Ran Restaurant

Very good service (they allowed us to sit and order drinks 30 minutes before evening opening time) and the food was excellent. The portions were a bit on the small side but I suppose that for the price of what i ordered (Chicken Bul Go Gi) I shouldn't have expected too much as it was one of the cheaper items on the menu.

I'll be going back to Ran and would definitely recommend it to anyone craving Korean.
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Glenn - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 10
Thursday, July 05, 2007

I can't say enough good things about this restaurant.

First, the food is amazingly yummy. I don't know much about Korean food, but I do know when things taste good- and not only good, but unusual, different, and varied, with layers of different flavours.

We had to start - sashimi ribbon beef - a raw beef dish that looks like a big brain, flavoured with korean pear and egg, and korean flatbread with spring onion and seafood. Both were totally unusual (to my western palate) and also totally delicious! We also tried traditional cabbage kimchi and also spinach kimchi - both yummy.

For mains we had the barbecue - cooked on our own table, of bilgoggi beef and scallops. We also had a side dish of cold noodles - who knows what was in them, but they were spicy and gorgeous! Each bit of food was tastier than the last. I was in food heaven, especially because, not only was the food gorgeous, but also amazingly tastyl

The second compliment I must give Ran is on their service. We were greeted in a very friendly manner, and, because I had never had Korean food before, I asked a lot of questions. Our lovely and charming waitress was only too happy to explain the cuisine, and how Korean people normally put together a meal. She helped us create the perfect menu - but in the most unobtrusive way possible. She gave us some ideas, and explained the structure of a Korean meal, and let us make our choices. Also, when it came time to grill our own food on the table, she showed us how to use the lettuce leaves, add spring onion, appropriate sauce, etc. This was really nice because totally foreign cuisine can be intimidating - am I eating things all wrong? And with Korean food, there are so many different little tiny pots of sauce etc., it's nice to see what usually goes with what. Added to that, the order and timing of each dish being brought out was impeccable.

The wine was wonderful, and I assume the place is authentic Korean because the place was filled with Korean diners.

There was a 12.5 percent service charge added, but we changed it to 20 percent, we were so pleased.

My only complaint is very minor - the Billy Joel music throughout our meal.

Highly recommended, I can't wait to go back.
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Michele
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 8
Wednesday, June 27, 2007

Superb food. Just about the only Korean restaurant in central London that provides side dishes at no extra charge at lunch.
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Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 10
Friday, May 25, 2007

I've eaten at Ran quite a few times and also found the food to be lovely. Not the most atmospheric of places though!
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Annie
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 9
Monday, April 23, 2007

Phoned in to make a reservation for lunch on Sunday, the waitress happily took my booking. We showed up in the restaurant and it turned out they are closed on Sundays!

It's unfortunately that the people running the restaurant aren't able to provide basic services such as taking bookings correctly. The food is actually alright when they do open.
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Jim
Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 3 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 5
Sunday, January 07, 2007

I ate at the RAN restaurant, with my wife and sister-in-law on the 15th of November.

The waitresses were polite and attentive.

But thats not what we went there for! We went there for the food!

The BBQ was cold, the wine poor. What happened to the traditional Korean BBQ cooked on the table? It was a raw deal for raw beef.
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Robert Wales
Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 1
Saturday, November 18, 2006

I have been to Ran only once but could vaguely remember how it was- only that it was similar like Arang.

I was surprised that on a friday night the restaurant was quiet empty but that was not til after 7pm when it started to fill with people. So lucky me.

We ordered a varied of appetisers and mains- the food was delicious and I could not get enough of the nice raddish kimchi.

The only thing I was not happy about was the size of the meat in the rice- very very small.

Overall nice food and good service.
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Jen from Kent
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 6
Saturday, September 09, 2006

Decided to try Ran after reading and hearing people raving about this restaurant and its BBQ. We had an awful time partly due to walking into the restaurant without reservation. There was no BBQ equipment on our table given that we were made to share table essentially.

Not convinced that those disposable freaky standby equipment would produce the same quality, we decided to have a simple meal and leave. So, we ordered pajeon (seafood pancake), bulgogi rice and a dolsot bibimbap. First, the pajeon contains too much flour. I didn't like the bulgogi but my friend did enjoy the bibimbap.

Also we were not served banchans which I believe is the norm in korean restaurants.

Overall, it was quite a dissapointing visit. I am not sure if I would return.
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Cola
Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 3
Tuesday, July 18, 2006

We went to Ran last night for the 2nd time and it was as good as the first time! Polite, attentive service too. We had kimchi, gyoza and the Korean chun to start which were brimmig with flavor and then followed with bulgogi, chicken and kalbi on the bbq - delicious. Staff very helpful with bbq too. Would definitely go back!
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Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 8
Saturday, July 01, 2006

It is so rare to find a place where the food is so tasty and the service so efficient. We recently met friends at Ran and enjoyed an evening of excellent food and conversation. We ordered the mixed tempura, 2 servings of beef & glass noodles, and 4 different plates of the Korean barbeque: bulgogi, spicy pork, and 2 plates of seafood. It was all superb. The serving staff were very attentive but not obtrusive. They turned over and served the meat when needed. We were able to enjoy visiting with our friends, uninterrupted, as a result. This was our 3rd time to Ran and, again, we were impressed. It is difficult for me to comprehend why there would be any negative reviews of this restaurant.
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Maureen Mitchell
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Sunday, April 30, 2006