beef. (Argentine, too!)
Think it might be because you've had filets which are tasteless and without character no matter which breed of cow you're talking about? Filets are for picky **************s. Filets are just ruining a good porterhouse, IMNSHO.
It is a well known fact, that American domestic breeds of all animals (cows, chickens, turkey, fish) is bred to be as tasteless & characterless as possible. Unless you have eaten flesh elsewhere....you are not qualified to judge. Let me add something else as an example......Americans are always very, very impressed when the visit Italy.........its the ingredients. Italy is typically the first place the average American has visited that has decent ingredients.