Kobe

Not a bad place to have some authentic Japanese food. First time coming to a habachi venue. Coming to the location isn’t hard, it’s right by target and is easily spotted on the main road.
around 9 or 930, they had a lot of parking for a thursday night. However, I do think it gets packed during weekends. We had some problems on being late for the habachi and argued with a lady that probably owns the restaurant, but she let twelve college students pass along.
upon entering the venue, there are grills set up on the right side while there is a bar on the left side. Habachi is the one I tried with friends, this is the one that allows consumers to look at chef preparing our food. These chefs have an open personality and entertain us while he cooks our food.
It is a great way to spend time with friends and to get some Japanese food. Not sure how the restrooms look like but the experience here wasn’t too bad, but not great ethier.

Very good not expensive restaurant. Not everything profect but I will definitely go again.

Love the hibachi, so much fun. It’s a bit on the expensive side, great for a special occasion.

Welcoming atmosphere with modern décor that throws you into the hibachi world.
Great food, even though the chef gave my husbands food to someone else.
Was surprised at how many kids there were. Most «family friendly» hibachi I’ve been to.
Biggest disappointment is the fact that everything was plastic. Plates, bowls, and water cups are plastic. Makes the meal seem cheap even though it is not. Invest in real plates

This is amazing sushi at fantastic prices!!! Very clean, hip atmosphere, and no rush to get you out! I live in NYC now and I miss their delicious sushi!!!

They gave away our 7:30 reservation– just seated now at 8:45! We were a party of 15, and before we could cash out at the bar, they seated 5 random people!

Always so much fun. Whether you eat at the grill or in the dining room it is a fun place to go.

Don’t go in late night!
I went in a couple weeks ago on a first date — It was going well, until about 930 where they started cleaning, turning lights off, not giving good service anymore because cleaning was more important.
Exactly at 10pm, they turned off more lights. I could barely see my date.
We laughed at how pathetic that was. They served us a full drink at 9:55pm. It looked like the owners… husband and wife? Not sure… were staring at us talking from a distance. At 10:05pm they turned the lights off above us.
Obviously we left at that moment.
You may wonder why your late night business doesn’t exist — it’s because of the poor service you get at that time.
The food from the hibachi grill and the gentleman preparing the food was great though.

I was there for lunch with my folks. They both enjoyed their hibachi entrees. The service was friendly and fast. The atmosphere is very impressive. A very clean, slick looking place.
I’ve been going around to find my favorite chirashi in the area.
The chirashi from Kobe was presented nicely, but the sashimi had a weird flat texture and taste to it. The rice was not seasoned much. It should have a little sweet vinegary to it. It was like all ingredients were trying to out-​bland each other.
It wasn’t an unpleasant meal, but I’ve had much better.
I did like the miso soup very much. And the bento lunches looked great.
I would visit here again, but I will try something different.

We were there on a Friday night and knew it was going to be busy however the noise level was too much for me. We were seated at a table opposite to the hibachi areas. Table does not need any reservation but hibachi area does just a FYI. Call ahead to reserve if you want to be seated at the hibachi to eat and have a show. I am sure the show is a great one from hearing the patrons and an even louder one if youre celebrating a birthday.
After a long week at work I just wanted a quiet dinner with my partner.
The owner needs to separate the areas from the hibachi vs the seated down tables. Putting up partition wall to lower the noise level would be a plus.
If you’re in a mood for a show and celebrate this is a great place. If you want to have a quieter evening I would suggest a table furthest from the hibachi grill areas.
The food is above average and I would come back again for the food.
I had the Teriyaki chicken which comes piping hot on a cast iron grill plate. The presentation was beautiful and food tasted great. All the terriyaki plates comes with a miso soup and salad. Mine was chicken terriyaki as pictured was $ 12. Great deal for the plate. Miso soup tasted great not too salty which is a plus. Salad was equally good.
The spicy tuna maki roll was very good. Good amount of tuna in center of roll. All fresh and yummy.
Overall great meal experience and took a star off for the noise level.

Kobe is not my favorite place for sushi, but it certainly isn’t bad. I’ve gotten both sushi and cooked meals and never been disappointed with the quality of their dishes. Unfortunately it does get rather loud, which can be disruptive for dining. Service is also hit or miss. There are some truly fantastic waitresses there but I’ve also gone some nights where our order was taken incorrectly as try did not offer to fix the mistake. In fact, we recently had a waitress insist that we had ordered salmon (which she brought) when we had actually ordered scallops. We chose to stick with the salmon for the sake of not wasting food. Overall, Kobe is an okay dining experience with great food. The price just happens to be a bit steep for the sub par dining experience.

Really great experience. Stopped in on our way home from northern Maine and we were looking for something different. We all had something different and enjoyed it. Hibachi was great. Tokyo Crab Rangoons were awesome.
Not sure whey this place didn’t get a better review, but we thought it was great!

Bullet point review:
–Waitress not helpful making selection, possibly due to limit English
–Having not eaten Japanese food before this was problematic
–Wore no name tag and fairly certain never said her name
–Menu has a tough exterior covering the plastic menu
–Very stylish inside, a modern look with waving and round metal hangings
–Exposed ceiling with wooden beams unexpected
–Hear people counting down in the background intermediately
–Music is disappointingly standard pop; J-​pop would have been refreshing
–Old CRT in the corner is the only aspect of the interior that feels outdated; large flats screen over the bar
–Lots of liquor
–Moderate use of AC is nice
–Taku Salad, composed of Octopus, would have likely been better without the sour sauce
–Tokyo Crab Rangoon good but not very different from others, just a little more crispy
–Chicken Bento Box very balanced meal with meat, fish, vegetables and fruit
–Chicken tasty with the teriyaki sauce and a few vegetable slices
–Breaded shrimp was okay, better then plain shrimp alone in my opinion
–Sauce I didn’t use on my chicken on white rice was good; don’t like it plain
–Vegetables included carrots in fancy shapes, broccoli, greens and probably something else
–Don’t recall fruit, except for cantaloupe which I don’t like
–Overall disappointing, but will try Japanese elsewhere

Been here 20 plus times always top notch food. The orange chicken is the best you will find anywhere. The hibachi is tons of fun with a big group too.

My wife and I had a bad experience a few years ago with their service. Since then, the individual who was working there (and who we had a serious problem with) was either let go or left. Regardless, my wife and I decided to give it another shot (because their sushi is outstanding). We were pleasantly pleased with the service and would recommend if you are into sushi!

We have sampled all of the hibachi restaurants in the area and in the competing market area. We have found that Kobe has the largest portion sizes best environment and best selection of food. The food quality is high and it is cooked well. I personally believe this is the best hibachi restaurant in our area.

Does anyone think it’s degrading that they toss zucchini in your mouth like a dog? Or squirt saki in your mouth, like we are all dumb American seals looking for free low quality saki? Normal hibachi restaurants don’t do that. There are a LOT better places in the area, Kon in south Portland is entirely better :)

Worst service I’ve ever had. Hostess too busy on the phone to seat me. Took a seat at the bar for lunch. Bartender was sitting on floor watching video on his phone. Five staff members stood next to me talking a never said a word. Waitress finally took my order. No personality. No follow up. Food was okay. I will never be back.

I’m not a fan but I can see where Kobe might be okay for some people. The food was all decent. The pieces of fish on the sushi were a generous size and everything tasted fresh. The cooked food all seemed to be prepared well too. Service was really good and Breanna (sp?) was great.
But here’s why I’m not a fan. At first, we bumped into another party outside because it wasn’t clear where the entrance was. After we got in and sat down, it was loud. Really loud. If you’re 25 and you want to have a screaming drunken birthday party with endless Sake being shot down your throat, Kobe could be just what you’re looking for. If you want to eat dinner with friends and actually have a conversation, go somewhere else. Koi on Route 1 would be a better choice.
Despite its appearance, Kobe isn’t part of a big chain of restaurants. They’ve done a good job of fitting in with their neighbor The Olive Garden and you can decide if that’s a compliment or not. But the noise level from the teppanyaki partying is too much. If the owner has never been to the Kon Asian Bistro in Portsmouth, I think it would be worth a look because they have a wall of glass to keep the noise away from people who want a traditional dinner.
If a friend were to suggest that we go to Kobe, I would try to offer an alternate suggestion. If it were not for the good food and excellent service, I would have given this restaurant two stars.

My wife and I dine at Kobe on a weekly basis. She does not like sushi, but I love it. We sit at the bar and are always extremely well taken care of by Donna. The food is excellent, the service is great. I have had family gatherings at the habichi side of the restaruant and found the chefs to be skilled and entertaining. I highly recommend this restaurant to anyone that enjoys Japanese dining.