SW Steakhouse promises real taste of Kobe beef

If you’ve always wanted to try authentic Japanese Kobe beef, here’s your chance — because that other stuff you’ve had, with its confusing American/Japanese/Wagyu/Kobe-style monikers wasn’t the real thing.

David Walzog, executive chef at SW Steakhouse at Wynn Las Vegas, and Larry Olmsted, author of “Real Food, Fake Food” — which explains, among many other things, how much of that Kobe out there isn’t — will host a “Kobe vs. Faux-be” dinner Nov. 9 at the restaurant.

Walzog said SW Steakhouse is one of only a few restaurants in the country that serve certified Japanese Kobe beef.

“I think it’s three or four,” he said. “It’s kind of hard to put the exact number on it. It’s under five, very limited.”

Walzog said he knows some people come into his restaurant specifically for the Kobe.

“There’s enough people who order it every single night that you think they’re on a direct beat to SW to have it,” he said, adding that the restaurant routinely sells twice as much as the other Wagyu varieties on the menu combined — despite the fact that it’s $55 per ounce, while the others start at $40 per ounce.

“If you’re going to go all in, you might as well go all in,” he said, adding that some people order a few ounces of each so they can compare.

But back to the dinner: It starts at 6 p.m. Nov. 9 on the restaurant’s private terrace, and will feature such dishes as Ideue Farms Wagyu chips, Snake River Farms Wagyu with tallow-braised root vegetables and Japanese Kobe strip loin. It’s $425 for five courses with wine — and you might not want to tell your cardiologist. Call 702-770-7070.

• • •

Las Vegas didn’t make 2016 Best &Worst Foodie Cities list put together by the WalletHub financial website, but no surprise there, when you realize the criteria included cost of groceries, affordability and accessibility of high-quality restaurants; not long ago, Zagat announced Las Vegas is the most expensive dining destination in the country. WalletHub’s top five were Orlando, Florida; Portland, Oregon; Miami and Tampa, Florida; and San Francisco, the latter of which isn’t exactly a bargain-basement spot. And listing North Las Vegas at 150 just seemed mean.

• • •

Ethel M Chocolates, which is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year, is scheduled to reopen its newly renovated factory store at 2 Cactus Garden Drive in Henderson today.

• • •

DB Brasserie at The Venetian is scheduled to close in mid-January, following CES.

Both locations of I Love Burgers have closed.

Have an item for Kitchen Confidante? Email hrinella@reviewjournal.com.