After reading the thread I will address a whole bunch of points made by various posters.
President Trump is a. an adult, b. a billionaire several times over and c. the President of the United States of America. If he wants to have a burger for lunch, good for him. I also agree with one of the posters that the fact he is eating American beef may be to send a message on trade issues between our two countries.
Now, onto eating raw fish and raw meat. My grandfather drove a horse drawn delivery wagon for a local butcher many decades ago. He would eat raw beef off the truck. My mother acquired a taste for the same and I remember eating raw hamburger as a youth. I am very fortunate to have a butcher locally who grinds chuck right in front of me. I prefer it at room temperature with a little salt. Yummm ! I’m 65 and have never had issues with food borne illnesses or parasites.
The same butcher also sells double smoked bacon which I also eat without any further cooking and it too is something I consider a great delicacy.
I also enjoy sushi and sashimi and in many cases the flavor of the raw fish has much in common with that of the raw steak.
In all cases it comes down to trust. I trust Bill the Butcher and Sushi Chef Fong. In both cases they eat the same food they sell to me and it is not in their interest to have their reputation sullied by giving their customers food poisoning.
I respect that a lot of you may be going Ewwww right now but I have found that some things that have absolutely no appeal as a food item can be downright tasty once you’ve tried them.
For desert, a little mochi...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tmSrULDVRPc
Saito: The Sushi God of Tokyo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JkeRhKnROds
It’s 2:00 in the morning and now this thread has gone and made me hungry.
Whale - had the experience several times here in Alaska
Tastes like very fatty beef sushi with a little musk.......
Raw fish is definitely an acquired taste and I’ve found tuna tar tare to be a great way to ‘break the ice’ with those reluctant to try it, especially children.
As with all raw food, its important to have confidence in the folks preparing it.