Ranzan

I've eaten at Ranzan periodically over the last 5-6 years. Each meal is its own experience and enjoyable but one thing is clear that makes this place great....the meals keep getting better. The chef has clearly been perfecting his methods over the years and what they serve now is better than ever.Personally I think Ranzan is deserving of a Michelin star.

Should have written this one up sooner, because, unfortunately, the menu just describes the form of each course and not the specifics. Our sweet server described each dish, but in such a soft , accented voice, it was hard to follow. For most of our lunch, we were the only people in the restaurant, so that felt a little strange. They never responded to our phone messages seeking a lunch reservation. I guess that's why, but it seemed poor form not to respond.The two standout dishes were the first course,homemade, deliciously creamy and rich with briny caviar on top, and the fresh crab chawanmushi.Food:34/40Service: 18/20value: 16/20Atm/intangibles: 16/20Overall: 84/100

We did the mini Kaiseki menu for lunch and it was truly spectacular. There was not one dish that we did not like. All the preparations were done with the maximum care and all the ingredients were flavorful. Having travelled to Japan recently, I could not stop thinking I had this gem of a restaurant so close, and I had to go to Japan to get it together and find a proper Kaiser without breaking the bank or needing a passport.The service was outstanding. All the movements our server did were part of a magical choreography that left us speechless. It was the best service I can remember. The restaurant is light and airy, with no distractions in the decoration. I think this makes the experience even better given that you can truly focus on the food in front of you. I am planning to return for lunch to try the other 2 menus, once is rice bowl based and the other is a bento for lunch, and to either try again the mini kaiseki for lunch or go big with the dinner Kaiseki. Just thinking about it, it makes my heart get warm. 100% recommended.

I feel like Ranzan is a hidden gem. We have dined there for lunch a few times and we really enjoyed their lunch sets. We also got their takeout during Covid, and it was something we always looked forward to. It hasn't been super crowded when we went for lunch. It is so peaceful and the service is always great. Although the dishes are high quality and it is a fine dining restaurant, it doesn't feel stuffy. I would highly recommend trying Ranzan if you want to have an excellent Japanese meal.

Simply amazing. Japanese Kaiseki style, which is like chef's selection in bento-box style, but they're called Juubako. Small bites of sushi, veggies, eggs, etc. They make their own tofu, which is creamy and rich and definitely the best I've ever tasted. Not cheap, but I promise it's worth it.I saw some reviews that the interior was too austere, but that makes it more authentic. And you're there for the food, so that should be what you're concentrating on.

Came here again and loved the kaiseki menu much more this time around.Some highlights were: - homemade tofu with soy sauce- appetizers (kansai?, pickled radish)- beef- cod- steamed eggs with crab- miso ground chicken over rice The halibut sashimi could have used some more flavor but it was definitely unique. Overall, glad we came back again.

Absolutely incredible set meal service with outstandingly prepared traditional Japanese meal sets. For those unfamiliar with traditional Japanese meals, they are NOT what you typically find as being common in western restaurants. They are however the common meal types that you have in Japan, and is largely the type of meal that I ate as a child at home. Seafood and vegetables are very common, many dishes are elaborately prepared here utilizing complex broths or cooking techniques, which makes the traditional meals absolutely outstanding. The meals change each month, as they are hevaily season-influenced, which is a very common thing in Japan. Certain meals are eaten only during certain times of the year--during the fall and winter for example, there are soup dishes with roots, and in the summer you would commonly eat cold somen at night. The take on the seasonality here is outstanding. The dishware is also exceptional--unbelievably well made dishes are handpainted in gold or lacquer--very exquisite dishes that have a unique purpose for each item served. This is also a very typical Japanese custom. There are some food items that were exceptional, and other that I can see putting off someone unfamiliar with traditional Japanese goods. The exceptional items were the fried ayu fish wrapped around delicate maitake mushrooms, in a tempura style batter. The seasonal fish was outstandingly delicate and light that went extremely well wrapped around the maitake mushrooms. This dish was unquestionably my favorite--very Japanese. The second favorite was the steak, which was similar to Wagyu style, very buttery soft and melt in your mouth texture. The items however that might be surprising to those unfamiliar with Japanese traditonal food was the abalone dish, and the ankimo dishes (monkfish liver akin to "seafood paté"). They also have very interesting sakes, and we tried the champagne-style sake, which was bubbly, fruity, sweet and tasted fairly close to many champagnes.

Ranzan's food and service are both top notch. We didn't expect to have this kind of restaurants right at our neighborhood. We have visited twice already.

The food was good, service was great, ambiance was weird, wait times between courses were atrocious. If you're on a timeline, this is not the place to go to. We had 5:30 reservations - right when they opened so we could still get home for our son's bedtime. We wrapped up dinner right after 8pm so it was a mad rush to get home in time. The ambiance of the space was really odd. Walls have these weird textured lines and it's this ugly pale green against a blue wall and wood panelling. Just wasn't thought out considering their dishes and presentation all the way down to the attire of the server were so thoughful. They have 4 levels of Kaiseki courses you can get:1. Ohara $158. 12 courses2. Kibune $188. 143. Tatao $228. 15 + 1 supplement option.4. Katsura $288. 15 + 1 supplement option (grilled dish from #3 is replaced with Kobe beef)As for the food, we got the Ohara course. It was good, but definitely not Michelin quality considering they haven't figured out the cadence to bring the food out in a timely manner. This was the main reason dinner took 2.5hrs for the shortest meal. In order:1. Starter: homemade tofu and homemade soy sauce. This will be the freshest tofu I've ever eaten. So smooth. 2. Appetizer: Spring veggies sukiyaki style. Pickled veggies, rice, pickled yams that look like noodles. This was just okay. 3. Soup dish: Asparagus soup with a block of tofu. It as okay. 4. Sashimi 1 type: White fish with daikon, green onions, and homemade soy sauce. This was good.5. Simmered dish: Duck with crunchy veggies. Crunchy veggies were weird but the duck was really good. 6. Refreshing dish: Shiso sorbet. It was lovely. 7. Grilled dish: A5 Wagyu sirloin from Japan. It was overcooked but still had good flavor. 8. Steamed dish: Rice and fish. Rice had a congee texture which was unexpected and the fish was at the bottom of the mixture. It was nice and the most creative dish imo. 9. Vinaigrette dish: Seared octopus with veggies in a plum sauce. This was good. 10. Rice with clams. "Hagama". Comes with oolong tea.11. Miso soup. Tastes like miso soup. This is on its own line because that's how they listed it, but it's delivered with #10. 12. Dessert. Mochi with red bean filling. Comes with green tea. This was yummy.18% gratuity automatically added. 20% gratuity for parties larger than 6.

Fall Flavors A wonderful return visit to Ranzan in Redwood City had me smiling throughout my exquisite mealFall flavors were on full display with kabocha squash, maitake mushrooms, and peach incorporated into the dishesThe care and beautiful plating of each dish is a joy visually but just as wonderful with respect to flavorsAsked to name a favorite course, I struggled between the uni soy milk chawanmushi, simmered duck and always excellent Hokkaido wagyu steak, but my heart is always with their excellent saba which I've ordered many times during pandemic takeoutI was fortunate enough to learn of saba on the menu and both chef and owner were gracious enough to allow me to order saba for takeout after the meal one last timeThank you chef, thank you Ranzan and staff for making a special night extra memorable! Takao September 2023 menu $228 per person ~ Sesame Tofu / Ankimo marinated in saikyo miso / Grated nagaimo / kabocha squash with poppy seed / Shimeji and Maitake mushroom with walnut sauce / Clear dashi soup with peach / Sashimi / Simmered duck / Yuzu sorbet / Wagyu sirloin steak / Saba sushi / soy milk chawanmushi / karasumi daikon / blue shrimp okina age / Hotate and lotus root with apple vinaigrette / Steamed Rice with Matsutake mushroom / Nameko mushrooms and scallions miso soup / Steamed chestnut yo-kanRanzan (Redwood City, CA)Ranzan is indoor dining only and accepts reservations on Tock only at least one day in advance.