Our Story
House of Wagyu, Since 2008
The story as told by the founder herself, Corinne Castaneda:
Almost two decades ago, my late life partner and I were searching for a steak experience that was different. We wanted something finer than the Certified Angus Beef and USDA Prime that dominated the market then.
We stumbled upon Wagyu, and that became our eureka moment.
The purity of that taste, the elegance and mastery behind it… we knew immediately that this was the experience we wanted to bring home to Manila.
And from the beginning, we knew we wanted to be a quality and value-driven brand.
So, in 2008, House of Wagyu was born, proudly homegrown, a Filipino brand determined to play in the world arena
of steak dining.
Seventeen years later, we are still here, carrying with us the lessons and values that have shaped who we are.
One of the most defining parts of our journey was integrating the stonegrill into the House of Wagyu experience.
We determined early on that we wanted only high grade Wagyu, but still I felt our guests deserved something deeper, more sensory, more personal.
So I spent over a year studying the stonegrill: its heat, its timing, and how it could elevate the ritual of enjoying Wagyu.
When I finally perfected it, we refitted and renamed to: House of Wagyu Stonegrill.
Our approach has always been about the intention of creating a space where moments and memories feel natural, warm, and meaningful.
As a Filipina leading House of Wagyu, shaping the culture that would guide us became my top priority. Creating a culture rooted in discipline, warmth, and genuine care.
Over time, that culture crystallized into four values that continue to guide how we serve and how we work:
Culture of Care - expressed through refined, calm service that never feels stiff or distant but proudly Filipino in its grace. It’s the way we remember faces and stories, honor preferences, and care just as deeply for our teams as we do for our guests.
Stewardship - the discipline of caring for a legacy brand: from how we source and bring in only chilled Wagyu, to the aging process we have mastered over time, and to how we train our teams, uphold our standards, and protect the integrity of our guests' experience.
Steadfastness - doing things properly and consistently, year after year.
Growth - the commitment to keep getting better, for our guests and for our people.
Proudly a homegrown brand, we are shaped by the way Filipinos connect with meaning, with intention, and with food that brings people together.
Those values have carried us through seventeen years and continue to define who we are. This is how we honor
your life celebrations.
In the end, luxury has never been about being extravagant. Luxury is how a guest feels in our care — centered, known, and honored.
That is House of Wagyu Stonegrill.
That is our story.
And we are honored to be part of your life celebrations.
Wagyu, Perfected on Stone
At House of Wagyu, everything begins with the quality of our Wagyu. We serve only high-grade Wagyu — Grade 6, Grade 8, and Grade 10. As the grade rises, so does the marbling, the tenderness, the richness, and the depth of flavor. We serve Ribeye, Tenderloin, Tomahawk, Topside, Porterhouse, and T-Bone, and across all our cuts—you will always taste that integrity.
From the very beginning, we made a deliberate choice to bring in our Wagyu chilled, never frozen upon import, because this preserves the natural moisture, purity, and buttery mouthfeel of the marbling. It allows us to work with the beef at its best possible state. We import in smaller, more frequent batches so we can maintain a rolling
wet-aging program, aging each type of cut just long enough to deepen tenderness and flavor, while keeping the clean, elegant profile that Wagyu is known for. Wet aging allows the beef to tenderize naturally in its own juices, so the texture stays soft and supple, and the marbling melts beautifully on the stone.
There was a time when our Founder explored dry aging. She wanted to test every possible way to elevate our steaks. But when we introduced dry-aged Wagyu, our guests found the flavor too bold, too funky for what they love about Wagyu. And the waste was significant. So our Founder listened, and we returned fully to chilled, wet-aged Wagyu - clean, buttery, elegant, and consistently loved for seventeen years.
And because we believe in letting the steak speak for itself, we season simply, salt and pepper, nothing more. No heavy sauces, no distractions. Just pure Wagyu, the integrity of its marbling, and the sensory experience the stonegrill brings to life.
This is our Wagyu—carefully selected, handled with discipline, aged with intention, and served in a way that honors its purity and its craft.