Ran

Reviews

• Expensive

  I used to go to this place for a casual atmosphere and quite good food. But it's refurbished now, it looks expensive and is expensive. Food is ok but I find Korean food generally very hearty, it needs more down to earth approach and value for money. Yes, there would be Haute-Cuisine Korean, but not this place! I'm afraid this place now tries to charge even more (it wasn't the cheapest place before) for the make-over and less table numbers. It doesn't work for me.

  Lisa63
  Review Date: 03/06/2009 Report review
• Expensive

  Recently refurbished, we visited here late on a Friday night. We were told the kitchen would be closing soon, but perplexingly enough, the waitress then disappeared and I had to flag her down to actually order.It was somewhat irritating that they decided to get the bleach out and clean the other tables down while we were there; the smell of that stuff is rather over-whelming. Nevertheless, the Kimchee pancake was a generous portion, and was lovely. Accompaniments (priced scandalously at £8 - these are, apparently usually free in Korea) were very tasty. We ordered a medium grill platter which I thought rather steep at £38. The meat was very tasty, but we were charged an extra £2.50 for a top up of lettuce leaves. All in all, a delicious meal, but the prices they charged were over the top. A meal for 3 with 1 bottle of wine came to £90 - round the corner at Azzi the same meal we had a few weeks before cost the same, except we had two bottles of wine and I think possibly a bit more food.

  Hollowlegs
  Review Date: 04/03/2009 Report review
• Not a great value

  The meet was ok, but very poor value for the price. The deco was not great either. For this price, you would either expect bigger portion or a better atmosphere. The whole place looked a bit tired. Surprisingly crowded and that's why we thought this might be a place for good value and good food from outside! Not quite so. There was never enough meet on the table and we had to keep ordering £7-8 worth portions. Never felt satisfied after spending quite a lot and had to fill up with rice.

  Solarpanels
  Review Date: 09/12/2008 Report review
• Interesting

  It was the first time i tried Korean food and i was very impressed by the restaurant. It is a good idea to book in advance as finding a table can be difficult. They have a BBQ on the table and you can enjoy the beer while the food cooks right in front of you :) The grill has plenty of meat options. You can also get some lettuce leaves that make a wrap with the grilled meat inside, along with some onions etc. Tastes very yum!There are good options for vegetarian also but note, some may not like the smell and smoke of the grill.Overall an interesting dining experience and worth a try. You won't be disappointed.

  Ocean0201
  Review Date: 03/09/2008 Report review
• Book in advance for a great Korean experience

  Three of us turned up on at 8.30 pm on a Friday night without having booked and were sent away to wait for 40 mins. The moral of the story? Book, because even the 40 minute wait was well worth it!Once past the harassed front desk girl (the place was packed, with constant phone calls) we were seated in the basement by a very friendly waiter. We had wanted a traditional BBQ, where the cook comes to the table and prepares the food in front of you, but due to fire regulations in the basement it wasn't possible. Never mind, our waiter helped us through the menu to pick out a delicious selection for a Korean feast. The ambience was definitely young, with the start of the weekend being vigorously welcomed in. We'll definitely be back, but next time with an advance booking!

  Clairen
  Review Date: 09/08/2008 Report review
• Not my cuppa.

  There were a lot of Koreans when we dined here tonight. Service was as I'd observed, more favourable with the Korean patrons. Especially with the free sides being placed on the table as soon as they were seated.Alas the food or was it the cuisine that didn't quite tickle my taste buds. The mixed kimchi selection was spicy and crunchy but the Korean Flatbread was dull and pretty much tasteless. We then had the Korean BBQ of Sirloin and and Ox tongue. Both dishes were very poor value; 5x 1mm slices of the former and 6 x 1/2mm slices of the latter at £7.00 each. I'm convinced that part of the costs of these dishes goes to ceremonial grilling of the meats by the young waitress at your table. It didn't taste bad just poor value, imagine the 12oz Fillet at The Popeseye at £25.45 instantly becomes an absolute bargain. The final course of Seafood Chungol (Hotpot) was massive and mind-boggling costly at £29.00; the soup was tasty enough but let down by the lack of ingredients reflecting its worth, I mean 4 king prawns, a small dorsal fin from an unknown fish, few clams, huge amount of mussels, whelks, and beansprouts. This dish was screaming for an accompaniment of either noodles or vermicelli to soak up the soup, but no, you'll need to pay for that.If you're into the ''chuck 'em all in one pot and hope for the best'' cuisine and at the same time don't mind mind paying over the odds for the barbie dishes then this place is for you.

  Bellaphon
  Review Date: 06/08/2008 Report review
• A Food Experience

  I tried to pop in to Ran a couple of weeks ago on a Tuesday, only to find the place jam-packed with an hour's wait for a table. Undeterred (and encouraged by the other reviews here), I made a resolution to give it another go and book ahead. My partner and I got there today and I have to say that tonight's meal was simply the most enjoyable dinner I have had since I left China. The service was spectacularly fast, possibly a little too fast even! Still, the speed was appreciated as I was starving.Being Korean newbies we didn't really know what to order, but the menu was easy to understand and the descriptions of the food accurate. We ate a vast array of food which turned out to be exactly right to fill us both up - not a drop was wasted but more would have been overkill. We went for the small mixed grill with appetizers consisting of kimchi, gyoza and glass noodles with beef. The staff were helpful when we asked if we had enough food for two and recommended us a rice dish to go with our grill.The grill was excellent - the staff prepared it and laid all the meat out, returning to ensure that it was cooked correctly, and then instructed us in the correct way to eat it (very helpful!). The glass noodles were excellent - a very different flavour to Chinese or Japanese noodle dishes and very welcome for it. Our gyoza were very tasty, but were somewhat overpowered by the kimchi with which we had been stuffing our faces.When the rice dish came, towards the end of the meal, we were surprised to find it being stir-fried in a hot metal bowl right at our table. Superb!The staff got the order of the food just right, ensuring that we had a constant supply. Just as one dish began to run out another would appear like magic, meaning we always had a selection at our table but that the table didn't get over-full.The final bill was very reasonable for such a large, well-prepared, well-served and above all fantastically tasty meal. It came to 25 per head, but there were a range of excellent sounding dishes at around 6-7 pounds if you'd prefer a quick bite to a full-on meal. I will definitely be taking anyone and everyone who'll listen here in the future.

  Thamshere
  Review Date: 11/07/2008 Report review
• good korean food

  I go to Ran quite often cause they do amazing korean food and i like the decoration in Ran.I luv the bbq and korean pancakes in here =)THey have great value lunch deals too!!Must try!!

  Gizmogirl
  Review Date: 11/11/2007 Report review