As expected, there is lots of people waiting to dine at this place. The restaurant has a very efficient system to manage the crowd though. First, there is a queue to choose the menu you want and the make payment for it. Second, there is another queue (sort of, since we all are just waiting around there in line, which makes it look like a queue) where patrons wait to go into the restaurant when there are available seats. While waiting, the friendly front counter staff will collect the receipts to get the kitchen to prepare the dishes first. So when we get seated at the open kitchen counter, just a few minutes later, voila, gyukatsu set meal is served.
We got the premium wagyu, 黑毛和牛, since its marbling will yield a lovely buttery flavour based on our experience at another restaurant. And yes, the gyukatsu here also showcases the highly coveted buttery taste after I sear its surface on the small stove provided. And there are five types of condiments to pair with the gyukatsu, from ponzu sauce, pepper, katsu sauce, onsen egg, grated radish to wasabi. I love the variety in the options of condiments. All of them go so well with the gyukatsu.
But if I’m asked which gyukatsu do I prefer, I will say I prefer the one tried at Kabuki-cho because the texture of the wagyu there is more tender and more even due to the precise cutting of the gyukatsu for each piece to be of almost same width. The wagyu at Gyukatsu Kyoto Katsugyu has some tougher parts and the kitchen staff there cut the katsu unevenly, where one side is thicker than another side, causing uneven cooking.
If this area will be improved, it will be perfect.
Thoughts: Gyukatsu is delicious
Japan, 〒600-8216 Kyoto, Shimogyo Ward, Higashishiokojicho, 590-2 京都ヨドバシ ６Ｆ