We order three different type of sushi...food was delicious. Attention was ok. The size of the rolls is ok and they serve 8 rolls per order. We had a great time there. Definitely we will come back soon. If you wanna see the chef show please make sure to make a reservation before.
(4)
Evan P.
Food is good and a little entertainment with your meal doesn't hurt. However, the service at this Benihana's is severely lacking. First, it took almost 10 minutes to make 2 drinks at the bar. The "bartender" needed to look at a recipe to make the signature drink, then proceeded to pour some sort of capri-sun esque juice rather than fresh juice into the drink. The mix was wrong as the drink was way to sweet. Second, I had to talk to 3 different people to get our table. No one seemed to have a clue what was going on and it took them an additional 15 minutes to get us a table even though they had several open. Third, it took another 30 minutes for someone to come and take our order. Fourth, while it's always nice to have a little entertainment with your meal, our chef was dropping things, launching items in the air and missing catching them, and was trying too hard with little success. It's clear that this Benihana's scrimped on service and training and it certainly shows. The food was good, albeit, the spicy chicken was a little dry and overcooked. This must be a franchised version as it fell far below expectations of other Benihana restaurants. Given some of the earlier reviews, it appears that service continues to be a problem. There are far better options out there.
(2)
James M.
This place is a joke. I recall the first time stepping foot into Benihana Beverly Hills (there's just something about Restaurant Row La Cienega that definitely ups the experience a notch.) But at the end of the day, it honestly doesn't matter what location you go to bc it's all the same clown show. Having that said--with the exception of the Beverly Hills location--you will most likely only see kids dining here with their parents, or customers celebrating their bday (thanks to their chef's table bday program) which is the ONLY time this place should be acceptable, if even. Service is terrible, and so is the food. I recall having stomach issues after the majority of my visits. There are plenty of other places to eat, so please don't waste your time here. Save your money and your toilet paper!
(1)
Alexander Z.
This restaurant has really gone downhill. The service takes ridiculously long to get you a simple drink or to get a chef to your table. While the preparation is very entertaining, and the food is pretty decent, the price is way too high for what you get. (Also, don't order any kind of beef here; the steak is always undercooked.) I used to come here because I enjoyed using my birthday coupons, but now they are only good during weekday lunch hours and with the purchase of an entire entree, which is inconvenient to my work schedule and to my wallet. You can get better food for a better price at plenty of other places.
This was my first time at this location not truly pleased, but the food was pretty good. Maki rolls weren't the tastiest I've ever had so they can step it up a notch on that. Not a fan of the table sharing with other people unless we are all together. Glad Channing didn't take ME here for our first date. By the way the 2 couples we shared the table with were quite pleasant so was our chef. I prefer Sushi Q in Elkridge, MD.
(2)
Dyonna B.
I always come here with my Dad for my birthday/ father's day. Its never a disappointment. I get the chicken and steak habachi and my dad gets the trio (chicken, steak and shrimp) Since Im allergic to shellfish, they cook my food first :-) and then give my portion of the appetizer shrimp to my dad. This location is clean, service is good and prices are decent for the portion size. I wish the parking situation was better and that the meters in the back are updated so you can pay by phone app
(4)
Natalie P.
ATMOSPHERE, STAFF AND FOOD IS AMAZING!!!! Love coming here, always come here with my family. Everyone always look like they enjoy their job but I had a waitress named Sara, she barely checked on our table, was always rolling her eyes when we asked for refills and when it came to paying she came to our table twice asking if we wanted our change back (which was $15). Normally I would tell the waitress/waiter to keep the change but she was never around and her attitude was terrible. She should've called out if she did not want to be there. Our chef, Portillo, was really nice, kids enjoyed and laughed with him. Other chefs would pass by and ask if we needed anything. If It wasn't for the chefs I don't think I would come to this location due to their waitresses/waiters. One person can make a difference or I can just ask for another waitress.
(5)
Miss Maggie C.
I came here because they gave me $30 to spend for my birthday, as long as someone else bought a teppan entree. Be prepared to spend awhile waiting for your food, because a teppan table means you get a show and you get to watch your chef cook your food. It is a show clearly catered toward children. Our chef kept telling us the butter was "Japanese ice cream" when he put it down, and the zucchini was "Green Banana", and he would cut the onions into rings and stack them on top of each other and put vinegar in it and then turn off the lights and say "choo choo".... sadly, I don't have any children yet to appreciate the show, but there were two children at the table that loved it. I ended up ordering sushi with my $30--I got the spider roll which came with 6 pieces for $11.75, and sumo roll for $13 for 8 pieces, and a side of seaweed salad for $4.50. Everything was so overpriced, especially when I saw the food portions. My husband ordered off the teppan menu and got Hibachi chicken... it came with salad, soup, white rice, shrimp, chicken breast, mushrooms, and onion for $19. The shrimp had no flavor, the chicken was bland, the salad had too much dressing on it. The guy on the other side of the table also complained about his filet mignon and his shrimp, saying it was the worst $34 he ever spent. I can't really complain about paying $19 for two meals, and they gave the birthday people free ice cream and a free photo of their group. I would definitely never be back unless I had another birthday coupon... the food is just not worth it.
(2)
J G.
I should've canceled our groups reservation after reading the reviews, but I gave them a chance, and was thoroughly disappointed. We were a group of 9 with a reservation at 7:30, and we did not get sat until around 8:00 (On a side note: When I asked the hostess she would give us vague hope, and point out in to a mass of filled up tables telling us that ours was just being cleaned). After we sat, we did not receive drinks or the soups until 8:25, and our chef finally arrived at 8:40. The chef was clearly not interested in speaking with us, and, instead, talked to himself and made zero eye contact as he went through his routine. The food wasn't bad, but absolutely forgettable. We also ordered a couple of the punch bowls, and those two weren't very strong for the price of $28-30. Overall the food quality was about 2.5/5. Wasn't bad, wasn't good, but certainly was NOT worth $20-$30 per person. Customer Service is my main fuel for this review. The chef we had didn't bother speaking with us, our server was pretty attentive, but the hostess they hired does not belong in a customer facing position. As we left she said "are you happy now?". I think what she says should stand alone as a representation of what to expect when eating at Benihana. Pros: Good location Cons: Customer Service Food/Drink value I do not plan on returning to this location unless the customer service gets better, and the quality of food matches the prices.
(2)
Laurie L.
Great locations and awesome food. The chef was quiet but did a great job. We asked for extra garlic butter and totally hooked us up. I know it's fattening but oh so yummy! Food was cooked perfect. Love this spot! Will be my new spot.
(4)
Phi N.
Started off with some sushi. Large pieces but I made the mistake of letting my friend order. Of course she got some non-sushi sushi... (if that makes sense). Girls always avoid raw fish in their sushi... that's the whole point of sushi! lol For the main course, I got the shrimp and steak. It was okay after doused in the orange/yellow sauce. Fair amount of food. Comes with a salad I didn't care for, a little soup that was okay, and some fried rice and vegetables. Oh, and it came with ice cream too. Strawberry ice cream was by far the best thing they had. Our chef put on a decent show for us, but would I got back for the food? Probably not for that price when I could have gone up 355 a bit further and got myself a really good steak... Doesn't hurt to try and learn from your experiences though!
(3)
Doug S.
Entertaining views and delicious food. Our chef, Sergio, was an awesome guy with a great attitude. He maintained his composure when even *I* was getting annoyed with my own family at the table. Props to you, sir. One complaint: despite the fact that we had a reservation, we waited at least 30 minutes for a table. Parking also sucks, but that's to be expected in Bethesda...
(4)
Ruth R.
Very disappointing experience. Our office is located no more than 5 minutes from Benihana. We have ordered from there multiple times throughout the years and have NEVER run into any issues. We love Benihana for lunch and the close proximity makes it convenient. All of this changed today from just one unpleasant customer service experience. We called to place an order and one of the girls wanted her usual, hibachi chicken with fried rice instead of white. Mind you, she has ordered this meal every time and always the same way. The receptionist put her on hold to check with her manager, I am assuming. When she comes back on the phone she says we cannot substitute fried rice for white rice. We kindly explained that we've ordered it this way every time. She insisted that they would never allow someone to substitute fried rice for white rice. After what seemed like an endless back and forth we decided to cancel our order and go elsewhere! They would prefer to provide poor customer service instead of money??? That makes no sense! We won't be going there again just to prove a point because of how many times we have ordered the same exact thing and never had an issue!
(1)
Tim C.
I don't know about you but what sells me on a place is service. When your entree is averaging around $25, I expect to be taken care of. It started bad with being sat immediately and not being able to get a coke for 15 minutes. Our meal in general took 2 hours between getting sat and paying the bill. That's just too long. That's not the business plan, that's the service, and at the end of the day, the management. It very possibly was just our server but the level of neglect and indifference in the service was frustrating to say the least. She never offered to refill a water, soda, or cocktail without having to be asked. When we did see her she seemed to not be able to care less. It was Friday night and the last time I was in here it was packed, tonight it was empty and I am beginning to see why. How hard is it to smile? I watched her wander around the floor as if she had nothing to do. Pissed me off. Our chef Alex was great though. The food was fantastic and he had a good demeanor throughout. He is the only reason I can justify 3 stars at all. Boy definitely needs some work flipping shrimp tails though.
(3)
Lily Z.
I came again for my birthday dinner and my reservation was at 8:30, and it is currently 9:43 and the chef still has not come to the table to cook. They also close in 17 minutes. I really don't know what happened. It's a Wednesday night... The service is terrible. I had to constantly remind my service of what I wanted. Good thing I ordered sushi as well otherwise I would be dying. But the sushi wasn't even that good. The salmon sashimi was not fresh and was tiny. I asked for a discount or some sort of compensation and they said no and offered me free melted ice cream, which already came with my meal since it's my birthday. I can't believe I just spent 2 and a half hours at dinner. AND I DIDNT EVEN GET A BIRTHDAY SONG! I'm extremely dissapointted since I bought my friends and I told them how much I loved eating here. Definitely won't be coming back until my next birthday lol.
(1)
Alex M.
Wow. I was impressed with the service, the quality, and the skill of the chefs Fun and good family place for birthdays and family occasion s
(5)
Sophie F.
I had the spicy tofu with no butter and white rice. Delicious - if you want an edible spicy only ask for one spicy cup of sauce before they cook it. I've been dreaming of this dish since I went! Will try it again soon I'm sure. Parking is convenient in the back, and the bar area looks nice. Waiters are friendly and funny.
(3)
Nicole G.
I came here with a friend specifically to use my $30 coupon they send you for your birthday. We arrived around 6:30 and asked if we were here for endless sushi or hibachi. Well, the coupon is only for the main dining area, and only Monday-Thursday, and not able to be combined with any other offers... so hibachi area it was. We were sat at a grill table with 8 chairs, but realized we were going to be the only two. Our waitress took our drink orders, verified it was actually my birthday month, and took our orders. (Benihana Trio and the avocado salmon). Our chef Jose was an absolute joy. He put on a great show even if it was just for the two of us. I have been to similar establishments, so knew all about the onion volcano/train and some of the cheesy jokes, but that didn't make it any less fun. The absolute best joke is "butterfly! ...butter ... fly!" We saw a kid with a paper chef hat, so after our meal was cooked and served, we asked if we could have hats too. Jose gladly brought them over. The actually food was pretty good. I mean, when it's slathered in butter, and dipped in one of the two (or both!) extra sauces, it's gotta taste great. I was asked how I wanted my steak cooked, chicken and shrimp were perfect, and my friend lover her salmon with the avocado tartar. It was a bit sad that i only got two "colossal" shrimp, and my friend only got two stalks of asparagus, but it was definitely enough food. We opted not to get the fried rice, but halfway through the meal I wish we would have. As I was taking my last bite of steak, the waitress came out with a birthday sundae with a candle and asked my friend to help sing happy birthday. Then she took a picture of us in our chef hats and gave us a printed copy in a paper frame. All in all it was a really fun time with good food. I don't know if I'd pay full price for the hibachi, but I definitely want to come back for the happy hour specials in the lounge.
(4)
Crystal M.
Great food. Iv have been to a lot of Japanese steak houses and this is by far one of the best I think. The quality of the food is great, the shrimp were not your typical frozen small shrimp these were jumbo:) the steak was a great cut of meat! The starter salad & soup was a good portion bigger than any other steak houses & it wasn't just a piece of lettuce with a carrot. Outstanding service overall from the staff.
(4)
Meagan K.
Man, what? This place is garbage and it looks grungy inside. I went here for a friend's birthday about a month ago and I felt so bad for her for having her party here. There was no fire show whatsoever, and there actually was nothing cool at all. It was more like sitting still and watching a chubby sweating man cooking regularly. We tried to cheer and liven things up, and the chef looked annoyed. That didn't stop us, though. The drinks were very good, but getting a refill on those drinks proved to be an impossible feat. In addition to the lackluster performance of the chef and the empty drink glasses we all held on to the whole time, the food was also a horrible thing. Never again.
(1)
Kate H.
Possibly the worst dining experience we've ever had. Greasy, bland food. Difficult to find wait staff. Drink orders that took 30 minutes once placed. A chef who told no jokes, didn't talk to the patrons, and did one trick. Once. It was painful. Really, really painful. We'll stick with Masa Hibachi in Silver Spring from here on out. It will take years for me to live down taking my kids to this restaurant.
(1)
Brooklyn C.
I was so disappointed in this restaurant. The food portions are minimal and for the prices you should get more. It was very bright lighting and full of kids on a Saturday night. The chef was quiet and wasn't interacting with the group. This was one of the worst hibachi places I've been to.
(2)
Passion R.
Soooooooo when did Benihana turn into Chuck E. Cheese?? My first Benihana experience dates back almost 15 years ago. There was one in the swanky underground mall in Georgetown. The patrons were chic, the lighting was dim almost night club esque, and the food show was grand!! Soon, replica spots popped up all over and the hibachi trend went viral. It was entertainment for adults, young adults, and some lucky teens--my high school bf brought me here for Valentine's Day. It wasn't cheap but the food was so fresh and so tasty, it didn't really matter. They gave you so much food, it was more like getting two meals for the price of one anyways. Each subsequent visit over the years to Benihanas or any hibachi around the US--Vegas, Philly, Jersey-- it was always the same. So imagine my horror to see this food trend watered down to a kid friendly spectacle. Walking into Benihana Bethesda at 7pm on a Saturday, you would've thought we bought tickets to Yo Gabba Gabba Live. EVERY single table had children. And I'm not talking 10 yr olds or pre teens. I'm talking 7 and under. Toddlers. Babies. They were everywhere!! Of course I show up in a barely there skirt and "do me" heels thinking this is a good place to start my night!! I'd been too overdue for a white peach sake sangria. But there were even children congregated at a table at the bar (I swear!). Isn't that illegal or something?? The floors were even sticky like a Chuck E Cheese. And the decor left much to be desired. It was a huge turn off mostly because I had never experienced a hibachi in this way. If I even had an inkling, I would've just wore jeans and a sweater. I guess I didn't think parents paid $30+ a plate for their 5 yr old and all their buddies to eat. Apparently, I was wrong. Then to top it all off, the portion sizes and entree options seriously diminished as well. I remember there being a shrimp and scallop option but they didn't have that anymore. I remember getting rice and noodles AND a bed of vegetables topped with proteins. That was in addition to the miso soup (a bit too watery this time), shrimp appetizer, and the salad. More than worth the price in the end!! I'm sure I went to a hibachi maybe 6 months ago and that was the case. Well, not here...we got fried rice only--which of course is upcharged. We did not even get any vegetables!! Can u say starch much?? I kept thinking maybe the chef just forgot things. Hubby and I made the best of it but I won't be back. There's a place much closer to our homes that still does all the things that first attracted me to hibachi. I mean maybe it was my fault for thinking Bethesda might actually have some nightlife. Looks can be deceiving. If you're looking for your 6 year olds next birthday party, then by all means give them a call. But if you don't have children, please run far away from this place!
(2)
Art T.
No fire show. Is this a rule for the entire chain, or just for the Montgomery County locations? Or is it by city, so does Bethesda bar this table show? We supposedly got the best chef there (I'm sure every table hears the same thing), but if he was the best, they're in big trouble. And his cohort at the table behind him was making mistakes left and right. The show was okay, nothing to write home about. A couple of nifty tricks, but nothing really new. Overpriced, though. I've had the same and better cuisine at lesser chains that was about 20% less expensive. Table two (we had a decent sized party) kept having issues with the bill. They could not get their check right. And the manager made no conciliation for the fact. I will say that their seafood and ginger sauces were the best I've had at a hibachi joint. Not really worth returning to for just that, though. No noodles with your dinner, either, and a paltry amount of veggies. If you're really in the mood, then maybe this place will offer you a better experience. Since it's not close to where we live, and since we've had and continue to have much better hibachi closer to home, I doubt we'll be returning.
(2)
Matthew P.
Not the Benihana that I remember as a kid - that's for sure. Took my nephew and niece here and the food was sub par, they up-charge you $4.50 for fried rice instead of white (no biggie, but they don't tell you and it just shows up on your check). I had the "Seafood Diablo" and I guess it's true that you shouldn't get seafood from a steak/chicken joint - as the seafood was difficult to find in the greasy noodles and rice. Sakura and others are much better if you like this kind of performance cooking.
(2)
H R.
Terrible... Just terrible... The service is slow and the product is no way near the price. Took me 15 minutes at a table waiting for "other people" to arrive before someone came by for a drink order. The chicken soup was watered down, the ginger dressing was watered down, and the cook couldn't even do the "flaming volcano" for liability reasons! Even know the dishes are overpriced and sub par they are constantly trying to get you to upgrade... Too many other quality hibatchi places around... Avoid this one.
(1)
Jackie R.
VERY good food. juicy chicken , fresh ingredients, cooked right in front of you , entertaining chefs the whole shebang. my exotic mojito was also delicious, just refreshing enough and strong enough for an alcoholic kick. the chef was nice and engaged the children we were with, awesome entertainment funny guy. the waitress had our order correct but had to ask her twice for booster seats and water . I give it three stars for two reasons. the food was good but I do agree with another yelp review , alot of kids now. the ambiance used to be more adult themed. also the price is pretty high , but you definitely get your money's worth with every bite . I will come back with my boyfriend for a date and see how it goes
(3)
A D.
TL;DR: The food is definitely recommended - friendly chefs who are willing to listen to you and go above and beyond. The service and the management - meh to oh, no. Might go again with a group, but not if I get to choose the restaurant. I have been to hibachi restaurants, but this was my first time going to Benihana, and frankly, I was not impressed. I went with a group of people for my friend's birthday on Columbus Day - so a Monday night, but it was a holiday. They wouldn't let us even sit at the table (and maybe make more money as we ordered drinks and appetizers) as we waited for the rest of our party. If they had been full with people waiting at the door I would have understood; instead, there were at least 2 empty tables with the whole back room empty as well. My friend, the birthday girl, had an e-mailed coupon but she didn't have a printer so she had it on her phone. The manager came to talk to her about it, and instead of either A. saying they only accepted printed coupons because the papers had to be sent into corporate or B. accommodating the customer by offering to print it out in his office on his printer or accepting the cell phone coupon by writing down the number, this manager decides to C. "joke" with the birthday girl by making her feel super uncomfortable about even trying to use the coupon, then being unable to print the coupon (she has no printer at home) and finally, graciously willing to accept the coupon. Then he walks away. Um, what?! Finally, we get to sit at the table. The waitress is fine, if a little distracted and harried, even though we were the last table to get seated and the last to order and start a meal so I'm not sure by whom she was distracted. The chef who cooked our food was absolutely amazing - he was funny and engaging and even flickered the light on the stove when we kept telling him our friend had a birthday. We were a full table, so he was making 9 dinners at the same time as entertaining us, which is kind of impressive. I got the Benihana Delight - chicken and shrimp. My chicken was a tad overcooked, but I'm forgiving that because the chicken fried rice (which is a little expensive at and added $3.50) was absolutely AMAZING!!! I ordered a "specialty," so my dinner came with a dessert at the end - either Haagen-Dazs ice cream or rainbow sherbet, which was cool. What was not cool? Every hibachi meal comes with green tea; no one at our table got it. When we realized this, we told the waitress and the manager when he came to "check" on us. They bring the tea at the end of our meal, after the ice cream. The manager was trying to be apologetic, but he seemed to turn it into a joke instead, which was a little uncomfortable and a lot uncalled for. Final straw - we're finishing up our meal when some workers begin cleaning the back of the restaurant. And not just wiping down tables, full one vacuuming the floor with those large industrial vacuum-backpacks and cleaning the kitchen for the night, which allows a very strong-smelling dishwater smell into the restaurant. Even if it is late and a table doesn't want to leave, management should never allow customers to feel so uncomfortable and like they are being kicked out of the restaurant.
(2)
Laura P.
paper in soup
(3)
Lele L.
Ehh food was ok. I came here because I had a $30 birthday gift certificate to use but other than that I most likely will not return. The service was ok and the food was not that good. It tasted greasy and bland. It is definitely not worth the menu price at all. If I am spending $25-35 per entree it better be good.
(1)
Alissa K.
Due to a system error, my birthday certificate was not accepted. The manager offered no recourse and was somewhat callous, insinuating that we had previously used the certificate and were trying to scam the restaurant. It's disheartening to know that Benihana thinks so poorly of their customers and so highly of itself that they would insinuate such behavior from a loyal customer. The certificate was supposed to be verified by the server prior to ordering, and it wasn't. We probably wouldn't have dined if we knew there was a problem with the certificate, as there were numerous dinner options in the area that would have been a lot less expensive. Corporate later (as in weeks) offered two certificates to make up for the one that didn't work, but I still had to follow up TWICE in order to receive them. I still have yet to use the certificates because I hated how I was treated by this restaurant.
(1)
Libby F.
Like Paul M. said, it is a great experience for kids and families. It's kind of fun for adults to watch the hibachi chef in action, but it's an even better way to keep the kids entertained so the adults can converse. The tables with grills in the center seat eight, so you'll be sharing your space with others. My friend, Colette and her son brought me here for my birthday. Our table mates were celebrating their 15th anniversary with their three kids. The chef does his thing: chopping, flipping, spinning food. He's adept with the knife. The food is good. It may seem pricey to spend $20+ for a meal, but you get a small bowl of soup (kind of like miso, but with bits of mushrooms), salad, grilled squash, and grilled shrimp to start your meal. I had the hibachi shrimp with white rice. I asked for it spicy, and it was. And, unlike a shrimp dish at a Chinese or Thai place, you get a lot of shrimp. I took part of my meal home for lunch the next day. Now, it wasn't the most memorable food, but it was good food. My friend and her son enjoyed their steak meals. They sing "Happy Birthday", but somehow they got backed up for my turn, so it was just my waitress and table mates, but that was okay. I got so-so ice cream with a candle in it, and a picture of the three of us to commemorate the night.
(3)
Larry H.
This place is not clean. The grill was not fully clean before the cooker Mr. Portillo not chef began his performance. what really convince me not to even touch my plate was after ordering the trio which includes shrimp I looked closely and saw that the smaller shrimps were not even clean. The vein was still inside of it. The hibachi place in downtown is average but kills it when it comes to this one in Bethesda. Please take your money where it is appreciated and worked for.
(1)
Staci P.
Been meaning to post this review. Showed up at the Bethesda location for lunch and apparently they only had one cook or one table and was told there was a 30 minute wait...at 12:30. Just unacceptable! Walked out.
(1)
John N.
This place is not like it used to be....or at least maybe I just remember it differently. Benihana is a novelty restaurant. It was fun in High School and fun in College but now it seems like over priced crappy steak. Came here with some friends that wanted to go to a Japanese Steak House. Now I will acknowledge that the atmosphere is nice and the chefs do put on a show. But if you have seen it once you have seen it all. They make an onion volcano...and sometimes they make it spit Soy Sauce lava. They throw pieces of shrimp in their hats and pockets, and the best part is that you get your food a little at a time. Being as I did not want o fill myself up on salad and fried rice. I opted to wait for my entire meal.....this might not have been the best idea since my food was not hot by the time everything was cooked. But I have an idea to circumvent the overpriced sirloin steak that i got and the underseasoned shrimp that cost $98572039874509 dollars..... Im going to buy some metal spatulas, a cool looking chefs knife and a really tall chefs hat. Then im going start throwing the spatulas around until I can catch them without looking and start cooking food. Then when I am master chef I will invite all of you over for a cheap(er) Benihana experience. Ill even throw in a sexy dance for the ladies :). So in conclusion....if you are gonna go, be prepared for a mediocre dinner with a show.
(2)
Shandy R.
Im actually very disappointed with my visit tonight. Ive been coming to this location for over 5 years and this will be the last time I step foot in this establishment. The budget cuts are extremely obvious. The salad dressing has been replaced with an awful bitter sauce..i later found out it was made of both the dipping sauces (for seafood and meat). In addition to that, the yum yum sauce has been replaced by some watery mustard sauce. If you come here, do not order shrimp hibatchi. They cut all the shrimp in half..assuming to cut down on costs. It was very noticeable to our large party. The chicken has no taste. The vegetables that come with hibatchi entrees are no longer in abundance. By the time the chef is finished cooking, your plates will still be half empty. There is no reason Benihanas prices should remain high if the quality is less than standard and the portions have been greatly reduced. This is no longer my favorite restaurant and I no longer consider it the end all be all of hibatchi.
(1)
Par C.
We didn't have a reservation so we got on the waiting list. We were told about 15-20 minutes. Another party of 6 people with a reservation came in and when their friends happened to walk in as well without a reservation the hostess saw it fit to ignore the fact we had been waiting, put the party's friends ahead of us and seat them instead. While it's nice they accommodated them, they did it at our expense. What makes it better, is when I mentioned this to the hostess she lied and claimed they were together all along despite the fact we had heard them gawk about how surprised they were to run into each other for almost 15 minutes. Just bad customer service. We were seated after over 40 minutes of waiting and then we sat at the table for over 50 minutes before the chef arrived. This just wasn't a fun experience.
(1)
Vameka N.
Came here for the unlimited sushi happy hour... Very disappointed. 1. The service was super duper SLLOOWW. When people walk in and sit down, at least bring some h2o over if you are going to be a while. Luckily we had conversation to hold our attention, and to distract our growling guts 2. THE SUSHI: There was a time when they had amazing sushi, but apparently that time has come and gone. The sushi wasn't great (((at all))) :-/ not happy that I wasted a sushi cheat there 3. COLD AS ICE: If you are NOT sitting at the hibachi bring your winter coat! The sushi bar felt like we were dining in the Costco freezer... Thankfully the soup came with our meal. 4. CUSTOMER SERVICE: Customer service is lacking in the sushi bar area. I have never ever had a server to have the gull to give me the "I don't think so" when I asked for something. Yep, he did that! Now being that I was paying for UNLIMITED sushi, one would assume I would be able to order more sushi if I liked... right? I DONT THINK SO! WhiBut instead I kindly asked for the manager which was a waste of time. 5. If you have an issue, don't bother taking it to the manager... She didn't have any idea how to handle the situation. Over all, I didn't enjoy the experience or the food...
(2)
Sheryl K.
Food tastes good, but portions are small.
(4)
Jay B.
The food is excellent, fresh, cooked well. The prices are high. Cannot get a vegetable only hibachi. The chicken fried rice costs extra than plain rice. No noodles. Soup and salad good. The service sometimes is lame. Been here about 6 times and the chef "shows" need improvement--they could be livelier, and sometimes only two or three "tricks" are performed, which is disappointing because that is supposed to be part of the experience. Show us how you can use those knives and play with the food!
(4)
Perry K.
Always have a great time going here. Food is delicious. The best time to come here is to go in as a big group so you don't have to share the table with strangers.
(4)
Wing Head Y.
Had to rewrite this review. New management there now and food has stepped up a lot since he has been there! Family ritual for us now on Sundays
(4)
MJ ..
I dont understand why this place has such low ratings, I really liked it! The last time I went to benihana was 7 years ago and it's still just as good. I read some of the other recent reviews and almost didn't want to go, but I'm glad I did because it was not bad at all. Some of these reviews are just crazy and ridiculous like how the restaurant looks old and dirrty? Not at all!! The restaurant looked perfectly fine. Everything looked clean, staff was friendly, it went well. The food was very good as well. I was with a group and most of us got the hibachi shrimp and fried rice. Our cook, Jose was very fun and entertaining. He seemed to be having fun with it as he was going along cooking our food unlike most of the cooks who just do it and look depressed as if they don't want to be there. Jose was actually very joyful and funny, he was great. The food was cooked perfectly, seasoning was excellent, and I also ordered a spider roll which was absolutely delicious! Very good sushi! Overall, I thought it was great! If you haven't gone yet, give it a try!
(4)
Paula O.
I just plain love this place. You get so much food, all of it tasty, in such an enjoyable and relaxing atmosphere. We always have the Rocky's Choice, which is chicken and steak with grilled shrimp and chicken fried rice on the side, and you get soup, salad, dessert and tea all included. The chef's performance is something I never get tired of - some are better than others, but this evening we had Sergio whose knife and spatula tricks are applause-worthy. (and yeah, I love the heartbeat fried rice and the onion volcano. So sue me, I like fun.) Everything is super fresh and cooked right on the spot -- have never, ever liked shrimp, but at Benihana it's so good I can't pass it up--and dressings and sauces add just enough flavor without overwhelming the food. (It might be an issue if you don't like ginger, but we do.) ==My current favorite drink here is the sake flight, three 5-oz glasses of different sakes served in a little lacquer box, from a dry one to a sweet nigori. Nice, subtle range of flavors, enough to last through your meal and give a pleasant buzz as well. We finished with ice cream (strawberry and vanilla) and because it was a birthday meal we also got a birthday candle, two songs from the waitstaff (one in Japanese) and a photo. Can't argue with all that for one price! (tip: if a noisy restaurant bothers you, go early. We were there about 6 PM for dinner and the place was so empty we had a grill table all to ourselves.) I'm not going to say it's the best Japanese restaurant around here (I llove Ziki's and Hinode), but for an all around fun evening and a good Japanese meal it's hard to beat.
(4)
LaToya E.
enjoyed the experience a lot and the food was great, however I felt like they packed us in at the table and i had no space to actually enjoy my meal.. I would go a star up if i actually could move!
(3)
Kara B.
I have been going to Benihana for my birthday for 10 years now. It has sort of become a tradition and we ONLY go for my birthday (let's face it there are better restaurants out there, but I enjoy it once a year and saving $30 on the check isn't a bad deal either!). Well this year was different. We had been to this specific location only once before and I have been to about 7 Benihana total. Today was a let down. I know that Benihana uses a good amount of butter in their food, but today everything was completely coated in it. I really think they used a few lbs of butter to cook our dish. It was to the point that I could only eat half of my meal before feeling sick from it. I reheated the leftovers today and there was so much butter drained to the bottom of the container that I actually threw it out. I am not the only one in our group that felt this way. We all concurred that the food tasted only of butter and nothing else! I guess 10 years of birthdays was enough! Time to start another tradition!
(2)
Sara B.
I love hibachi and have been going to various Benihana's for years. I don't disagree with the other reviews that say some of their food is a bit bland, especially the vegetables. However, they put butter on pretty much everything on that grill, so really how bad could it be. I usually get some sort of seafood as my entree, I tend to like that better than their chicken or beef selections. This past time I had scallops, which were tasty and cooked well. Although they did not remove the little muscle beforehand in the kitchen - that is pretty poor prep work. The chicken fried rice is heavenly. This is the stuff of dreams. I just love it. I do find that it is an expensive meal, so we only do hibachi a few times a year because of that.
(4)
Tamarra R.
I love the shrimp crunchy roll. This place is the best hibachi place around. There are many other places that imitate.. I highly recommend bennihannas for those who just love Japanese food and cheesy chef entertainment while your food gets cooked to order. I've been here so many times and have tried pretty much everything and have not been disappointed.
(4)
Paris C.
I'm givin 2 stars. Came here on a Tuesday night. Probably my 3rd time here but I'm a frequent visitor of Japanese Steakhouses. Tuesday night - I was told there was a 15-20 min wait. I was irritated bc it's TUESDAY but I said ok. Unfortunately there was nowhere to sit and wait / or at least I wasn't shown - I had my 5 year old son with me and didn't want to wait at the bar. We get seated quicker than expected but the waitress comes out and says "no my table is closed" and moves us. We place our order... I decided on the hibachi steak and shrimp. Blah.. To say the least. My chef seemed inexperienced and the steak though I order medium... And APPEARED medium cooked - Was so hard and chewy. Not to mention they charge extra for fried rice ...??? Does ANY other hibachi steakhouse do this?! None I've been to. The portions are also quite small for what u get. Oh and one last thing - can Benihana PLEASE spice this old place up?! It's so boring! It's a themed restaurant and aside from the decor when u first walk in... It's bare. The waitresses are boring. There's no Japanese feel here at all. Sucks for a $45 plate.
(2)
Robert C.
Overpriced. Back then, the chefs used to put on a show. You see all the Japanese chefs doing all these crazy tricks. Now, all the chefs are Hispanics and they're horrible with tricks. Our chef kept making mistakes while performing his tricks. He tried tossing a piece of shrimp to my plate from afar and it ended up on the table... Way to waste my food! As he's about to attempt doing something fancy to my steak, I immediately stopped him. I told him to just cook it regularly and put it on my plate lol... On top of all these, the food isn't even good. Chicken with Shrimp (barely any meat) is like $25 & anything with Filet Mignon is $30+... My bill was about $40 after tax and tip. Flavor Wise - 2 stars. I can get the same thing at the mall's food court for $7... Their quote: "A fresh experience every single time." Yeah, fresh experience to see how the chefs FAIL every single time. You'll never know how they're gonna botch their tricks.
(1)
Chris F.
Solid hibachi and sushi
(4)
O G.
went there during father's day it was packed but ended up at the bar in front of the tv and enjoyed every minute of it as the world cup soccer game was on. great service and food was delicious.
(4)
Tiffany S.
Tried this out since some fam wanted to go and I've never been. The place is expensive, but we tried a chef special of shrimp and chicken for $35. It was very interesting, basically dinner and a show. Our chef was hilarious, definitely kept our attention. I enjoyed the food and atmosphere, wish it wasn't so far or pricey.
(4)
Susan C.
We've been to Benihanas before and just wanted a basically okay lunch experience. All went decently until we got a big bill, which, among other problems charged us for a dinner (2xs as much) when we had specifically ordered a lunch. It also charged us extra for rice and tea, when the menu specifically said these items were included in the meal price--whether lunch or dinner. Nor did we get the appetizer we were supposed to get with a so-called "dinner." We ended up with a whopping bill of $90 for a very modest lunch for 3; this was not at all what the menu had promised. When we very politely spoke to the manager, all he said was that lunch wasn't being offered that day-- at 1 pm (which the server had not told us) and "sorry for the inconvenience." He did take a $6 tea charge off the bill but not the rice or the $12 extra because the little plate of food we got was considered "dinner." I don't mind paying for food but I do mind bait and switch without even an apology or attempt to make things right when brought to the establishment's attention. Really shoddy if you ask me. We will NOT be back.
(1)
Sergio P. T.
Slowly disliking the overall experience here more and more . Usually or at least 4 years ago it was 9 out of 10 then every year since has been more and more disappointing . Today we were sat before another table ours was full but received service 20 min after they did. Food quality was not good at all. Over the last few visits I've noticed flavorless food. Shrimp was so bad you couldn't eat it . Water tasted as if it was pumped from the toilet or something of that nature. This may have been the last time we visit. Though for someone in Bethesda it may be a drive try ZIKI's at Rio mall in Rockville/ Gaithersburg.
(3)
Kevin B.
This place was horrible. The waiter didn't seem to know what the actual menu was. He also seems to come to the table every 45 minutes. Since my wife is a vegetarian, it would have been nice to be able to order vegetable fried rice. However we were told the we could only order chicken fried rice and steamed white rice to our dismay. FYI we didn't even get the steamed rice until we were almost done eating. Then he came to tell us that we could order vegetable fried rice. NICE!!!! The food was subpar at best. Horrible flavorless meals. Which was amazing since it was drenched in butter. So it should have tasted like something. Save yourself skip the restaurant and go to a good restaurant in Bethesda , like Woodmont Grill.
(1)
Shayne Y.
I have been waiting for an hour with no service at all. Starving to death and losing any mode to see any performance. Definitely won't eat here again.
(1)
Lucy F.
Ok, so I'll admit that sometimes I crave food from places like Benihana. The boyfriend and I chose to sit by the bar so we won't stink after, plus it was pretty dead since it was a Wednesday night. I've been to several Benihanas in different cities and the food was as expected, with the exception of my filet mignon which had no flavor at all. And what's the deal with only having a choice of vanilla or chocolate ice cream (that's included with your meal)? For some reason, I don't remember it being like this at the other locations. Shouldn't it be standard that green tea or azuki flavor be offered as an option? Eh, whatever.
(2)
Kevin U.
Benihana is not the best hibachi or Asian cuisine, but my friends always come here for Sushi Happy hour. If you don't mind working your way through traffic (sushi happy hour is only M-Th 5-8p), it's worth it. The sushi prices are awesome, and it's delicious too! It's definitely a great deal, but not always worth the traffic and I'll tell you why. One time we had such bad service here that the manager reimbursed us all. Our orders were messed up and the whole process was taking so long that one of my friends got a parking ticket. That's another con, they have a metered lot! So, in summary, sushi happy hour is the best deal this place has. Also, their $30 dollar gift card on your birthday is awesome for a free three-course meal. You just have to decide if all this is worth traffic and paying for parking. Sometimes the sushi happy hour isn't worth it because it happens right at the peak of rush hour.
(3)
Debbie G.
This place is so fun for groups! We try to come here at least once a month for their chef special. The Chefs are very friendly and entertaining. There fried rice is to die for. This place is a bit pricey though make reservations in advance since this place gets packed on friday and Saturday nights!
(4)
Muriel H.
The All-You-Can-East sushi buffett for $35 is pretty good but my fiance and I never eat that much so we end up wasting $$ BUT the sushi is good & its a fun spot for happy hour!
(3)
Alex J.
I love hibachi but did not love my experience here... My wife and I probably came a little earlier than normal for a weekend dinner, at about 6PM. You expect to be able to have a reasonably quiet conversation at a dinner - of course keeping in mind you are sharing a table with about ten strangers - but we couldn't here. The noise wasn't dampened I think because it's one large room with no sectioning and there is just a lot of kids at this popular restaurant. This lead to an uncomfortable experience where we wanted to leave the stressful environment as soon as we sat down. We then went through my wife's allergies with the waiter and even though they cooked her food in a separate pan away from everyone else's she still had a slight allergic reaction after her first bite, and stopped eating.
(2)
Matthew S.
Delicious food. A bit pricey but worth the large portions and entertaining performance.
(4)
Julia F.
I went to Benihana last night for my birthday dinner, and had a great experience! The two of us arrived at 7:00 (we had a reservation at 7:30, but got there early) and were immediately seated at a table of 6 others, making it a full table. The others had already ordered, so it was clear that they were waiting for us to make our order before starting to cook... This is the only reason I gave 4 stars instead of 5, I felt slightly rushed. I started off with the Las Vegas roll - and it was SOOOO GOOD! Served with a freshly sliced jalepeno on top - amazing. We shared the Deluxe Filet & Chicken for two. We also added a side of scallops ($8.50 for 6). Everything was delicious. and GARLICKY. They used garlic butter on EVERYTHING and it's sooo tasty. I will definitely be back!
(4)
Lauren M.
My husband and I went to Benihana, because it's convenient to where we live. I've always enjoyed Japanese habachi so I was looking forward to dinner. The atmosphere was pretty standard for a habachi restaurant. The servers and chef were very nice and accommodating. The reason I gave 2 stars was for the food. It was so bland! I've been to many other Japanese habachi restaurants (Kobe, Shogun) in the past, and their food was always flavorful. Not Benihaha. They season their meat and veggies with only a little salt, pepper, lemon juice and butter. BLAND!! Even the fried rice was bland. I poured some of their 'Japanese mustard sauce' on some of my food, and finally asked for teriyaki sauce for the chicken. After the food was doctored up with sauces, it helped, but still wasn't as good as Shogun or Kobe. I doubt I'll return to Benihana.
(2)
Lilian Y.
This was my second visit to Benihana's. The first time I went, it was for a friend's birthday back in May. The experience was very nice. The only downside, we ordered drinks at the bar, and it took halfway into dinner for us to get them. I went last night with my boyfriend to celebrate our 6 month anniversary :) The atmosphere was generally nice like last time. We sat at a very crowded table with kids surrounding us. I wished we had a little more room as there was very little table space. My boyfriend got the Hibachi Scallops with fried rice and I got the Benihana Delight with fried rice. If you didn't know, they charge you for the fried rice. It's extra. I'm not sure if they always charged you, but it was a surprise. You would think it would come with the meal as it states it comes with onion soup, shrimp appetizer, vegetables, rice and dessert. The experience this time around was not that great. With an Italian hibachi chef, I don't know what you would have expected. The show was mediocre at best. No volcano, no egg toss, no shrimp toss. The show fell short on it's usual pizazz. Next time, I think I'd prefer to request an Asian chef as they are more entertaining.
This place is perfect for groups and celebrations. We came here for my boyfriend's 31st birthday with a group of friends and enjoyed ourselves with drinks and food. I like this restaurant more for the experience versus the food but not to say the food is bad. Overall we have a nice fun experience when we were here.
(3)
Tiger C.
Always get excited when planning to go to Benihana. It is very similar to anticipating going to the Blue Man Group show in Vegas. You get all hyped out because the guys in blue paint are going to drum away like crazy. Five minutes into the show, after their drum session, you realize these guys are not going to do much else, and that the show is more than 2 hours in length. Benihana is the same way, you expect an epic show from a iron chef like entity, but when you start to sit down and order the food, you start to realize that the hype is not going to match up. The food is mediocre, always, no question about that. How much could you possibly do with a few ingredients, chicken or steak with garlic butter, fried rice with garlic butter, some veggies, and that is about it. Have not seen a skilled chef in a very long time, maybe ever when I have gone to a Benihana, and certainly the same case at this location. When you start watching the show, you realize that you could be cooking this stuff at home. Highlight though is I found out that you can sign up and cook at the restaurant for up to four of your friends. It could be an epic night when you are the chef, and that definitely puts up another star for this location.
(3)
Valerie B.
Food was fantastic just like when I came here with my family as a child. Entertaining atmosphere if you know what to expect. Love this place...
(5)
Donna W.
I visited Benihana yesterday really looking for Happy Hour but they don't have one on Friday.. Shouldn't that be the happiest happy hour of the week?? But anyway I decided to stay for early dinner so I order a kids meal. While most adults do not order a kids meal I have specific reasons why I do and provided the reason why. The waiter looked at my information as if it were something of disgust and it really disturbed me. I called management and spoke to her about it.. not much difference but attitude of the waiter did change. One thing I did not like is they don't disclose that they charge for fried rice (chicken), this I do not understand since they are cooking everything else in front of you. Over all it is very good..
(4)
Tim R.
This was ok. The kids had fun. I've been to better teppanyaki.
(2)
Carlton M.
This place is truly sad! Their service has got worse and worse over the years -__-! The sushi is still pretty good...but the service is so bad that I have decided it's only worth going for Sushi Happy Hour, and I have to do a slight meditation before I go in, telling myself to not get pissed off with their terrible service. I have finally decided to stop going, when the last time I went my server greeted my table by giving me the ol handshake from the hood with a classic "Whaddup dog!" I was completely offended, not sure if its because of my skin tone or not...but I was offended. When I talked to the manager about this, she apologized about it and offered me a free soda!?!?!?!?! Are you kidding me? I truly hate this place! Used to come for the sushi, now I have started my hunt for a new sushi spot!
(1)
David W.
A good show, good food - exactly what I expect... It is consistently good - never bad.
(3)
Debbie D.
The sushi bar is kind of small, but good food. The drinks are a little expensive. If you're a party of less than 8 then you'll probably be sharing the table with strangers. It's a fun show if you've never been. The chefs are nice and they entertain you with their cooking. The food is good. I'd recommend getting the fried rice with your meal because it's fun to watch them prepare it for you. The chef balances an egg on his spatula and then tosses it into his hat, and they make a volcano out of stacked onion slices. Fun times. I'd say come here for a special occasion. Warning- This is a restaurant that sings to you for your birthday :) Pros: Entertainment; Hibachi Shrimp Great; Free Meal Your Birthday Month Cons: Slow to Seat You; Seated with Strangers
(3)
Ariane P.
I went over here today, it was my first time. It was cool when they tried to cook it in front of you (I love Japanese food, so I've been to several Japanese restaurants), but for me, it is always better that we cook all foods by ourselves! Since we ordered the last page on the menu book, which is the lunch menu, we didn't have to pay much more than we expected. It was less than $15 per person. And you know what I got a lunch boat (sashimi, salmon teriyaki, edamame, half california roll, a cup of steamed rice (soo good), and shrimp&vegetable tempura) for only $10! Not included tax and gratuity. The taste of food is just like the other Japanese places, excluded the rice, even their plain rice is yummy. What made me giving 3 stars, it's because this place is too far away from where I live, an hour of driving to get here. Overall, a good experience.
(3)
Natalie F.
Came here for dinner on New Years eve last year and had a most enjoyable and special evening. The staff here is above and beyond attentive and friendly. I came with a party of 3 with a reservation, once we all arrived they seated us with two other parties at a large table surrounding a grill. The person taking our orders for food was really knowledgeable about the menu and exceptionally attentive with drinks. This place has a really fun and energetic environment! I loved watching the chef prepare our seafood and meat right in front of us! I had the treasures of the sea, which included lobster, scallops and shrimp. I also had the zucchini, onions and rice as a side. Everything was literally cooked to perfection. I have never had such perfectly cooked seafood except for in Baltimore! What a delightful treat! You really get a lot of food for your money here! I had left overs on new years day which made incredible fish tacos, definitely worth every penny! The location is very convenient to Rockville, Bethesda and DC. There is a lot right next to the restaurant with metered parking and once the bank closes next door a lot of free parking opens up. This would be a great place to have a birthday party! Delicious food and fantastic looking cocktails with a fun atmosphere. I will definitely be back!
(4)
Sue H.
Ok. I absolutely love what my family always called "chop em up" and what others seem to strangely refer to as "japanese steakhouse." So it's truly dismaying to have to just throw up the white flag on essentially the only bethesda version of this fare. But I'm sick of it. The food here is average at best, seemingly compromising quality and freshness for margin. The atmosphere feels like chuck e cheese. And tonight, the service was once again painfully awful. This would be my very first one-star Yelp. I'm sure it's a tree falling in a forest that no one will hear, but I'm never returning. The deal breaker was getting rice about 15 mins after the rest of the food had been served. 25% discount as a concession for the bad experience was nice, but the assurance that this wouldn't happen again rang hollow. The 75% we paid was about fair for the food. Cross this one off your list, and try others outside bethesda. That's what I'm doing.
(1)
Queen B.
Great place to go people are very friendly had a great time for my birthday the food was really good I give this place 5 stars the chef did a really good job it's worth going.
(5)
Jueli L.
Because of the type of restaurant this is, your experience will vary simply depending on your hibachi chef. I've been to this Benihana several times over the past few years, and the most recent visit was by far the best. Our chef was hilarious! Birthday Boy (BB) and I noticed that he was the only one working that night who seemed to be having any fun, and that definitely improved our experience. Although he did the standard tricks, he added his own flava to make his performance unique. Not only that, but he somehow made the food taste that much better (most likely because he drenched everything in butter). There were two patrons who had only ordered sushi and nothing from the hibachi selection (probably due to the dauntingly high prices), but the chef was nice enough to give them some of the food to try. If you sign up on the Benihana website, you receive a free birthday meal up to $30. If it weren't for that coupon, the meal would be astronomical in price for the quality and amount of food. For this reason and also for their lackluster sushi and some average run of the mill meals from previous visits, I think this is a 3 star worthy restaurant.
(3)
KanKan Y.
Ahhh hibatchi...never really different anywhere you go. The cool thing about getting food here are the buddah or other figurine ceramic coctail cups that you can collect. (They are pretty cool looking). Otherwise, there's nothing really awesome to write home about. The servers here have all been very nice to me. Note that service is fairly slow as folks tend to have birthday parties here often. I have seen at least one birthday every time I come. If you're health conscious...don't look at how they make the fried rice! It's delicious but scary when you realize how much butter goes into the dish. The tricks are pretty standard - egg toss in hat, onion volcano, etc. If you've never been, I recommend you try it. It can be a fun experience. If you don't know what to get, I'd recommend the hibatchi steak or scallops.
(3)
Tiffany M.
Terrible. I think I cursed us by saying "Oh, it'll be fine. A Japanese steakhouse is a Japanese steakhouse". Wrong. My chicken didn't have a hint of flavor and was as dry as it could possibly be.The 'special sauce' was not special sauce. It was total liquid. We were there as a party of 4 and were all astonished at how poor the experience was. Oh, and it's really expensive. I mean what kind of Japanese restaurant charges extra for fried rice!?! I It was the white sticky rice that comes with the meal?? I mean, every time I've ever been to one of these restaurants, they overload you with the rice they fry right before your eyes! Anyway, I completely suggest saving your money and eating at one of the other 100 'unique' places in the area. Soooo many better options in Bethesda!
(1)
Melissa P.
Terrible Service. Your waiter will take 20 minutes to seat you in a room of empty tables. wait another 10 minutes for water.. and then after 30 minutes you will have to go on a stealth mission to find someone to take your order.. oh and definitely bring someone who is a great conversationalist so you wont notice the hour that passes before your food arrives. The sushi is decent but not memorable. Anything from the hibachi will be drenched in butter. So greasy it will make you ill for 3-4 days. and the final slap in the face is that they don't event serve undon noodles.. just a weird japanese-style pasta dish they try to pass off as udon. Fail!
(1)
Rachel L.
Look, it's a hibachi place, it's not French Laundry. As far as the food goes, I got what I expected and thought it was tasty. The atmosphere is fun, and we actually had 3 birthdays at our table so the singing commenced. Take it for what it is and you'll enjoy it.
(4)
Patrick M.
Benihana is totally fun. I went Saturday night and had a nice time. The food is good - not great but good. Although surprisingly high-calorie when you see how much oil and butter is added. I especially liked the fried rice and the fillet. The drinks were good too. I got sake as part of the experience although it is not my favorite. The service was fine. A bit slow but fine. Our waitress seemed really nice. I really liked the show aspect and the overall experience. (Although like some other reviewers, I was suprised that there were no Japanese or Asian staff in the place.) At first, it was off-putting to sit with a bunch of strangers (if your reservation does not fill up a table, you get seated with strangers) but they were nice. The chef was fun and funny and nice. Although it was a bit cheesy, I did enjoy his tricks and banter. The place could be a bit cleaner - I noticed food and bits of paper all over the place. It was loud but not ridiculous and the restroom was clean. Benihana is a neat place if you want a Night Out especially if you are not an adventurous eater. Good for groups up to 10 or so. It is also reasonable - the chef's special with drinks, tax, and tip was less than $90 for two and filling/satisfying.
(3)
Elana G.
Three stars for the free meal you get on your birthday month (up to $30 value, if you sign up for their club on the website). Two stars for everything else. Since I got a free meal, I went with with friend and I got the lobster/fillet combo. The lobster was cooked pretty well and was tasty. The shrimp they give you a the beginning weren't bad. The steak was rather bland and some of it was tough (and it wasn't even well done!). The most impressive dish of the evening was the strawberry ice cream. Man was that good! I don't know where it's from but it had large chunks of strawberry in it. Mmmm. Is it sad that the most memorable item was the ice cream? Maybe a little. The hibachi chef for our table had to be about the worst I've ever seen. He was rather nonchalant and kind of lazy. He missed over 50% of his tricks. And the ones he did were only semi impressive. I've been to way better. So.... I'd definitely go here on my birthday month for the free meal, and I would go here w/ friends at other times, but I would not get an expensive dinner here if I had to pay for it, not worth it.
(3)
Danny P.
OMG!!!!! You guys are crazy....its not like there's thousand of Hibachi restaurant our here...and I know for sure that Benihana is not the worst one..(Ok let me get out my feeling) smile LOL But serious....compared to Sakura's and Kobe's, I think Benihana sits right at the top. Yes its the more costly one of the two but the food is 100% better then the two also. As for the entertainment before and during your meal (you really can't expect a PM show with about 20 people watching at 12:00 in the afternoon on a weekend when its just you and another coworker) get real...put yourself in there shoes....you just came for a meal and they came to cook your meal...now at night when the it get crowded...yes you can expect a show. (Ok enough of that..Im tired of talk about it)...LOL FOOD...I can't get enough of the fried rice, I know its unhealthy but I have to have extra garlic butter on my rice!!! And the Scallop, Lobster, and Shrimp...OMG, the taste is just AWESOME, VICIOUS, RIDICULOUS!!!!! Ummmmmmm Beni (in my Homer Simpson voice)
(4)
Alicia S.
I have been to many of these places honestly benihana doesn't even come close to the ones I've been too. First of all, the service was rude she didn't like that we didn't want our drinks because they had no carbonation. 2nd of all, the food was well yuck! The rice was okay; I like how they put in a bowl. The vegetables they weren't very good and there was no variety. The chicken was bland and the spicy chicken my husband got wasn't much better. The chef had a boring show no egg roll no volcano. LAME! Honestly I'd never step foot near that place again
(1)
Thugnificent M.
You don't go for the food, you go for the show and that show I just saw was dope. Man juggled a egg with a spatula, although when he twirled that knife around his fingers I thought it was going to slip out and stab my in the eye. Regardless, I give it five stars for that. Then comes the food. You have ginger sauce and a mustard sauce. Everything you order taste like which ever of those two you dip your food in. 20 min show to grill your food and you get bland meat. Minus one star. Next, is a little bit immature on my part. The heiress of the Benihana fortune played Suki in 2 Fast, 2 Furious. I hated that movie, so minus another star.
(3)
Art P.
I went here with a group of 10 people for my cousin's birthday. My first impression was that the hibachi stations were kind of crammed close to each other and it was as loud as a train station at 7pm on a Sunday night. I could only have conversation with the person to my immediate left or right, otherwise I was yelling to be heard. This made the mood kind of frantic instead of relaxing. When the drinks and appetizers started coming it became apparent very fast that there is very little table space. We had to constantly juggle and consolidate plates to make room for everything. One good point was that the sushi we ordered for appetizers was excellent. I wish I had avoided the hibachi altogether and just went with sushi. I ordered the teriyaki chicken thinking with fried rice. I don't know if its just me but I like to eat my chicken and rice together. But they prepare the fried rice first and serve it out - and it is delicious - but then I have to wait a good 15-20 minutes for the chicken to cook fully in front of me and by then I've already picked through my rice. So everyone around me who ordered meats that cook faster such as shrimp, lobster, steak, etc. is already done with their meals by the time my chicken gets sliced up. The chef then pours way too much teriyaki sauce on top and serves it to me and at that point I had no rice left to absorb the sweetness of the sauce so it was just too sweet for what I'm used to with teriyaki chicken. Also, EVERY table is there for a birthday, and they do the song and dance for EVERY birthday, so be prepared for loudness. Bottom line, if you've already experienced the entertainment of a hibachi chef, there is little else to desire in terms of the hibachi offerings. I would sit away from the grills and just order sushi or go elsewhere next time. *One cool thing I should mention is they take a photo of the group at the end of the dinner and print it out for you in decent quality which you get to take home...it also has a password on it so you can download a digital version from their website, cool touch.
(2)
Andrea S.
This was my first hibachi experience and quite fun! All the chefs did all the same trick (shrimp tails flipped into hats or breast pockets, volcano, then the train, etc.) so my recommendation would be to switch it up. Parking was a breeze and the staff was extremely nice. I had a birthday certificate which made the experience much more affordable. I will def go again!
(4)
Ningxi X.
I went with two of my best friends in May, and totally enjoyed the experience. The food was good, although if slightly pricey and small-portioned. It was fun to sit around the grill and have your server cook in front of you -- especially since he tried to crack jokes the entire time. Benihana has an extensive selection of food and beverages. One of my friends had a birthday coupon that gave him $30 off, but we later found out that only the food he ordered was eligible to receive the discount. We ended up having to have him pay the whole bill and paying him afterwards. Nonetheless, he got a free dessert (like many other restaurants offer surprise desserts for birthdays) as well as a photo shoot with all three of us. We also received a paper frame for the photo and a password to retrieve it online. The staff also came over and interacted with us a bit, asking the birthday boy to stand up and dance after we had sung him the happy birthday song.
(4)
Sherill M.
Benihana is the most delicious restaurant ever! However this one is alright. But....the staff was soo awesome, kind curteous etc etc I decided they deserved four stars. Had the scallops, which were ok and the chicken fried rice- yummy! Everyone was so nice I would definitely return. They even gave me free ice cream, which was not a part of my meal. One drawback. The place was crawling with kids and birthdays. It did feel a litte juvenile. Didn't Benihana used to be a sophisticated grown and sexy expensive restaurant? WTF, how did it become Discovery Zone? Not digging the family atmosphere..... And FYI guys, the Chefs put in alot of effort with the presentation. If they make you laugh or cry, you are supposed to tip them. I was the only person at my table that tipped. CHEAP SKATES!
(4)
Martin M.
Great place for two families of 4. Kids still like it. Check out the tuna!
(3)
Carolina V.
I love the concept and flavor of this type of food in general, however, the prices at Benihana are a little stip given the quality of the food. There are many other similar places in the area with better price for food options. However, Benihana has enough regular promotions to make the trip worth it. Almost every month there is some promotion. The portions are huge, every time I come I have enough left overs for lunch next day.
(3)
Jeffrey A.
If you go to Benihana looking for an amazing culinary experience, you're going to be underwhelmed. If you go to Benihana for a good portion of food, a social atmosphere, and pretty good mixed drinks, you're at the right spot. I'll second that it's a little strange sitting next to people you don't know, all watching intently as your food is made, but again, they have good drinks, and soon you'll forget that you're surrounded by weirdness. Yes, entrees are pricey, but they come with soup, salad, rice, zucchini, and shrimp( $3 extra for fried rice) . Service here is suspect. Sometimes I feel bad for the chefs, as they do a good job of entertaining and cooking, but the servers here seem to have their own slack agenda, thus costing them a tip. It's not bad, it's not great, it's just...Benihana. Note: It helps if you sit at a table that is not shared with people from deep space nine.
(2)
Sean M.
Took the family here for our traditional teppanyaki Christmas eve dinner. Service was a bit lacking but not awful. Our chef was nice enough if not a master of this type of cooking. The food was generally good. The portions were fairly hefty and decent. The only thing that everyone agreed was NOT good was the onion soup appetizer. Very very bland. Basically tasted like water. The salad had a bitter aftertaste that was caused by one of the vegetables but not sure which. We had various dishes -- steak, shrimp, chicken, and lobster - and all were generally good. The chicken was the only meat that was not good -- overcooked and dry -- but the filet was very good. All in all we'd probably go here again. It is a bit pricey. Had a california roll that was nothing special but tasted fine.
(2)
Leslie K.
Do you like eating out of troughs? Oh, then you'll love it here. The first adjective that comes to mind is SCARY. I was here in a group of 7 on a packed Friday night. It's a huge indoor room with like 30 tables and each table is a grill with a chef. Then there is an actual eating surface that wraps around the grill. You're not eating right off of the grill. Can you tell I've never been to a Benihana before? Well anyway when the room is packed with like 200 people eating at grills it looks like a mass-feeding operation. Second, GROSS. You order the (expensive -$35 a head) meal you want, then they bring out everyone's ingredients in a cart. I had the fortune of sitting next to Mr. Cart. If Mr. Cart could talk he would cry. The meat was on trays that were stacked right on top of each other. As in, the bottom of each tray was touching the meat on the tray underneath. The meat itself did not look healthy. The fish looked like it had been sitting out for a while. The steak looked brown and old. The sauces in the bowls looked like they were primarily mayonnaise-based. Nothing impressive at all. I did not order from the grill menu, but surprisingly, my friends who did did not get sick. I ordered a Dragon roll, which had eel, avocado and crab. Well, it was large and filling, but also bland. The eel did not taste especially fresh. Also, the crab was not fresh but imitation. Yuck. The roll looked sloppy like it was just pushed together without care. Also it seems that they lost my order (and a few of my friends' sushi orders) twice and we had to speak to the waiter twice. Even though we had reservations we waited an hour. To be fair, our reservation was at 7:15 but the whole party was not present until 7:30. They were nice about it and gave us a 15% discount off of our entire meal. Basically here you're paying for the show and the chef. Our chef was a nice guy named Erick. I asked him where he was from and he said, "Tokyo, El Salvador." I said, "You're from Tokyo AND El Salavdor?" He said, "No, I'm from the capital of El Salvador-- Tokyo." Ha, ha. Funny. True, not many workers in this "Japanese hibachi" restaurant were Asian. However, I really don't mind what ethnicity the staff at sushi restaurants is as long as the food is good. Too bad for stereotypes, because the food here was not good. I will not eat here again, and I doubt I will eat at another Benihana anytime soon. Chain restaurants are the devil (credit: Waterboy).
(1)
Laura W.
This was my first time going, and I probably wouldn't go again. The service was very uncoordinated and poorly planned. If the restaurant was not so big and impersonal, I think it would have made a huge difference. We made reservations, and the table wasn't ready until about 40 minutes after we all arrived. Why? Because the people sitting in our table "were taking a long time to finish." this was really poor planning on their part. We had to talk to the wait staff numerous times before they told us what had happened. Other people trying to get tables seemed to be disgruntled with the service as well. Once we sat down, we had one server seat us and tell us some things and then another guy came in and said he was training and that he would take care of our order. I think it is very bad form to train a waiter on a busy Friday night! He tediously read out everything on our menu to us like we were a kindergarden class. He took our sushi orders but mixed up the orders and only brought two out, and we had to re-order, and then he accidentally brought us an extra order of something which we refused. It seemed they had a lot of listening issues because they kept trying to serve one of my friends who did not even order the hibachi, even when she refused it numerous times when he tried to put food on her plate. The hibachi chef performance was ok but not excellent. The food was ok, but they grilled everything in this weird mayo sauce which i have never seen at a hibachi before. I ordered the marina plate which came with shrimp, scallops, and calamari, but the calamari and scallops tasted exactly the same because of the mayo! the dipping sauces for the food were not very good either. the atmosphere of the restaurant is very americanized, and more like a golden corral than a japanese place. yuck! so many people brought their young kids which I find really unappetizing. the hibachi tables are way too close to each other. for half of our meal we were practically staring at the table across from us which had like 3 or 4 small kids drinking from sippy cups. gross. the only redeeming part about benihana is the karaoke at the bar.
(2)
Paul M.
This is a Benihana. I went there for a couple of reasons, one being that Rocky himself died a few weeks ago and I thought I would pay homage. The thing I like most about this place is that it was founded in 1964. we tend to be a bit jaded about our experiences now - we've all done it and seen it and bought the proverbial T shirt -can you imagine for a second coming to this place in 1964? It must have been like going to the moon. And it is still a great experience for kids and families - probably one of the best. They also have a 1964 cocktail - vodka or gin with sake and ginger - it is delish and that's official. Service was a bit slow, but it is a great environment for a group / family or kids' outing.
(3)
Jay K.
This is a very good restaurant. They serve the kind of food that I love and whenever I go there I always order the Splash and Meadow. The soup and salad that comes with it is delicious. The chefs are also very nice and put on a good show. Overall, although a bit pricey, this restaurant is awesome and a very fun experience.
(4)
Ben S.
Probably the lamest Japanese steakhouse I've ever been to. It's usually not a good sign when Jose is the chef and talks to all of the other chefs and waitresses in Spanish the whole time he's cooking. But, things started out badly here. A waitress came to take our orders, and seemed to be writing everything down. Which made it inexplicable when the chef showed up, and before cooking verified our orders. Every single one had some sort of mistake. I ordered steak and scallops, he had steak and chicken. Another girl ordered vegetable fried rice, and cooked it with chicken. Half of the fun of going to a place like Benihana is the interaction with the chef at your table. Ours was horrible. He had no almost no training, screwed up even the easiest of things you'd normally expect, and didn't do anything other than cook the food, really. Not to mention that there was no flame involved in the entire meal. I want a flaming onion volcano at the least. The food was good, but the scallops and shrimp were all overcooked, and the steak, even though I asked for it rare, ended up medium well by the time he took it off the grill. And, of course, our check was wrong, too, so we had to wait for them to fix that before we could leave. No one bothered to apologize for any of the bad service, and I definitely won't be back.
(1)
T D.
Service is poor. Staff is inattentive. Food was not good. Front desk not friendly. Only good thing is the sushi n bar drinks. Over priced for poor quality service, staff and food. I don't recommend.
(1)
Sarah N.
This is a japanese restaurant, featuring teppanyaki cooking at the table. It can be pretty amusing to watch. Not very authetic though, they have latino "chefs" cooking "japanese-styled" "americanized dishes". Don't get me wrong, these chefs are friendly and will try to entertain you with their crazy food flipping, fast slicing, egg-throwing tactics. But as someone who has ate alot of japanese food, I can tell you what benihana serves is not authentic. You're paying more for the show than anything. The interior decoration is very nice, and they have a full bar section, which is cool as well. This is good for big groups, but they will also seat the two or three of you at one big table where sometimes you'll have to share with other parties. If you want to try it out, come for lunch. Otherwise, you'll easily dish out $30/person, not worth it.
(3)
Michael W.
This is an overpriced, chain style, "Japanese" restaurant. The place is what Japanese would possibly call a teppanyaki restaurant (although I am not sure it qualifies) but the quality (and a few other things) is far from a good Japanese place. To be sincere, I don't even know where to begin.... Initially, we thought the place wasn't too bad since it had a parking lot at the back (payed) and it looked decent. The restaurant was full and it was very noisy, with lots of kids in red hats in other tables. It was once our "chef" arrived that our problems began. First, the chef's apron was dirty (unacceptable) and he was far from being a skilled Japanese chef. Actually, it looked like he came straight from the grill of a MacD (or worst) and could barely speak English. The food was pretty expensive (around U$25 for an entree) and the chef was so clumsy that during his "moves" he let the spatula fly from his hands letting it hit us and another customer a couple of times. Worst, while juggling with some eggs (apparently part of the chef's "routine") he left a couple of them fly away. Fortunately only one of the eggs broke and it was on the carpet, which I imagine must be really dirty (yucky!). The food was not horrible but it was not good as well. We ordered fried rice, shrimp and a "dragon" maki. The fried rice had no salt whatsoever and the rest of the food was just ok (remember that you are paying US$25 for an entree ;-). In regards to the service, our waiter did not behave less unprofessionally than our chef and would only stop at our table every 30 minutes (which meant that our glasses were always empty). Finally, since the exhaust over the grill does not work very well (maybe it is impossible to be different) we left the place smelling like food and as soon as we arrived home we had to "Fabreeze" our coats, wash our clothes and take a very good shower. In conclusion, it is because of places like Benihana that Europeans think that everything in the US looks phony. Don't go to this place, unless you don't care about your money, your clothes, or the taste of your food.
(1)
Raycal B.
Benihana is one of my Favorite Japanese Steakhouses in the Area. I've had the Chicken & Shrimp Combo. It's delicious. It comes with rice, vegetables and a salad. Yumm-O!
(4)
Oski B.
I came here for lunch with some friends and their two little kids. While the kids had fun watching Arturo the emotionless and robotic chef go through his systematic process of preparing our lunch, the food was bland and over-priced. The highlight of the meal was when Arturo made the boiling onion volcano. Steer clear of this place.
(1)
Candace H.
Benihana is a dining experience. You sit down with large groups of people around a chef and his grill and watch him work with the food. The chefs all do great tricks flipping the food around and entertaining everyone. It's not really the best place if you're looking to carry on an intimate conversation - instead it's perfect for a fun time with friends. The food was excellent, too, I'd recommend the Surf n' Turf ... a little on the expensive side, but definitely worth it.
(4)
Stephanie L.
I've been to Sakura and other hibatchi-style restaurants before, but this was my first time at the original Benihana for a birthday celebration. The service was slow, but I guess the point of these places is to enjoy the show and not feel rushed. Beginning of rant: I am not a fan of shared tables with strangers because 1. there is usually an annoying baby and 2. I don't feel like making small talk with strangers. Sure enough, there was a baby but rather than make small talk with us, the other diners decided to gab and make cooing noises at the baby the entire time the chef was in the spotlight! Gaw, just shut up long enough so other people can enjoy themselves, okay? Or get a babysitter. Or better yet, don't come at all! End of rant. No complaints about the food at all. Tasty and hot. Portions average sized. Staff was very accomodating to my seafood allergy and the chef prepared my steak first so as not to contaminate it with shellfish. He also gave me extra vegetables since I could not eat the shrimp appetizer. I recommend the "soda with a pop" beverage. I won't give away the suprise, but there are some physics and a marble involved with this traditional Japanese drink. Ask the waiter to open the bottle for you. The reason I took away 2 stars is because the chef was sleepy. Like just rolled out of bed out of it. I expect lots of enthusiam and funny jokes with this kind of restaurant. After all, that's what you came here for. I observed the other chefs and they were all sedated too! What's going on? We had a Hispanic chef, which was interesting because in the past they have always been Asian. Currently there is a special promotion - all you can eat sushi for $26 on certain days. Too bad I can't eat it - that seems like a good deal.
(3)
nikkie d.
Mind you this is the first time I've been to habaci restaurant so my review may be a lil skewed. We arrived and were sited quickly. I guess a good tip would be to make reservations first (made them on the way there). We also just came out of a storm so maybe the restaurant wasn't as crowded as normal as only one side was full. I ordered the spicy Habaici chicken and my partner ordered the steak dish. We also got spicy crunchy tuna rolls (which weren't even on the menu so I gave them a extra star for that). Chef did the usual dance and he put on a nice show even though the other strangers at our table seemed disinterested I enjoyed it. Food was good not outstanding but the staff was very attentive and nice (maybe it just depends on the time?)and they made sure to cook my meal first ( I'm allergic to shellfish) . My mi- ti was nice my partner had red wine which was good as well. We were surprised that the chefs were Mexican but then again this is VA where most chefs are Latino no matter what type of restaurant you are at lol...all in all I had a good experience even though I not sure if I'd be going again any time soon as the price was pretty steep.
(4)
Nils J.
This place is way more entertainment than food. That said, it can be allright. Try to find a more traditional, non-chain teppanyaki place.
(3)
Sam R.
What did i have? Terayaki Steak (came with a small bowl soup and salad along with your choice of either fried rice or steamed rice) about $21. Note, if you're a big eater, this wouldn't be enough. Impression of food: It wasn't anything special. Basically, what you get are beef that are all sliced up, fried in front of you, after beef is seared and browned, the chef would pour some terayaki sauce over it and, voila, you got yourself a terayaki steak. Basically, it's beef with sauce. I could've made it myself and i can't even cook, just grill. Why go to Benihana? To watch someone play with their cooking tools, pop some unused shrimp tails into the top of their (chef) hats, watch chef do the onion rings volcano choo choo train thing and basically sit back and watch someone cook your dinner in front of you. I'll admit, it was interesting to see how the foods were cooked and know for sure that the food is clean because i can see that the chef wasn't doing something else that he shouldn't be doing while preparing my meal. Service: Service at my table wasn't bad. Did i find the restaurant to be as exotic as described on the Benihana website? No. To me, the food, the decor and ambience didn't scream that you're in a Japanese restaurant. It was pretty bland actually. If i didn't know that i was going to a Japanese restaurant and didn't see a few sushi being served, i would've guessed that i'm somewhere else. Also, not that it matters, but for a Japanese restaurant, there weren't any Japenese to be found. What type of crowds were there on the night that i went? Benihana definitely can be great place to dine if you have a family or families with young kids or go to if you're with a large crowds. The night that iw as there, there were a lot of families with kids. From what i could observe, kids seem to enjoy watching the food being prepared in front of them. Definitely not a place for a romantic meal (mind you, it's not the place, but the person that you're with that makes in romantic) though. Parking: There's metered parking behind the restaurant, although from the looks of it, it can get filled up pretty easily. Final Thoughts: In all, i think the food is mediocre. Bathroom looked filthy. Being that i put food over gimmick (chef cooking in front of you), i would have to say that, overall, the food is way overpriced. And even with the gimmick into consideration, i think it was okay. Would i go back to this place again? No.
(1)
Nata L.
Not impressed. Food was average. Will not be back.
(3)
Sheree C.
Ok, so this wasn't my first time at Benihana's. just my first time at this location. Overall, my experience was good, not great but doable. While we were waiting for our table, we participated in their Karoke contest at the bar which basically redeemed the entire experience from being bad. The food was nice and seasoned and tasted good, but I felt like they jipped us on the portions, plus while the cook was cooking our ordered food, he began cooking take home orders for the employees who were at the end of their shift. I thought that was very unprofessional and confusing because he served them before he served us. The cook had a few cute tricks up his sleeve, but didn't interact very well with the customers. Bottomline, I doubt if I dine there again. I thought it was too expensive for the service and portion sizes.
Takes Reservations : Yes Delivery : No Take-out : Yes Accepts Credit Cards : Yes Good For : Dinner Parking : Street Bike Parking : No Wheelchair Accessible : Yes Good for Kids : Yes Good for Groups : Yes Attire : Casual Ambience : Casual Noise Level : Average Alcohol : Full Bar Outdoor Seating : No Wi-Fi : No Has TV : Yes Waiter Service : Yes Caters : No
Alex V.
We order three different type of sushi...food was delicious. Attention was ok. The size of the rolls is ok and they serve 8 rolls per order. We had a great time there. Definitely we will come back soon. If you wanna see the chef show please make sure to make a reservation before.
(4)Evan P.
Food is good and a little entertainment with your meal doesn't hurt. However, the service at this Benihana's is severely lacking. First, it took almost 10 minutes to make 2 drinks at the bar. The "bartender" needed to look at a recipe to make the signature drink, then proceeded to pour some sort of capri-sun esque juice rather than fresh juice into the drink. The mix was wrong as the drink was way to sweet. Second, I had to talk to 3 different people to get our table. No one seemed to have a clue what was going on and it took them an additional 15 minutes to get us a table even though they had several open. Third, it took another 30 minutes for someone to come and take our order. Fourth, while it's always nice to have a little entertainment with your meal, our chef was dropping things, launching items in the air and missing catching them, and was trying too hard with little success. It's clear that this Benihana's scrimped on service and training and it certainly shows. The food was good, albeit, the spicy chicken was a little dry and overcooked. This must be a franchised version as it fell far below expectations of other Benihana restaurants. Given some of the earlier reviews, it appears that service continues to be a problem. There are far better options out there.
(2)James M.
This place is a joke. I recall the first time stepping foot into Benihana Beverly Hills (there's just something about Restaurant Row La Cienega that definitely ups the experience a notch.) But at the end of the day, it honestly doesn't matter what location you go to bc it's all the same clown show. Having that said--with the exception of the Beverly Hills location--you will most likely only see kids dining here with their parents, or customers celebrating their bday (thanks to their chef's table bday program) which is the ONLY time this place should be acceptable, if even. Service is terrible, and so is the food. I recall having stomach issues after the majority of my visits. There are plenty of other places to eat, so please don't waste your time here. Save your money and your toilet paper!
(1)Alexander Z.
This restaurant has really gone downhill. The service takes ridiculously long to get you a simple drink or to get a chef to your table. While the preparation is very entertaining, and the food is pretty decent, the price is way too high for what you get. (Also, don't order any kind of beef here; the steak is always undercooked.) I used to come here because I enjoyed using my birthday coupons, but now they are only good during weekday lunch hours and with the purchase of an entire entree, which is inconvenient to my work schedule and to my wallet. You can get better food for a better price at plenty of other places.
(2)Mo A.
I'll share something with you: I like hibachi restaurants. There's something about a chef cooking in front of folks and offering childish entertainment that seems to pique my interest. Not gonna lie, I'm a grown a$$ man who still gets a kick out of the chef doing the little volcano trick with the stack of onions. Oh, don't get me started on the "choo choo train" trick. I'll start acting like a preschooler watching Thomas the Train. Funny thing is, growing up, Benihana was the standard for hibachi restaurants. I've been to several hibachi restaurants across the country, but never Benihana, until this evening came along. Since I eat out a lot, all it took is for a friend to say the word (I'm too vain to eat out alone) and here we are. Benihana is in the busy and popular shopping district in Bethesda, which is a Maryland suburb that's a short distance from DC. The restaurant has a parking lot in the back but oddly enough, it's metered and enforcement runs till 10 pm. WTF? The décor of the restaurant is sleek and lounge-ish, with a dark color scheme in the lobby area that lightens up as you enter the dining area. The service was mixed. Unlike a lot of hibachi restaurants where the servers tend to be rushed and impersonal, the servers here are friendly with a sense of humor. I'm gonna let the cat out of the bag and tell you that I'm glad they were amusing because the food certainly was not. The chef was boring. He did a few tricks but didn't have any enthusiasm or really sell the experience. No Bonzai? Booooo! With Benihana offering some interesting twists to their menu, I ordered the Hibachi Salmon with Avocado Tarter Sauce entrée, which is also served with rice, noddles and veggies. As with other hibachi restaurants, the meal also came with soup and salad. The soup and salad were both average, which is typical of most hibachi places. The Salmon entrée was not particularly good. While the salmon itself was cooked to my liking, it lacked seasoning. In fact, the whole dish lacked seasoning and really any flavor. Additionally, the sauces, which normally enhance the flavors in hibachi meals, were off-putting. They had a bitter taste, which was obviously unappealing. I will say that Benihana may actually be a couple dollars cheaper than at least some of their counterparts. Then again, since you have to pay for parking, perhaps it evens out. I'd like to think that some of the other Benihana locations in other parts of the country may offer better food, but I'm in no rush to find out. I'll be sticking to Kobe's.....and enjoying the show! Choo Choo!
(2)Summer B.
This was my first time at this location not truly pleased, but the food was pretty good. Maki rolls weren't the tastiest I've ever had so they can step it up a notch on that. Not a fan of the table sharing with other people unless we are all together. Glad Channing didn't take ME here for our first date. By the way the 2 couples we shared the table with were quite pleasant so was our chef. I prefer Sushi Q in Elkridge, MD.
(2)Dyonna B.
I always come here with my Dad for my birthday/ father's day. Its never a disappointment. I get the chicken and steak habachi and my dad gets the trio (chicken, steak and shrimp) Since Im allergic to shellfish, they cook my food first :-) and then give my portion of the appetizer shrimp to my dad. This location is clean, service is good and prices are decent for the portion size. I wish the parking situation was better and that the meters in the back are updated so you can pay by phone app
(4)Natalie P.
ATMOSPHERE, STAFF AND FOOD IS AMAZING!!!! Love coming here, always come here with my family. Everyone always look like they enjoy their job but I had a waitress named Sara, she barely checked on our table, was always rolling her eyes when we asked for refills and when it came to paying she came to our table twice asking if we wanted our change back (which was $15). Normally I would tell the waitress/waiter to keep the change but she was never around and her attitude was terrible. She should've called out if she did not want to be there. Our chef, Portillo, was really nice, kids enjoyed and laughed with him. Other chefs would pass by and ask if we needed anything. If It wasn't for the chefs I don't think I would come to this location due to their waitresses/waiters. One person can make a difference or I can just ask for another waitress.
(5)Miss Maggie C.
I came here because they gave me $30 to spend for my birthday, as long as someone else bought a teppan entree. Be prepared to spend awhile waiting for your food, because a teppan table means you get a show and you get to watch your chef cook your food. It is a show clearly catered toward children. Our chef kept telling us the butter was "Japanese ice cream" when he put it down, and the zucchini was "Green Banana", and he would cut the onions into rings and stack them on top of each other and put vinegar in it and then turn off the lights and say "choo choo".... sadly, I don't have any children yet to appreciate the show, but there were two children at the table that loved it. I ended up ordering sushi with my $30--I got the spider roll which came with 6 pieces for $11.75, and sumo roll for $13 for 8 pieces, and a side of seaweed salad for $4.50. Everything was so overpriced, especially when I saw the food portions. My husband ordered off the teppan menu and got Hibachi chicken... it came with salad, soup, white rice, shrimp, chicken breast, mushrooms, and onion for $19. The shrimp had no flavor, the chicken was bland, the salad had too much dressing on it. The guy on the other side of the table also complained about his filet mignon and his shrimp, saying it was the worst $34 he ever spent. I can't really complain about paying $19 for two meals, and they gave the birthday people free ice cream and a free photo of their group. I would definitely never be back unless I had another birthday coupon... the food is just not worth it.
(2)J G.
I should've canceled our groups reservation after reading the reviews, but I gave them a chance, and was thoroughly disappointed. We were a group of 9 with a reservation at 7:30, and we did not get sat until around 8:00 (On a side note: When I asked the hostess she would give us vague hope, and point out in to a mass of filled up tables telling us that ours was just being cleaned). After we sat, we did not receive drinks or the soups until 8:25, and our chef finally arrived at 8:40. The chef was clearly not interested in speaking with us, and, instead, talked to himself and made zero eye contact as he went through his routine. The food wasn't bad, but absolutely forgettable. We also ordered a couple of the punch bowls, and those two weren't very strong for the price of $28-30. Overall the food quality was about 2.5/5. Wasn't bad, wasn't good, but certainly was NOT worth $20-$30 per person. Customer Service is my main fuel for this review. The chef we had didn't bother speaking with us, our server was pretty attentive, but the hostess they hired does not belong in a customer facing position. As we left she said "are you happy now?". I think what she says should stand alone as a representation of what to expect when eating at Benihana. Pros: Good location Cons: Customer Service Food/Drink value I do not plan on returning to this location unless the customer service gets better, and the quality of food matches the prices.
(2)Laurie L.
Great locations and awesome food. The chef was quiet but did a great job. We asked for extra garlic butter and totally hooked us up. I know it's fattening but oh so yummy! Food was cooked perfect. Love this spot! Will be my new spot.
(4)Phi N.
Started off with some sushi. Large pieces but I made the mistake of letting my friend order. Of course she got some non-sushi sushi... (if that makes sense). Girls always avoid raw fish in their sushi... that's the whole point of sushi! lol For the main course, I got the shrimp and steak. It was okay after doused in the orange/yellow sauce. Fair amount of food. Comes with a salad I didn't care for, a little soup that was okay, and some fried rice and vegetables. Oh, and it came with ice cream too. Strawberry ice cream was by far the best thing they had. Our chef put on a decent show for us, but would I got back for the food? Probably not for that price when I could have gone up 355 a bit further and got myself a really good steak... Doesn't hurt to try and learn from your experiences though!
(3)Doug S.
Entertaining views and delicious food. Our chef, Sergio, was an awesome guy with a great attitude. He maintained his composure when even *I* was getting annoyed with my own family at the table. Props to you, sir. One complaint: despite the fact that we had a reservation, we waited at least 30 minutes for a table. Parking also sucks, but that's to be expected in Bethesda...
(4)Ruth R.
Very disappointing experience. Our office is located no more than 5 minutes from Benihana. We have ordered from there multiple times throughout the years and have NEVER run into any issues. We love Benihana for lunch and the close proximity makes it convenient. All of this changed today from just one unpleasant customer service experience. We called to place an order and one of the girls wanted her usual, hibachi chicken with fried rice instead of white. Mind you, she has ordered this meal every time and always the same way. The receptionist put her on hold to check with her manager, I am assuming. When she comes back on the phone she says we cannot substitute fried rice for white rice. We kindly explained that we've ordered it this way every time. She insisted that they would never allow someone to substitute fried rice for white rice. After what seemed like an endless back and forth we decided to cancel our order and go elsewhere! They would prefer to provide poor customer service instead of money??? That makes no sense! We won't be going there again just to prove a point because of how many times we have ordered the same exact thing and never had an issue!
(1)Tim C.
I don't know about you but what sells me on a place is service. When your entree is averaging around $25, I expect to be taken care of. It started bad with being sat immediately and not being able to get a coke for 15 minutes. Our meal in general took 2 hours between getting sat and paying the bill. That's just too long. That's not the business plan, that's the service, and at the end of the day, the management. It very possibly was just our server but the level of neglect and indifference in the service was frustrating to say the least. She never offered to refill a water, soda, or cocktail without having to be asked. When we did see her she seemed to not be able to care less. It was Friday night and the last time I was in here it was packed, tonight it was empty and I am beginning to see why. How hard is it to smile? I watched her wander around the floor as if she had nothing to do. Pissed me off. Our chef Alex was great though. The food was fantastic and he had a good demeanor throughout. He is the only reason I can justify 3 stars at all. Boy definitely needs some work flipping shrimp tails though.
(3)Lily Z.
I came again for my birthday dinner and my reservation was at 8:30, and it is currently 9:43 and the chef still has not come to the table to cook. They also close in 17 minutes. I really don't know what happened. It's a Wednesday night... The service is terrible. I had to constantly remind my service of what I wanted. Good thing I ordered sushi as well otherwise I would be dying. But the sushi wasn't even that good. The salmon sashimi was not fresh and was tiny. I asked for a discount or some sort of compensation and they said no and offered me free melted ice cream, which already came with my meal since it's my birthday. I can't believe I just spent 2 and a half hours at dinner. AND I DIDNT EVEN GET A BIRTHDAY SONG! I'm extremely dissapointted since I bought my friends and I told them how much I loved eating here. Definitely won't be coming back until my next birthday lol.
(1)Alex M.
Wow. I was impressed with the service, the quality, and the skill of the chefs Fun and good family place for birthdays and family occasion s
(5)Sophie F.
I had the spicy tofu with no butter and white rice. Delicious - if you want an edible spicy only ask for one spicy cup of sauce before they cook it. I've been dreaming of this dish since I went! Will try it again soon I'm sure. Parking is convenient in the back, and the bar area looks nice. Waiters are friendly and funny.
(3)Nicole G.
I came here with a friend specifically to use my $30 coupon they send you for your birthday. We arrived around 6:30 and asked if we were here for endless sushi or hibachi. Well, the coupon is only for the main dining area, and only Monday-Thursday, and not able to be combined with any other offers... so hibachi area it was. We were sat at a grill table with 8 chairs, but realized we were going to be the only two. Our waitress took our drink orders, verified it was actually my birthday month, and took our orders. (Benihana Trio and the avocado salmon). Our chef Jose was an absolute joy. He put on a great show even if it was just for the two of us. I have been to similar establishments, so knew all about the onion volcano/train and some of the cheesy jokes, but that didn't make it any less fun. The absolute best joke is "butterfly! ...butter ... fly!" We saw a kid with a paper chef hat, so after our meal was cooked and served, we asked if we could have hats too. Jose gladly brought them over. The actually food was pretty good. I mean, when it's slathered in butter, and dipped in one of the two (or both!) extra sauces, it's gotta taste great. I was asked how I wanted my steak cooked, chicken and shrimp were perfect, and my friend lover her salmon with the avocado tartar. It was a bit sad that i only got two "colossal" shrimp, and my friend only got two stalks of asparagus, but it was definitely enough food. We opted not to get the fried rice, but halfway through the meal I wish we would have. As I was taking my last bite of steak, the waitress came out with a birthday sundae with a candle and asked my friend to help sing happy birthday. Then she took a picture of us in our chef hats and gave us a printed copy in a paper frame. All in all it was a really fun time with good food. I don't know if I'd pay full price for the hibachi, but I definitely want to come back for the happy hour specials in the lounge.
(4)Crystal M.
Great food. Iv have been to a lot of Japanese steak houses and this is by far one of the best I think. The quality of the food is great, the shrimp were not your typical frozen small shrimp these were jumbo:) the steak was a great cut of meat! The starter salad & soup was a good portion bigger than any other steak houses & it wasn't just a piece of lettuce with a carrot. Outstanding service overall from the staff.
(4)Meagan K.
Man, what? This place is garbage and it looks grungy inside. I went here for a friend's birthday about a month ago and I felt so bad for her for having her party here. There was no fire show whatsoever, and there actually was nothing cool at all. It was more like sitting still and watching a chubby sweating man cooking regularly. We tried to cheer and liven things up, and the chef looked annoyed. That didn't stop us, though. The drinks were very good, but getting a refill on those drinks proved to be an impossible feat. In addition to the lackluster performance of the chef and the empty drink glasses we all held on to the whole time, the food was also a horrible thing. Never again.
(1)Kate H.
Possibly the worst dining experience we've ever had. Greasy, bland food. Difficult to find wait staff. Drink orders that took 30 minutes once placed. A chef who told no jokes, didn't talk to the patrons, and did one trick. Once. It was painful. Really, really painful. We'll stick with Masa Hibachi in Silver Spring from here on out. It will take years for me to live down taking my kids to this restaurant.
(1)Brooklyn C.
I was so disappointed in this restaurant. The food portions are minimal and for the prices you should get more. It was very bright lighting and full of kids on a Saturday night. The chef was quiet and wasn't interacting with the group. This was one of the worst hibachi places I've been to.
(2)Passion R.
Soooooooo when did Benihana turn into Chuck E. Cheese?? My first Benihana experience dates back almost 15 years ago. There was one in the swanky underground mall in Georgetown. The patrons were chic, the lighting was dim almost night club esque, and the food show was grand!! Soon, replica spots popped up all over and the hibachi trend went viral. It was entertainment for adults, young adults, and some lucky teens--my high school bf brought me here for Valentine's Day. It wasn't cheap but the food was so fresh and so tasty, it didn't really matter. They gave you so much food, it was more like getting two meals for the price of one anyways. Each subsequent visit over the years to Benihanas or any hibachi around the US--Vegas, Philly, Jersey-- it was always the same. So imagine my horror to see this food trend watered down to a kid friendly spectacle. Walking into Benihana Bethesda at 7pm on a Saturday, you would've thought we bought tickets to Yo Gabba Gabba Live. EVERY single table had children. And I'm not talking 10 yr olds or pre teens. I'm talking 7 and under. Toddlers. Babies. They were everywhere!! Of course I show up in a barely there skirt and "do me" heels thinking this is a good place to start my night!! I'd been too overdue for a white peach sake sangria. But there were even children congregated at a table at the bar (I swear!). Isn't that illegal or something?? The floors were even sticky like a Chuck E Cheese. And the decor left much to be desired. It was a huge turn off mostly because I had never experienced a hibachi in this way. If I even had an inkling, I would've just wore jeans and a sweater. I guess I didn't think parents paid $30+ a plate for their 5 yr old and all their buddies to eat. Apparently, I was wrong. Then to top it all off, the portion sizes and entree options seriously diminished as well. I remember there being a shrimp and scallop option but they didn't have that anymore. I remember getting rice and noodles AND a bed of vegetables topped with proteins. That was in addition to the miso soup (a bit too watery this time), shrimp appetizer, and the salad. More than worth the price in the end!! I'm sure I went to a hibachi maybe 6 months ago and that was the case. Well, not here...we got fried rice only--which of course is upcharged. We did not even get any vegetables!! Can u say starch much?? I kept thinking maybe the chef just forgot things. Hubby and I made the best of it but I won't be back. There's a place much closer to our homes that still does all the things that first attracted me to hibachi. I mean maybe it was my fault for thinking Bethesda might actually have some nightlife. Looks can be deceiving. If you're looking for your 6 year olds next birthday party, then by all means give them a call. But if you don't have children, please run far away from this place!
(2)Art T.
No fire show. Is this a rule for the entire chain, or just for the Montgomery County locations? Or is it by city, so does Bethesda bar this table show? We supposedly got the best chef there (I'm sure every table hears the same thing), but if he was the best, they're in big trouble. And his cohort at the table behind him was making mistakes left and right. The show was okay, nothing to write home about. A couple of nifty tricks, but nothing really new. Overpriced, though. I've had the same and better cuisine at lesser chains that was about 20% less expensive. Table two (we had a decent sized party) kept having issues with the bill. They could not get their check right. And the manager made no conciliation for the fact. I will say that their seafood and ginger sauces were the best I've had at a hibachi joint. Not really worth returning to for just that, though. No noodles with your dinner, either, and a paltry amount of veggies. If you're really in the mood, then maybe this place will offer you a better experience. Since it's not close to where we live, and since we've had and continue to have much better hibachi closer to home, I doubt we'll be returning.
(2)Matthew P.
Not the Benihana that I remember as a kid - that's for sure. Took my nephew and niece here and the food was sub par, they up-charge you $4.50 for fried rice instead of white (no biggie, but they don't tell you and it just shows up on your check). I had the "Seafood Diablo" and I guess it's true that you shouldn't get seafood from a steak/chicken joint - as the seafood was difficult to find in the greasy noodles and rice. Sakura and others are much better if you like this kind of performance cooking.
(2)H R.
Terrible... Just terrible... The service is slow and the product is no way near the price. Took me 15 minutes at a table waiting for "other people" to arrive before someone came by for a drink order. The chicken soup was watered down, the ginger dressing was watered down, and the cook couldn't even do the "flaming volcano" for liability reasons! Even know the dishes are overpriced and sub par they are constantly trying to get you to upgrade... Too many other quality hibatchi places around... Avoid this one.
(1)Jackie R.
VERY good food. juicy chicken , fresh ingredients, cooked right in front of you , entertaining chefs the whole shebang. my exotic mojito was also delicious, just refreshing enough and strong enough for an alcoholic kick. the chef was nice and engaged the children we were with, awesome entertainment funny guy. the waitress had our order correct but had to ask her twice for booster seats and water . I give it three stars for two reasons. the food was good but I do agree with another yelp review , alot of kids now. the ambiance used to be more adult themed. also the price is pretty high , but you definitely get your money's worth with every bite . I will come back with my boyfriend for a date and see how it goes
(3)A D.
TL;DR: The food is definitely recommended - friendly chefs who are willing to listen to you and go above and beyond. The service and the management - meh to oh, no. Might go again with a group, but not if I get to choose the restaurant. I have been to hibachi restaurants, but this was my first time going to Benihana, and frankly, I was not impressed. I went with a group of people for my friend's birthday on Columbus Day - so a Monday night, but it was a holiday. They wouldn't let us even sit at the table (and maybe make more money as we ordered drinks and appetizers) as we waited for the rest of our party. If they had been full with people waiting at the door I would have understood; instead, there were at least 2 empty tables with the whole back room empty as well. My friend, the birthday girl, had an e-mailed coupon but she didn't have a printer so she had it on her phone. The manager came to talk to her about it, and instead of either A. saying they only accepted printed coupons because the papers had to be sent into corporate or B. accommodating the customer by offering to print it out in his office on his printer or accepting the cell phone coupon by writing down the number, this manager decides to C. "joke" with the birthday girl by making her feel super uncomfortable about even trying to use the coupon, then being unable to print the coupon (she has no printer at home) and finally, graciously willing to accept the coupon. Then he walks away. Um, what?! Finally, we get to sit at the table. The waitress is fine, if a little distracted and harried, even though we were the last table to get seated and the last to order and start a meal so I'm not sure by whom she was distracted. The chef who cooked our food was absolutely amazing - he was funny and engaging and even flickered the light on the stove when we kept telling him our friend had a birthday. We were a full table, so he was making 9 dinners at the same time as entertaining us, which is kind of impressive. I got the Benihana Delight - chicken and shrimp. My chicken was a tad overcooked, but I'm forgiving that because the chicken fried rice (which is a little expensive at and added $3.50) was absolutely AMAZING!!! I ordered a "specialty," so my dinner came with a dessert at the end - either Haagen-Dazs ice cream or rainbow sherbet, which was cool. What was not cool? Every hibachi meal comes with green tea; no one at our table got it. When we realized this, we told the waitress and the manager when he came to "check" on us. They bring the tea at the end of our meal, after the ice cream. The manager was trying to be apologetic, but he seemed to turn it into a joke instead, which was a little uncomfortable and a lot uncalled for. Final straw - we're finishing up our meal when some workers begin cleaning the back of the restaurant. And not just wiping down tables, full one vacuuming the floor with those large industrial vacuum-backpacks and cleaning the kitchen for the night, which allows a very strong-smelling dishwater smell into the restaurant. Even if it is late and a table doesn't want to leave, management should never allow customers to feel so uncomfortable and like they are being kicked out of the restaurant.
(2)Laura P.
paper in soup
(3)Lele L.
Ehh food was ok. I came here because I had a $30 birthday gift certificate to use but other than that I most likely will not return. The service was ok and the food was not that good. It tasted greasy and bland. It is definitely not worth the menu price at all. If I am spending $25-35 per entree it better be good.
(1)Alissa K.
Due to a system error, my birthday certificate was not accepted. The manager offered no recourse and was somewhat callous, insinuating that we had previously used the certificate and were trying to scam the restaurant. It's disheartening to know that Benihana thinks so poorly of their customers and so highly of itself that they would insinuate such behavior from a loyal customer. The certificate was supposed to be verified by the server prior to ordering, and it wasn't. We probably wouldn't have dined if we knew there was a problem with the certificate, as there were numerous dinner options in the area that would have been a lot less expensive. Corporate later (as in weeks) offered two certificates to make up for the one that didn't work, but I still had to follow up TWICE in order to receive them. I still have yet to use the certificates because I hated how I was treated by this restaurant.
(1)Libby F.
Like Paul M. said, it is a great experience for kids and families. It's kind of fun for adults to watch the hibachi chef in action, but it's an even better way to keep the kids entertained so the adults can converse. The tables with grills in the center seat eight, so you'll be sharing your space with others. My friend, Colette and her son brought me here for my birthday. Our table mates were celebrating their 15th anniversary with their three kids. The chef does his thing: chopping, flipping, spinning food. He's adept with the knife. The food is good. It may seem pricey to spend $20+ for a meal, but you get a small bowl of soup (kind of like miso, but with bits of mushrooms), salad, grilled squash, and grilled shrimp to start your meal. I had the hibachi shrimp with white rice. I asked for it spicy, and it was. And, unlike a shrimp dish at a Chinese or Thai place, you get a lot of shrimp. I took part of my meal home for lunch the next day. Now, it wasn't the most memorable food, but it was good food. My friend and her son enjoyed their steak meals. They sing "Happy Birthday", but somehow they got backed up for my turn, so it was just my waitress and table mates, but that was okay. I got so-so ice cream with a candle in it, and a picture of the three of us to commemorate the night.
(3)Larry H.
This place is not clean. The grill was not fully clean before the cooker Mr. Portillo not chef began his performance. what really convince me not to even touch my plate was after ordering the trio which includes shrimp I looked closely and saw that the smaller shrimps were not even clean. The vein was still inside of it. The hibachi place in downtown is average but kills it when it comes to this one in Bethesda. Please take your money where it is appreciated and worked for.
(1)Staci P.
Been meaning to post this review. Showed up at the Bethesda location for lunch and apparently they only had one cook or one table and was told there was a 30 minute wait...at 12:30. Just unacceptable! Walked out.
(1)John N.
This place is not like it used to be....or at least maybe I just remember it differently. Benihana is a novelty restaurant. It was fun in High School and fun in College but now it seems like over priced crappy steak. Came here with some friends that wanted to go to a Japanese Steak House. Now I will acknowledge that the atmosphere is nice and the chefs do put on a show. But if you have seen it once you have seen it all. They make an onion volcano...and sometimes they make it spit Soy Sauce lava. They throw pieces of shrimp in their hats and pockets, and the best part is that you get your food a little at a time. Being as I did not want o fill myself up on salad and fried rice. I opted to wait for my entire meal.....this might not have been the best idea since my food was not hot by the time everything was cooked. But I have an idea to circumvent the overpriced sirloin steak that i got and the underseasoned shrimp that cost $98572039874509 dollars..... Im going to buy some metal spatulas, a cool looking chefs knife and a really tall chefs hat. Then im going start throwing the spatulas around until I can catch them without looking and start cooking food. Then when I am master chef I will invite all of you over for a cheap(er) Benihana experience. Ill even throw in a sexy dance for the ladies :). So in conclusion....if you are gonna go, be prepared for a mediocre dinner with a show.
(2)Shandy R.
Im actually very disappointed with my visit tonight. Ive been coming to this location for over 5 years and this will be the last time I step foot in this establishment. The budget cuts are extremely obvious. The salad dressing has been replaced with an awful bitter sauce..i later found out it was made of both the dipping sauces (for seafood and meat). In addition to that, the yum yum sauce has been replaced by some watery mustard sauce. If you come here, do not order shrimp hibatchi. They cut all the shrimp in half..assuming to cut down on costs. It was very noticeable to our large party. The chicken has no taste. The vegetables that come with hibatchi entrees are no longer in abundance. By the time the chef is finished cooking, your plates will still be half empty. There is no reason Benihanas prices should remain high if the quality is less than standard and the portions have been greatly reduced. This is no longer my favorite restaurant and I no longer consider it the end all be all of hibatchi.
(1)Par C.
We didn't have a reservation so we got on the waiting list. We were told about 15-20 minutes. Another party of 6 people with a reservation came in and when their friends happened to walk in as well without a reservation the hostess saw it fit to ignore the fact we had been waiting, put the party's friends ahead of us and seat them instead. While it's nice they accommodated them, they did it at our expense. What makes it better, is when I mentioned this to the hostess she lied and claimed they were together all along despite the fact we had heard them gawk about how surprised they were to run into each other for almost 15 minutes. Just bad customer service. We were seated after over 40 minutes of waiting and then we sat at the table for over 50 minutes before the chef arrived. This just wasn't a fun experience.
(1)Vameka N.
Came here for the unlimited sushi happy hour... Very disappointed. 1. The service was super duper SLLOOWW. When people walk in and sit down, at least bring some h2o over if you are going to be a while. Luckily we had conversation to hold our attention, and to distract our growling guts 2. THE SUSHI: There was a time when they had amazing sushi, but apparently that time has come and gone. The sushi wasn't great (((at all))) :-/ not happy that I wasted a sushi cheat there 3. COLD AS ICE: If you are NOT sitting at the hibachi bring your winter coat! The sushi bar felt like we were dining in the Costco freezer... Thankfully the soup came with our meal. 4. CUSTOMER SERVICE: Customer service is lacking in the sushi bar area. I have never ever had a server to have the gull to give me the "I don't think so" when I asked for something. Yep, he did that! Now being that I was paying for UNLIMITED sushi, one would assume I would be able to order more sushi if I liked... right? I DONT THINK SO! WhiBut instead I kindly asked for the manager which was a waste of time. 5. If you have an issue, don't bother taking it to the manager... She didn't have any idea how to handle the situation. Over all, I didn't enjoy the experience or the food...
(2)Sheryl K.
Food tastes good, but portions are small.
(4)Jay B.
The food is excellent, fresh, cooked well. The prices are high. Cannot get a vegetable only hibachi. The chicken fried rice costs extra than plain rice. No noodles. Soup and salad good. The service sometimes is lame. Been here about 6 times and the chef "shows" need improvement--they could be livelier, and sometimes only two or three "tricks" are performed, which is disappointing because that is supposed to be part of the experience. Show us how you can use those knives and play with the food!
(4)Perry K.
Always have a great time going here. Food is delicious. The best time to come here is to go in as a big group so you don't have to share the table with strangers.
(4)Wing Head Y.
Had to rewrite this review. New management there now and food has stepped up a lot since he has been there! Family ritual for us now on Sundays
(4)MJ ..
I dont understand why this place has such low ratings, I really liked it! The last time I went to benihana was 7 years ago and it's still just as good. I read some of the other recent reviews and almost didn't want to go, but I'm glad I did because it was not bad at all. Some of these reviews are just crazy and ridiculous like how the restaurant looks old and dirrty? Not at all!! The restaurant looked perfectly fine. Everything looked clean, staff was friendly, it went well. The food was very good as well. I was with a group and most of us got the hibachi shrimp and fried rice. Our cook, Jose was very fun and entertaining. He seemed to be having fun with it as he was going along cooking our food unlike most of the cooks who just do it and look depressed as if they don't want to be there. Jose was actually very joyful and funny, he was great. The food was cooked perfectly, seasoning was excellent, and I also ordered a spider roll which was absolutely delicious! Very good sushi! Overall, I thought it was great! If you haven't gone yet, give it a try!
(4)Paula O.
I just plain love this place. You get so much food, all of it tasty, in such an enjoyable and relaxing atmosphere. We always have the Rocky's Choice, which is chicken and steak with grilled shrimp and chicken fried rice on the side, and you get soup, salad, dessert and tea all included. The chef's performance is something I never get tired of - some are better than others, but this evening we had Sergio whose knife and spatula tricks are applause-worthy. (and yeah, I love the heartbeat fried rice and the onion volcano. So sue me, I like fun.) Everything is super fresh and cooked right on the spot -- have never, ever liked shrimp, but at Benihana it's so good I can't pass it up--and dressings and sauces add just enough flavor without overwhelming the food. (It might be an issue if you don't like ginger, but we do.) ==My current favorite drink here is the sake flight, three 5-oz glasses of different sakes served in a little lacquer box, from a dry one to a sweet nigori. Nice, subtle range of flavors, enough to last through your meal and give a pleasant buzz as well. We finished with ice cream (strawberry and vanilla) and because it was a birthday meal we also got a birthday candle, two songs from the waitstaff (one in Japanese) and a photo. Can't argue with all that for one price! (tip: if a noisy restaurant bothers you, go early. We were there about 6 PM for dinner and the place was so empty we had a grill table all to ourselves.) I'm not going to say it's the best Japanese restaurant around here (I llove Ziki's and Hinode), but for an all around fun evening and a good Japanese meal it's hard to beat.
(4)LaToya E.
enjoyed the experience a lot and the food was great, however I felt like they packed us in at the table and i had no space to actually enjoy my meal.. I would go a star up if i actually could move!
(3)Kara B.
I have been going to Benihana for my birthday for 10 years now. It has sort of become a tradition and we ONLY go for my birthday (let's face it there are better restaurants out there, but I enjoy it once a year and saving $30 on the check isn't a bad deal either!). Well this year was different. We had been to this specific location only once before and I have been to about 7 Benihana total. Today was a let down. I know that Benihana uses a good amount of butter in their food, but today everything was completely coated in it. I really think they used a few lbs of butter to cook our dish. It was to the point that I could only eat half of my meal before feeling sick from it. I reheated the leftovers today and there was so much butter drained to the bottom of the container that I actually threw it out. I am not the only one in our group that felt this way. We all concurred that the food tasted only of butter and nothing else! I guess 10 years of birthdays was enough! Time to start another tradition!
(2)Sara B.
I love hibachi and have been going to various Benihana's for years. I don't disagree with the other reviews that say some of their food is a bit bland, especially the vegetables. However, they put butter on pretty much everything on that grill, so really how bad could it be. I usually get some sort of seafood as my entree, I tend to like that better than their chicken or beef selections. This past time I had scallops, which were tasty and cooked well. Although they did not remove the little muscle beforehand in the kitchen - that is pretty poor prep work. The chicken fried rice is heavenly. This is the stuff of dreams. I just love it. I do find that it is an expensive meal, so we only do hibachi a few times a year because of that.
(4)Tamarra R.
I love the shrimp crunchy roll. This place is the best hibachi place around. There are many other places that imitate.. I highly recommend bennihannas for those who just love Japanese food and cheesy chef entertainment while your food gets cooked to order. I've been here so many times and have tried pretty much everything and have not been disappointed.
(4)Paris C.
I'm givin 2 stars. Came here on a Tuesday night. Probably my 3rd time here but I'm a frequent visitor of Japanese Steakhouses. Tuesday night - I was told there was a 15-20 min wait. I was irritated bc it's TUESDAY but I said ok. Unfortunately there was nowhere to sit and wait / or at least I wasn't shown - I had my 5 year old son with me and didn't want to wait at the bar. We get seated quicker than expected but the waitress comes out and says "no my table is closed" and moves us. We place our order... I decided on the hibachi steak and shrimp. Blah.. To say the least. My chef seemed inexperienced and the steak though I order medium... And APPEARED medium cooked - Was so hard and chewy. Not to mention they charge extra for fried rice ...??? Does ANY other hibachi steakhouse do this?! None I've been to. The portions are also quite small for what u get. Oh and one last thing - can Benihana PLEASE spice this old place up?! It's so boring! It's a themed restaurant and aside from the decor when u first walk in... It's bare. The waitresses are boring. There's no Japanese feel here at all. Sucks for a $45 plate.
(2)Robert C.
Overpriced. Back then, the chefs used to put on a show. You see all the Japanese chefs doing all these crazy tricks. Now, all the chefs are Hispanics and they're horrible with tricks. Our chef kept making mistakes while performing his tricks. He tried tossing a piece of shrimp to my plate from afar and it ended up on the table... Way to waste my food! As he's about to attempt doing something fancy to my steak, I immediately stopped him. I told him to just cook it regularly and put it on my plate lol... On top of all these, the food isn't even good. Chicken with Shrimp (barely any meat) is like $25 & anything with Filet Mignon is $30+... My bill was about $40 after tax and tip. Flavor Wise - 2 stars. I can get the same thing at the mall's food court for $7... Their quote: "A fresh experience every single time." Yeah, fresh experience to see how the chefs FAIL every single time. You'll never know how they're gonna botch their tricks.
(1)Chris F.
Solid hibachi and sushi
(4)O G.
went there during father's day it was packed but ended up at the bar in front of the tv and enjoyed every minute of it as the world cup soccer game was on. great service and food was delicious.
(4)Tiffany S.
Tried this out since some fam wanted to go and I've never been. The place is expensive, but we tried a chef special of shrimp and chicken for $35. It was very interesting, basically dinner and a show. Our chef was hilarious, definitely kept our attention. I enjoyed the food and atmosphere, wish it wasn't so far or pricey.
(4)Susan C.
We've been to Benihanas before and just wanted a basically okay lunch experience. All went decently until we got a big bill, which, among other problems charged us for a dinner (2xs as much) when we had specifically ordered a lunch. It also charged us extra for rice and tea, when the menu specifically said these items were included in the meal price--whether lunch or dinner. Nor did we get the appetizer we were supposed to get with a so-called "dinner." We ended up with a whopping bill of $90 for a very modest lunch for 3; this was not at all what the menu had promised. When we very politely spoke to the manager, all he said was that lunch wasn't being offered that day-- at 1 pm (which the server had not told us) and "sorry for the inconvenience." He did take a $6 tea charge off the bill but not the rice or the $12 extra because the little plate of food we got was considered "dinner." I don't mind paying for food but I do mind bait and switch without even an apology or attempt to make things right when brought to the establishment's attention. Really shoddy if you ask me. We will NOT be back.
(1)Sergio P. T.
Slowly disliking the overall experience here more and more . Usually or at least 4 years ago it was 9 out of 10 then every year since has been more and more disappointing . Today we were sat before another table ours was full but received service 20 min after they did. Food quality was not good at all. Over the last few visits I've noticed flavorless food. Shrimp was so bad you couldn't eat it . Water tasted as if it was pumped from the toilet or something of that nature. This may have been the last time we visit. Though for someone in Bethesda it may be a drive try ZIKI's at Rio mall in Rockville/ Gaithersburg.
(3)Kevin B.
This place was horrible. The waiter didn't seem to know what the actual menu was. He also seems to come to the table every 45 minutes. Since my wife is a vegetarian, it would have been nice to be able to order vegetable fried rice. However we were told the we could only order chicken fried rice and steamed white rice to our dismay. FYI we didn't even get the steamed rice until we were almost done eating. Then he came to tell us that we could order vegetable fried rice. NICE!!!! The food was subpar at best. Horrible flavorless meals. Which was amazing since it was drenched in butter. So it should have tasted like something. Save yourself skip the restaurant and go to a good restaurant in Bethesda , like Woodmont Grill.
(1)Shayne Y.
I have been waiting for an hour with no service at all. Starving to death and losing any mode to see any performance. Definitely won't eat here again.
(1)Lucy F.
Ok, so I'll admit that sometimes I crave food from places like Benihana. The boyfriend and I chose to sit by the bar so we won't stink after, plus it was pretty dead since it was a Wednesday night. I've been to several Benihanas in different cities and the food was as expected, with the exception of my filet mignon which had no flavor at all. And what's the deal with only having a choice of vanilla or chocolate ice cream (that's included with your meal)? For some reason, I don't remember it being like this at the other locations. Shouldn't it be standard that green tea or azuki flavor be offered as an option? Eh, whatever.
(2)Kevin U.
Benihana is not the best hibachi or Asian cuisine, but my friends always come here for Sushi Happy hour. If you don't mind working your way through traffic (sushi happy hour is only M-Th 5-8p), it's worth it. The sushi prices are awesome, and it's delicious too! It's definitely a great deal, but not always worth the traffic and I'll tell you why. One time we had such bad service here that the manager reimbursed us all. Our orders were messed up and the whole process was taking so long that one of my friends got a parking ticket. That's another con, they have a metered lot! So, in summary, sushi happy hour is the best deal this place has. Also, their $30 dollar gift card on your birthday is awesome for a free three-course meal. You just have to decide if all this is worth traffic and paying for parking. Sometimes the sushi happy hour isn't worth it because it happens right at the peak of rush hour.
(3)Debbie G.
This place is so fun for groups! We try to come here at least once a month for their chef special. The Chefs are very friendly and entertaining. There fried rice is to die for. This place is a bit pricey though make reservations in advance since this place gets packed on friday and Saturday nights!
(4)Muriel H.
The All-You-Can-East sushi buffett for $35 is pretty good but my fiance and I never eat that much so we end up wasting $$ BUT the sushi is good & its a fun spot for happy hour!
(3)Alex J.
I love hibachi but did not love my experience here... My wife and I probably came a little earlier than normal for a weekend dinner, at about 6PM. You expect to be able to have a reasonably quiet conversation at a dinner - of course keeping in mind you are sharing a table with about ten strangers - but we couldn't here. The noise wasn't dampened I think because it's one large room with no sectioning and there is just a lot of kids at this popular restaurant. This lead to an uncomfortable experience where we wanted to leave the stressful environment as soon as we sat down. We then went through my wife's allergies with the waiter and even though they cooked her food in a separate pan away from everyone else's she still had a slight allergic reaction after her first bite, and stopped eating.
(2)Matthew S.
Delicious food. A bit pricey but worth the large portions and entertaining performance.
(4)Julia F.
I went to Benihana last night for my birthday dinner, and had a great experience! The two of us arrived at 7:00 (we had a reservation at 7:30, but got there early) and were immediately seated at a table of 6 others, making it a full table. The others had already ordered, so it was clear that they were waiting for us to make our order before starting to cook... This is the only reason I gave 4 stars instead of 5, I felt slightly rushed. I started off with the Las Vegas roll - and it was SOOOO GOOD! Served with a freshly sliced jalepeno on top - amazing. We shared the Deluxe Filet & Chicken for two. We also added a side of scallops ($8.50 for 6). Everything was delicious. and GARLICKY. They used garlic butter on EVERYTHING and it's sooo tasty. I will definitely be back!
(4)Lauren M.
My husband and I went to Benihana, because it's convenient to where we live. I've always enjoyed Japanese habachi so I was looking forward to dinner. The atmosphere was pretty standard for a habachi restaurant. The servers and chef were very nice and accommodating. The reason I gave 2 stars was for the food. It was so bland! I've been to many other Japanese habachi restaurants (Kobe, Shogun) in the past, and their food was always flavorful. Not Benihaha. They season their meat and veggies with only a little salt, pepper, lemon juice and butter. BLAND!! Even the fried rice was bland. I poured some of their 'Japanese mustard sauce' on some of my food, and finally asked for teriyaki sauce for the chicken. After the food was doctored up with sauces, it helped, but still wasn't as good as Shogun or Kobe. I doubt I'll return to Benihana.
(2)Lilian Y.
This was my second visit to Benihana's. The first time I went, it was for a friend's birthday back in May. The experience was very nice. The only downside, we ordered drinks at the bar, and it took halfway into dinner for us to get them. I went last night with my boyfriend to celebrate our 6 month anniversary :) The atmosphere was generally nice like last time. We sat at a very crowded table with kids surrounding us. I wished we had a little more room as there was very little table space. My boyfriend got the Hibachi Scallops with fried rice and I got the Benihana Delight with fried rice. If you didn't know, they charge you for the fried rice. It's extra. I'm not sure if they always charged you, but it was a surprise. You would think it would come with the meal as it states it comes with onion soup, shrimp appetizer, vegetables, rice and dessert. The experience this time around was not that great. With an Italian hibachi chef, I don't know what you would have expected. The show was mediocre at best. No volcano, no egg toss, no shrimp toss. The show fell short on it's usual pizazz. Next time, I think I'd prefer to request an Asian chef as they are more entertaining.
(3)F B.
I had never been to a hibatchi style restaurant and after hearing good things about them I decided to go to benihanas for my birthday with a friend. What a mistake. They did no tricks, no cool things with the big flame. I had a $30 coupon and I couldn't even use it towards my whole meal they said I had to use it for entrée only and I still ended up having to pay about $40. They had 1 person sing happy birthday to me and another young lady. The food had no taste it was very blan. I don't know if it was the location or what but either way for me, no matter where it's at, I will not be going back.
(1)Keisha B.
This place is perfect for groups and celebrations. We came here for my boyfriend's 31st birthday with a group of friends and enjoyed ourselves with drinks and food. I like this restaurant more for the experience versus the food but not to say the food is bad. Overall we have a nice fun experience when we were here.
(3)Tiger C.
Always get excited when planning to go to Benihana. It is very similar to anticipating going to the Blue Man Group show in Vegas. You get all hyped out because the guys in blue paint are going to drum away like crazy. Five minutes into the show, after their drum session, you realize these guys are not going to do much else, and that the show is more than 2 hours in length. Benihana is the same way, you expect an epic show from a iron chef like entity, but when you start to sit down and order the food, you start to realize that the hype is not going to match up. The food is mediocre, always, no question about that. How much could you possibly do with a few ingredients, chicken or steak with garlic butter, fried rice with garlic butter, some veggies, and that is about it. Have not seen a skilled chef in a very long time, maybe ever when I have gone to a Benihana, and certainly the same case at this location. When you start watching the show, you realize that you could be cooking this stuff at home. Highlight though is I found out that you can sign up and cook at the restaurant for up to four of your friends. It could be an epic night when you are the chef, and that definitely puts up another star for this location.
(3)Valerie B.
Food was fantastic just like when I came here with my family as a child. Entertaining atmosphere if you know what to expect. Love this place...
(5)Donna W.
I visited Benihana yesterday really looking for Happy Hour but they don't have one on Friday.. Shouldn't that be the happiest happy hour of the week?? But anyway I decided to stay for early dinner so I order a kids meal. While most adults do not order a kids meal I have specific reasons why I do and provided the reason why. The waiter looked at my information as if it were something of disgust and it really disturbed me. I called management and spoke to her about it.. not much difference but attitude of the waiter did change. One thing I did not like is they don't disclose that they charge for fried rice (chicken), this I do not understand since they are cooking everything else in front of you. Over all it is very good..
(4)Tim R.
This was ok. The kids had fun. I've been to better teppanyaki.
(2)Carlton M.
This place is truly sad! Their service has got worse and worse over the years -__-! The sushi is still pretty good...but the service is so bad that I have decided it's only worth going for Sushi Happy Hour, and I have to do a slight meditation before I go in, telling myself to not get pissed off with their terrible service. I have finally decided to stop going, when the last time I went my server greeted my table by giving me the ol handshake from the hood with a classic "Whaddup dog!" I was completely offended, not sure if its because of my skin tone or not...but I was offended. When I talked to the manager about this, she apologized about it and offered me a free soda!?!?!?!?! Are you kidding me? I truly hate this place! Used to come for the sushi, now I have started my hunt for a new sushi spot!
(1)David W.
A good show, good food - exactly what I expect... It is consistently good - never bad.
(3)Debbie D.
The sushi bar is kind of small, but good food. The drinks are a little expensive. If you're a party of less than 8 then you'll probably be sharing the table with strangers. It's a fun show if you've never been. The chefs are nice and they entertain you with their cooking. The food is good. I'd recommend getting the fried rice with your meal because it's fun to watch them prepare it for you. The chef balances an egg on his spatula and then tosses it into his hat, and they make a volcano out of stacked onion slices. Fun times. I'd say come here for a special occasion. Warning- This is a restaurant that sings to you for your birthday :) Pros: Entertainment; Hibachi Shrimp Great; Free Meal Your Birthday Month Cons: Slow to Seat You; Seated with Strangers
(3)Ariane P.
I went over here today, it was my first time. It was cool when they tried to cook it in front of you (I love Japanese food, so I've been to several Japanese restaurants), but for me, it is always better that we cook all foods by ourselves! Since we ordered the last page on the menu book, which is the lunch menu, we didn't have to pay much more than we expected. It was less than $15 per person. And you know what I got a lunch boat (sashimi, salmon teriyaki, edamame, half california roll, a cup of steamed rice (soo good), and shrimp&vegetable tempura) for only $10! Not included tax and gratuity. The taste of food is just like the other Japanese places, excluded the rice, even their plain rice is yummy. What made me giving 3 stars, it's because this place is too far away from where I live, an hour of driving to get here. Overall, a good experience.
(3)Natalie F.
Came here for dinner on New Years eve last year and had a most enjoyable and special evening. The staff here is above and beyond attentive and friendly. I came with a party of 3 with a reservation, once we all arrived they seated us with two other parties at a large table surrounding a grill. The person taking our orders for food was really knowledgeable about the menu and exceptionally attentive with drinks. This place has a really fun and energetic environment! I loved watching the chef prepare our seafood and meat right in front of us! I had the treasures of the sea, which included lobster, scallops and shrimp. I also had the zucchini, onions and rice as a side. Everything was literally cooked to perfection. I have never had such perfectly cooked seafood except for in Baltimore! What a delightful treat! You really get a lot of food for your money here! I had left overs on new years day which made incredible fish tacos, definitely worth every penny! The location is very convenient to Rockville, Bethesda and DC. There is a lot right next to the restaurant with metered parking and once the bank closes next door a lot of free parking opens up. This would be a great place to have a birthday party! Delicious food and fantastic looking cocktails with a fun atmosphere. I will definitely be back!
(4)Sue H.
Ok. I absolutely love what my family always called "chop em up" and what others seem to strangely refer to as "japanese steakhouse." So it's truly dismaying to have to just throw up the white flag on essentially the only bethesda version of this fare. But I'm sick of it. The food here is average at best, seemingly compromising quality and freshness for margin. The atmosphere feels like chuck e cheese. And tonight, the service was once again painfully awful. This would be my very first one-star Yelp. I'm sure it's a tree falling in a forest that no one will hear, but I'm never returning. The deal breaker was getting rice about 15 mins after the rest of the food had been served. 25% discount as a concession for the bad experience was nice, but the assurance that this wouldn't happen again rang hollow. The 75% we paid was about fair for the food. Cross this one off your list, and try others outside bethesda. That's what I'm doing.
(1)Queen B.
Great place to go people are very friendly had a great time for my birthday the food was really good I give this place 5 stars the chef did a really good job it's worth going.
(5)Jueli L.
Because of the type of restaurant this is, your experience will vary simply depending on your hibachi chef. I've been to this Benihana several times over the past few years, and the most recent visit was by far the best. Our chef was hilarious! Birthday Boy (BB) and I noticed that he was the only one working that night who seemed to be having any fun, and that definitely improved our experience. Although he did the standard tricks, he added his own flava to make his performance unique. Not only that, but he somehow made the food taste that much better (most likely because he drenched everything in butter). There were two patrons who had only ordered sushi and nothing from the hibachi selection (probably due to the dauntingly high prices), but the chef was nice enough to give them some of the food to try. If you sign up on the Benihana website, you receive a free birthday meal up to $30. If it weren't for that coupon, the meal would be astronomical in price for the quality and amount of food. For this reason and also for their lackluster sushi and some average run of the mill meals from previous visits, I think this is a 3 star worthy restaurant.
(3)KanKan Y.
Ahhh hibatchi...never really different anywhere you go. The cool thing about getting food here are the buddah or other figurine ceramic coctail cups that you can collect. (They are pretty cool looking). Otherwise, there's nothing really awesome to write home about. The servers here have all been very nice to me. Note that service is fairly slow as folks tend to have birthday parties here often. I have seen at least one birthday every time I come. If you're health conscious...don't look at how they make the fried rice! It's delicious but scary when you realize how much butter goes into the dish. The tricks are pretty standard - egg toss in hat, onion volcano, etc. If you've never been, I recommend you try it. It can be a fun experience. If you don't know what to get, I'd recommend the hibatchi steak or scallops.
(3)Tiffany M.
Terrible. I think I cursed us by saying "Oh, it'll be fine. A Japanese steakhouse is a Japanese steakhouse". Wrong. My chicken didn't have a hint of flavor and was as dry as it could possibly be.The 'special sauce' was not special sauce. It was total liquid. We were there as a party of 4 and were all astonished at how poor the experience was. Oh, and it's really expensive. I mean what kind of Japanese restaurant charges extra for fried rice!?! I It was the white sticky rice that comes with the meal?? I mean, every time I've ever been to one of these restaurants, they overload you with the rice they fry right before your eyes! Anyway, I completely suggest saving your money and eating at one of the other 100 'unique' places in the area. Soooo many better options in Bethesda!
(1)Melissa P.
Terrible Service. Your waiter will take 20 minutes to seat you in a room of empty tables. wait another 10 minutes for water.. and then after 30 minutes you will have to go on a stealth mission to find someone to take your order.. oh and definitely bring someone who is a great conversationalist so you wont notice the hour that passes before your food arrives. The sushi is decent but not memorable. Anything from the hibachi will be drenched in butter. So greasy it will make you ill for 3-4 days. and the final slap in the face is that they don't event serve undon noodles.. just a weird japanese-style pasta dish they try to pass off as udon. Fail!
(1)Rachel L.
Look, it's a hibachi place, it's not French Laundry. As far as the food goes, I got what I expected and thought it was tasty. The atmosphere is fun, and we actually had 3 birthdays at our table so the singing commenced. Take it for what it is and you'll enjoy it.
(4)Patrick M.
Benihana is totally fun. I went Saturday night and had a nice time. The food is good - not great but good. Although surprisingly high-calorie when you see how much oil and butter is added. I especially liked the fried rice and the fillet. The drinks were good too. I got sake as part of the experience although it is not my favorite. The service was fine. A bit slow but fine. Our waitress seemed really nice. I really liked the show aspect and the overall experience. (Although like some other reviewers, I was suprised that there were no Japanese or Asian staff in the place.) At first, it was off-putting to sit with a bunch of strangers (if your reservation does not fill up a table, you get seated with strangers) but they were nice. The chef was fun and funny and nice. Although it was a bit cheesy, I did enjoy his tricks and banter. The place could be a bit cleaner - I noticed food and bits of paper all over the place. It was loud but not ridiculous and the restroom was clean. Benihana is a neat place if you want a Night Out especially if you are not an adventurous eater. Good for groups up to 10 or so. It is also reasonable - the chef's special with drinks, tax, and tip was less than $90 for two and filling/satisfying.
(3)Elana G.
Three stars for the free meal you get on your birthday month (up to $30 value, if you sign up for their club on the website). Two stars for everything else. Since I got a free meal, I went with with friend and I got the lobster/fillet combo. The lobster was cooked pretty well and was tasty. The shrimp they give you a the beginning weren't bad. The steak was rather bland and some of it was tough (and it wasn't even well done!). The most impressive dish of the evening was the strawberry ice cream. Man was that good! I don't know where it's from but it had large chunks of strawberry in it. Mmmm. Is it sad that the most memorable item was the ice cream? Maybe a little. The hibachi chef for our table had to be about the worst I've ever seen. He was rather nonchalant and kind of lazy. He missed over 50% of his tricks. And the ones he did were only semi impressive. I've been to way better. So.... I'd definitely go here on my birthday month for the free meal, and I would go here w/ friends at other times, but I would not get an expensive dinner here if I had to pay for it, not worth it.
(3)Danny P.
OMG!!!!! You guys are crazy....its not like there's thousand of Hibachi restaurant our here...and I know for sure that Benihana is not the worst one..(Ok let me get out my feeling) smile LOL But serious....compared to Sakura's and Kobe's, I think Benihana sits right at the top. Yes its the more costly one of the two but the food is 100% better then the two also. As for the entertainment before and during your meal (you really can't expect a PM show with about 20 people watching at 12:00 in the afternoon on a weekend when its just you and another coworker) get real...put yourself in there shoes....you just came for a meal and they came to cook your meal...now at night when the it get crowded...yes you can expect a show. (Ok enough of that..Im tired of talk about it)...LOL FOOD...I can't get enough of the fried rice, I know its unhealthy but I have to have extra garlic butter on my rice!!! And the Scallop, Lobster, and Shrimp...OMG, the taste is just AWESOME, VICIOUS, RIDICULOUS!!!!! Ummmmmmm Beni (in my Homer Simpson voice)
(4)Alicia S.
I have been to many of these places honestly benihana doesn't even come close to the ones I've been too. First of all, the service was rude she didn't like that we didn't want our drinks because they had no carbonation. 2nd of all, the food was well yuck! The rice was okay; I like how they put in a bowl. The vegetables they weren't very good and there was no variety. The chicken was bland and the spicy chicken my husband got wasn't much better. The chef had a boring show no egg roll no volcano. LAME! Honestly I'd never step foot near that place again
(1)Thugnificent M.
You don't go for the food, you go for the show and that show I just saw was dope. Man juggled a egg with a spatula, although when he twirled that knife around his fingers I thought it was going to slip out and stab my in the eye. Regardless, I give it five stars for that. Then comes the food. You have ginger sauce and a mustard sauce. Everything you order taste like which ever of those two you dip your food in. 20 min show to grill your food and you get bland meat. Minus one star. Next, is a little bit immature on my part. The heiress of the Benihana fortune played Suki in 2 Fast, 2 Furious. I hated that movie, so minus another star.
(3)Art P.
I went here with a group of 10 people for my cousin's birthday. My first impression was that the hibachi stations were kind of crammed close to each other and it was as loud as a train station at 7pm on a Sunday night. I could only have conversation with the person to my immediate left or right, otherwise I was yelling to be heard. This made the mood kind of frantic instead of relaxing. When the drinks and appetizers started coming it became apparent very fast that there is very little table space. We had to constantly juggle and consolidate plates to make room for everything. One good point was that the sushi we ordered for appetizers was excellent. I wish I had avoided the hibachi altogether and just went with sushi. I ordered the teriyaki chicken thinking with fried rice. I don't know if its just me but I like to eat my chicken and rice together. But they prepare the fried rice first and serve it out - and it is delicious - but then I have to wait a good 15-20 minutes for the chicken to cook fully in front of me and by then I've already picked through my rice. So everyone around me who ordered meats that cook faster such as shrimp, lobster, steak, etc. is already done with their meals by the time my chicken gets sliced up. The chef then pours way too much teriyaki sauce on top and serves it to me and at that point I had no rice left to absorb the sweetness of the sauce so it was just too sweet for what I'm used to with teriyaki chicken. Also, EVERY table is there for a birthday, and they do the song and dance for EVERY birthday, so be prepared for loudness. Bottom line, if you've already experienced the entertainment of a hibachi chef, there is little else to desire in terms of the hibachi offerings. I would sit away from the grills and just order sushi or go elsewhere next time. *One cool thing I should mention is they take a photo of the group at the end of the dinner and print it out for you in decent quality which you get to take home...it also has a password on it so you can download a digital version from their website, cool touch.
(2)Andrea S.
This was my first hibachi experience and quite fun! All the chefs did all the same trick (shrimp tails flipped into hats or breast pockets, volcano, then the train, etc.) so my recommendation would be to switch it up. Parking was a breeze and the staff was extremely nice. I had a birthday certificate which made the experience much more affordable. I will def go again!
(4)Ningxi X.
I went with two of my best friends in May, and totally enjoyed the experience. The food was good, although if slightly pricey and small-portioned. It was fun to sit around the grill and have your server cook in front of you -- especially since he tried to crack jokes the entire time. Benihana has an extensive selection of food and beverages. One of my friends had a birthday coupon that gave him $30 off, but we later found out that only the food he ordered was eligible to receive the discount. We ended up having to have him pay the whole bill and paying him afterwards. Nonetheless, he got a free dessert (like many other restaurants offer surprise desserts for birthdays) as well as a photo shoot with all three of us. We also received a paper frame for the photo and a password to retrieve it online. The staff also came over and interacted with us a bit, asking the birthday boy to stand up and dance after we had sung him the happy birthday song.
(4)Sherill M.
Benihana is the most delicious restaurant ever! However this one is alright. But....the staff was soo awesome, kind curteous etc etc I decided they deserved four stars. Had the scallops, which were ok and the chicken fried rice- yummy! Everyone was so nice I would definitely return. They even gave me free ice cream, which was not a part of my meal. One drawback. The place was crawling with kids and birthdays. It did feel a litte juvenile. Didn't Benihana used to be a sophisticated grown and sexy expensive restaurant? WTF, how did it become Discovery Zone? Not digging the family atmosphere..... And FYI guys, the Chefs put in alot of effort with the presentation. If they make you laugh or cry, you are supposed to tip them. I was the only person at my table that tipped. CHEAP SKATES!
(4)Martin M.
Great place for two families of 4. Kids still like it. Check out the tuna!
(3)Carolina V.
I love the concept and flavor of this type of food in general, however, the prices at Benihana are a little stip given the quality of the food. There are many other similar places in the area with better price for food options. However, Benihana has enough regular promotions to make the trip worth it. Almost every month there is some promotion. The portions are huge, every time I come I have enough left overs for lunch next day.
(3)Jeffrey A.
If you go to Benihana looking for an amazing culinary experience, you're going to be underwhelmed. If you go to Benihana for a good portion of food, a social atmosphere, and pretty good mixed drinks, you're at the right spot. I'll second that it's a little strange sitting next to people you don't know, all watching intently as your food is made, but again, they have good drinks, and soon you'll forget that you're surrounded by weirdness. Yes, entrees are pricey, but they come with soup, salad, rice, zucchini, and shrimp( $3 extra for fried rice) . Service here is suspect. Sometimes I feel bad for the chefs, as they do a good job of entertaining and cooking, but the servers here seem to have their own slack agenda, thus costing them a tip. It's not bad, it's not great, it's just...Benihana. Note: It helps if you sit at a table that is not shared with people from deep space nine.
(2)Sean M.
Took the family here for our traditional teppanyaki Christmas eve dinner. Service was a bit lacking but not awful. Our chef was nice enough if not a master of this type of cooking. The food was generally good. The portions were fairly hefty and decent. The only thing that everyone agreed was NOT good was the onion soup appetizer. Very very bland. Basically tasted like water. The salad had a bitter aftertaste that was caused by one of the vegetables but not sure which. We had various dishes -- steak, shrimp, chicken, and lobster - and all were generally good. The chicken was the only meat that was not good -- overcooked and dry -- but the filet was very good. All in all we'd probably go here again. It is a bit pricey. Had a california roll that was nothing special but tasted fine.
(2)Leslie K.
Do you like eating out of troughs? Oh, then you'll love it here. The first adjective that comes to mind is SCARY. I was here in a group of 7 on a packed Friday night. It's a huge indoor room with like 30 tables and each table is a grill with a chef. Then there is an actual eating surface that wraps around the grill. You're not eating right off of the grill. Can you tell I've never been to a Benihana before? Well anyway when the room is packed with like 200 people eating at grills it looks like a mass-feeding operation. Second, GROSS. You order the (expensive -$35 a head) meal you want, then they bring out everyone's ingredients in a cart. I had the fortune of sitting next to Mr. Cart. If Mr. Cart could talk he would cry. The meat was on trays that were stacked right on top of each other. As in, the bottom of each tray was touching the meat on the tray underneath. The meat itself did not look healthy. The fish looked like it had been sitting out for a while. The steak looked brown and old. The sauces in the bowls looked like they were primarily mayonnaise-based. Nothing impressive at all. I did not order from the grill menu, but surprisingly, my friends who did did not get sick. I ordered a Dragon roll, which had eel, avocado and crab. Well, it was large and filling, but also bland. The eel did not taste especially fresh. Also, the crab was not fresh but imitation. Yuck. The roll looked sloppy like it was just pushed together without care. Also it seems that they lost my order (and a few of my friends' sushi orders) twice and we had to speak to the waiter twice. Even though we had reservations we waited an hour. To be fair, our reservation was at 7:15 but the whole party was not present until 7:30. They were nice about it and gave us a 15% discount off of our entire meal. Basically here you're paying for the show and the chef. Our chef was a nice guy named Erick. I asked him where he was from and he said, "Tokyo, El Salvador." I said, "You're from Tokyo AND El Salavdor?" He said, "No, I'm from the capital of El Salvador-- Tokyo." Ha, ha. Funny. True, not many workers in this "Japanese hibachi" restaurant were Asian. However, I really don't mind what ethnicity the staff at sushi restaurants is as long as the food is good. Too bad for stereotypes, because the food here was not good. I will not eat here again, and I doubt I will eat at another Benihana anytime soon. Chain restaurants are the devil (credit: Waterboy).
(1)Laura W.
This was my first time going, and I probably wouldn't go again. The service was very uncoordinated and poorly planned. If the restaurant was not so big and impersonal, I think it would have made a huge difference. We made reservations, and the table wasn't ready until about 40 minutes after we all arrived. Why? Because the people sitting in our table "were taking a long time to finish." this was really poor planning on their part. We had to talk to the wait staff numerous times before they told us what had happened. Other people trying to get tables seemed to be disgruntled with the service as well. Once we sat down, we had one server seat us and tell us some things and then another guy came in and said he was training and that he would take care of our order. I think it is very bad form to train a waiter on a busy Friday night! He tediously read out everything on our menu to us like we were a kindergarden class. He took our sushi orders but mixed up the orders and only brought two out, and we had to re-order, and then he accidentally brought us an extra order of something which we refused. It seemed they had a lot of listening issues because they kept trying to serve one of my friends who did not even order the hibachi, even when she refused it numerous times when he tried to put food on her plate. The hibachi chef performance was ok but not excellent. The food was ok, but they grilled everything in this weird mayo sauce which i have never seen at a hibachi before. I ordered the marina plate which came with shrimp, scallops, and calamari, but the calamari and scallops tasted exactly the same because of the mayo! the dipping sauces for the food were not very good either. the atmosphere of the restaurant is very americanized, and more like a golden corral than a japanese place. yuck! so many people brought their young kids which I find really unappetizing. the hibachi tables are way too close to each other. for half of our meal we were practically staring at the table across from us which had like 3 or 4 small kids drinking from sippy cups. gross. the only redeeming part about benihana is the karaoke at the bar.
(2)Paul M.
This is a Benihana. I went there for a couple of reasons, one being that Rocky himself died a few weeks ago and I thought I would pay homage. The thing I like most about this place is that it was founded in 1964. we tend to be a bit jaded about our experiences now - we've all done it and seen it and bought the proverbial T shirt -can you imagine for a second coming to this place in 1964? It must have been like going to the moon. And it is still a great experience for kids and families - probably one of the best. They also have a 1964 cocktail - vodka or gin with sake and ginger - it is delish and that's official. Service was a bit slow, but it is a great environment for a group / family or kids' outing.
(3)Jay K.
This is a very good restaurant. They serve the kind of food that I love and whenever I go there I always order the Splash and Meadow. The soup and salad that comes with it is delicious. The chefs are also very nice and put on a good show. Overall, although a bit pricey, this restaurant is awesome and a very fun experience.
(4)Ben S.
Probably the lamest Japanese steakhouse I've ever been to. It's usually not a good sign when Jose is the chef and talks to all of the other chefs and waitresses in Spanish the whole time he's cooking. But, things started out badly here. A waitress came to take our orders, and seemed to be writing everything down. Which made it inexplicable when the chef showed up, and before cooking verified our orders. Every single one had some sort of mistake. I ordered steak and scallops, he had steak and chicken. Another girl ordered vegetable fried rice, and cooked it with chicken. Half of the fun of going to a place like Benihana is the interaction with the chef at your table. Ours was horrible. He had no almost no training, screwed up even the easiest of things you'd normally expect, and didn't do anything other than cook the food, really. Not to mention that there was no flame involved in the entire meal. I want a flaming onion volcano at the least. The food was good, but the scallops and shrimp were all overcooked, and the steak, even though I asked for it rare, ended up medium well by the time he took it off the grill. And, of course, our check was wrong, too, so we had to wait for them to fix that before we could leave. No one bothered to apologize for any of the bad service, and I definitely won't be back.
(1)T D.
Service is poor. Staff is inattentive. Food was not good. Front desk not friendly. Only good thing is the sushi n bar drinks. Over priced for poor quality service, staff and food. I don't recommend.
(1)Sarah N.
This is a japanese restaurant, featuring teppanyaki cooking at the table. It can be pretty amusing to watch. Not very authetic though, they have latino "chefs" cooking "japanese-styled" "americanized dishes". Don't get me wrong, these chefs are friendly and will try to entertain you with their crazy food flipping, fast slicing, egg-throwing tactics. But as someone who has ate alot of japanese food, I can tell you what benihana serves is not authentic. You're paying more for the show than anything. The interior decoration is very nice, and they have a full bar section, which is cool as well. This is good for big groups, but they will also seat the two or three of you at one big table where sometimes you'll have to share with other parties. If you want to try it out, come for lunch. Otherwise, you'll easily dish out $30/person, not worth it.
(3)Michael W.
This is an overpriced, chain style, "Japanese" restaurant. The place is what Japanese would possibly call a teppanyaki restaurant (although I am not sure it qualifies) but the quality (and a few other things) is far from a good Japanese place. To be sincere, I don't even know where to begin.... Initially, we thought the place wasn't too bad since it had a parking lot at the back (payed) and it looked decent. The restaurant was full and it was very noisy, with lots of kids in red hats in other tables. It was once our "chef" arrived that our problems began. First, the chef's apron was dirty (unacceptable) and he was far from being a skilled Japanese chef. Actually, it looked like he came straight from the grill of a MacD (or worst) and could barely speak English. The food was pretty expensive (around U$25 for an entree) and the chef was so clumsy that during his "moves" he let the spatula fly from his hands letting it hit us and another customer a couple of times. Worst, while juggling with some eggs (apparently part of the chef's "routine") he left a couple of them fly away. Fortunately only one of the eggs broke and it was on the carpet, which I imagine must be really dirty (yucky!). The food was not horrible but it was not good as well. We ordered fried rice, shrimp and a "dragon" maki. The fried rice had no salt whatsoever and the rest of the food was just ok (remember that you are paying US$25 for an entree ;-). In regards to the service, our waiter did not behave less unprofessionally than our chef and would only stop at our table every 30 minutes (which meant that our glasses were always empty). Finally, since the exhaust over the grill does not work very well (maybe it is impossible to be different) we left the place smelling like food and as soon as we arrived home we had to "Fabreeze" our coats, wash our clothes and take a very good shower. In conclusion, it is because of places like Benihana that Europeans think that everything in the US looks phony. Don't go to this place, unless you don't care about your money, your clothes, or the taste of your food.
(1)Raycal B.
Benihana is one of my Favorite Japanese Steakhouses in the Area. I've had the Chicken & Shrimp Combo. It's delicious. It comes with rice, vegetables and a salad. Yumm-O!
(4)Oski B.
I came here for lunch with some friends and their two little kids. While the kids had fun watching Arturo the emotionless and robotic chef go through his systematic process of preparing our lunch, the food was bland and over-priced. The highlight of the meal was when Arturo made the boiling onion volcano. Steer clear of this place.
(1)Candace H.
Benihana is a dining experience. You sit down with large groups of people around a chef and his grill and watch him work with the food. The chefs all do great tricks flipping the food around and entertaining everyone. It's not really the best place if you're looking to carry on an intimate conversation - instead it's perfect for a fun time with friends. The food was excellent, too, I'd recommend the Surf n' Turf ... a little on the expensive side, but definitely worth it.
(4)Stephanie L.
I've been to Sakura and other hibatchi-style restaurants before, but this was my first time at the original Benihana for a birthday celebration. The service was slow, but I guess the point of these places is to enjoy the show and not feel rushed. Beginning of rant: I am not a fan of shared tables with strangers because 1. there is usually an annoying baby and 2. I don't feel like making small talk with strangers. Sure enough, there was a baby but rather than make small talk with us, the other diners decided to gab and make cooing noises at the baby the entire time the chef was in the spotlight! Gaw, just shut up long enough so other people can enjoy themselves, okay? Or get a babysitter. Or better yet, don't come at all! End of rant. No complaints about the food at all. Tasty and hot. Portions average sized. Staff was very accomodating to my seafood allergy and the chef prepared my steak first so as not to contaminate it with shellfish. He also gave me extra vegetables since I could not eat the shrimp appetizer. I recommend the "soda with a pop" beverage. I won't give away the suprise, but there are some physics and a marble involved with this traditional Japanese drink. Ask the waiter to open the bottle for you. The reason I took away 2 stars is because the chef was sleepy. Like just rolled out of bed out of it. I expect lots of enthusiam and funny jokes with this kind of restaurant. After all, that's what you came here for. I observed the other chefs and they were all sedated too! What's going on? We had a Hispanic chef, which was interesting because in the past they have always been Asian. Currently there is a special promotion - all you can eat sushi for $26 on certain days. Too bad I can't eat it - that seems like a good deal.
(3)nikkie d.
Mind you this is the first time I've been to habaci restaurant so my review may be a lil skewed. We arrived and were sited quickly. I guess a good tip would be to make reservations first (made them on the way there). We also just came out of a storm so maybe the restaurant wasn't as crowded as normal as only one side was full. I ordered the spicy Habaici chicken and my partner ordered the steak dish. We also got spicy crunchy tuna rolls (which weren't even on the menu so I gave them a extra star for that). Chef did the usual dance and he put on a nice show even though the other strangers at our table seemed disinterested I enjoyed it. Food was good not outstanding but the staff was very attentive and nice (maybe it just depends on the time?)and they made sure to cook my meal first ( I'm allergic to shellfish) . My mi- ti was nice my partner had red wine which was good as well. We were surprised that the chefs were Mexican but then again this is VA where most chefs are Latino no matter what type of restaurant you are at lol...all in all I had a good experience even though I not sure if I'd be going again any time soon as the price was pretty steep.
(4)Nils J.
This place is way more entertainment than food. That said, it can be allright. Try to find a more traditional, non-chain teppanyaki place.
(3)Sam R.
What did i have? Terayaki Steak (came with a small bowl soup and salad along with your choice of either fried rice or steamed rice) about $21. Note, if you're a big eater, this wouldn't be enough. Impression of food: It wasn't anything special. Basically, what you get are beef that are all sliced up, fried in front of you, after beef is seared and browned, the chef would pour some terayaki sauce over it and, voila, you got yourself a terayaki steak. Basically, it's beef with sauce. I could've made it myself and i can't even cook, just grill. Why go to Benihana? To watch someone play with their cooking tools, pop some unused shrimp tails into the top of their (chef) hats, watch chef do the onion rings volcano choo choo train thing and basically sit back and watch someone cook your dinner in front of you. I'll admit, it was interesting to see how the foods were cooked and know for sure that the food is clean because i can see that the chef wasn't doing something else that he shouldn't be doing while preparing my meal. Service: Service at my table wasn't bad. Did i find the restaurant to be as exotic as described on the Benihana website? No. To me, the food, the decor and ambience didn't scream that you're in a Japanese restaurant. It was pretty bland actually. If i didn't know that i was going to a Japanese restaurant and didn't see a few sushi being served, i would've guessed that i'm somewhere else. Also, not that it matters, but for a Japanese restaurant, there weren't any Japenese to be found. What type of crowds were there on the night that i went? Benihana definitely can be great place to dine if you have a family or families with young kids or go to if you're with a large crowds. The night that iw as there, there were a lot of families with kids. From what i could observe, kids seem to enjoy watching the food being prepared in front of them. Definitely not a place for a romantic meal (mind you, it's not the place, but the person that you're with that makes in romantic) though. Parking: There's metered parking behind the restaurant, although from the looks of it, it can get filled up pretty easily. Final Thoughts: In all, i think the food is mediocre. Bathroom looked filthy. Being that i put food over gimmick (chef cooking in front of you), i would have to say that, overall, the food is way overpriced. And even with the gimmick into consideration, i think it was okay. Would i go back to this place again? No.
(1)Nata L.
Not impressed. Food was average. Will not be back.
(3)Sheree C.
Ok, so this wasn't my first time at Benihana's. just my first time at this location. Overall, my experience was good, not great but doable. While we were waiting for our table, we participated in their Karoke contest at the bar which basically redeemed the entire experience from being bad. The food was nice and seasoned and tasted good, but I felt like they jipped us on the portions, plus while the cook was cooking our ordered food, he began cooking take home orders for the employees who were at the end of their shift. I thought that was very unprofessional and confusing because he served them before he served us. The cook had a few cute tricks up his sleeve, but didn't interact very well with the customers. Bottomline, I doubt if I dine there again. I thought it was too expensive for the service and portion sizes.
(2)