It Costs What? The $360 Surf & Turf
Welcome to It Costs What? We get the details on one luxurious, over-the-top, super-expensive dish to find out how it was dreamed up, what’s in it, and whether it might just be worth it.
That’s $360 worth of surf and turf, folks. Photo courtesy of Oliverio.
The Dish: ”Golden Surf & Turf”
The Price: $360
The Restaurant: Oliverio at Avalon Hotel in Beverly Hills, California
What’s in it? Seven ounces of A5 Wagyu beef (the highest grade Wagyu available)from Kagoshima, Japan; half an ounce of golden Russian Osetra caviar; risotto infused with Italian saffron; and two to three edible German gold leaves.
How’d it get on the menu? ”We were talking about doing something for Beverly Hills, something expensive and fun,” explains Oliverio executive chef Mirko Paderno. “Risotto with saffron is a traditional dish from my city, Milan. [We] took one of the most expensive pieces of beef around—and I love caviar—so we came up with this dish.”
Why do they think it’s worth it? ”If you combine all the ingredients, it’s an amazing dish,” says Paderno, who stands by the admittedly high price tag. “I know it’s a lot of money, but it’s worth it and people really enjoy it.” And for any skeptics, a peek at the authentication certificate for Oliverio’s A-5 Wagyu is available upon request.
Do we think it’s worth it? Sure, you could order 27 perfectly good pizzas in most cities for the same amount of money, but if you’re looking to spend $360 on just one thing, the Golden Surf & Turf may be your best bet. Robert Cortez, a private chef in Seattle who stages high-end culinary pop-ups, tells us that, even with the restaurant’s markup, you’d likely end up paying more to make a similar dish yourself at home.
"All of the ingredients in that dish are super, super expensive," says Cortez. "A restaurant is buying larger amounts and getting a better deal. [You] would be paying more for smaller amounts and would have to go through different routes of importers and pay shipping costs. So actually, this is a good deal.”
The breakdown: A box of saffron risotto from Milan would only run you about $15, but everything else is pretty costly: While you can find a one-ounce portion of the caviar online, you’ll spend upwards of $135. And you’d have to buy at least two pounds of the Japanese A-5 Wagyu to get it shipped for $315. A box of 25 edible gold leaves from Germany would cost the average Joe $50.
Grand total: More than $500.
Who’s actually ordering it: The restaurant sold 14 of the dishes during the first eight days it was on the menu (a run that will end in late October). “One or two a day and I’m happy,” says Paderno, who notes that most diners end up sharing the entrée since it’s such a rich dish. “A lot of people order it for fun because they are just curious and want to know what the big deal is about,” explains Paderno. “And then, luckily, they like it too.”