Dishes were delivered too fast. We couldn't enjoy the experience as we would like
Took my wife for her bday. Amazing food and service. They pay very close attention to detail. Food was delicious and the service was even better. Great experience. Would definitely go back.
Nice vibe, but food was subpar, especially considering the restaurant's affiliations. The only items that were good were tempura ice cream and the hokkaido and uni nigiri. Toro parfait did not taste like anything, and yakitori was either overseasoned or underseasoned.
Really good food and weâll be back.
Was able to get the back room for a birthday celebration and had an amazing time. The staff was extremely knowledgeable and attentive, and all the food we ordered was great too. Would 100% return to izakaya hon and would recommend anybody to dine there if theyâre thinking about it. Thank you to those who helped make it happen.
The host (man, loud blue suit), who reeked of cologne, made it a point to come over and interrupt several times. At one point, he touched my friends chopsticks to move items around on the table, which was totally unnecessary. Food was great. The interruptions were not so great.
Food was ok, but the service was terrible. Water poured all over the floor, servers just standing around, drinking and talking to friends! Expensive for what it was.
This is my fourth trip to Izakaya Hon and it remains the best Izakaya in San Francisco. Be warned though I will be visiting Noren Izakaya soon, but I am confident that this Mins Group iteration of the izakaya will remain at least equal. The Mins Group are one of the most innovative and daring restauranteurs in San Francisco, opening up hits like Sushi Sato during the mass panic that shut down so many other restaurants, especially their superlative Sura-Fan, the one and only high end Korean restaurant in the Bay Area. Izakaya Hon is a a homage to the small street restaurants in Japan and Korea serving grilled meats on skewers. Izakaya Hon takes it to the next level in device with a fantastic cocktail collection and the best recommendations on said cocktails from their bartender. He is a friendly and open mixologist who knows his cocktails. His recommendations were fantastic, we had the Shin, Kisetsu, and the Sumimasen. All spirit forward and excellently balanced. No overbearing alcohol or sticky sweetness. We had reservations for 10 and despite being ready to close, the chef reopened the grill and we had a selection of skewers and tori karaage. All wel well will the cocktails. We were the last out, but appreciated the chef and maitre dâ providing excellent service. We also had their very well done hamachi Kama, also recommended.
The quality of fish let much to be desired. Our server must have been new/in training - could not answer most of my questions and had to go back to the kitchen to ask the chef. For example I asked if the chicken skewers were "yakitori" and he had no idea what I was talking about. Seriously? For someone working in a Japanese izakaya, how is "yakitori" not a part of your vocabulary? Also couldn't tell me which fish were wild caught vs farmed. The recommended dishes were all lackluster, and the tempora ice cream dessert (which was also recommended) was disgusting. Matcha ice cream on the inside was overly sweet and icy, and the outer fried layer was thick, heavy, soggy, and pretty gross.
Fantastic service and delicious food!