Not Quite Engrish
I was fortunate enough to have dinner at the beautiful and delicious (if slightly expensive) restaurant March in New York the other day. Like a lot of upscale restaurants, March includes many items that are “fusion” in nature. Here is one such item.
I realize that this is a sort of obscure item over which to obsess, but I thought that you Japundits out there might find it amusing. I’m pretty sure that the menu writer actually meant to spell the word “Zubaton” as “Zabuton.” Here is a real life zabuton.
As you probably know, a zabuton is a pillow on which to sit on a tatami floor. It may or may not come with a back rest and arm rest. I think that the basic shape is very much like an enormous ravioli, and I suspect this is what the chef had in mind when he came up with the “pillow of marinated beef” for his menu.
Sadly, I didn’t get to eat this “zubaton” as the kitchen was out of Kobe beef . . . which brings us to another interesting question. How can one eat Kobe beef in America? Well, the one time I’ve had it here, I was told that I was actually eating beef from a cow that had been raised in Texas. However, this particular cow was a genetic copy of a cow from Kobe. So, technically the waiter said, Kobe beef does exist in America.
What do all you Japundits think?
Wagyu??possibly.
May 12th, 2006 at 3:06 pmI’d think the taste of the meat would vary depending on what the cow eats and the different feed additives used here and whatnot, so it might not be exactly the same.. Not sure if it’s any great loss tho, Texas beef really is the best (and no I’m not from there.)
That zabuton looks like a pretty useful thing, I want one! Veering away from the subject of food for a sec, I heard recently that sitting cross-legged on tatami being the norm it leads to a high rate of bow-leggedness among the Japanese - do you guys think there could be any truth to that?
May 12th, 2006 at 3:20 pmWell Popeye certainly must have done a lot of “tatami-sitting”.
May 12th, 2006 at 3:30 pmKind of the way that Champagne has to originate from the Champagne region of France Kobe beef has to come from Kobe - actually IIRC the cow needs to have spent the last 6 months in Hyogo prefecture. Otherwise it is merely wagyu.
Given that the cow only needs to spend a few months in Hyogo to qualify there is a significant trend to having calves start their life in somewhere more remote such as Shimane prefecture and then travel the Hyogo for the last little bit. My in-laws, who live in Shimane, insist that you can’t really tell the difference between Shimanewagyu and Kobe beef and I’m inclined to agree, at least when it comes to the Shimanewagyu sold in Shimane.
May 12th, 2006 at 5:03 pmIn Episode 019 of the Japundit Podcast we had a report on moves by Japan to copyright the wagyu breed.
May 12th, 2006 at 6:01 pmFunny, Duo, yes I think that what the cow eats tremendously affects the taste. I try to buy my meat at the farmer’s market here in NYC because those animals really get to run around and eat grass and you can taste the difference.
As for sitting cross-legged . . . I used to get in so much trouble as a kid because I couldn’t sit like a “girl” on my zabuton. But I am definitely comfortable sitting Indian style. Not sure I’m too bow-legged though.
May 12th, 2006 at 11:42 pmNo I didn’t mean you, Marie!
BTW, how does one sit like a “girl” on that? Not that I need to know… Just em, curious.
May 13th, 2006 at 4:57 pmBTW, how does one sit like a “girl” on that?
Well, technically, you are supposed to sit with your legs folded under — so your butt is on the back of your heels. If you can picture that! I have some great “proper ettiquette” photos that I will post soon that will clarify these things and amuse you in the process.
May 14th, 2006 at 12:11 amWell, technically, you are supposed to sit with your legs folded under — so your butt is on the back of your heels. If you can picture that! I have some great “proper ettiquette” photos that I will post soon that will clarify these things and amuse you in the process.
How long can you sit like that before your legs go completely numb?
May 15th, 2006 at 9:42 am