Gozu

A truly wonderful experience! I loved there were aspects of wagyu in every dish, except for the desserts. Everything was well balanced. My favorites were the wagyu and uni on Japanese milk bread and the main course. The wagyu just melts in your mouth.The service was attentive. And the interior was just as subtle and unassuming as it was on the outside. I loved the seating around the kitchen so you can watch the magic happen.

What an experience! Gozu SF has several menus, including a full experience tasting menu, a petite tasting menu, and a stickbar (a la carte wagyu skewers) menu. Seems that there's more meat with the stickbar menu so we made a reservation for 4 for a Thursday night. Meat skewers and drinks... time for a good night to celebrate a birthday! We were seated at the bar and the space looked great. Bathrooms were nearby and they were the fancy bidet ones where the seat is heated, bird sounds in the area, and Aesop soap products. We could have sat there for a while and have been thrilled cause the bathroom was that comfortable! Anyways, people here explained the stick menu (around 1.5 oz per stick) and the drink menu as well. We order a whiskey flight, a wine, and a gin and tonic. All were good. For the food itself, I asked about different menus based on photos I've seen. They offer a la carte items of stuff on their tasting menu based upon availability and they mentioned a wagyu uni toast bite and that was what I was initially interested in so we all get one of those. $40 bite of excellence. It was sooooo good! Nice and tender, full of flavor. The toast didn't get too in the way of the awesomeness. We then order the skewers. We didn't feel like choosing so we started by ordering a couple sets of 5 skewers. They were the same 5 sets so 2 of us shared one set and the other 2 shared the other set. The pieces on the stick were perfect to share for 2. Three skewers came out and there was a side of salt and some spicy salt or something. The meat tastes great with and without the salt. Wow, had no idea all this wagyu can taste so different from each other. I enjoyed some more than others and we noticed we liked some areas of the cow more than other areas. Very interesting. It's so much more than just prime rib, tenderloin, strip, ribeye, etc! The other 2 skewers came later and we kept the same salt we've been using. All the skewers tasted so different! We also got a side of the pickled cucumbers and those were tasty too. Nice acidic complement to the meats. After our skewers and such, we order another 2 sets of 3. We requested no repeats so we get to try more cuts and they were able to accommodate that. Wow, more different flavors. Impressed. There were 2 or 3 skewers that I wasn't fond of, but did appreciate the experience and different tastings.We finished the night with a couple orders of tallow cookies. It was a chocolate chunk flavor that night. Rich, nice texture, and best of all, not too sweet!A bit pricey (both the food and the drinks) and no new salts for additional skewers, but really good and nice experience. We all definitely exceeded our fat allotment for the day, but worth it!

If you enjoy your steak, you really have to experience this.Truly, this is not merely a meal as we were fortunate to get a reservation for four on Friday 11/3rd on the premiere night of San Francisco's Restaurant Week. Getting a 5 pm seating, parking was a bit challenging so we parked at the Rincon Annex Parking Garage a block away. Being our first visit here, we slowly looked for the signage which is a street fold-out board and the painted name on the entrance door. In walking in, I imagined being at a steakhouse in Japan, joyfully impressed by the open kitchen with the open fire. My friends were already here as we were seated at a pair of corner counter seats. The restaurant week menu sat aside the place setting. 1. Canape (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=M1Xhh6kLscsJEyY05L2dZw&userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q) - Wagyu tartare. This was constructed to form a bark as it literally looked like a mini wood log. The texture (crunch) and dominant flavor (smokiness) made for a delightful start to our meal. No need to talk about how it contrasts with the Wagyu tartare in the center.2. Seafood crudo (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=RjdJcVyDst_JMD7MWhVF1w&userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q) - The ingredients include Wagyu bacon, cucumber, and elderflower. In contrast to the first bites, this highlighted the freshness of Hokkaido scallop and its surrounding elements.3. Browned butter custard (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=1Z04ljS7SNcSNYL6btETog&userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q) - This was in a spiny lobster broth with honey nut squash. This reminded me of the traditional chwan mushi (steamed egg custard) but with a deeper and richer flavors.Supplemented course:4. Uni and Wagyu on a milk bread toast (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=Pe0QVZdRxMSmsfx2jma0_g&userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q) - Ridiculous, in a tremendous way. One of the chefs told us it was a one-bite course but it was three for me. The ingredients tell it all as this was my favorite of the night.5. Wagyu teishoku (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=BZdqztC-2TIO4EtM27wa_w&userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q) - A non-traditional but definitely impressive take on a Teishoku meal, there were six elements to accompany the four tender steak slices which were mushrooms and a sauce/jam to dip or add to the steak. The other dishes were another Wagyu tartare, beef broth, pickled radish, seasoned steam rice with cured beef strips, marinated cucumber slices, and gyoza in olive oil, I believe. The other two containers were sea salt and seasoned pepper to garnish the beef. Alternating bites from each container and mixing it with the rice made for a carousel of textures and tastes. Think a tasting menu on a platter. Favorites were the broth and the tartare. Nothing here that I didn't enjoy.5. Textures of corn (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=vIFw2PB3YqsJTX1makXf0Q&userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q) - This dessert was a corn cheesecake garnished with a mix of preparations using corn (candy, cake, flakes, and sauce). Definitely a whimsical pastry that displays their innovative cooking vision. It became a little one note for me but you can't question the creativity.6. Sweets (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=KL1gx2qTj3vgy0qiNYle6g&userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q) - As in most fine dining restaurants, this is often referred to as mignardises. A jelly and cookie concluded our meal.After the teishoku, we were given an ala carte menu where we were able to supplement our meal. I first ordered the ribcap and strip Wagyu (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=v3DgzlIfbbq-GIScn_QKLg&userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q). On the recommendation by one of the chefs, we also tried the upper top blade Wagyu (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=NY2cDmXWuDKajEr3mLzI_Q&userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q) which was my favorite of the three.Service was awesome as different chefs came for different courses in explaining the dishes and their preparation. Sitting at the counter facing the open kitchen, we witnessed the execution of the various dishes which feature the open fire cooking. Thanks to Molly M. for hosting us for this wonderful meal.I spoke with a friend with inside knowledge the next day, learning that the wait list for the remaining restaurant week reservations exceeded a perfect bowling score.Well, I have good news for those on the list. The restaurant sent me an email stating they would offer the menu for the rest of November, an added fourteen days, actually ten more nights. Run, don't walk to get a reservation if you enjoy your beef and want a dining experience.***PS. One note to the business, with the background music, sometimes it's difficult to hear the food descriptions.

I have been wanting to try Gozu after hearing good things about this place. The perfect opportunity arose when I saw a deal going on during restaurant week back in NOV 2023. Gozu offered their four-course GOZU-Chan menu for $90. Normally, the full Gozu tasting menu costs $225. I had a really great experience here. I liked that we were able to try a variety of their most popular items! I also really enjoyed the ambiance as everyone is seated around the grill so you're able to watch the chefs make the orders. The servers were also very attentive and checked in on us pretty often. We added the wagyu toast to our set. It was good- but a little heavy on the wasabi for me. Would recommend trying this place!

Came here for restaurant week 2023, which was $90 for 5 courses. Overall, solid meal and would come back.Food: 4Decor: 4Service: 4canape~4/5. Tasty start with a bite of wagyu and some interesting textures.seafood crudo, wagyu bacon, cucumber, elderflower~4/5. Fresh crudo with cucumber and an interesting presentation on top.browned butter custard, spiny lobster broth, honey nut squash~4/5. Rich custard that balanced nicely with the squash and broth.wagyu teishoku~4/5. Star of the show and my favorite dish. A nice assortment of wagyu prepared a few different ways, including skewer, potsticker, wagyu rice with furikake, and some banchan.textures of sweet corn~3/5. Interesting presentation of corn with a few different textures.sweets~2/5. Just some petit fours: a pate de fruit and a small cookie.Service was very good. Seating was all counter with maybe 20 seats total. Make a reservation.

Love the interior decoration (reminds me of momofuku ko) - highly recommended getting a seat for the chef's counter as you get a front row seat for all the plating and cooking. Food highlights: Corn dessert [5/5]: ok i know this is a wagyu themed restaurant but I really really wanted to give a shout out to the amazing corn based dessert they served. IT WAS SO GOOD and I did not know corn could be THIS versatile. The corn cake was filled with corn cream, with corn white chocolate, some corn flakes, and a corn sweet cream syrup - lots of corn but not overpowering at all. Super delicate, lightly sweetened, it was so so so good and as a corn lover - this absolutely made my night Main platter [5/5]: so I went during their restaurant week menu and this was the main course. They served a skewer of wagyu + side dishes that incorporates different parts of the wagyu cow, from wagyu bone broth, to wagyu dumpling, etc. I wish they gave more meat, but everything was super delicious and yummy (and also quite heavy from all the fat haha). Really liked the edition of pickled radishes and cucumbers to help cut through all of the delicious fattiness. Overall, if they do restaurant week again next year, 10/10 highly recommend getting a reservation - their menu is great value for a fantastic intro to both wagyu and the restaurant!

We walked in for dinner without a reservation and ordered their tasting menu with the caviar addition. It was fantastic; I highly recommend trying it. The restaurant boasts a clean, modern ambiance and an unusual bar, creating a unique dining atmosphere. They prepare all the food right in front of you, which adds an exciting element to the experience. Each dish was exceptional, especially the sea urchin toast with wagyu on a sweet bun. Their unique service style features a rotation of staff, with a different waiter serving each course. We paired everything with fruity sake. We had a great experience and will definitely return. I'm surprised they haven't received a Michelin star yet.

I've been waiting to get an sf restaurant week resy at Gozu for the last two years and every year, they get sold out so fast. This year I finally snagged one and I finally understand why they sold out so quickly. This was a 9.5/10- hand in hand with San Ho Won in my book. This was a teeny tiny meal, but there's so much to eat and try, I did get full with two supplements. $90 for Japanese wagyu tasting was really good, and $40 supplements for the strip skewer and the uni wagyu toast. If you have a pretty penny to spend, this would be a great place to spend it and a special occasion. The counter seating made it modern and fun to watch your food being prepared, and it is intimate and only has about 20 seats. My favorites and must gets were the uni Wagyu toast, Wagyu tartare and the strip skewer! They have the sf restaurant week menu until the end of April so I highly recommend!!

Would def recommend to get the add on wagyu toast! The richness of the Wagyu will always be supplemented by a fresh component in the tasting menu. One of the best set courses I had in the city so far

An amazing and lackluster experience all at the same time. Whisky selection is PHENOMENAL, by no exaggeration. A must try for any whisky lovers, more so particularly, Japanese whisky lovers. They have a selection that'll simply blow your socks off and the service and knowledge to back that selection. Courteous, knowledgeable and prompt service with staff that truly care about your experience. Now onto the food...honestly this was the most disappointing part of the entire experience by a very large margin. Had very high hopes for this place since I've heard wonderful things, read wonderful things and the pictures of the food are absolutely stunning. But coming from a fine dining perspective, this place was the most sub-par tasting menu I've yet to experience of my many. I will however give the food kudos for the presentation and their poached oyster dish. Flavor-wise however, food was lacking. Honestly can't recall too many of them because not much really stood out. Enjoyed 3 of the 8 courses, but was only impressed by the 1 poached oyster dish. The worst course however, was the desert, the baked Alaska. It was so utterly sweet neither my partner nor I could finish it. To add, its bourbon caramel complement was even sweeter. It tasted like diabetes. The dish very much needed something to brighten and balance it further, perhaps a lot more acidity. It was rough. Highly recommend for drink tasting purposes, not for dining purposes.5/5 - Whisky Selection5/5 - Service5/5 - Ambiance5/5 - Concept2/5 - Food