Benihana

I frequent Benihana in Michigan and I’m never disappointed. Unfortunately, I can’t express the same sentiments for my visit in Orlando. We were seated in the lounge where we were promised the same service as we would have received in the dining area. The server was polite and very efficient. She was the reason we decided to stay. The food was mediocre at best. It lacked seasoning and the rice was crispy??? Overall not a good experience!

I was so excited to come here and finally have the hibachi everyone was raving about. I finally got there and I have to say I’m a little disappointed. Service was slow, our server didn’t even greet the table until about 10 mins after we sat down. I ordered the Mai Tai cocktail and it tasted like a smoothie with probably two drops of alcohol. The food was pretty good, but was disappointed that I didn’t get much veggie variations with my hibachi, only zucchini and onions, and they don’t carry the white sauce to go with the hibachi either. The chef (Melvin) was phenomenal though, he tried to make it a good experience. I guess I was just used to the hibachi place I have back home (Saitos Japanese Steakhouse) and Benihana definitely didn’t live up to my expectations. Probably won’t be back anytime soon, the 40 minute drive wasn’t really worth it.

Went today to celebrate my cousins birthday. We had a party of 10 and the place for fairly busy for a Monday night. We did make reservations and was seated within five minutes. The service was good but it took nearly an hour before the cook started. Our cook name was Cyril he was very nice and did a good job at cooking and carrying on a conversation with all the members at the table. My food was good and everyone in my party enjoyed their meal. It is a bit expensive, I had the hibachi chicken with regular white rice, a Sprite and the meal comes with salad and onion soup. My daughter had the same our two meals totaled $ 48. The soup was luke warm and I didn’t care for the salad dressing. The main course was good, I will return but try other Japanese restaurants prior to returning.

My husband and I came here during the summer to celebrate our first anniversary. The entire experience was positive. We had a reservation and were seated quickly at a hibachi table near the front. The people around us were friendly and fun so that added to our experience. The chef was delightful! Entertaining, comical, polite, and just so fun to watch and interact with. The food was excellent and they even brought us a dessert on the house and sang us a song! So sweet. Loved every minute there, and will return the next time we visit Orlando.

My wife and I had a date night and enjoyed the food, but don’t be in a hurry. The wait to get seated and then get started with the meal took almost an hour.

Very nice dinner spent here. Had reservations and had to still wait almost 30 minutes which I didn’t understand. Other than that the food was great and the cook was very entertaining. Kids enjoyed the dinner and so did I…

Not a bad experience, food was amazing ! There is something special about the combination of simple ingredients to creat a sophisticated and extremely yummy flavor combination.
Only downside was that the service was slow, very slow. Waiting 30 + minutes after your reservation to be seated and another 15 minutes for your drink can leave a hungry guest food crazed and foaming at the mouth…

I love coming to this location! All the chefs are great and really friendly. I’m allergic to shell fish and whenever I’m at a full table the chefs have always accommodated me by cooking the shellfish last.
They have a really good lunch special too.

I love this place. Abraham was our waiter and he was so welcoming and sincere. Shanh was our chef and he was just as nice! Great experience and great food.

We always eat at Benihana wherever we travel … but this was the first time that the chef did not do any tricks to make all of the kids at the table laugh (and there were 5 young kids). They should have tried to make it a funner experience for everyone. I personally was surprised… but the food was delicious and the service was ok.

The service here was terrible. We sat at the lounge and waited for a server. The hostess told us to find a table and didn’t direct us anywhere. After sitting and ordering the food came out quickly. The sushi was amazing, but the shrimp dinner was a very small portion. The server said the shrimp appetizer was on top of the dinner when I asked, this made the meal even smaller. My rice came out half way through the dinner, when it should have came with the small plate of shrimp and «Habichi vegetables» a small portion of onions and zucchini. We told the server we were going to the restroom after waiting 10 minutes for her to come and even offer us drink refills (she never did). When we came back from the restroom we found that she sat a man at our STILL DIRTY table. We stood next to the table waiting for the check. She didn’t even offer me the birthday dessert, she just took the coupon and check and walked away after I signed it. WORST BIRTHDAY DINNER EVER!
Update 1÷17÷16
My guest and I went back and found redemption! They made up for the poor service by giving exceptional service this time. I will be back for their amazing sushi!!!

The wait staff is the reason I gave this review 3 stars. They are slow, hard to understand and do keep up with refills. If you do happen to go by this location definitely check out Chef Justin. I’ve been going to Benihana for over 15 years and he is by far the best Chef Benihana has. I will be looking for him next time I come to this location.

Many better options out there. Service was sub par and so was the food. They added a seat to our table and it made everyone in both parties very uncomfortable. No one has room and 2 people got squeezed out. The chef was fine but the server was just ok. The food wasn’t what I thought it would be. A local chain, Kobe, is much better and for the same price. This was just too touristy to be good.

We are not the type to ever under tip. But our waiter deserved it.
Service was just unacceptable. Throughout the entire meal, our waiter was almost nowhere to be seen. Our chef had to wave down another waiter to help us get what we needed. He finally decided to appear, which was maybe 5minutes after the chef was done cooking and we were still eating. He asked if we wanted boxes, mind you, we were still eating. Then placed our tab on the table «no rush».
When he first took our order, he asked if were celebrating a birthday. Yes we were, just like many of the other tables that were there. So, 1) wheres the birthday dessert 2) the group photo that we are suppose to get, and 3) WHERE’S OUR DESSERT that comes with OUR dinner selection!!! Why was I hunting you down time and time again for these things and only receiving them AFTER paying the bill?
I don’t know if he had to split the tip with the chef. If so, I feel terrible for the chef, cuz he did a great job. I wish we could’ve tipped the chef only.

I liked this location. The restaurant was large and clean, and the service was fast and friendly. Our chef was top notch! The best teppanyaki chef I’ve encountered in a long time.
We had a group of five, and we arrived just as they opened for lunch. We opted for the teppan, and had a couple join us at our grill/​table. Our server was very thorough, friendly, and quick. The chef was very personable, and kept things fun and interesting. I really enjoyed his version of fried rice, and I’ll use one of the ingredients in my own fried rice recipe in the future (sesame seeds). All of the food was cooked to order, very delicious. Of notable mention was the scallops. They were super delicious!
There are many Benihana’s throughout the United States, & a few abroad. They are consistently good, and usually a safe bet, if trying something new. They hold a high standard in all aspects, including food, service, cleanliness, and chef training.
Overall, we had a good meal with great people. Definitely a place I would come back to, and recommend.

The food here was great. I had a combination of the filet and shrimp which was cooked in spices and garlic butter. The filet was extremely tender and juicy and cooked to perfection and the shrimp were huge and just as delicious. My meal came with onion soup (which I loved), a salad with a ginger dressing that I wasn’t a huge fan of, a shrimp appetizer, steamed white rice (try the ginger sauce on it… yum!), vegetables (onions, mushrooms and zucchini), hot green tea which was never given to me, and dessert of ice cream or sherbet which I had to ask for after we paid for our bill.
While you get lots of food here and it is good, it’s just an overpriced Kobe without the delicious fried rice and noodles you get there. It also seemed like they tried to cheap you on a few of the items that came with your meal and the only way you were going to get them is if you asked. My friend added a side of noodles to her meal, and was excluded when the steamed white rice was brought to everyone at our table. She had to ask for her rice to be brought out which didn’t come for a good 10 minutes. If you’re looking for a good show while sitting at the hibachi table… this isn’t the place for it. I wasn’t engaged in anything that was happening like other places I have gone to. The only fun thing that happened was the typical onion volcano.
I don’t think I will be returning here, as I’ve had much better experiences elsewhere in every aspect.

‘Ello chaps!
Tonight we are discussing Safflower. It is a thistle-​like annual plant, according to Wikipedia. Hmm, if it’s on the Internet it must be true. Did you know Safflower in Japanese is pronounce Benihana? Did you know Benihana is also the name of a Florida-​based Japanese restaurant chain? Wow, so many questions and so much wisdom.
Benihana touts itself as being a higher end hibachi restaurant, far superior to local joints. The Benihana on International Drive is a very clean restaurant. The food was A-​OK but that was about it.
Their menu offers the same staple of Japanese offerings from sushi to hibachi items. The big getcha is the upcharge of $ 3.50 for «chicken fried rice» as a side to upgrade from the standard white rice. Most hibachi restaurants automatically make fried rice the side, and for an overall cheaper price.
The food was fine — but nothing more special than any other place. You won’t find the fun atmosphere, jokes and «entertainment» that other hibachi restaurants offer.
Another big getcha here is the charge for wine. Ordered house wine but was given and charged for the top of the line wine. My three glasses of wine was more expensive than my meal.
Overall, this isn’t a bad restaurant — food was fine and great for groups. But don’t go in expected to be blown away.

I took my friend here as a farewell dinner. I came here based on a friend’s recommendation. However, I wish I did not come here.
1. Food Quality
For the amount I paid for the food, it was not that great. I order the spicy chicken hibachi course while my friend ordered the teriyaki chicken course. Both of us agreed that the chicken was bland, as if all they did was cook the chicken and poured the sauce over it. There was not much searing touch to the chicken. The sauce it was covered was good but not enough to hide the blandness of the chicken. We kept trying to smother the pieces of chicken in the sauce.
The miso soup was flavorless and lukewarm, not hot.
The chicken fried rice didn’t have a rich moisture to it and the chicken in it was also dry.
We ordered the shrimp tempura sushi roll. The taste contenting.
2. Service
The server Natalya was trying to be nice. She keep glancing over at us while we were trying to eat. She reached over our plates to refill our drinks, which dripped some water onto our food. BUT I completely DISLIKED her. When I ordered the spicy chicken course, I asked for no mushrooms. She brought out the soup and I didn’t realize that it had mushrooms in it, which I am allergic to. I apologized to her and asked if they would be able to make it without them. She said of course and came back in a few minutes with another bowl. OR SO I THOUGHT. I took a sip and was about to take another when I noticed there was still small pieces of mushrooms in it. I was pissed off.
A little after she took away the soup and brought the main course, I started getting nauseous. The whole time I was eating, I could not enjoy my meal at all.
OVERALL, I would not ever go here again. Do not let yourself get possibly sick when you tell them you’re allergic to something.

My girlfriend and I went on a date here. We started out by having a drink at the bar, and the bar area was very nice. The drinks were great and the bartender was very friendly. When we got seated our server did a great job explaining all the new items on the menu and had fast turn around with bringing out our drinks. But the best part of the evening. Was our chef, Justin.
He was very courteous and actually had conversations with everyone at the table. His table presentation was fun to watch and he was a funny guy. If you get a chance, and can remember his name I highly recommend him. The restaurant was very clean, everyone of the staff members were professional, and the food was delicious.

My first night in Orlando, I was craving sushi and and there just happened to be a Benihana’s next to the resort property I was staying at. And by next to, I mean the two minute walk in the Florida heat and humidity was bearable.
Seating in the lounge is first come, first seated. No wait. But you can also order off the menu, with the exception of the grilled items of course. I took a seat at one of the high top tables as the sushi bar was cramped and packed. Even for a party of one.
Service in the lounge was awesome. Staff pass thru the lounge so I never went without someone asking me if there was anything I wanted or needed. My server — so attentive and friendly that it was like she was tending to me personally. Everyone was friendly — including one of the managers who swung by and talked about Unilocal as well as other dining options in the area.
As for the food — there was nothing left on my plates and I ordered quite a bit for it just being me. The server did question if I was expecting anyone but then didn’t bat an eye as I kept ordering more food — including dessert. I did feel the spicy tuna could have been spicier however, I guess the chefs make it a little less spicy for the sensitive mouths. Overall, the food wasn’t bad. Not bad at all.
If I was back in Orlando and I was craving sushi, I might try somewhere else first — however, this would still be an option on my list of places to go. At least, this location would be, for the customer service alone.

Neuer Besuch in Orlando, noch mal ins Benihana. War ja so schlecht nicht. — Alles eigentlich wie gehabt. Viele Leute, flinker Service. Und trotzdem irgendwie nicht mehr so angenehm. Insgesamt etwas liebloser, schneller, noch hektischer. — Misosuppe naja, Sushi ok, Tempura nur mittelmäßig. Der Wein: ein Bier ist auch gut… — Der Service: schwierig: Bemüht und ahnungslos. — Was richtig stört: Und alles Bestellte kommt auf einmal. Das ist mehr als schade.