229 326
STEAKS
229
October14
FAT COW
1 Orchard Boulevard
#01-01/02 Camden Medical Centre
6735 0308 | fat-cow.com.sg
THE OCCASION:
A birthday treat for the
steak-lover in your life who also has an
affinity for Japanese fare. If they’ve never
tried Japanese steak, even better, as the
first bite of steak of this calibre is nothing
short of a paradigm-shifting meat-eating
experience. Private tables are available,
but the best place to chat up the chefs
about the meal you’re about to embark
on is at the U-shaped counter around
the open kitchen.
THE ONE TO ORDER:
The Japanese steaks –
any of them. These steaks contain more
fat than Aussie and American steaks –
in
a good way
; rather than beingmarbled in
thick bands, the fat is dotted throughout,
buckshot style. The tiny pockets melt
into the meat when cooked, producing
some of the best bites of steak that I’ve
ever had the pleasure of eating. The
grade A3 sirloin is fantastic, but consider
upgrading to Iwate prefecture A5 ribeye
if you have the means. Or go for the
omakase
tasting platter for a side-by-side
taste test of Japanese, Aussie and US
steaks. Each plate comes with roasted
ginger soy sauce, a
sudachi
wedge, a
mound of sea salt and a quarter thimble
of
yuzu kosho
, a powerfully spicy citrus
sauce, allowing you to dabble in different
flavour contrasts as themeal progresses.
THE OTHERS:
Since the meat is so
rich, go light around the edges. Start
with the house sea bream speciality,
an unbelievable combination of raw
fish and black truffle, with
konbu
and
chives added in for good measure. The
momotaro
salad is a sliced Japanese
tomato with spicy
mizuna
(Japan’s
version of arugula) and ginger
ponzu
– so simple, yet so divine (try finding
tomatoes like this at your local grocer).
The red bean
obanyaki
(lemony
pancakes with braised red beans and
pink
sakura
floss) is an interesting end
to the meal, though I’d be just as happy
with one scoop of the artisanal
yuzu
ice
cream next time.
THE OUTLAY:
Japanese steak of this quality
doesn’t come cheap; expect to pay
between $90 and $150 for 150 grams for
the meat alone. The prices of sides and
starters run the gamut – the heavenly sea
bream is $38, while a bowl of homemade
udon is a humble $9. Veggie sides, like
eggplant glazed in honey miso and sake,
lime and butter-braisedmushrooms, cost
between $10 and $15.
Monica Pitrelli
Japanese steak, shown
here “naked” – without the
accompanying ginger soy
sauce, sudachi wedge, sea
salt and spicy yuzu kosho