Why Hana Zen is San Francisco’s Premiere Japanese Restaurant

San Franciscans have impeccable taste when it comes to Japanese restaurants. After all, San Francisco is the world renowned and one of the world's most beautiful city by the bay. We know our seafood and thus, we know what good Japanese cuisine is. Bad Japanese restaurants do not last long in San Francisco, as sooner or later, their faults get exposed, whether they serve poor quality food or the atmosphere just doesn't feel right. So many joints that claim to be Japanese eventually fail. Then, there are those that have continuously thrived to the point of expanding, like Hana Zen, which now has two branches.

There are a lot of restaurants across the country that claim to serve authentic Japanese fare alongside Korean, Chinese, and even Southeast Asian cuisine. While this is supposed to make good business sense as it is supposed to maximize profit, the authenticity of the dishes and the overall experience in these restaurants end up getting muddled and fake. Of course, the case is different with places that claim to serve 'Asian fusion' cuisine, but when a restaurant has those distinctly different food clumped together and claim to be experts in Japanese-Chinese-Korean-Vietnamese-Thai fare, chances are, they aren’t that good in any of them at all.

It is way better to trust restaurants that serve one kind of cuisine only, which I think is a reason why Hana Zen has kept its reputation as one of the best Japanese restaurants in San Francisco. After all, how can you decorate a restaurant that claims to specialize in all Asian cuisines? Japanese, Chinese, and Korean design aesthetics and cuisine may have common ingredients, but when clumped together, ultimately clash. I certainly wouldn't to have a romantic dinner in a place with tacky and clashing interiors. Hana Zen has mastered giving diners the authentic Japanese dining experience, from the fresh seafood to the tasteful Japanese interiors on both the Pier 39 and Union Square branches.

Speaking of experiencing an authentic feel in a Japanese restaurant, I find it shabby when everything about the restaurant, from its signage to its menus, uses that stereotype font called Wonton. Think of those Chinese kung fu movie posters in the 1970s and 80s with letters usually in red, with fat brushstrokes that end up tapered in the bottom. Observe the letters of those Chinese takeout boxes. That's the Wonton typeface, and it just screams fake Asian food. When I want dinner at the water front, I want to feel elegance and sophistication, not some stereotype of Asian restaurant with menus and signs with that tacky font. Japanese (and even Korean and Chinese) calligraphy look nothing like this typeface. Go to Japan, China, and Korea, and you won't see this font on any shop sign. It just doesn't look authentic. How can you enjoy a total dinner by the bay experience when you are circumscribed by discordant graphic symbols and characters? A Hana Zen dining experience is a statement of sophistication, from its well-appointed bar serving sake-infused cocktails to its elegant menus and décor.

Speaking of an authentic Japanese dining experience, I do find it bothersome when I see neon signs in restaurants that claim to be authentic Japanese. Neon signs in Japan can only be seen in Tokyo's thoroughfares for advertising purposes. You won't see a Japanese restaurant, even casual dining places, with a neon sign. Neon signs just destroy the simple elegance authentic Japanese restaurants and cuisine have.

All of these red flags are noticeably absent in Hana Zen Restaurant. I, for one, am not surprised why Hana Zen has stood the test of time and has become one of San Francisco’s enduring culinary landmarks.