Kata Robata: The Foie Gras That Changed Everything

This one started with a Korean drama.

I was watching Pasta on Netflix — a K-drama set in an Italian restaurant kitchen — and they kept talking about foie gras like it was something sacred. I’d never tried it. I needed to fix that.

A deep dive into Yelp reviews and a few conversations with friends who actually know where to eat in Houston all pointed to the same place: Kata Robata on Kirby Drive.

The Restaurant

3600 Kirby Dr, Houston TX 77098

Kata Robata is a Japanese restaurant that takes its ingredients seriously. The space is sleek, the menu is ambitious, and the fish is fresh enough that you can tell the chef cares about sourcing. I’ve been back multiple times since this first visit, and the quality has never dipped.

Foie Gras Sashimi

This is the dish that brought me here, and it delivered in a way I wasn’t prepared for.

The foie gras was seared and served as nigiri — torched on top, rich and glossy, bound to the rice with a strip of nori. The moment it hit my tongue, it melted. Not figuratively. The fat dissolved into this impossibly rich, buttery warmth that coated my entire mouth. The slight char on top gave it just enough contrast to keep it from being one-note.

I sat there for a moment, quietly processing what had just happened.

I’ve eaten a lot of good food. This was different. This was one of those meals that shifts your understanding of what food can be. It goes on the short list of life-changing bites — right up there with the first time I had proper tonkotsu in Japan.

Miso Crusted Bone Marrow

If the foie gras was the headline, the bone marrow was the encore that nearly stole the show.

Four split bones on a slate plate, the marrow caramelised under a miso crust, served alongside small rounds of toast. You scoop the marrow out, spread it on the bread, and try not to make any embarrassing sounds.

The miso adds a salty, umami depth that pairs perfectly with the richness of the marrow. It’s indulgent in the best way — the kind of dish where you scrape the bones clean and wish there were more.

The One That Got Away

I tried to order the O Toro — bluefin tuna belly, the most prized cut in sushi. They were out. Next time.

That’s the thing about Kata Robata — it’s the kind of place where the best items are seasonal and limited, which means you have a reason to keep coming back.

The Verdict

Score: 9.5 / 10 — The foie gras alone justifies the trip. The bone marrow seals the deal. Kata Robata is one of Houston’s best, and it’s not particularly close.

If you’re in Houston and you haven’t been here, go. Order the foie gras. Order the bone marrow. And check if they have the O Toro — one of us should get to try it.