I’d like to introduce my favorite Japanese food, gyutan. Gyutan is Japanese for beef tongue and is eaten in high-end restaurants. While Americans typically eat ribeyes or filets when dining out, Japanese eat gyutan. I found the story of how gyutan became a delicacy fascinating: prior to World War II almost no one in Kakuda or the surrounding area ate beef, but the arrival of the American occupation forces also saw the arrival of beef. Mr. Moriyama of the Board of Education recalls not eating beef at all during his childhood. It wasn’t until the last few decades that beef became a commonly eaten food.

Japanese found that they could purchase beef tongues among other parts very cheaply and by 1948 gyutan found its way into restaurants. It is almost always served with rice, a soup containing cow tail and green onion, and a side of pickled vegetables.

Steak remains a delicacy only the wealthy can afford to eat frequently. Eaten at a restaurant, a roughly 8oz cut of steak usually costs upwards of $125-150.

ibai Which is used in place of ikimashou or igube. It means “let’s go!”