THE Kobe Beef Experience

Now, I know I just explained in the last blog that I am a Pescatarian now (not forever, but definitely for now). And I have been VERY faithful since the beginning of December EXCEPT for an opportunity to go eat the BEST steak in the world: Kobe beef IN Kobe. So yes, I cheated. Just a bit. For the sake of a fond memory and good story. :) Oh, AND there was the time I cheated by eating Chick-fil-A when I was home in Virginia for a week... So I'm MOSTLY a very good Pescatarian. There are some things that simply tempt me beyond what I can bear! LOL!

Our dear friends and fellow Setllers nerds, Travis and Allison. We decided to pack up for a night in Kobe and couldn't resist playing travel Settlers on the Shin ride!

Our hotel lobby, LOL.

We found a place to play Settlers later in our hotel!

First meal: LUNCH. At the number one rated Kobe beef restaurant in Kobe.

The chef began by slicing garlic really thin and making fried garlic chips.

Wow.

A little corn chowder.

The chef cut off large portions of fat and cooked it down so all the vegetables he prepared for us were exposed to the broken down fat juices. This is the real deal, folks!

His knife skills were spectacular.

Here come the veggies! The whole experience was amazing. The way the food was paced helped us slow down and really appreciate each individual bite. There really is NO comparison to Kobe beef. It's marbling is SO perfect that it simply melts in your mouth. We decided to put it in its own category. We can't consider it steak because no steak will ever compare!

After lunch, we headed over to a sake brewery for a tour. Here are some figures depicting just a couple of the many, many steps it takes to create sake!

Token picture in front of the sake barrels.

Round two: DINNER! Our chef was super friendly and smiley.

Our appetizer was delicious. Couldn't quite tell you what it was, but it was stellar.

I opted for scallops instead of beef for dinner. Quickly reverting back to my Pescatarian ways...

A sashimi plate. Everything is so beautiful, sometimes it's hard to eat!

The BIG cuts for dinner.

Travis trying to look like the type of person drinking coffee from a teacup after dinner. Remember how you added mints instead of sugar to that coffee, Travis?? :)

So much fun and SO stuffed!!

The next day, we walked to the Earthquake Museum. On the way, we passed this slide. And couldn't figure it out. It's made of CONCRETE.

Um, ouch?? Is it just park art?

The Earthquake Museum. There was a HUGE earthquake in Kobe a couple of decades ago so they have almost had to rebuild the entire city since then! The crazy thing is, four days after we visited this museum, we had the biggest earthquake Iwakuni has had in many, many years in the middle of the night. We woke up freaking out, stuff was falling, the whole house was shaking, and Joel and I ran downstairs and sought cover. We probably overreacted a tad, but after going to the museum, I wasn't taking any chances!!

We had lunch at a Native American inspired restaurant. We accidentally ordered DOUBLE what we thought we were ordering, so the guys told Allison and I to go shopping while they ate the second round, LOL.

Classic Japanese apparel

Probably should have bought this one, LOL.

We had a FANTASTIC time with really good friends, and we will NEVER forget the beef. Kobe rocks!