WAGYU KNOWLEDGE
Not a grade, not a marbling level. In Japan it is a legal term covering four native breeds, born and raised in Japan and traceable — and over 90% of it is one breed.
WAGYU KNOWLEDGE
The yield formula contains no measure of flavour, and 76.6% of steer wagyu now earns A5 — not the 1–2% usually claimed. Explained from Japan’s own grading data.
WAGYU KNOWLEDGE
Kobe is not an alternative to wagyu — it is one certification inside it, about 5,500 animals a year. And it does not require an A5.
WAGYU KNOWLEDGE
Virgin female cattle only, and a top tier that requires a Hyōgo calf fed for 900 days or more — with no grade requirement anywhere in the definition.
WAGYU KNOWLEDGE
Not massages and beer. A two-and-a-half-year feeding cycle, a calf that costs more than a finished commodity steer, and a shrinking farming base.
WAGYU KNOWLEDGE
Around 1,700 head, raised on one island on the dried lees left from pressing olive oil. Why Sanuki Olive Wagyu is scarcer than Kobe.
WAGYU KNOWLEDGE
Kobe is a certification, not a breed. Only about 5,500 Tajima cattle a year qualify — and why most “Kobe” abroad is not the real thing.
WAGYU KNOWLEDGE
Most “Wagyu” abroad is crossbred and unregulated on the label. Bloodline percentages, the 2007 rule, and why the word means less outside Japan.
THE STANDARD
Japan’s grading system, read from the official regulation and government data. The “A” has no flavour term in it, and A5 is now 76% of steer wagyu.
WAGYU GUIDE
Menu terms, cut names, and etiquette across yakiniku, sukiyaki, and teppanyaki — the practical things visitors get stuck on.
REGIONAL GUIDE
Where to eat wagyu in Kansai, chosen by the people who select Japan's top 50 wagyu restaurants.
RESTAURANT GUIDE
From the perspective of the JAPAN’S BEST WAGYU selection committee, here are five checks that reveal whether a yakiniku restaurant is genuinely worth your time and money.
WAGYU KNOWLEDGE
Zabuton, misuji, chateaubriand. We explain the rare wagyu cuts that yield only a few kilograms per animal, and how each one tastes different from the last.
REGIONAL WAGYU
Matsusaka, Kobe, Omi, Yonezawa. A guide to Japan’s designated wagyu brands, region by region, covering how each is raised and how each one tastes.
RESTAURANT GUIDE
An in-depth guide to Tokyo wagyu yakiniku.
RESTAURANT GUIDE
A curated guide to wagyu lunch in Tokyo, from great-value set menus to full courses.
RESTAURANT GUIDE
Our specialists guide you to the Tokyo neighbourhood yakiniku restaurants serving genuinely good wagyu for under 10,000 yen, including Uguisudanien, Kinju, Koyo and Horumon Kou.
RESTAURANT GUIDE
A thorough guide to all-you-can-eat wagyu in Tokyo: which courses genuinely include A5 and designated brands, and how to judge the balance between quality and price.
RESTAURANT GUIDE
Tokyo's best wagyu restaurants with fully private dining rooms - chosen by our experts for business dinners, anniversaries and dates, with budget and booking tips.
WAGYU CULTURE
Where to eat burgers made with 100% wagyu patties in Tokyo. Our experts on atami, TEDDY BROWN and the wagyu burger as a new expression of wagyu culture.
RESTAURANT GUIDE
Our experts on Tokyo's best wagyu horumon (offal) restaurants: the rare cuts, the specialist Shibaura offal wholesalers behind them, and where to eat them.
SELECTION INSIGHT
The 2026 Wagyu Selection in full: Japan's 50 best wagyu and yakiniku restaurants, chosen by a specialist who eats more than 300 wagyu meals a year.
WAGYU CULTURE
How to buy real wagyu online in Japan: what to check before you order, which types of shop to trust, price bands, and how to cook it well at home.
WAGYU CULTURE
How to get brand wagyu - Matsusaka, Kobe, Omi, Saga and more - as a furusato nozei thank-you gift: what to look for, what each donation band buys, and when to apply.
WAGYU KNOWLEDGE
A complete expert guide to the cuts of wagyu: how rare cuts, lean akami and marbled sashi differ, and the best way to cook and enjoy each one.
WAGYU KNOWLEDGE
An expert guide to the four wagyu breeds: Japanese Black, Japanese Brown (Akage), Japanese Shorthorn and Japanese Polled, and how wagyu actually reaches the market today.
WAGYU KNOWLEDGE
An expert guide to the difference between wagyu and kokusan-gyu: what
WAGYU CULTURE
An expert guide to wagyu steak: how teppan, kiln and charcoal cooking differ, and the finest steak restaurants in Tokyo, Kobe and Nagoya.
WAGYU CULTURE
A complete guide to wagyu sukiyaki: how the Kanto and Kansai styles differ, and the great houses of Matsusaka, from Wadakin to Gyugin Honten.
WAGYU CULTURE
An expert guide to wagyu shabu-shabu: rare brands such as Tajimaguro, the best restaurants in Tokyo, and how to do it well at home.
WAGYU CULTURE
An expert guide to tasting wagyu side by side: courses that reveal the differences between brands, cuts and cooking methods, and where to find them in Tokyo.
WAGYU KNOWLEDGE
The fat really is unusual — around 52.9% oleic acid — and there is also a great deal more of it. What the research says, and why the grade cannot help you find the leaner version.
WAGYU DATA
76.6% of graded steer wagyu earned A5 in May 2026 — not 1–2%. The full series from 1996, with the arithmetic and the source files.