i heard the $45 option is broken down into a 7 course tasting menu
first course: negi
second course: beni shoga
third course: moyashi
fourth course: tonkotsu
fifth course: chashu
sixth course: ramen
seventh course: umeboshi
7 Likes
This is a soba restaurant not ramen right? Title should be updated.
Looks like ramen to me. For background, see nuances between ramen vs chuka soba vs soba.
Thank goodness for Venice Ramen and other shops that keeps it real…
@robert changed the title. A rose by any other name, or whatever…
I did some digging:
More here: https://www.pictosee.com/kazanbeverlyhills/
They are very careful not to call their soup noodles ramen, but it smells like basic marketing to me.
Distinguish yourself because you are not like other ramen shops.
You serve wagyu and truffles with your soup noodles.
You are SOOOOOOBA.
You are located in Beverly Hills and cost $$$.
Looks like pretty tasty ramen.
1 Like
“Ryu” like the Street Fighter character??? 
Looks like they have different thickness of noodles, including something that looks akin to fettuccine. If the $25 version is a decent size and has some stuff that come w/ it (like an egg, please), I might try it. Although I’ll still prob wait for someone else to try it first…
I’m out of my depth here, but aren’t ramen noodles made with kansui and wheat and soba uses no kansui and at least some buckwheat?
I don’t know much about the distinction here so I’m excited to learn more from you all.
I mean I think you’re joking but I guess in LA you never know… ppl would be killing themselves for this new age deconstructed and coursed ramen if two or three publications wrote about it.
1 Like
LA’s QPR for restaurants that, let’s just say “eater covers” has been bad at least as long as I’ve been here (6yrs). There were a couple higher end soba places in NY that ppl complained about but I always found worth the money. If there’s a way to get high quality soba near me I’ll prob pay the price of entry.
1 Like
There are many places that make great home made soba for a fraction of the price. Two that come to mind are
Otafuku in the south bay
Yanakaya in Tustin
2 Likes
In short, when the term “soba” is used in the ramen sense it is not buckwheat noodles.
alternate names: shina soba, chuka soba
" Until the 1950s, ramen was called shina soba (支那そば, literally “Chinese soba”) but today chūka soba (中華そば, also meaning “Chinese soba”) or just ramen (ラーメン) are more common, as the word “支那” ( shina , meaning “China”) has acquired a pejorative connotation."
Even Japanese websites confirm this:
(use Chrome’s built in translate function)
The word soba depends on when ramen was first introduced in Japan. For Yokohama Chinatown it was “Chinese noodles” with “noodles” referring to soba. Chuka just means Chinese, like Chuka Ryori, Chinese cuisine.
4 Likes
To be fair to these guys, there are ramen places in Tokyo that call their noodles “soba”. Ginza Kagari and Ramen Mugi to Olive are ones I’ve been to that come to mind. For the longest time, Ginza Kagari had a “soba” sign up front. I wonder if the distinction is due to the ingredients as @frommtron mentioned (don’t know myself and would love to find out).
Edit: as usual @beefnoguy got to the bottom of this 
With the chilly Winter weather hitting So Cal, a great bowl of piping hot, legit Ramen seems like the perfect food for days like this.
Unfortunately, Kazan was not it.
Opened by Ryu Isobe, who’s life story is printed on the Kazan menu: He graduated from USC and decided to open up Tatsu Ramen to “great success.” 
Now he’s moved on to Kazan. Strangely they opened up in Beverly Hills, and while they do make their own Ramen Noodles (“Chuuka Soba”) in-house, as the old saying goes, the proof is in the pudding.
Tempura Shrimp with Chili Mayo Sauce:
To call this “Tempura” is pretty insulting: This thick chewy batter is more like a whitewashed American Chinese Sweet & Sour Pork execution, and the bits of Shrimp within are overcooked and dense. The outside flavoring reminds us of a mediocre version of Walnut Shrimp. 
But we’re here for the Ramen. Glancing over the menu, it is a bit of sticker shock: Each bowl of Ramen is between $25 - $35(!). 
While there are 8 types of Ramen on the menu, it’s really just 2 types of Soup with different Tare adjustments according to our server. We start with the basics:
Salt Base Clear Broth Soba with Chashu and Wonton and Yuzu:
When it arrived, something smelled weird. Taking a sip: It tasted like a off version of Truffle Oil(!), except our server said it wasn’t. It was “some European flavored oil” (that he forgot the name of) (uh…) with a Torigara (Chicken Bone) Broth.
Unfortunately it was just a one note salt bomb! 
So you got this massive hit of pure Salt, barely any Chicken flavor, this off-putting “European Flavored Oil” that they added. Seriously, this has to be one of THE WORST Shio Ramen I’ve ever had in my life. (I’m not being hyperbolic.) 
The Pork Chashu was meaty, slightly tender, but a bit chewy. Middle of the pack at best.
The Handmade Chuuka Soba Noodles are fine. They have a decent firmness, but the whole bowl was just inedible after a couple of sips. 
Soy Sauce Base Clear Broth Soba with Chashu and Wonton:
Their Shoyu (Soy Sauce) Ramen was even worse: Even saltier, one note, generic, oily / greasy tasting, and easily the WORST Shoyu Ramen I’ve had since I can remember.
The Pork Chashu and the Noodles were the same as the Shio Ramen.
With the flavor of the Ramen Broth being this bad, this isn’t opening week jitters, it’s just lack of skill. But to add insult to injury not only was it horrendous in taste and flavor, the price was even worse:
- When was it OK for us to pay $35 (THIRTY FIVE DOLLARS) for 1 bowl of awful Ramen in L.A.? ($27 + tax & tip)
For our legendary FTC’ers who might want to enjoy 2 bowls of Ramen / 2 different flavors (@J_L @PorkyBelly and others), that would set you back $70 for 2 bowls of Ramen. It’s egregious. (@paranoidgarliclover @TheCookie @beefnoguy @Ns1 @A5KOBE @attran99 @hungryhungryhippos @JeetKuneBao and others.)
We can’t see ourselves returning, and it’s a slap in the face to all of the legit, OG Ramen-ya around L.A. putting out much better product and doing it without any ridiculous marketing.
Kazan
111 N. La Cienega Blvd.
Beverly Hills, CA 90211
18 Likes
Wow thanks for the report @Chowseeker1999, sounds worse than ramen roll.
Starting the death watch now.
2 Likes
Thanks for taking one for the team, homie.
Tatsu was bad, is bad, and (as it appears) its progeny will be bad.
1 Like
Oh. Wow. That sounds awful. And then the bill comes.
1 Like
I don’t think any of us here would ever accuse you of hyperbole. You give places 2nd and 3rd chances. I doubt any of us will ever go here after your review…
2 Likes
why does that chashu look over cooked and stringy?
1 Like