Wagyu in Sunnyvale: Gemini, Golden Sun or Andromeda?

Fall is a popular time to celebrate: birthdays, anniversaries and get-togethers with friends and family as the holidays approach. If you're looking for Wagyu in Sunnyvale to mark the occasion, Ramen Wakusei at 585 E El Camino Real serves three Wagyu dishes, and our menu recommends every one of them for special occasions. Two are brothless abura soba, Gemini and Golden Sun. The third, Andromeda, is a Japanese curry rice plate. Here's what the Wagyu on each dish is, how the three compare, and which one to order.

What 'Wagyu' and 'A5' actually mean

Wagyu (和牛) literally means 'Japanese cattle,' and the word refers to Japanese breeds of beef cattle. Wagyu is known for dense marbling, the fine streaks of fat running through the meat, which give it a rich, buttery texture.

Japan grades beef with a letter and a number. The letter (A to C) rates yield, meaning roughly how much usable meat the carcass provides. The number (1 to 5) rates meat quality, judged on marbling along with meat color, firmness and the quality of the fat. A is the top yield grade and 5 is the top quality grade, so A5 is the highest grade in the Japanese system.

So which Wagyu is on which dish? Here's how our menu lists it:

• Golden Sun: A5 Japanese Wagyu. It's the only dish on our menu labeled A5.
• Gemini: Snake River Farms Wagyu steak. The menu names the producer rather than a grade.
• Andromeda: seared Wagyu beef, paired with a whole crispy soft-shell crab.

Gemini vs Golden Sun vs Andromeda, side by side

Abura soba is a brothless style of ramen: instead of soup, the noodles are tossed in a savory tare sauce and aromatic oil, then mixed with the toppings before eating. Gemini and Golden Sun are both abura soba, and our guide to abura soba walks through the style in more detail. Andromeda swaps noodles for rice and our rich, mildly sweet house Japanese curry; our Japanese curry rice guide explains how that style differs from other curries.

• Gemini (abura soba): Snake River Farms Wagyu steak over chewy soba noodles with fresh green onion, crispy fried onion, diced tomato and a cool swirl of yogurt, finished with a savory beef-flavor sauce. Flavor: savory beef, rich, tangy yogurt and umami. Heads-up: it contains yogurt, and it isn't marked spicy.
• Golden Sun (abura soba): A5 Japanese Wagyu over chewy soba noodles with a soft-boiled egg, crunchy bamboo shoots, green onion and vibrant tobiko (flying-fish roe), finished in a golden spicy-sour sauce and shimmering edible gold. Flavor: luxurious, spicy-sour, buttery Wagyu and umami. Heads-up: it's the only one of the three marked spicy, and it includes egg and fish roe.
• Andromeda (rice plate): seared Wagyu beef and a whole crispy jumbo soft-shell crab over fluffy black sesame rice with rich house Japanese curry, plus house coleslaw and pickled ginger. Flavor: rich, crispy, buttery Wagyu and mildly sweet curry. Heads-up: the soft-shell crab makes it a shellfish dish.

Each dish has its own page with its key ingredients, flavor profile and who it's recommended for. If you have a food allergy or dietary restriction, please ask our staff before ordering.

Which Wagyu dish should you order?

The short version: Golden Sun is the A5 splurge with a spicy-sour kick, Gemini is Wagyu steak soba without the heat, and Andromeda is Wagyu and crab over curry rice.

• Biggest celebration or a show-stopper for the table: Golden Sun. It's our most premium dish, and its shimmering edible gold makes it our most show-stopping plate for special occasions.
• Wagyu without the heat: Gemini. It isn't marked spicy, and the savory beef-flavor sauce gets a cool, tangy lift from the yogurt.
• Rice instead of noodles, or surf-and-turf: Andromeda. Our most luxurious curry rice plate pairs seared Wagyu with a whole crispy soft-shell crab under mildly sweet house curry.
• Torn between the two noodle dishes? Pick Golden Sun if you love bright, spicy-sour flavors, and Gemini if you want something rich and savory.

Ramen Wakusei is at 585 E El Camino Real in Sunnyvale, open daily from 11 AM to 9 PM. To dine in, join the online waitlist before you head over. To celebrate at home, order online for pickup through Toast; Gemini and Golden Sun are brothless, so there's no broth to soften the noodles on the way home. Prices can change, so check the online ordering page for current pricing.