Yoshinoya Beef Bowl [Japan]

There are very few chains in Japan. I think it’s a thing of Japanese culture—perfection takes precedence over ambition. Yoshinoya though, is a bit of an exception.

For a cheap price (about three US dollars) you get a bowl of rice, sauced with something simple, covered in a meat of your choice. Shown above is Beef-Don. This sort of thing is probably the closest one can get to Japanese fast food. And as with most Japanese versions of American products, they do it better.

Taste:

So simple. Three ingredients: rice, teriyaki-ish sauce, and slices of beef. The Japanese have long since perfected the art of rice making, and the difference can be tasted once you step off the plane and into any restaurant. It’s a beautiful thing that even their cheap, fast food gigs hold themselves up to that perfect standard.

The sauce is something that most Asians would consider familiar tasting. It’s a thing of soy, beef, and savory sweetness. I suspect that they throw the rice into the same wok that they cook and spice the meat in, since that beefy taste is found throughout the rice.

The beef is sliced thin, usually something done to hide the cut of the meat. A tough flank is inconsequential when the meat is too thin to chew more than once. They probably do choose the cheapest cut of the cow—there’s no reason not to when their slices are so thin. Not that I mind though: there’s plenty of protein in their beef bowl, slicing makes the beef tender enough, and I’m not expecting filet mignon when I pay $3.25.

Reflections:

Brilliant. Such a simple thing for such a low price. I would pay for it again. In fact I probably will, since the chain exists outside of Japan...