Omakase Dinner

This time we went in a group of three and decided to opt for an omakase style dinner to sample the premium options available. The meal started with some tobiuo (flying fish) uramaki (inside out roll) that was simply amazing. The remains of the fish were later served to us after it had been fried, making it a truly complete and Japanese experience.

We then got some very decent sashimi plates with maguro (tuna back), hamachi (yellowtail), ebi (shrimp), katsuo (bonito fish), sawagani tempura (fried crabs), suzuki (sea bass), sake (salmon) and ika (squid) sashimi with some tamago (omelette) on the side as well as ikura (salmon roe), aji (jack mackerel), kani (crab), hotategai (scallop) and an quail egg . The squid and bonito fish were excellent and absolutely outstanding in texture and taste. Even more so the mackerel and scallop were absolutely delicious.

We then moved on to an nigiri plate that came with unagi (freshwater eel), ebi (shrimp), maguro (tuna back) and hamachi toro (yellowtail belly) as well as hotategai (scallop) gunkan (battleship sushi) and some excellent toro (bluefin fatty tuna belly) nigiri. Needless to say that the toro was amazing, but also the yellowtail belly was excellent.

Therefore we had a final plate of hamachi toro (yellowtail belly), sake toro (salmon belly) and hotategai (scallop) nigiri to finish up the meal. All of these pieces melted in our mouthes and were truly remarkable. These pieces alone are worth any trip from nearly anywhere.

Sushi Guide Verdict

Fuki Sushi is a very traditional and authentic Japanese restaurant. With its wooden and warm interiors and traditional decor if creates a very comfy and welcoming atmosphere. The menu options are extensive and range from typical sushi classics to the most exquisite rarities to be found. The quality and taste of the fish is outstanding and ranks among the best around. The drink menu is fitting for this upscale restaurant and leaves nothing to be desired. The service team is very friendly, forthcoming and makes every visit a most enjoyable experience.

Atmosphere
Menu Options
Food Quality
Drink Variety
Service
Average

Review date: June 5, 2019

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Midnight Bites

While exploring San Francisco and it’s cultural offerings time passed quickly. Since many restaurants close pretty early in the night compared to other regions (e.g. the Mediterranean), options rapidly decrease at late hours. Still, some restaurants are in for a surprise. Way after midnight on a weekday we entered the small underground sushi restaurant for some quick bites on the go. The cocktail bar was very good (we had vodka with cucumber and mint served in a classical martini glass) and also the music selection was excellent with a resident DJ.

As a group we shared some tobiko (flying fish roe) gunkan and a selection of avocado uramaki (inside out roll) with hamachi (yellowtail), ebi (shrimp), ika (squid), aji (mackerel), sake (salmon), maguro (tuna back) and tai (sea bream) topping. The texture and taste of the fish was excellent way beyond anything we expected at such a late hour. As a last call for the kitchen we had some nice maguro (tuna back) futo maki (big roll) and some sake (salmon) uramaki (inside out roll).

Sushi Guide Verdict

Ryoko’s Japanese Restaurant is an authentic and particular sushi restaurant in the heart of San Francisco. It is a tiny place that tries to convey the vibe of a Tokyo sushi bar and is frequented by many Japanese customers as well. The menu options are quite good and the food quality is excellent. The drink menu is average and the service was friendly and forthcoming. Especially on a midnight stroll, this restaurant is a very good option for some sushi snacks.

Atmosphere
Menu Options
Food Quality
Drink Variety
Service
Average

Review date: June 8, 2019

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Amazing sushi dinner

The dinner started out with an awesome moriawase sashimi plate with umi masu (ocean trout), hamachi (yellowtail), maguro (big eye tuna) and fresh wasabi. The hamachi was absolutely amazing and among the best I have ever had. The umi masu was also delicious and melted in my mouth. Only the maguro was rather average. With this impressive start, I decided to try more specialties from the menu.

The nigiri plate I ordered was absolutely amazing. It came with tai (sea bream), hotategai (scallop), kamasu (barracuda), inada (baby yellowtail), hotaru-ika (firefly squid) and bincho toro (albacore tuna belly). It is difficult to say, what was most amazing. The hotategai was very creamy and an absolute delight, the inada was even better then the previous hamachi sashimi. The hotaru-ika was delicious and the bincho toro just melted in my mouth with an amazing texture and mild bus very distinct taste. It was amazing.

Sushi Guide Verdict

ICHI Sushi is an amazing restaurant in San Francisco’s Bernal Heights with a very classy and chic interior design. It’s a very small place and when its full, it also is extremely loud, the only downside to the otherwise very authentic restaurant. The menu options are exclusive but not very extensive and a advertised as sustainably sourced. The quality and taste of the fish is outstanding and among the best in the area. The drink menu is good and features many options for a nice night out. The service was friendly and welcoming but we I had to wait for my dishes for a long time. Apart from this restaurant just being too busy, it is an awesome choice and I highly recommend it.

Atmosphere
Menu Options
Food Quality
Drink Variety
Service
Average

 

Review date: June 8, 2018

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Amazing Sushi

The menu is extensive and offers everything I could hope for. I started with a moriawase sashimi plate that came with maguro (bluefin tuna back), tai (sea beam), hamachi (yellowtail), sake (salmon), hotategai (scallop) with ikura (salmon roe) topping and ika (squid). I also had some katsuo (bonito fish) sashimi, kappa (cucumber), shitake (forest mushrooms), sake (salmon) with cream cheese and seared maguro (bluefin tuna back) with ikura (salmon roe). The sake and tuna was very good, gut I especially enjoyed the hotategai and the katsuo.

As the menu had so many amazing options to chose from, I tried some more nigiri specialties. I was especially amazed by the toro (bluefin fatty tuna belly), the hamachi toro (yellowtail belly) and sake toro (salmon belly). The ika (squid) and unagi (freshwater eel) was also great but was easily outperformed by the madai (red sea bream) and katsuo (skipjack tuna) nigiri. All in all, it was amazing and difficult to name a clear dominant winner.

Sushi Guide Verdict

Fuki Sushi is a one of its kind sushi restaurant. Located in the heart of Silicon Valley it has been around for decades and lives up to is reputation. The atmosphere is very authentic and cozy, providing an ideal setting for a night out. The menu options are extensive and cover anything one could hope for. The food quality and taste is outstanding and absolutely amazing. The drink menu is ok and typical for a restaurant of this esteem. The service was also perfect. The team was and welcoming and made my visit a experience to remembered.

Atmosphere
Menu Options
Food Quality
Drink Variety
Service
Average

 

Review date: June 6, 2018

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Late Sushi Dinner

This time I went with 2 friends for a late seating. We started out with a sashimi moriawase plate. It came with king sake (king salmon), hamachi (yellowtail), hon maguro (bluefin tuna back), kanpachi (amber jack) and tai (sea bream). As usual, everything tasted really good and the tai was especially amazing. I had this moriawase plate many times, but it remains to be an absolute delight.

After the sashimi, I had a small dish of horenso (spinach) and then opted for some nigiri pieces. I had ainame (greenling), kamasu (barracuda), isaki (grunt fish) and toro (bluefin fatty tuna belly). Obviously the toro was outstanding, but I was also very impressed with the ainame, which I never had before. It was very tasty and a welcome surprise. The isaki was also pretty unique and was a good recommendation by our sushi chef. All of these nigiri pieces were sushi bar exclusives, so it was a good decision to wait for seats at the bar.

Sushi Guide Verdict

Sushi Ran is an absolutely superior sushi restaurant and always a good choice. It provides a very authentic atmosphere and very welcoming and warm setting. The menu options are extensive and the fish quality and taste is among the best to find. The drink menu is also excellent and offers lots of beer, wine and sake options. The service was outstanding, friendly and forthcoming. Although we only stayed for a very brief dinner, it was an excellent choice to make the trip to Sausalito.

Atmosphere
Menu Options
Food Quality
Drink Variety
Service
Average

 

Review date: June 2, 2018

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Sashimi and Nigiri Dinner

This time I started out with an 1o piece moriawase sashimi platter with hon maguro (bluefin tuna), bincho maguro (white tuna), hamachi (yellowtail), susuki (sea bass) and king sake (king salmon). As always the taste and texture of the fish was breathtaking.

As I was sitting at the sushi bar, I decided to go with the sushi bar exclusives and opted for a 7 piece omakase nigiri menu. It starte out with umi masu (ocean trout with shiso leaf), toro (bluefin fatty tuna belly) with white sturgeon roe and katsuo (lightly cherrywood smoked bonito). After that it went on with kamasu (barracuda), zuke chu toro (red wine cured bluefin medium fatty tuna), a kusshi oyster and one amazing piece of wagyu (grade a5 Japanese beef striploin). To finish the meal I chose one final piece of shirayaki (grilled freshwater eel) as an alternative to my usual choice of unagi.

Sushi Guide Verdict

As many times before, this dinner was an amazing culinary experience. With seats directly at the sushi bar I could watch the sushi chef’s prepare the fish and could enjoy the select items of the sushi bar exclusive menu. The atmosphere at Sushi Ran is alway very cozy and welcoming, making me feel at home. The menu options are extensive and the quality and taste of the food was outstanding, above and beyond to be precise. The drink menu offered a wide selection of wine and sake and as usual the staff was extremely friendly and heartwarming.

Atmosphere
Menu Options
Food Quality
Drink Variety
Service
Average

 

Review date: October 11, 2015

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Moriawase Sashimi Plate

This time I started out with a moriawase sashimi plate. The selection of the day was pretty good and I enjoyed the first pieces at the sushi bar especially since it has been a while since I have been there. The plate came with kausi uni (deep seas urchin), katsuo (lightly cherrywood smoked bonito), kamasu (seared barracude), tennen hamachi (wild yellowtail), aji (horse mackerel), kusshi oyster as well as hotaru ika (baby firefly squid), kinmedai (golden eye snapper) and buri toro (wild yellowtail belly).

Omakase Nigiri Menu

After that I opted for an omakase style nigiri menu and enjoyed every bit of it. It started out with kasugodai (babey red snapper), kinmedai (golden eye snapper) and buri toro (wild yellowtail belly). Afterwards I had chu toro (bluefin medium fatty tuna), toro (bluefin fatty tuna belly), kamasu (seared barracuda) and mahata (black grouper). I finished the dinner with a wagyu grade a5 Japanese striploin, one unagi (freshwater eel) and one shirayaki (freshwater eel) nigiri.

More information about this visit to Sushi Ran can be found at moritzrecke.com.

Sushi Guide Verdict

More true than ever before, I really love this restaurant. Its unique atmosphere with the picturesque backdrop of Sausalito always makes me feel at peace. The menu options are extensive and everything is fresh and often locally sourced. The fish quality and taste is above and beyond and can’t be matched my many other restaurants anywhere in the world. The wine and sake menu is also extensive and would allow for an exciting journey through the Japanese spirit world. As always, the service was outstanding, making every visit to Sushi Ran an experience to be remembered.

Review date: February 26, 2017

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As a group of 3 we were seated at the exceptionally beautiful open sushi bar and enjoyed the service of Sushi Ran’s executive chef, Mr. Takatoshi Toshi, their master chef since 2013. I had the opportunity to be his guest once before and cannot complain about any other chef there either, but this day truly was one to be remembered. It was a special delight to watch Takatoshi Toshi work. To give you an idea, here is a short video of him at a Gala Evening in Israel.

Omakase Sashimi Plate

Anyway, on this day we decided to go with an omakase style sashimi menu and basically went from one culinary explosion to the next. The first 1o piece sashimi plate came with 2 pieces of king sake (king salom), hamachi (yellowtail), hon maguro (bluefin tuna), ara (red spotted grouper) and kusshi oyster. We especially enjoyed the oyster, which seemed a refreshing and not so common addition to the mix, and enjoyed watching Takatoshi Toshi work on all the other delicious dishes he prepared for other guests in the restaurant.

Even more Omakase Sashimi

We went on to explore the amazing selection of sushi bar exclusives and were served even more delicious sashimi pieces one by one. We decided to stick with sashimi not only because we prefer to focus on the fish’s texture and taste but also because we wanted to make most of the experience and have room left for everything we wanted to try. This is true generally for me, I prefer sashimi most of the time and also enjoy nigiri but tend to skip makis most of the time.

During our culinary journey of the most exquisite menu items the sushi bar could offer, we enjoyed dishes like kasugodai (baby red eye snapper), iwashi (sardine), sagoshi (spanish mackerel). kamasu (barracuda), kurama ebi (Japanese tiger shrimp) and zuke chu toro (red wine cured bluefin medium fatty tuna). It was followed by kaisu uni (deep sea ocean packed sea urchin), toro (bluefin fetty tuna belly), kohada (gizzard shad), sujiko (salmon roe) and shirayaki (freshwater grilled eel).

Since that left some pieces left on the menu, we also tried tarabagani (king crab with crab butter aioli), which was an absolute delight. We continued with bincho toro (white fatty tuna belly), zuke sake (white soy sauce cured fatty salmon), meso anago (braised young sea eel) and a final piece of wagyu grad a5 Japanese beef striploin nigiri. If we would have asked for any more, we would have probably started from the beginning. I can’t remember anything important we left out on the menu.

More information about this truly one of a kind visit to Sushi Ran can be found on moritzrecke.com.

Sushi Guide Verdict

This truly was an amazing experience. With seats at the sushi bar and Sushi Ran’s executive chef Takotoshi Toshi as our chef for the day, we made the most of our visit for sure. As always the atmosphere was an absolute delight and we stayed there for many hours to taste everything we could think of. The menu options are truly extensive with even more exclusive items being available at the sushi bar exclusive menu. The quality and taste of the food was outstanding, with the rights words amiss to truly describe the experience. The drink menu offered everything we were looking for and as usual the staff was not just extremely friendly but also heartwarming. This was definitely one of the most amazing experiences I ever had at a sushi restaurant.

Atmosphere
Menu Options
Food Quality
Drink Variety
Service
Average

Review date: October 16, 2015

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Moriawase Sashimi Dinner

This time I opted for a moriawase style dinner, starting out with an amazing sashimi plate. I came with copper river king sake (wild king salmon), hotategai (scallop), sustainable zuke chu toro (red wine cured bluefin medium fatty tuna), hamachi (yellowtail) and medai (wild red snapper). As I wasn’t able to eat much more, I just had one more nigiri piece of sawara (cherrywood smoked spanish horse mackerel), which is one of my absolute favourites at the restaurant.

Sushi Guide Verdict

As always Sushi Ran’s unique and traditional atmosphere captivated me. Whenever you enter the restaurant, it seems like a place of piece and quiet, no matter how crowded it might be. The food menu is extensive, serving everything any sushi aficionado could desire. The fish is always fresh, of the highest quality and intense taste. The drink menu is also extensive and offers everything one might look fore in a upscale restaurant. The restaurant’s staff was friendly and forthcoming as always.

Review date: June 1, 2014

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Omakase Style Dinner

This time I started out with an omakase style sashimi plate. It came with hon maguro (bluefin tuna), hamachi (yellowtail), aji (horse mackerel), zuke maguro (red wine cured tuna), suzuki (sea bass), hirmae (halibut), king sake (king salmin),  kanpai (amber jack) and ika (squid). Afterwards I had an amazing nigiri plate with zuke chu toro (red wine cured bluefin medium fatty tuna), sawara (cherrywood smoked spanish horse mackerel) and kamasu (barracuda). The last order was an unagi (freshwater eel) nigri, which is always of supreme taste.

Sushi Guide Verdict

The atmosphere at Sushi Ran is truly unique. It is a very cozy and quiet restaurant with an open sushi bar with an overall traditional and exquisite interior design. The sushi menu is extensive, offering both local and sustainable fish with additional special dishes available only at the sushi bar. The food is of the highest quality and the most amazing taste. The wine and sake menu is also extensive, allowing anyone to find what he might desire. Both the sushi chefs and the waiters are exceptionally friendly and forthcoming, making every visit to the restaurant an experience to be remembered.

Review date: September 11, 2013

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