Meat News
Limited-time restaurant devoted to pricey Wagyu beef pops up in Plano
There's a meaty new pop-up restaurant coming to Dallas: It's called Wagyu Mania, and the focus of its existence is Wagyu beef, the super-tender super-fatty premium beef that was founded in Japan.
The pop-up will land at Mitsuwa Marketplace, the Japanese supermarket, at the Plano location at 100 Legacy Dr., where it will reside for five weeks, beginning November 20.
According to a release, the pop-up is a joint project between Mitsuwa and JETRO, AKA the Japanese External Trade Organization, a government agency that promotes trade and investment between Japan and the rest of the world.
This is the first time they've launched such a pop-up.
The menu will include four dishes made with Wagyu, $26 each:
- Wagyu sandwich and fries. Sliced Wagyu steak served on toasted Japanese milk bread with lettuce and tomato
- Wagyu burger and fries. Ground Wagyu, grilled and served on a rice flour bun, with lettuce, tomato, ketchup, and Japanese mayo
- Wagyu sushi. Sliced Wagyu formed over sushi rice garnished with scallions
- Wagyu curry. Seared Wagyu over steamed white rice, with a side of Wagyu curry gravy
The beef is primarily sourced from Yonezawa City in Yamagata Prefecture, recognized as one of the top five exclusive Wagyu brands in Japan. Texas also is doing its own version of Wagyu beef but the Japanese version is the original, and more rare, and more expensive.
The release notes that Wagyu beef has more marbling than regular beef. Wagyu beef has a marbled fat quantity of around 25 percent, compared to the 6-8 percent required for USDA Certified Prime beef. The very visible layers of fat make it look almost pink.
The meat has a higher percentage of fatty acids than other beef, which gives it a higher marbling score, and purportedly more flavor, which, yay for them, but does beef on its own even have a flavor? It's usually the salt, the pepper, the cooking method.
Mitsuwa Marketplace Texas Manager and Director of Operations Kazuki Yamamoto says in a statement that Wagyu beef is considered by many to be the best in the world because of its "tender and juicy nature." See, nothing about flavor.
Part of the goal of the pop-up is to stimulate sales of the beef. Mitsuwa has a variety of hand-cut selections available.
"Guests can enjoy the unique and flavorful dishes at Wagyu Mania and then purchase Wagyu to take home to share with family and friends," Yamamoto says.
Located inside Mitsuwa Marketplace, Waygu Mania will be open from November 20-December 31, for weekend lunch only, Friday-Sunday, 11 am-4 pm.
On opening day, Kohei Arihara, the professional Japanese baseball player and current ambassador for Japanese Wagyu and sake, will sign autographs to the first 100 people who purchase Yonezawa Wagyu.