Japanese Wagyu Beef @ Ralph's On The Park
The Kobe beef trend has never really been much in evidence around New Orleans. Although Wagyu beef--that's the breed of cattle that gives rise to the famously fat-streaked beef raised in Kobe, Japan--is often found on menus, the Japanese cut off exports of true Kobe beef to this country a few years ago. (It was some sort of trade dispute.) Wagyu beef here came either from the Northwestern U.S., or from Australia or New Zealand. None of that ever showed anything special to my palate. The main difference was in a price uptick.
But before the ban, Ralph's chef Chip Flanagan nailed down a source of the real thing. It has been interrupted now and then, but it has been on the menu a lot lately. It really is from Japan, and marbled with fat to an almost laughable degree. And it's very expensive--$14 per ounce, last time I checked--with a three-ounce minimum. But I still remember the experience of eating it for the first time several years ago. The flavor is incredibly fine. Nor is there the rancidity I have tasted in some other manifestations of Kobe beef through the years.
So, although this is a lot for an appetizer, I recommend it to anyone curious about how excellent beef can taste.
