Lan Sushi and Cocktail 岚 @ Shenzhen

Near our place in Shenzhen is a chic Japanese restaurant found on 41st storey of a business building. Opened in 2018, LAN became very quickly one of the instagrammable restaurant in Shenzhen.

There’s no more table by the windows and can only sit at the sushi counter.

Surprisingly, the uni (sea urchin) was from North Korea! First time I had this, it has a very strong taste but very mushy and no texture. The rest of the sashimi was not so high in quality.

We ordered a couple sushi – hamachi with caviar and zuke with gold foil. Hamachi (amberjack) is the cheaper cousin of buri, but more environmentally friendly and sustainable. Visually, zuké nigiri (marinated bluefin tuna) has a bold, bright red appearance, and texturally it is incredibly smooth thanks to the marinade.The resulting bite is simply fantastic, especially when paired with good shari.

The firm sushi rice, with a slightly acidic taste, is spread on top of nori, and the central part of the roll is a piece of raw tuna. Tender and soft, pink in color and mild in flavor, tuna perfectly balances the subtle flavors of nori and rice.

Because the tuna is not entirely visible, it often employs the cuts which are not as luxurious or appealing as the cuts used in nigiri sushi. This makes it a convenient and affordable sushi option that is a staple in almost every sushi establishment. But to make a good tekkamaki is one of the most difficult because of its simplicity. Lan’s attempt is credible but the nori was damp, although it was compensated by the zuke.

Thinner and smoother than conventional ramen, Inaniwa udon 稻庭乌冬 is handmade every step of the way. Inaniwa udon is made with techniques and ingredients passed down the Sato Yosuke family line for hundreds of years, a closely guarded recipe that was developed in 1665 and originally only served to the Imperial family. In 1860, Inaniwa udon finally became available to the public, and has since remained firmly established as one of Japan’s best udon noodles.

Technique is what makes Inaniwa udon special. Dough is kneaded, formed stretched, and cut into noodles by hand (meticulously taking into account subtle details such as temperature and humidity). Workers then painstakingly inspect every single noodle, removing any imperfect ones. From start to finish, it takes about four days to make a batch of Inaniwa udon. This attention to detail is evident in the quality of the noodles, and is why they are sold at a premium.

The udon they used are the dried variety and not the Yosuke brand 🙂

I have no idea why they like to put gold foil on sushi. It neither add to the taste nor enhance the appeal. But this tuna belly, ikura, uni rice bowl is really nice. All it needed was a dash of soy sauce.

The food was OK, we didn’t try the cocktail. But what failed for us was the service. The staff was not educated about the menu or food combination.

Here’s the reason why people come to this restaurant – the million dollar view of Shenzhen. How beautiful this city has turned out in the last 40 years.

Lan Sushi and Cocktail 岚
石厦北二街新天世纪商务中心A座41楼4102室
Tel : 13380399231

Date Visited : Oct 2019