Izakaya Sushi Ran

My boyfriend and I went there a few Fridays ago, and we really enjoyed both the food and the ambiance. One star knocked off due to high prices for what you get, but the food was overall great (we recommend the miso glazed salmon, the crunch roll, and the mochi dessert) and we really liked our cocktails too. Another note is that they have a great happy hour, with $5 sake (and reduced priced beers and wine)! Would definitely recommend a visit!

The bottom line first - It's an enjoyable culinary experience, made with top-notch ingredients, with ups and downs along the way. More "ups" so worth a visit. Be prepared, this is not a cheap dinner. The menu is almost suspiciously short, but I took that as a good sign, and you can tell that every dish is made with a thought behind it. We were pleasantly surprised by the soba soup as the (handmade?) noodles were perfect. The ribs were delicious and tender. Tuna sashimi was excellent, but both maki rolls (shrimp tempura and spicy tuna) were... strange. The thing is, this is not just another traditional Japanese/sushi place, it's more of a fusion menu, and you should approach it as such. For better and worst, I guess. The dessert was excellent - chocolate donuts with ice cream. To sum this up - Food is great, but might not be exactly what you expect. Cocktails are good, ambiance is perfect, but it's just not a five stars restaurant (in my humble opinion, of course). Worth a visit, but set your expectations right.

The restaurant is cute and not too loud. Service was also pretty good and attentive. The waitress had good recommendations on the menu and we ate pretty quickly. The king salmon is very good. Great quality and fresh. The pork belly was well cooked and had a nice sauce to go with it but I would have liked some crispiness on the top as the texture was a bit boring and, considering the amount of fat in it, it could have been better. Their tofu is really good. Very interesting combination of flavors. The purple yam desert needed more ice cream... the yam alone is too dry. The ice cream and the kinako on top were very good.

We actually really enjoyed this place. The location is a bit odd, as the Castro is not exactly known for its sophistication or refined restaurants, but the experience was excellent. We sat at the bar area, where they serve the same food as the rest of the restaurant, but you don't need a reservation. The place is modern and very clean cut. The food was very creative. Asian inspired, but quite unusual. The flavours are rather suttle and delicate. Best fish was the poke, which was like no other. Service was excellent. Would go back.