Wook C.
Google
If you ever thought you could have more than enough wagyu for a meal, Fat Cow is the right place. Now you can certainly attempt this feat in a wagyu yakiniku joint. But Fat Cow is certainly another take at the challenge - how can you feed someone as much wagyu without the diner feeling overly fatty or greased out. Sometimes wagyu can be just too buttery and you can't eat more than a few ounces... so how do you solve this problem?
Fat Cow serves a wagyu omakase at which each and every one of the 8 courses is wagyu. In every conventional sense, this would just be too much. But they cleverly mask this with various techniques whether it is a flower scented yuzu pickle or wasabi or sous vide yakiniku sauce, etc. Now each and every bite is special. All courses are centered around the great beef, whether grilled, raw, smoked, etc. And yes, the preparation methods and garnish absolutely is mandatory to trick the mind. And in most cases, it works well. Again, by all means, this is a phenomenal meal.
But as a food critic, there are some gaps I want to mention. Typically, when you go to a Japanese yakiniku place, wagyu is consumed in different parts of the beef to allow the variety of the meat, flavor, and the subtleness of the parts to shine. Not at Fat Cow. Quite frankly, I had no idea what part of the wagyu, nor origin, nor any type of eccentricities about the beef itself. Heck, you could use USDA Prime or Angus and may be able to pull this off. So again, in the art of omakase, Fat Cow has lost its connection to the cow itself.
Second, wagyu is great but you must provide a larger variety to the palate. You simply cannot eat beef after beef after beef. You have to help the diner "rest" both mentally and physically. Where are the palate cleansers? Where are the other carbs or veggies that help balance? At this price point, you must have consideration for such.
Service was amazing. The atmosphere was amazing. So really, the only remaining thing to tighten is the wagyu itself. Stay more truthful to the beef while help diners transition or wash it down.
By the way, the in-house warabi mochi is a national treasure. I'd go there just for that. Make sure you drizzle it with the black sugar syrup.
Fat Cow is impressive and is a unique experience. I just hope they go the last few hundred feet to complete the magic.