Australian food aficionados will have a unique opportunity to taste the world’s finest beef at an exclusive event hosted by Samurai Teppanyaki House in Adelaide’s Hyde Park in October.

Thanks to owner and head chef Clark Zhang’s passion for the very best ingredients, Kobe beef, which sells for around $850 per kilogram, will be served to the public for the first time in Australia, alongside South Australia’s finest produce, as part of a ten-course degustation menu.

Zhang said it was part of the traditional teppanyaki philosophy to serve only the very best, with Kobe beef known around the world for its flavour.

“Our specialty is serving the highest quality steak and other premium dishes, such as lobster and abalone. At the moment, we import Japanese Wagyu, but I have been trying to get the best beef in the world, which is Kobe,” Zhang said.

“Last year, when I was in Japan, I went to the wagyu auction place, and promised to our customers that I would bring the real Kobe to Adelaide in the future. Now, I’m delivering on that promise.”
It hasn’t been easy: to access Kobe beef, restaurants need to be registered with the Kobe Beef Distribution and Promotion Council – no Australian restaurant currently has registration. Zhang is still working through the registration process but has been able to access the prized ingredient as a one-off through Australia’s only registered distributor of Kobe beef, the Osawa Enterprise.

Kobe beef refers to meat from Tajima-gyu cows certified by the Kobe Beef Distribution and Promotion Council. Tajima-gyu cows, the ‘motoushi’ or purebred seedstock cattle, have maintained a pure bloodline since Japan’s Edo period (1615 to 1867).

Protecting this lineage has also meant protecting its delicious taste, which contributes to the high cost of producing this delicacy.

Kobe beef can only be purchased from Japan as a whole carcass, with each accompanied by a certificate proving the animal’s lineage.

Zhang said beef with such high marbling needs to be cooked precisely, a skill he has perfected in Japan.

“At the event we will serve two different cuts of Kobe beef – rib eye and fillet (tenderloin) – as well as South Australia’s premium Mayura station signature wagyu and A5 Japanese Wagyu from Kagoshima.”

The event’s degustation menu also includes Coffin Bay oysters, Spencer Gulf king prawns, eastern rock lobster, Moreton Bay bugs and Jade Tiger Abalone.

Wine partner Yalumba will offer a selection of premium wines matched to the menu, including the latest release of The Caley Cabernet Shiraz.

Yalumba Senior Red Winemaker Kevin Glastonbury said it was huge honor to show Yalumba wines alongside not only the best beef in the world but also some of Australia’s finest produce.

“Those lucky few able to attend are in for a spectacular food and wine event,” Mr Glastonbury said. Zhang said the event would celebrate the teppanyaki tradition, with exceptional ingredients from South Australia and around the world.

“Teppanyaki cooking is an art. You can see, hear and smell all the dishes right before you taste them.” Only 40 tickets are available for the Kobe beef degustation dinner experience at Samurai Teppanyaki House on 10 October. See samtepp-kobebeef.eventbrite.com.au for more information and to purchase tickets.

WHERE: 116 King William Rd, Hyde Park