What's the most expensive thing you've eaten? Was it worth it?
What's the most expensive thing you've eaten? Was it worth it?
146 comments
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My bipolar meds, without insurance, are $800 a month. I have yet to slap a bitch at work so I would say they're worth it so far.
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I guess that is technically eaten.
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You shouldn't eat bitches.
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- A4 wagyu tomahawk
- Louis XIII cognac
- pure saffron
Worth it? Definitely. Especially since I didn't pay for any of it. This was all professional training as a fine dining server.
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How was the Louis? I'll never be able to afford even a pour of it so I'd like to live vicariously through you lol
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Not worth the price, even in the special cut leaded crystal sipping cups. It was the best cognac I've ever had, but not nearly the best brandy, and I don't even like brandy that much.
Now the wagyu, that was absolutely worth the price. 48z for $190, so about $4/z, pre-cook weight. I had about $15 worth, one mouthful, and I would have been willing to pay for what I got if it wasn't free.
But the Louis XIII at least satisfied my life goal to eat something aged longer than I am old.
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I once used $1k caviar as a topping for a Papa John's pizza. It was delicious.
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Chaotic. I love it.
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Best answer here.
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Are you Papa John? That sounds like something Papa John would do on a bender.
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Maybe when he was still CEO 😂
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This is what I came to read.
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Frozen green beans from Costco. They were contaminated with listeria--there was a recall--and I was one of the lucky ones that got to have a stay in the hospital. The CT showed that the blood was just because the constant shitting had stripped the lining out of my colon. The hospital never got a culture, just gave me a bunch of antibiotics, so the law firm that was handling the recall told me to fuck off with my hospital bills.
1/10, would not repeat.
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I ate at a 9 course meal at a Michelin star restaurant a few days ago in Nice, France.
This was the menu:
It cost us 658€. It was good.
The first dessert course left me in stitches because I thought it was so over the top:
Overall it was worth it for the experience and each course was very flavourful.
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I think this is called an experience not a meal, but yeah, you ate it
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I can definitely help you out for half price next time
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Lobster probably. Ocean cockroaches have the perfect texture to put flavored butter in your mouth. Particularly love lobster rolls with some nice herbs. Crazy how we like ocean roaches so much we've made them expensive.
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When I lived in coastal New England in the early 2000s, a lobster roll was a hot dog bun with some random lobster chunks and a little bit of mayo, and you could get it at Stop & Shop for five bucks if the lobster catch was doing well.
I live in the Bay Area now and if you see an item called "lobster roll" here it's probably $25 and it's on brioche or something, and it's not even good.
If you live in lobster town, eat lobster rolls. If you live in taco town, eat tacos.
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I believe all my comparisons to coach roaches should have gave away how often I pay for lobster.
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In the summers in New England you used to be able to get live lobster for 6 bucks/lb. Not sure what it's up to these days but I'll never order it in a restaurant. It's one of those things that you and a professional chef can get the exact same result by boiling it for a few mins. Plus at home you can get completely messy and hose yourself of immediately afterwards.
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And they used to be prison food! Isn't that crazy?
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As a kid I liked to chew random stuff, (and tbh as an adult too, but I control myself by chewing socially acceptable stuff!) and I once chewed on some fancy curtains were pretty big and covered a big bay window, and my parents had to replace them. I don’t know how much they were but it couldn’t have been cheap.
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Dude, but was it worth it?!
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Hahah, I don’t remember! it probably wasn’t :p
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As far as dollar amount, probably some meal with my girlfriend. We don't do fancy but usually have one nice meal on a vacation.
But as a percentage of my income - something called Bonzai Chicken I ordered for $70 on my honeymoon back in the 90s. I made $7/hr at the time. I didn't know it had curry in it or that I was allergic to curry. I spent the remainder of my honeymoon sick as a dog.
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That sounds like an 80s movie plot though. Half the movie was you on the toilet while everyone else got up to some epic shit. All because you had to order the Bonzai Chicken.
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Fortunately, my ex wife waited until after the honeymoon to get up to epic shit when I wasn't around.
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250 per plate meal at Hell's Kitchen in Vegas.
The beef wellington is exactly as good as it looked on TV. The scallops were even better.
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Beef Wellington is a Sunday roast from Toby's Carvery at a manky motorway services outside of Bolton
You paid 250 quid for it?!?
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My scallops were a bit tough when I was there but it was a spectacular meal.
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The figgy pudding was waaaaay too much. A very American sized serving. Could have done with with a few spoons of each pudding and icecream and been perfect. Instead i forced it all in and hated myself later.
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Kobe Beef in Kobe, Japan.
Best beef I ever had. Not worth it though. I didn't realize how loaded my friend was when she suggested it to me, so I ended up reserving for 4 people before checking the prices.
I did spend 700$ eating sushi one time though. That time was worth it. For any sushi lovers planning a Japan trip - Stay out of the main cities and go for the coast. The best sushi is far from Tokyo/Kyoto/Osaka.
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My friend was a local and took us to Izu.
No sushi will ever compare.
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For any sushi lovers planning a Japan trip - Stay out of the main cities and go for the coast. The best sushi is far from Tokyo/Kyoto/Osaka.
Noted 😊
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On a business trip, a local colleague took me for the (reputed) best Peking duck in Hong Kong - it was somewhere in the Central district, on the island itself.
I can't remember how much it cost, but I know my colleague had to book three weeks in advance, and confirm 48 hours in advance that we were indeed having the duck.
It was fantastic. As an Aussie, I never truly appreciated properly cooked duck until then.
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The most expensive thing I've had that was really notable (as I'm sure I've ordered something pricier and thought nothing of it) was half an A5 wagyu steak from Wegmans. I think it was originally around $250/lb but it was on a manager's special sale. I think it was around $80 for a ½lb, which is genuinely insane to me knowing that manager's special means it's the last chance to buy something before it goes bad.
Anyway, it was really good. A very odd experience though because afterwards I kinda stopped craving/ cooking/ ordering beef for a couple months. It was like I achieved some superlative thing and was just done with the concept of beef for a little bit. A strange reaction to such a positive experience, that said I do still eat beef occasionally.
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We bought 1.5 kg of A5 wagyu for dinner on my brother's birthday, and then we ate the leftovers on bread for breakfast the next day. It was about $400. Don't think I'll ever get tired of eating beef. The thing about wagyu though is there's a lot of fat in it, so you'll be full quickly. I later ordered 100 grams at at restaurant and didn't need any more.
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Yeah, the marbling is crazy, you can cook it and cook it and you'll never run out of fat in it. I only did a couple minutes on each side though so it was extremely rich. Even a ¼lb was probably a little too much when I had it. Non-hamburger beef is more of a treat to me at this point, I think I enjoy it a lot more when it's a rarer occasion.
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I just got done eating dippin' dots.
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But, were they worth it?
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I was taken to a very expensive steak restaurant once, and while others got more expensive cuts I got a 10 oz California sirloin aged 8 years in house.
I love steak, I loved steak, I will always love steak, but every steak from that day has to measure up to that one and never will.
I’m so glad I had the experience, but I don’t have $280 to blow on steak each time I want it lol.
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8 years? Are you sure?
That's more than quadruple the longest time I've ever seen a piece of beef dry aged.
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Good catch. It’s been some time and I was way off. Just checked their menu and it’s 60 days. wayyyy off
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I've seen 90 days offered in restaurants as an extreme version of dry aged and described as mushroomy.
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A 'wagyu' New York Strip for $120.
It was okay but really not worth it. I've made better steaks on my grill at home with $10 worth of Select Grade NY Strip.
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I've been to several Michelin places, usually around $300 - $400 per person without wine. Definitely worth it for the quality, creativity, and experience.
I've already had A5 Kobe at around $60 an ounce, and caviar around $250 an ounce. Both worth it for an occasional splurge.
I also had a glass of a 1967 Bordeaux (don't remember which one) that I didn't pay for and it was good, but nothing better than some $50 bottles I've had before. Granted I'm not a wine expert or anything so maybe it's quality was lost on me.
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Does printer ink count?
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Go throw up
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I paid for WinRAR once. If by “expensive” they mean ratio of price:value I consider that the most expensive thing I’ve bought.
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As others have noted proper good quality fresh truffle is really worth it (unlike all the "it's no nicer than regular food but we've served it on a statue, covered it in gold leaf and sprinkled salt onto it off the top of a bald man's head" fancy food you can spend a fortune on.) Freshly shaved truffle is like if Willy Wonka decided to turn his hand to making the perfect savoury food experience. It smells like the most satisfying food ever and then the instant your teeth slightly penetrate the surface of the shaving it somehow seems to instantly fill every space in your head with that scent at double the intensity and your whole mouth is awash with a uniquly rich and warm flavour.
I love single origin chocolate and was once gifted a bar of Amedei Porcelana (sometimes called "the most expensive chocolate in the world.") It was, unsurprisingly, a perfectly executed bar of chocolate. Texture, balance of sugar to cocoa etc were all flawless. The flavour was delicate and perfectly balanced. It was like the most refined expression of the exact central archetype of what chocolate should taste like. I really enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone who would like to experience the most perfectly chocolatey chocolate. Personally I found that while it was a flawless execution of a straight down the middle chocolate and I am very glad to have had it, I prefer a bit more character and so my favourite bar is still the Grenada Chocolate Co 71% (which slaps you in the face with big juicy tropical fruit flavour and is overall not quite as refined as Amedai Porcelana.) Though I've not had the chance to eat either in several years so I suppose it's possible they may have changed since...
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If it costs over 60 euros or so, it's hard to believe it really is worth it. Maybe one time thing, but above that it really is a law of diminishing returns.
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I think it probably makes more sense to relate it to the cost of something else rather than an actual dollar amount (as that will always change over time.) IE. If a meal out costs more than three visits or McDonald's or whatever it may be. FWIW, the Amendei Porcelana bars are about £12 and the Grenada co about half that.
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I can't think of a time I've deliberately eaten something expensive (as opposed to out of convenience), except for the kopi luwak, which was a gift.
It was from a relief worker I knew well, who had gotten it from a friend of his in SE Asia who collected the wild beans as a hobby. At market prices at the time I think the little cup I had worked out to around 40 dollars, and this was some time ago.
Anyway, was it worth it? It was a normal cup of Joe, except it had no bitterness to it at all. The cat's gut apparently takes all the bitterness out of it without touching the flavour much, At a similar price to normal coffee I'd buy it, but as an uber-luxury I'd say it's in no way worth it, unless you're just consuming conspicuously.
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But, Jesus Christ, the amount of animal exploitation worth for such coffee. I say this because I think many suppliers of kopi luwak had to forcefeed palm civets with this, to catch up with demand...
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Yeah, I hear the farmed product is much inferior on top of being unethical, so I got really lucky. I'd guess the commercial market is also flooded with counterfeits, because if you're a Malaysian guy who can sell some white dude "super special kopi luwak beans" that are actually just normal coffee for more money than you would otherwise make in a year, why wouldn't you? I can't even blame them.
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You can get that same experience with coffee for much cheaper, but it does require a little effort. You just need to find a good coffee roaster near you or online where you can get freshly roasted specialty coffee(arabica, not robusta; and from a single farm, not a blend), instead of the stuff at grocery stores that's been sitting for months. It might cost $15-$20 a bag, but that's still less than a dollar per cup! If you want the absolute best coffee, then grinding the beans yourself and using something like an aeropress or pourover brewer is ideal, but you can still get great coffee just by buying locally roasted beans from a nearby shop, letting them grind the beans for you, then brewing with a regular old coffee machine
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Was part of a team that was sent to Boston for a project. While we were there, the company announced they were changing the meal expense policy from reimbursement for submitted bills to a fixed stipend.
But that policy change was a couple of days away, so the whole team went to this fancy expensive restaurant for dinner, and we ordered expensive food and wines as one last hurrah.
I don’t even remember where or what I ate or drank.
I just remember it was a good time.
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Some dinner at a fancy restaurant my fiance took me to for my birthday. I did my best to be respectful but I hated everything about it. The food tasted no better than a cheaper restaurant and everyone was so insanely pretentious. Would never choose something like that on my own. All the people with money I know love the place, but I would honestly be happier going to an Applebee's than throwing my money into the garbage like that and have to have stuffy unrelatable conversations with strangers.
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A 50-inch pizza, It cost me about 80 dollars, because the ingredients were first class. It was totally worth it.
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Where did you buy it
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in a resort in Punta Cana, in the Dominican Republic.
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Fancy modern Itallian restaurant, authentic fresh truffle topping to my and my spouse's dishes, cost $80 just to add that.
100% worth it, never tasted anything like it before. I don't know if I would do it again, now that I've had the experience, but I'm glad I did.
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Truffle is one of the few rarified expensive things that I've had that is genuinely incredibly more tasty than anything like it. It's one of my favourite foods but I have not had many opportunities to eat it.
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It's a super unique flavor.
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Most expensive thing I bought was wagyu that I seared and ate with a side of parmesan steak fries with rosemary and a glass of red wine. It was well worth it, but if you're expecting a steak, that's not what it is. It's somewhere between butter and meat, and almost like a separate type of food all by itself. The fat isn't greasy or stringy, the flavor is strong, sear it medium rare with just salt, no oil.
Most expensive food I've had was a fancy company dinner at a french style restaurant. Half the food I wasn't really sure what it was exactly but even simple things like the eggs were cooked perfectly. The final dish was tenderloin and it was cooked perfectly medium rare. 10/10 dinner and well worth it, but I'm glad I didn't have to foot the bill
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I think some kind of exotic wagyu meat. Very good, but very small portion and not worth the money. I think it was 140€ or something like that. With a drink included.
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On our honeymoon, we went to this 5 star place in Scotland so I could "wine and dine" my new wife. I think the meal ended up being $150 back in 2000 so about $260 now. We both had the lamb and vegetables, the lamb was under cooked and the vegetables were practically raw. The dessert, on the other hand, was delicious and we got drunk on a bottle of wine. We had more fun listening to the group of older guys one upping each other with tales of their yachts. They were also very welcoming to a couple of young kids who were clearly in a place far above their income bracket. So, in all, it was crap food but we enjoyed ourselves.
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Expensive caviar is much better than inexpensive caviar, and yes, I think it's worth it.
But sheer dollar amount was probably a pasta with black truffles shaved at the table. That was really good; I don't know if I'd do that one again.
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I was at a restaurant in Hawaii, on the menu was surf and turf.... Wagyu and lobster from 'the least inhabited Island on the planet'.
I wasn't paying so I got it. It was spectacular. I had Wagyu again at a Gorden Ramsey restaurant in Vegas and it wasn't as good. Wagyu steak isn't a great way to consume it imo.
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A lobster roll in Boston dripping with hot butter on an amazing roll. Not the most extravagant “most expensive” thing in this thread, was like $70, but was amazing nonetheless and absolutely worth it.
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We did this tasting menu once at this restaurant that is only ten seats and 17 courses. It was 185 per person with 75 dollar wine pairing. It was absolutely stunning in every way though. Menu: https://www.thepinecollingwood.ca/menu
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“Bumble Bee Tuna”
Love it.
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The platings are just damn exquisite. The chef spent a lot of time in Asia so does a lot of micro stuff. It was quite stunning and a great experience.
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I went to Millennium, a fancy vegetarian restaurant in San Francisco (now it's in Oakland) with a friend's wealthy dad, who treated us. It was about $200 for the 3 of us. The food was good, but not good enough to go back. Just give me a $5 bean and cheese burrito, please
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There's a bunch of ritsy restaurants on the waterfront, $200 plates and seafood, steak, desserts, etc. Tastes just the same as any other food. High priced food is just stupid people tax.
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That's just because you're paying for the location and not the food. It's why, by and large, tourist centres have shit food despite being twice the price. Go somewhere that is about the food and not the location and you get what you pay for. Flavour.
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That reminds me of this great place I once went to that was literally just a farm house that was repurposed into a restaurant, in the middle of nowhere on a dirt road and surrounded by farmland. It wasn't cheap but also not outrageous, and the salads were amazing.
I also just remembered this Hungarian restaurant. Can't get any more homey than some ukranian grandma's house
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Does drink count?
One night out a guy wad trying to show off and bought a bottle of Dom Periognon for the table.
Now, I'm not a huge wine drinker, but to my taste it was one of the least impressive wines I've ever had.
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To drink would probably be Sam Adam’s Utopia (2014 or earlier). Not to my liking and very disappointing honestly. It was rich but not beer like at all. Much more like a liqueur, which I’m generally not a fan of.
To eat is probably whatever I had at The Blue Door in Miami. High brow modern food. Think it was the duck. It was good but the experience itself was worth it.
To contrast, the best meat I’ve had is Ostrich. That was just amazing meat. Not cheap but not the highest priced either.
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Tbh I dont usually spend that much on food i.e meal or just the entre. About the most expensive thing Ive had was a 100+ dollar meal i.e crab, lobster, some sickeningly sweet mango cocktail etc. And I also found out that I am not really a fan of the way the roasted brussel sprouts were prepared. (They drizzled a sweet sauce on them that wasnt just due to carmelization and I cannot stand the resulting flavor profile) Overall the meal was good but not worth the cost at all.
Ive spent 50-60 bucks on the ingredients for a meal Ive prepared at home that I enjoyed more than that.
At some point Id like to try real wagyu beef but I am pretty sure the level of fat will not be to my liking as I normally pick fairly lean cuts but a large part of that is because most fatty beef doesnt really have great marbling throughout the cut. Its mostly separate and just gags me with the texture of it.
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try real wagyu beef
for what it's worth, you can get bad wagyu beef - it literally just means a particular breed of beef, but nothing about the quality of the meat. What you're probably thinking of is A5 graded wagyu beef. And you definitely should try it!
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At some point Id like to try real wagyu beef
Had it and found out it's not my thing is very tender, almost 'slice with a knife' like. However I prefer my steak to have a modicum of chewyness. Don't like the filet mignon either, I prefer an entrecôte.
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Dirt according to my bully. Had to get new teeth after that.
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Aged steak. No.
Assuming we're talking about a singular dish/entree and not an entire meal.
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All steaks aged though
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Almost half this entire thread is people thinking overpriced steak is fancy food, rather than just yet another way to part Americans from their money 😂
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I can't even remember, (very) expensive food is wasted on me. I enjoy a quality meal, but the top tier stuff just doesn't make any exceptional or special impression with me. It's just good food.
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I'm curious, do you think it's more that you notice a difference but it doesn't add much for you or that side by side you couldn't tell which bite came was ordinary good quality food and which was exceptional or special if you were told?
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Definitely the former. The difference is not worth the price hike for me. I guess it's like with really high performance cars. I appreciate that a Ferrari f40 is in a league of its own and truly extraordinary, I just can't be bothered to spend that much money on it.
I guess it's the same with many things. The difference between low quality and high quality is really noticeable and usually comes with a substantial cost. But the difference in cost between high (even exceptional) quality and top-tier truly one-of-a-kind is usually very high, and not worth it for me.
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I had a $80 steak at a fancy restaurant once. No it was not worth it. I've made better steaks myself.
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Similar for me, but it was "only" 60. I ate far better for 30.
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Drink wise, Dom Pérignon. It was not worth $300 or $400 I paid for a bottle. It was good, just not that good.
Food wise, probably a $90 steak at Chicago Cut. Worth every penny.
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I went to two high-end restaurants in Vegas and ordered $80 steaks. No sides, no seasoning. Just a slab of meat on a plate. There wasnt even salt n pepper on the table. I was disappointed. I've done better steaks in my airfryer.
I then went to a theme pub on the strip and ordered a steak dinner. Same cut of meat but seasoned and cooked properly. Came with a plate full of sides for $40. Very much enjoyed it.
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Salmon roes, or "fake caviar". There's a whole story about that, involving going to country A to neighbouring country B through country C just to smuggle stuff, while the driver (my then girlfriend) was drunk as a skunk.
It tastes fishy, a bit salty, but I liked it. It pops on your mouth. I'd rather eat deep-fried roes though.
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For those wondering (as I was a moment ago)... unfertilised fish eggs of any species are roe. Caviar is the unfertilised, and cured, eggs of sturgeon.
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Worth noting that plenty types of roe are edible, not just the ones that can become caviar-like. Some are really good when breaded and deep-fried, although they spill a lot while frying.
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What country do you live in? Salmon roe is fairly cheap here (like $5-$8 for like two tablespoons at a restaurant).
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I live in the southern parts of Brazil. Salmon itself isn't cheap here, as it's imported from Chile, and AFAIK local fish is not suitable for caviar. (I was travelling to Argentina through Paraguay. Weird route due to booze and smuggling. The caviar was something that she bought on a whim alongside the whisky.)
Also, note that with the equivalent of US$7~8 you can buy a whole kilogram of good quality beef here. So two tablespoons of something for the same price is still, well, expensive as fuck.
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My wife. Most days, yes.
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I seriously hope we are talking about cunnilingus.
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With a side of fava beans and a nice chianti, sure.
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"most expensive thing"
"my wife"
"...thing..."
😐
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I'm her thing. All fair.
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Google tried to buy me a $50 burger. I passed in favor of a $25 salad. Still felt stupid just slightly less so.
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Mitefosin tablets I got for Leishmaniosis, two packages for a bit over 5000 Eur for both . Thank god for health insurance.
Cutaneous Leishmaniosis at two places, one being.my face over the upper lip. I was happy.I got treatment instead of bad scars.
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A meal at a fancy small restaurant near us. I would say yes worth it for the service more than the food. Each dish he put before both of us to share, got to try so many interesting foods. I liked it enough to say yes worth it but wouldn't do it even once a year.
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I got double beans and double rice in my burrito once. Farted like crazy. Not worth it.
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michelin star restaurants, worth it.
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I was lucky to have a company trip to one. Was absolutely worth having someone else pay for it.
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I was sent to German countryside once for work and had to eat at a restaurant. The cheapest meal was already totally expensive. Some potatoes and green stuff. Not worth it.
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Great story
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The most expensive thing I've eaten is a sannakji dish my friend prepared. It was the opposite of worth it.
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Sushi at this sushi bar. It was not worth it, because it made me want to throw up, and it tastes horrible
146 comments