Hana Izumi

Very delicious! You must call ahead to book a reservation to dine in. They do multiple rounds of lunch and dinner and everyone in the restaurant is served the same dishes at the same time. I believe they change their menu every month and we had the chance to try their February tasting menu. The servers and owner herself in a kimono comes around to make sure they explain each dish to you. It feels very fancy and comfortable at the same time, like fancy dining at home. The concept is multiple courses of traditional Japanese food with a slight modern twist focusing on balance so don't expect a flavor bomb with each dish. All the ingredients are super fresh and the original taste of the ingredients doesn't get masked in their sauces. You do get a choice of dish in two courses. The grilled yellowtail was yummy but it does have a lot of bones so I don't recommend for younger children. The grilled beef tongue was decent but the beef stew was amazing.

My fiancé made reservations for us last night for our anniversary since we've been dying to try this spot. We pass by a lot when we're eating around the area. We were warmly welcomed with live music & the staff were very friendly and polite. The restaurant is a little smaller but had great ambience, the lights were dimmed but not too dim that you'd need to flash a light to see the menu. We started off the night with the amuse bouche which consisted of yuzu infused squid, sesame/miso(?) tofu, the signature Japanese omelet with grilled eel and a clam soup. I enjoyed the yuzu infused squid a lot but that also because I really enjoy yuzu flavored things lol. Next came the sashimi, which I felt like was pretty fresh. What really stood out to me was the nori sauce on top of the abalone and the yuzu infused wasabi/hot sauce(?) on the hamachi sashimi. You can really taste the nori in the sauce & I felt like this was a creative way to change up how seaweed is served. The yuzu in the wasabi/hot sauce was prevalent but not overpowering, great way to change up the regular wasabi/hot sauce. The next dish was the soba noodle soup with slow cooked duck. This was one of my favorite dishes of the night though it may seem simple. The broth was so incredibly flavorful, I wanted more!! The soba noodles weren't overcooked & still had some bounce in every bite. For the choice of dish, we chose from a list of 4 options: flounder cutlet, yellowtail collar, beef tongue, & shrimp tempura. We opted for flounder cutlet and yellowtail collar which we shared. The flounder cutlet was topped with egg tartar, the yellowtail collar was served with radish and some sort of soy sauce which my fiancé really enjoyed. Next was the yuzu nabe which unfortunately I wasn't too big of a fan of. I did feel like the yuzu was a little overpowering in this dish. And lastly was the entree which we chose between a chirashi bowl and a kani zousui which was described as a Dungeness crab risotto. Of course we got one of each! I didn't try the chirashi bowl because I was already feeling quite full but the Dungeness crab risotto was delicious! We were offered a dessert menu but by the time we finished our meal we were already so full. Overall, we enjoyed our experience and for $98 per person this was a great 6 course meal! We left with our hearts and bellies really happy. So happy to have found a kaiseki spot so close to us & cannot wait to come back. Oh also, they change their menus every month, so your visit might look slightly different from ours.

Texted to make the reservation for dinner. It was a multi course meal and we had the option to pick a choice of the fourth entree and last entree. Dessert is not included , however they do have a dessert option for extra charge $18. The dinner kaiseki style meal is $98 and added on top is a 20% service charge and tax. The host/owner was dressed in a kimono and came to each table to explain the dishes and options available. She was very friendly and personable. They were accommodating to our baby, and provided us with a high chair. The meal itself was also delicious and felt comforting. I was craving a Japanese kaiseki meal reminiscent of what I had in Japan at the ryokans in Hakone and this delivered. For the food:Amuse Bouche - appetizers - clam soup , salmon cucumber salad, sesame tofu, egg omelet with eel. - a delicious start to the meal. Assorted sashimi and salmon ikura donburi- sashimi included steamed abalone, tuna , trout, yellow tail. - delicious and fresh and served with real wasabi Soba noodle soup with cooked duck - the soba and broth was tasty and the duck was very tender and flavorful. Very comforting For the fourth course, she presented several options which included of either yellow tail, beef tongue, shrimp tempura or flounder croquette. We opted for the beef tongue and yellowtail. The yellowtail was braised and served with a slightly sweet soy sauce. The beef tongue was served two ways: grilled and braised. I was really impressed with the grilled beef tongue. It was very tasty and tender. The flounder also sounded like a yummy option. Lastly was the final option, we could choose either a Negitoro chirashi bowl or a Dungeness crab mixed with rice. We both went with Negitoro chirashi but I saw the serving of Dungeness crab and they had served the dish inside of a crab shell and it looked amazing so I kind of wish we got to order that one too. Nonetheless, the chirashi itself was tasty and was also served with miso soup. We were full at the end of the meal. The dessert option looked good too but we had to leave to nap the baby and the hostess was kind to check with us and ensure that we could pay the bill promptly to nap the baby. Overall, a very enjoyable experience and would recommend to anyone craving a comforting multi course Japanese meal. They change the menu every month to keep things fresh. Reservations are required for lunch or dinner and can be done through text message to the restaurant. Parking is street parking so plan accordingly. We were lucky to get a spot nearby.

I've been wanting to try this as well live nearby and it was very easy to make reservations. Make sure to give yourself some time to find parking if you're going during peak hours. The whole experience was very quaint and nice. Greeted with hot tea and the staff made sure to introduce each course and check in with us. My favorites were the sesame tofu (part of the amuse bouche) which is their signature, the crab salad, and beef tongue. Everything was cooked well and had nice flavor. Dessert was delicious as well with the custard pudding being one of smoothest and decadent I had. Only wished I got a bit more!

I discovered Hana Izumi while searching for a nice restaurant to celebrate a birthday. After reading glowing reviews on Yelp and Google, I eagerly anticipated the dine-in experience. Unfortunately, the lunch left much to be desired.We opted for the $40 lunch set with a $35 sashimi supplement and the $65 lunch set. Given its upscale branding, I was surprised to find that they didn't serve real wasabi; all dishes featured instant wasabi, which undermined the overall quality.$40 Lunch Set - 2.5/5Appetizers: Soba salad and slow-cooked duck. The soba noodles were soggy, though the duck provided some redeeming flavor.Amuse Bouche: Kobachi three ways--tempura vegetables, sweet pumpkin with meat purée, sliced roasted beef, and their special mochi. None were particularly memorable, except for the mochi, which stood out.Steamed Dish: Savory steamed egg custard. This was the highlight, boasting a silky texture.Entrée: BBQ eel and prawn tempura donburi bowl. While enjoyable, it didn't offer anything exceptional compared to more affordable izakayas nearby. Overall, the $40 set felt underwhelming and lacking sophistication. The $35 sashimi supplement featured decent cuts, but nothing extraordinary.$65 Lunch Set - 2/5Appetizers: Seafood sunomono. A very ordinary salad typical of sushi spots, featuring octopus, pickled mackerel, and another seafood.Assorted Sashimi: Again, decent cuts, but the same octopus from the appetizer made a reappearance, which felt repetitive and disappointing.Steamed Dish: Identical to the $40 course.Entrée: Mini ikura donburi. This dish was decent, but the cheap wasabi and small portion of seafood left me unsatisfied. In total, I spent around $190, including a 20% gratuity, which felt reasonable given the courteous staff. While I appreciated the hospitality, the food quality and creativity did not justify the price. I'm left wondering how this restaurant maintains such high ratings--perhaps I just visited on an off day.

The best place for Kaiseki in Millbrae! There are some parking spots available in front of the restaurant or you can usually find street parking. Reservations are required, so make sure to make them in advance!The menu changes monthly and includes an amuse bouche, sashimi course, refresher, fried dish, steamed dish, and entree. Dessert is available for an additional cost. Service is lovely! The owners are very sweet, and one of the owners comes out to explain every course to each table personally!All of the dishes were creative and beautifully presented! The amuse bouche offered during my visit included a sesame pudding with wasabi and steamed uni, smoked duck breast with dijon mustard and chives, and fried octopus. I especially loved the octopus--super tender with a slight crispiness from the outer fried batter. The sashimi was so fresh! I really enjoyed the different presentations within this course. Along with simple cuts of sashimi (blue fin tuna, yellowtail, and sea trout, so good!), there was also a small dish of cut blue fin tuna with mountain yam, Japanese pickles, and wasabi stems. I didn't even know you could eat wasabi stems! There was also a scallop dish with Taiwanese dehydrated egg millet and a red snapper with rice dish. Loved the variety! The Hamachi Daikon Salad was another favorite from the menu. It was so refreshing with the ume plum ponzu sauce! I enjoyed the fried soba pieces on top too!The fish katsu was perfectly crispy and freshly fried. On the side, it also came with yummy dungeness crab, all deshelled, so I didn't even have to do any work! I love chawanmushi, so I was super excited that this was part of the kaiseki menu. This steamed savory egg custard was tasty and so smooth! For the entree, we had a choice of Negitoro Chirashi Bowl (a DIY presentation to make your own hand roll) or Tempura Chazuke (a kakiage tempura over rice that came with an ochazuke tea broth on the side that you pour over).Would definitely come again to explore another one of their kaiseki menus!

A very memorable experience!! A 6 course preset menu surprised me and left us very full. The fish was fresh and everything that was curated was delicious! A pretty small restaurant so reservations are preferred. The service was great and the owner of the restaurant is super sweet and lovely! I really loved everything but what stood out to me was the pork cutlet! I was shocked by how soft and perfectly crispy it was. The only thing to point out is the last dish I chose the wagyu and I did expect more from that dish, but the other option for the entree was delicious! Other than that, everything was perfect!

I was so happy that we were able to celebrate my wife's birthday with her and her friends for lunch. Everything was prepared really well and came with a reasonable price tag.On the day that we dined here for lunch, the appetizer was a duck salad with radish and soba noodles. I think the duck was cooked with a Sousvide. It was insanely tender and flavorful. The salad dressing was a yuzu vinaigrette which worked surprising well even with soba noodles.The next dish was a combination of savory appetizers. My favorite was this sesame tofu which had this really great chewy texture. Another memorable small bite was what tasted like a cured or dry aged ocean trout; the texture was quite unique.I opted for the sashimi addition which was good, not very unique. I may skip next time. There was tako, hamachi, chutoro and otoro. I got the unagi and tempura bowl while my wife got the chirashi bowl. I preferred the unagi and tempura bowl by far. The shrimp tempura was well fried and the sauces in the bowl worked really well. The egg told sauce really brought the dish together.

Saturday May 25th 5:30PM was my visit and it was during dinner time. They have two seatings, 5:30 and 7:30pm, for dinner. I HIGHLY recommend you call ahead of time to make reservations. They do accept walk-ins but it depends on if the restaurant is full. They only have about 9-10 tables, so I personally would call ahead to make sure you have a spot saved and you don't waste your time. Calling them and booking a time was a breeze.Great location in Millbrae where there's all the restaurants and close to 101 freeway entrance/exit. Parking is free after 6PM. 2hour parking otherwise everywhere, except Sundays free all day. It took me less than 1 minute to find parking.Food was excellent. For $98 per person for a kaiseki dinner menu is not too bad given Bay Area Prices. The chef changes up the menu from time to time, and sometimes it's different for lunch I've heard (cheaper too!). I would consider coming back to try their new menus. The creativity is pretty evident in the dishes and I adore the time the chef took to plate the intricacies of each dish. My absolute favorite was the Refresher Hotate Mizore-su. I don't know what's about it but the cucumber vinaigrette was amazing on top of the nori tempura boat.Service was great! Appreciate the waitress (wife of the chef), taking the time to come by every table to explain the dishes. It makes it personable. I'll have to visit once again in the future!

Try it for the 1st time w my husband, cute little place decoration was very nice and the waitress. The owner's wife is very friendly overall all the food is delicious and just perfect not too much. Not too little. I really enjoyed it. Lunch menu is $48 they don't change the menu, but for dinner is $108 a menu change every month can't wait to go back