Tokyo Lobby Restaurant

I’ve been eating here with my family for as long as I can remember. Therefore my review may be a bit biased due to the fact that I’ve fallen in love with this place.
FOOD:
This is my favorite Japanese restaurant, one main reason is because of the portion size. Many Japanese restaurants that I have been to serve meager entrees. I’m small but I eat a lot and I don’t appreciate small portions when I’m hungry and broke.
For big groups order one of the Boats, there will be plenty to go around. My mom usually only orders a roll (spider or dragon) and each piece is a good size, not the bite size mini sushi cuts I find at other places. My personal favorite it the C Special which is Teriyaki Chicken (sauce is sweet). The Special comes with a choice of miso or eggplant soup, veggie and shrimp tempura, rice, and a small bowl of salad. The menu is huge, like a photo album so you’ve got lots to choose from.
SERVICE:
The staff here recognizes my family and I, so we are generally received in an extra enthusiastic manner. We’ve always had wonderful service here, glasses always get refilled, plates cleared up, we never have to wait to be waited on. The senior staff members have seen my siblings and I grow up so they are more like friends of the family than anything else.
PRICE:
Well worth it.

It’s now clsoed and gone.
Next time try beef sukiyaki — it’s ok
Miso soup is meh
Tsuekimono is meh.
Tempura is normal
Chicken and beef both ok
Service is very slow and they forget a lot

I heard through reliable sources that Tokyo Lobby will be closing it’s doors on March 17^th.
I am saddened, as I have eaten here since the early 1980’s (when I lived in Southern California) and it was a place that we had family dinners and dinners with friends at.
You will be missed!

Since my last visit there have been some changes…
Parking
A new local favorite store has taken the place of the old Albertsons which now causes a huge commotion in the parking lot. Parking has become scarce and might literally drive you insane trying snag a spot.
Food
The prices have always been solid when considering the portion size and the decent quality of food which is why Tokyo Lobby was always a favorite. Even though the prices are still solid and the portions are still outstanding the quality in meat has taken a turn for the worst, unless you prefer eating gray, tough, and extremely fatty meat.
Overall
I probably won’t go out of my way anymore to eat at Tokyo Lobby. Even my family has realized the quality has gone down so who knows when they’ll want to go back.

The chicken is dry, the sushi, ahem, excuse me, the rolls are actually all the same on the inside but the fish on top may be slightly different but will ultimately taste the same.
The price is decent but if you’re a sushi connoisseur you will not be happy.
But if you’re like me and enjoy sushi no matter what it tastes like, then be warned. You will not be happy.

The redeeming qualities of this restaurant are as follows:
Large quantities
Relatively low prices
Service is decent
When a friend asked me about this place i responded, «They give you a lot of food but at the end of day a large quantity of crap food is still crap food.»
if any member of my family saw this i’d be disowned because we’ve been going here for years.

I was delighted when my office decided to venture over to TOKYO LOBBY for a luncheon. I can’t help but think… «Wow, it’s been so long!»
This place must have been here for more than 20 years. I remember coming here when I was a kid and ordering what I thought was Japanese food back then — California rolls. But I guess a lot has changed since I grew up and began to explore «Japanese food» other than «California rolls».
Came here during lunch time and they had a decent amount of patrons. Lunch special runs for around $ 8 up. Since I just had sushi & sashimi the night before, I decided to go with Oyakodon (Chicken & Egg rice). This is my default dish to order in Japanese restaurant when I am unsure of the quality of its food.
Unfortunately, they messed up on my Oyakodon and I am very disappointed. Seriously… The presentation was bad to start with, and I almost passed out when I stick my spoon into my bowl and discovered my rice drowned in sauce. Yes, I like my rice to have flavor, but not drowning.
My coworker ordered tempura & steak from the lunch menu too, and it was equally disappointing. For the amount they are charging, there weren’t even one shrimp tempura on the dish, and the «steak» looked like something you get for $ 1.99 at ghetto Las Vegas Hotels.
Even though this was my childhood spot, I don’t think I would be coming back. Was a total disappointment.

I’ve been to this place many times before over the span of fifteen years. While it’s true that the food quality probably has gone down the drain over the years, this place has a certain touch that still keeps me coming back now and then.
FOOD QUALITY:
As of now, I usually order their dinner/​lunch specials (teriyaki chicken/​beef with tempura — or if I want a lot of food their Yakisoba specials). The letter specials come with soup, entré w/​salad. The chicken/​beef are usually drenched in a semi-​thick teriyaki sauce which resides on the sweeter side. Sometimes the chicken can be dry. Sometimes the beef can be hard. But usually I don’t have these problems. This place is a little bit on the expensive side, but in my opinion it is worth the money that you put in.
To be honest, if I were going to rate this place off of food quality alone it would earn it a 3.5 stars for being between mediocre to good. However, the reason why I rate this place higher is because every time I leave htis place, I feel like I’ve had a «full meal course» and my stomach is completely satisfied.
You’re started off with sour and acidic flavors from the pickled lettuce, followed with savory flavors from good miso soup. Then you transition to soft textures and sweeter flavors from the teriyaki chicken/​beef and rice. To contrast, there’s crisp textures with a bit of salt, savory, and sweet from the tempura. Finish with a slice of orange (though I think they’ve removed this, that or I didn’t notice mine) to refresh the palates and relax with a cup of warm green tea.
With the generous amount of food given and the array of flavors & textures I’m given, I can really forgive that their food quality isn’t perfect.
SERVICE:
Service here varies. I usually come here when it’s not busy so it’s not hard to flag down a waiter or waitress. They are all polite and kind to their customers, just a little unenthusiastic at times.
ENVIRONMENT:
I honestly think this place is a little oudated, but I do like the (sakura) matsuri decorations here. I find it to be unique and pleasant, just that it’d be nice if they updated their seats and tables.
Structurally this restaurants has different segments to allow for a more ambient/​quiet atmosphere with decent privacy and spacing. Usually the back section is for the large parties so that they do not make disrupt a peaceful environment.
Overall I think this is a pretty nice place to go to. With a satisfying meal at hand and a good environment to sit down and talk with people, I don’t see any reason why I wouldn’t come back.

I haven’t been to this place for twenty years! Back in the days, this sushi joint use to be so hip and popular. I meant everybody came here along with their grandmas!
Unfortunately those glory days are long gone. I had lunch here and the food has surely gone down the drain. The best tasting dish was probably the teriyaki chicken. We also ordered a spider roll and a dragon roll. Both of the rolls were tiny! i could barely see the spider inside, and the other one was basically a California Roll with eel on top. It was not too good. Thumbs down!
The service was lacking. I only saw one waiter and a busboy. I felt like he over looked us since we only had the lunch special and the rolls. Nobody came to pick up our tab, so I had to get up myself to pay on our way out the door. Thumbs down again!
The place still looks the same as before. I don’t think anything has been remodeled or changed. The place was a little dark which was fine, but I think it’s time to remodel the place.
Overall experience was just okay. It brought back memories from back then. But it’s time to move on. Two stars, and I’m being kind! The quality of the rolls must improve.

Opens at 5pm dinner. Great cute teriyiki type of jap food. Not sure about just sushi. Sit down family place w/​kids menu.
Type of place to bring colleagues, friends not familiar with Japanese food but willing to see or try what its about.
Always so pretty here! Xmas lights and fake cherry blossom trees. Not sushi place, more so for teriyki. Cute, servers in traditional wear. Portions are good.

The décor in this restaurant really does remind you literally of a Tokyo lobby. That’s probably the only main reason I would come here. It’s next to Albertsons, so you can gorcery shop afterwards if you want.
The reviews about people getting sick below worries me though…

I really like the décor of this place, it makes me feel like I am in a Japanese garden and the calming music definitely sets the mood. I really love how they have big portions! It’s bad for my health but very good for my wallet! Most of the time I go I usually take the leftovers home and have it for lunch or dinner.
Service is ok but not consistent. If it is busy service will begin to suffer, however if it is not busy then they are pretty good with service.
Final Verdict: I will probably come her again. Food is a good price for the large portions they give, and it is one of the few places in the SGV that have good Japanese food.

I hosted a birthday party here and they gave me two free scoops of mango and green tea ice-​cream with a candle on it! So sweet! I love green tea ice-​cream!
My first time with the BOAT!!!
It’s huge and very delicious

Still one of my favorite Japanese restaurants. I’ve been eating here with my family regularly. Whenever we crave Japanese food, Tokyo Lobby is the restaurant of choice. Maybe it’s because my parents have been going to Tokyo Lobby at Diamond Bar before I was born, so they have grown familiar with the food and the taste.
The service is very prompt. Right away, a waiter brings you water and the pickled cabbage, as well as a tea mug. The waitresses are very attentive and always friendly.
I love their tempura. I think the batter here is the best, out of the many Japanese restaurants I’ve been to. The shrimp is always crispy and flaky. I also like the chicken tempura. Some people don’t like the fact that there’s a lot of meat, but I love the chicken. My parents like the beef terriyaki. They also have this very good salad dressing that I like to pour over the rice aha. The food usually comes out really fast, especially during lunch time. My sister loves the tuna roll from here, which is smaller than most, but still good.
People usually come here for the food rather than the sushi. The sushi isn’t bad, I do enjoy their Philly Roll, but I prefer the specials. I just ate here for lunch and I wasn’t disappointed. I usually try to come here at least once every so often and I usually come home happy. (: And though the prices are increasing, the quality of food remains the same.

I have been coming to Tokyo Lobby for many years. It’s a good Japanese restaurant in the San Gabriel area. This place can get busy, but the service is great. I had dinner there this past Saturday.
Service — Initially it took a while for someone to take our order. But after that the service was great. Our server was very attentive and friendly. She came over several times to check on us.
Food– The food is pretty good. I normally come here for the hot food. While the sushi is not bad, I wouldn’t say its great. I have had way better/​fresh sushi. I normally still order sushi, but if I wanted to just eat sushi Tokyo Lobby wouldn’t be my first choice. The teriyaki chicken and beef are pretty good, as well as the pork cutlet. But my favorite dish at Tokyo Lobby is the Lobster Thermidor. It is likely the reason I always come back. It delicious!
Decent Japanese food, good combos and great service. If you come with a group you can try ordering one of the boats. They actually come with a lot of food. I’d say a love boat for 2 can actually feed 4 people. You can just order extra rice and miso soup. The Love Boat also comes with the Lobster. Yum!

I am not from Los Angeles and every time I go there, I must stop by and eat here. It may seem like it’s in a bad area and kind of hidden, but trust me, once you step inside it changes. I love their food, no matter what I get. They are not mainly known for their sushi and I have actually never tried it. When I go there, I usually get one of their combos. I have tried their Beef Teriyaki and their Chicken Teriyaki combo.
They give very big portions, but it has gotten smaller over the years. Just like any other popular restaurant, the prices have also gone up. They used to have the biggest portions for the cheapest price and our family would always go here on birthdays. They have the capacity to seat our family which was often in the 20’s.
Service is very friendly, partly because my Auntie used to work there. They always bring our family green tea ice cream or hello panda snacks for the children for desert. I want to go back and see how much of an increase prices have went up because I remember when you could get a huge combo plate for only $ 9. I will continue to come here because I love their food and service even if the prices went up.

Once upon a time, a bazillion years ago, before the exhoritant prices of everything became a more than painful reality, Tokyo Lobby was the place my immediate family of 15 (or so) would go for get togethers and birthdays. Why? Because they were fairly inexpensive and they served huge portions.
On a more recent visit, prices had gone up while serving sizes dwindled down. Sigh. Not unexpected but still disappointing. Nonetheless, their specials were still awesome, just lacking the same quality Tokyo Lobby used to have.
They once had a deep fried battered chicken dish which I absolutely loved, because it was well. fried crispy. Not even sure if I saw this on the menu anymore.
Still, to first time visitors, they offer great combos and won’t break the bank. I’d still recommend this place.

If you want to get a tummy ache, then order the dynamite with oysters fried. The dynamite is NOT your typical dynamite. The service was horrible because everyone got their food but the two that ordered dynamite. Oh and the «spicy» just means some sriracha sauce was added. Food came out «warm» when I expected hot hot hot since dynamite is baked. Something was not fresh because my tummy was uhappy.
I have been here before and had their teriyaki chicken and thought it was just okay. But after this seafood experience I can say I am NOT going back.

The food was bleh, definitely forgettable but the service was really good. I guess for me, you can make up bad food with really good service, but not the other way around. I got the chicken teriyaki combination with the sashimi. The much better version of Tokyo Lobby would be Azuma in Gardena. That place is delicious and has the huge plates of food like Tokyo Lobby for a decently cheap price. The food there is much better. I’d definitely suggest going there instead.

Met up with a few friends for a quick dinner… i didnt know what to really expect but this place needs a major face lift… their menu was so confusing, just too many dishes, too many old photos. some i couldnt even make out.
(check out the pics of the plates we had)
we ordered some sushi, sashimi plate ($ 26), katsu combo ($ 19) and udon… we were pretty unsatisfied by the quality and the price. this place is over priced. it may seem like a lot of food (and yes it is) but the quality of it makes it not worth the price.
my friend actually got a «tummy ache» from eating her sushi.
i wont be coming back here again… maybe just to see if they wanted to redo their menu :)