Matsusakagyu Yakiniku M: Beef Beyond Belief
Hi Everyone! Today, we're going to talk about Matsusakagyu Yakiniku M in Osaka, Japan. During our Japan trip, we stopped by Osaka to meet up with the rest of my family. Upon arriving to Osaka, there was only one priority on our list and that was to eat as much as possible. On one of our first nights, we ate not just one dinner, but THREE full dinners. The other two meals were at Mizuno Okonomiyaki and Isomaru Suisan. This meal was the last of the three.
As you can imagine, we were pretty full at this point but we wanted a tasty midnight snack. During our quest to find a worthy snack, Yakiniku M's glowing sign glimmered from the corners of our eyes. As soon as we saw the word "Matsusakagyu", we knew we had to have it. We were quickly seated given that it was almost 1AM. But, it seemed like there were other meat lovers craving a late night yakiniku (grilled meat) meal as well. As soon as we were seated, we ordered a quick draft beer and proceeded to peruse the menu of mouthwatering wagyu.
To start, I want to explain a little about wagyu. Wagyu is the marbled meat of the meat gods. "Wa" means "Japanese" and "Gyu" means "Beef". As a whole, it means perfection. The wagyu breed of cattle provides a serious level of marbling due to the extraordinary amount of care that goes into producing these fine works of art. These cows are pampered and treated like kings until their eventual sacrifice. Sandai Wagyu represents the top three premium beefs in Japan. These three masterpieces are all delicately marbled with glorious, white streams of fat that create an explosion of heavenly flavors when cooked. Matsusaka is one of the Sandai Wagyu.
FUN FACT: There are only about 25,000 Matsusaka cows available each year, making this famous meat both unparalleled and expensive. For more fun facts and science knowledge, check out this post about Matsusaka Beef.
For our visit to Yakiniku M, we got the Matsusaka Sirloin Steak. The nice thing about their menu is that they highlight the popular items and tastiest cuts. The Matsusaka cuts are also organized from lean to fatty. If you're having a proper meal here, I'd suggest going for one of the Matsusaka Beef course meals. If you're just looking for one thing to share, I'd suggest getting the Matsusaka Sirloin. As you can see in the first picture of the post, it comes out looking gorgeous. Just check out that marbling! It may seem huge but after grilling, it will shrink in size. The Matsusaka Sirloin costs about $34 USD (4000 Yen) and is good enough for two people to share.
NOTE: Yakiniku M will also provide a small piece of fat. DO NOT EAT THIS. They use it to oil the grill before grilling the actual meat.