Only available in Japan for one day only.

If you’ve been on the hunt for wagyu beef with a side of cool cred in Tokyo, you may have come across a high-end chain called Wagyumafia. Founded in 2016 by entrepreneur Takafumi Horie and chef Hisato Hamada, the Wagyumafia brand has four restaurants in Tokyo and has expanded to include three outlets in Hong Kong, with each location specialising in different preparation styles for high-grade wagyu beef.

One restaurant specialises in beef cutlet sandwiches, another focuses on yakiniku, and a couple are dedicated to wagyu ramen. Some locations are exclusive members-only affairs, but whichever location you choose to visit, you can expect to see marble benchtops, dim lighting, and sleek interiors, all signatures of the chain.

▼ And when it comes to their clientele, think along the lines of David Beckham and his son Brooklyn, who’ve dined there.

Wagyumafia has spent a lot of time building up their brand to represent class and effortlessly cool sophistication, so it came as a bit of a surprise when they announced they would be collaborating with budget-priced beef bowl chain Yoshinoya for a new type of beef bowl.

Called Yoshinoya x Wagyumafia Premium Gyudon, this new limited-release isn’t just any old beef bowl, though. Using only the finest Kobe beef–selected by Chef Hamada, who serves as a Kobe beef ambassador–the new menu item will also contain onions carefully selected from farmers on Awaji Island to provide the perfect accent of flavour.

▼ Awaji Island lies between Shikoku and mainland Japan.

The sauce, which is said to be the decisive factor for taste, was jointly developed by Wagyumafia and Yoshinoya, with the latter being credited as “professionals in sauce-making“. Containing aged soy sauce made using the koji manufacturing method, this blend has been specially created just for this premium beef bowl, to match the flavour of the Kobe beef.

▼ As a premium beef bowl, this special release comes with a premium price tag: 10,000 yen (US$91.67) plus tax.

Making the special beef bowl even more special is the fact that it will only be available for one day, as a pop-up event at Wagyumafia on 27 March, to commemorate the chain’s fifth anniversary.

While the press release states that all locations will be offering the limited-edition beef bowl, it also states that reservations are required, and the reservation page says the offer is limited to members only, with the one location being Wagyumafia District in Shibuya.

Unfortunately, that makes this premium collaboration even more of an out-of-reach fantasy for most of us ordinary beef-bowl lovers. While they do say that any other pop-ups will be announced on their social media sites, we won’t be holding our breath for them. Because we’ll be too busy stuffing our gobs with canned Yoshinoya, the type of beef bowl we can afford.

Restaurant Location

WAGYUMAFIA DISTRICT
Address: Tokyo-to, Shibuya-ku, Jingumae 3-7-4
東京都渋谷区神宮前3-7-4
Website

Images: PR Times
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