Benihana

A friend and I came to Benihanas to celebrate our birthdays, we didn’t let anyone know it was our birthday because we don’t like being sang to but our chef Tito was awesome! We had a little kid sitting at our table that was really excited about watching the fire, etc. Tito did an amazing job at entertaining, not only the little kid, but the rest of our table as well. I even made a statement of how I had wished my parents brought me here as a child. A side from his awesome performance, I always love the food! Hits the spot and I would recommend this place for anyone!

Expensive! Luckily we went for the birthday deal and had a much more affordable experience. Our cook was fun to watch and needless to say the fried rice was amazing. Also the chicken teriyaki was pretty good and I had a great time here. Make sure you get the green tea ice cream if you do get a dessert. It was amazing.

I love this place! I went there for my birthday for the first time and had an exceptional experience. If your birthday is coming up, make sure to join their birthday club and they will e-​mail you a $ 30 coupon! The teriyaki steak is delicious, as well as the chicken fried rice. You have to pay extra to get chicken fried rice but it is worth it! Make sure to try their green tea ice cream, it is the best!

Poor service, long wait… no one cares about the customers. Basic chain. I’ve been to others all over the country. Don’t waste your time at this one! My husband said and I quote, «I’d rather go to chilis» and we don’t go there.

Basis for my starred ratings (which skews heavily to the food or drink):
1 star: Never again.
2 stars: Poor food, poor experience, extraordinary measures in order for me to come back.
3 stars: Average, nothing really special, nothing particularly bad.
4 stars: Very good, would definitely return.
5 stars: A favorite, one of the best.
This place wavers between 3.5 and 4 stars, depending on who’s doing the cooking. In the world of teppanyaki, this place is definitely better than Kobe in Tempe, but it is not as good as Tanaka of Tokyo in Hawai’i (although the wait there, even with a reservation, can be ridiculous.)
My wife and I come here twice a year, every year, for our birthdays. (Free $ 30 when you sign up for their e-​club.) Occasionally we’ll bring a guest who wants to go. The quality really does depend on the chef that day, so the quality can be uneven.
We don’t come for the «show» anymore, seen too many. But if you have kids, they will enjoy it. You don’t come for an amazing steak. You come to get a decent sized meal and a serviceable steak for around $ 32. We will say, the chicken fried rice is typically amazing, you just have to ask them to really go heavy on the garlic butter.
Even with a reservation, the most we’ve waited is 20 mins. We’ve also been seated immediately, it all depends on where the chefs are at in their table rotation. Service has been fine for us, though the staff typically looks like they’re running around to cover all their tables.
Like I said, you’re not coming for a phenomenal meal, and without the free $ 30, I’m not sure I’d go so high as to give 4 stars, but as it stands, it’s a decent steak and sides with great fried rice for a reasonable price.

Went here last month April 23 to be exact. Our chef barely talked we could see that in advance we noticed he wasn’t social we asked the manager a young Hispanic guy if we could get another chef and he said no very stern. I’ve gone twice to the website for Benihana to make a complaint and no one has ever contacted me back. The experience was for a birthday and several of members of my family had never been there so this experience was not the greatest

We have been regulars at this place for years – love the servers! For our last visit, we didn’t sit at the Teppanyaki table. There was glass in my fried rice. THERE WAS GLASS IN MY FRIED RICE! It look like some of the pieces of stoneware had chipped off of something. I scratched the roof of my mouth and was bleeding. When I asked for the manager, she decided to «fix the situation» by taking the fried rice off the bill – just the fried rice. I couldn’t believe it. Also, they should offer an option to sit at a table without children – what a great way to destroy a nice dinner.

Thursday evening, with a 2 hour wait, my boyfriend and I sat in the bar area. I hadn’t been here in about 3 years. Way, down, hill! OK, I’ll admit I came here for the free birthday meal that wasn’t really free, because my boyfriend paid for his meal and my sake. Anyway, the steak was kind of flavorless, the colossal shrimp was good. I had maybe two strips of zucchini wow, I used to get enough food to take home leftovers. To make matter worse, my free scoop of green tea ice cream was melting when the waitress brought it out. I am NOT impressed.

Good Japanese style steak and seafood spot. Prices put this off for people on a budget but the food and presentation are good.
The chefs cook in front of you and everything is good here.
This place is usually jam packed with people so MAKE A RESERVATION!

Pretty good but a little pricey.
I liked that I got out of my comfort zone at sat at the grill table with complete strangers!
I food quality was good and it was a pretty good experience.
I’ll return

It was a great experience going there. Though I must say that their descriptions for their sushi are very limited and I ended getting rolls that i didn’t care for, much less knowing their names. The chefs are friendly and the portions were a good size.

From the hostess to the serving staff, poor experience for a return guest. We had a 7:45 reservation and weren’t seated until 8:20. Prior to being seated, we arrived at 6:45 in an attempt to catch happy hour at the bar, yet stood around for 10 minutes before being greeted at the bar. We ended up grabbing happy hour elsewhere.
None the less, while the experience can be fun, this establishment can use a lesson in service.

Great dinner! Nancy took very good care of us and the food was delicious we will definitely be back.

I had an amazing first time experience today. We walked in a few minutes late but the front desk was more than happy to seat us. Allen was our chef and he was phenomenal. Great presentation and flawless execution. Shizuka our waitress was attentive and very kind. Lunch atmosphere was great. Definitely worth the money.
All these hipsters with their 1 star reviews need to get off their high horses. Get your head out of your arse.

This is the lowest score I have ever given restaurant.
I’ve been to a Benihana restaurant in California and back home in Hawaii, the service was impeccable and the food was amazing.
Here, my first time visiting this place was an epic tragedy.
As I walked in, the hostess was smiling and had a bubbly personality and was cordial. I was told it was self seating, so I found a nice little table all to myself.
My waitress is a whole other story.
She didn’t greet me or ask how I was doing, instead she dropped to different menus and asked, «Just you?»
«Yes.»
She took away the other place setting and walked away.
No smile. It looked like she was pissed. Perhaps it was permanent resting B — - face.
She came back and quickly asked what I would like to drink. Tea of course.
Tea came out and then the big question, «you want to order now?»
Good news, I’m in a really good mood and I wasn’t going to let this persons mood get to me.
I ordered for the lunch menu and asked that my steak be rare.
Soup arrived, it was good. Nothing that blew my palette. I did asked for a little wasabi and added a little piece of it to add a slight kick to the broth.
When my plate arrived, I saw immediately that the beef was fully cooked.
I did not bother the waitress to have it sent back (yes, I’m that nice of a customer and not petty).
Even the manager came to ask how was everything, I didn’t have the heart to tell him that my waitress forgot to bring her personality with her to work.
Now, the table next to me, I have to say, made me a little jealous. Their waitress was smiling, she attentive, and anticipated her guests needs like bringing extra napkins, took away the chopstick wrappers off the table, etc…
Overall, the food was not what I remembered, it was just okay.
Ultimately, the service with my waitress was a horrible experience. I still tipped her and have her feedback, I let her know she didn’t even look at my steak to notice that it was fully cooked — not rare, and still proceeded to serve it to me. I also said it would help if you smiled at your customers. Besides myself, she had three other tables and she was the same with them.
You may have a different encounter than I did, I will say, customer service here is like. Roulette game!
#GoodLuck!
:)

I was actually one of the guinea pigs that opened this place — I was a patron that sat in and let the staff do a trial run on me. So I’ve been here a few times.
To be honest, I don’t really care for the whole teppanyaki experience. It is a novel idea but it gets old after seeing it for every family birthday. Thanks sir, but no offense to you but I’ve seen the flaming volcano before.
The food is all over the board as far as quality goes. Sometimes you get a good mix and other times it is just OK. I’ve never had bad food at any teppanyaki restaurant, but don’t expect the food to knock your socks off. This place is about the experience over the food.
The chefs are normally pretty good. If they hate their job, they they always put on a good face and put on a solid show for everyone. Good on them… or maybe I’m simply the only one that hates my job?
Is probably give this place a 3.5, but I can’t do that here so I’ll round up. OK food on the grill. OK sushi. Expensive (I got one roll and an adult beverage and it cost me 25) as all hell. Overall fun experience.

This is probably my sixth time visiting this teppanyaki restaurant. Why do I keep coming back? Certainly not the food nor the high price. I come here because of the show that keeps the kids entertained and allows the adults to hang out for a leisurely two hour dinner. Depending on your chef, the experience can be less than stellar. We were lucky to have a true entertainer, Kevin, who added another star to this review.
Reservations for 11 at 730pm, we were seated at 750pm. Service was very slow, as usual. We ordered salmon, lobster, shrimp, steak, scallops, chicken, fried rice along with the soup, salad, edamame, and green tea. Ginger and mustard sauces were given to everyone. The tap water is not filtered or the filter needs to be changed. They provide lemon wedges to mask the taste. The lobster, as usual, was tough and chewy. The salmon comes out overcooked due to the high heat of the grill. The fried rice, mushrooms, and onions were all tasty having been spiced up with Salt, pepper, butter, and soy sauce.
I ordered sherbet, the server made sure to tell me there was an additional charge. Our bill was in excess of $ 450 dollars. We were overcharged, they charged us for my sons meal twice.
Food /​service 2.5 stars
Kevin /​chef /​entertainer 4 stars
Cost 2 stars
I keep coming back though.

I’ve been to this location multiple times and have always had a great time! We usually start at the bar and grab drinks and then make our way to our table. I love the show they put on for the table! It is so much fun even at my age (although I do get afraid that a shrimp will be torpedoed towards my face sometimes). The food is always delicious! I love LOVE teppanyaki! Great show and great food every time. Typically, my family and (ok… My dad and I) polish off the night sharing sake. The server takes a photo of us and then prints it for us. Such a great place to go for special occasions. We will be back again soon.
Side note: if someone you’re with has allergies (perhaps to shrimp) tell your server immediately! They cook everything on the same place. We have to do this for my mom every time we go.

Oh boy… I hate to do this but I have to.
For a table of 8 with 5 November birthdays, this would be a place NOT to come back to. The «enticing» $ 30 birthday certificate allows you the $ 30 off their teppan specialties with a purchase of a full price teppan dish Monday through Thursday.
Cocktail: Benihana Plum Wine — from Berkeley (me thinks) $ 7.50 for the glass. This is a regular plum wine.
Specialties:
6 course meals comes with: Onion and mushroom soup, salad, sauteed shrimp, zucchini, mushrooms and onions. Served with their mustard sauce and ginger sauce. Steamed rice. Hot green tea. ice cream or sorbet.
My pick: Deluxe Treat $ 38.
— Filet mignon (medium rare) and a cooked lobster tail with garlic butter and lemon. This is a normal surf and turf meal cooked before your eyes.
The teppan chef first started with cleaning the teppan top. Oil, then made the beating heart fried rice (which is an optional for an additional $ 5). Next up is cooking the zucchini, mushrooms and making the onion volcano and choo-​choo train. Then was the chicken, steak, filet mignon and lobster tails.
Menu books changed from the nicely bounded one to the economical thin and easily replaceable, cleanable menu books.
Overall: 0-​star rating
Minus a star: Server failed to provide the hot green tea.
Minus a star: Server forgot about the ice cream.
Minus a star: Server didn’t take, nor offer the birthday pictures
Minus a star: Server never refilled waters
Minus a star: Server messed up the checks
I doubt the birthday recipients enjoyed the birthday experience. Better dine on a non-​birthday.

It has been a while since I came here for lunch. Their sashimi and sushi combo is definitely great, but the service definitely needs more work. I ordered an appetizer for lunch. My friend and my main course were already served. Yet, the appetizer was still not ready. I asked the waiter what was going on, and he told me that the kitchen was very back up. This wasn’t his fault but I did end up canceling my order. Our server did come over to check up on us, but the entire time he was busy stocking up the bars for the night.
I’m probably come here again for the food… but definitely will not expect any great service. It was disappointing since I haven’t been here for a while and hoping that things would change for the better. Apparently not