Try Matsusaka beef at Four Seasons Orlando this weekend, and only this weekend. It's your one and only chance, for months on end.
Matsusaka is one of those holy-cow-the-details foods. (I did not intend that pun.) This form of Wagyu is from Japan's Mie Prefecture and is cows are coddled better than you are. The females -- they're all black-haired female virgins who were born in Japan and raised almost entirely in Mie -- live in private little homes "for a stress-free life," a representative explained yesterday at an informational center. They're fed beer, along with grains, because the booze stimulates appetite. They're massaged and they have their nails trimmed. Sounds like a regular bovine salon.
The crux of all this: The Matsusaka beef is, to quote a Saturday Night Live character (and my mother) -- like butter. Even raw, you bite in and there is absolutely no resistance. The beef is so heavily marbled, with such gentle fat that merely human touch will start to melt it, that ... well, you'll marvel. Most of all, the flavor is clean. Just clean. Just pure beef. A little sear, a dash of salt, and one small slab will conquer your beef craving for days.
Matsusaka beef is similar to the Kobe beef, which is better known in this country. Kobe cows are castrated males, and have some other differences.
https://youtu.be/_VRlINCQhZk
Matsusaka beef is new to the United States, and the Four Seasons Orlando will offer it for the six evenings of Valentine's Day weekend 2016 starting tonight, February 10. Then it won't be back for months. The Matsusaka beef will be delivered in the form the Matsusaka Beef Tasting for Two at the rooftop steakhouse, Capa:
• Trio of wood grilled special grade Matsusaka beef: 3-ounce strip loin, tenderloin and ribeye • Served with side dishes of patatas bravas, blistered pimientos, roasted asparagus and truffle aioli • Trio of steak sauces: rioja, peppercorn and verde
The special meal costs $250 per couple, with an optional wine pairing for $75.
Here's the dessert served at the event, just because it is so pretty.
Still need to wow your honey for Valentine's Day in Orlando? Here's your chance.
Eat enthusiastically, Rona