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Would you pay $120 for a beef sandwich? Why one Fort Worth steakhouse thinks you should

Don't go looking for edible gold flecks or a diamond-encrusted serving tray alongside the new $120 sandwich at B&B Butchers in Fort Worth. The ingredients on the pricey A5 Wagyu katsu sando are, simply, beef on crustless white bread.

And the coveted Japanese Wagyu, which is lauded internationally for its marbling and smooth texture, comes fried. Then swiped with barbecue sauce. Gasp!

Two-dozen people have already shelled out the $120 to buy the sandwich at B&B Butchers & Restaurant in Houston during its first week. Would you pay $120 for a sandwich?

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Does it feel better if you calculate it to $5 to $10 per bite?

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For that kind of money, the sandwich looks unremarkable, cut into thirds and stacked like a bar snack. But the quality of Japanese beef is so silky that carnivores in Dallas-Fort Worth -- ones who won't notice $120 missing from their bank account -- might just be lured into buying one of North Texas' most expensive sandwiches.

Corporate Chef Tommy Elbashary prepares the $120 A5 Wagyu katsu sando sandwich at B&B...
Corporate Chef Tommy Elbashary prepares the $120 A5 Wagyu katsu sando sandwich at B&B Butchers & Restaurant in Fort Worth.(Lawrence Jenkins / Special Contributor)

B&B proprietor Benjamin Berg first tasted a katsu sando in New York City for a cool $180. (Quick mental math: You get a $60 discount here in Texas.) The Japanese sandwich has become so popular that Eater declared it "the meaty trend you need to know," and chefs all over the world have been serving up the high-dollar sandwich, often panko-crusted and fried, like B&B's is.

Berg's experience with it in NYC was calmly alluring, as he tells it. Maybe his cool attitude is an indicator of how his customers might also feel: "I saw it," Berg says simply. "I tried it. It was cool."

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Plus: "We already have the meat," he says. B&B Butchers' chefs take the same A5 Wagyu and dry-age 12-ounce cuts for 28 days. That piece of meat will set you back $250. Again: This sandwich is kind of a deal.

Of course, it's wildly bougie: This is top-quality Japanese beef, fried. It's a statement sandwich that either says "I don't care" or "someone else is paying."

But if people are going to overspend on gorgeous beef, shouldn't it be in Texas?

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B&B corporate chef Tommy Elbashary's recipe uses lightly buttered and toasted "hotel bread," which they buy from a Japanese market. The swipe of Japanese barbecue sauce is house-made, of course, a mix of ketchup, soy, rice wine vinegar, dijon mustard and a few other ingredients.

Why crustless bread? "That makes it sexy," says B&B Butchers executive chef John Piccolino.

For now, the sandwich will be an off-the-menu option at B&B Butchers in Fort Worth, located at 5212 Marathon Ave. After Restaurant Week ends Sept. 2, diners will find the $120 sandwich on the regular menu.