Benihana

I haven't been to Benihana for years and thought I would try the restaurant because I wanted to see how the Peace Plaza renovations were coming along and to help a local business. As soon as I walked through the door, I was greeted by two persons with a smile. They advised me that it will be about a fifteen minute wait so I went to the bar. It happened to be "happy hour" so I ordered pan fried gyoza dumplings, shrimp tempura, vegetable spring rolls and a White Peach sake. The food came piping hot, just the way I like my food. Ingredients taste fresh and food presentation was good decorated with a real orchid flower. That sake drink was perfect - delicious and appealing. I should have ordered another sake for dinner because at dinner, that same drink was doubled ($18). I was seated at a table with a couple being engaged that night and a family of three celebrating the mom's birthday. My grill/table companions were nice and friendly. The person who took our orders had a super nice personality; she made you feel welcomed; she listened intently when taking our individual orders and kept checking in to see if we needed anything (eye to eye contact which made you feel special). Our chef was charming and personable. He did his usual tricks when preparing our food. He checked in with us individually to double check on how our preferences were and likes/dislikes. The menu was hard to understand. It was so confusing that I simply ordered one of the fixed price dinners. I could not understand why rice did not come with most fixed price dinners. Anyways, I ordered one bowl of chicken fried rice - portion was small and overly priced. I never paid that much for even a small bow of rice. Overall, the food was so so - they all tasted the same since they use the same seasonings (garlic butter) when cooking on all dishes (except for the green salad). The cheesecake was not worth ordering or eating. It was not restaurant made, was semi-frozen and horrible that I only ate one bite. It was super expensive for that small slice of cheesecake. I am giving it a four star because you are paying for the ambiance, a show from the chef and probably the same price if you ate elsewhere. It's a good place to eat with entertainment with good, efficient, friendly service.

We heard good reviews about this restaurant so we took our family to dine here for lunch yesterday. I have to say that we are very disappointed with our experience. We were able to pick a seat but we were greeted by our waiter until 15-20 minutes later. The waiter wasn't attentive either. We had to ask a second time for our utentils and extra plates. Our orders took a long time to come out. Some orders came out first and we had to wait another 15-20mins for the rest of the food to come out. We were mindful that maybe it's lunch so it must be busy for them. However, the disappointment of finding hair in our food was the last straw for us. We showed the waiter and he said he will get the manager. we waited quite a while and the manager never came so we just paid our bill and left. It is utterly disgusting to find hair in food. I hope they're more mindful in the future so other customers don't have the same experience as us again.

Amazing place for an entertaining diner with family and friends, the staff is so nice, the food was great and of course this was about seeing the chef cooking in front of the guest. We loved it. We had to wait before being seated, but it was worth it!

Well, this was my first time at a Benihana. My spouse wanted a teppanyaki grilled meal so I made reservations for the two of us. Upon entering, I could see why there was a joke made on TV, BeniHaHa’s. It was a circus. As popular as it seems, I generally prefer to avoid loud raucous establishments. Our reservation hardly meant nothing. At least we were a party of 2 so we, eventually, were paired up with a family to set at a grill/table for 8. The waitress took our drink order, and returned quickly, then took our grill order. My spouse chose teriyaki steak, I chose the filet mignon. After that, obviously it took awhile for them to prep the cart our raw food was on that the chef would prepare our meals from, Id say another hour, but we enjoyed our miso soup and salad while we waited. Once started, though, I could see our chef was talented and very entertaining. My food was prepared just as I had hoped and it was all tasty. So, noisy as it was, I was entertained and I enjoyed the meal very much.

This was an extreme terrible experience. In all honesty this place should be reported department of consumer affairs. We were overcharged in our bill, the menu price was completely different than every single item on the bill. See photo. The waiter told us they simply “raised their prices”. In the end we simply got a small discount in our bill, but to think that they’ve been overcharging every customer before us?!?! This was not the worst of it. First, our reservation was at 8:15 and wasn’t seated until 8:45. Second, our chef was extremely inexperienced and unprofessional, he broke the egg on our food, messed up on 80% of the teppanyaki tricks. Third, I asked for medium rare on my steak and it came well done. I could not eat any of it. This was not acceptable. Also the bathroom was gross. STAY AWAY FROM THIS CHAIN.

We have really wonderful experience, Benihana, San Francisco, tall and handsome manager we believe his name is Salman. He is really awesome. We came alto of time before, but I believe it’s a new management and he the new manager. He is really amazing. He will manage the business when we came here he welcome us in Japanese and he came quite a few times after our food gets cooked and he talk to us and he said how’s everything how’s your food and how was the show we have a really wonderful experience and he treat us really special and not only us and other guest also he was helping the other tables also They have some situation going on but he handle very well. We were listening the conversation and he was really happy and energetic Manager please keep him. He is deserve to be promote and host Sharon. She is really amazing. She did really good job and handling the crowd ,well maintain and well manage and Taste food. We are going to coming back with our friend and families. We love Benihana specially after this visit definitely we are coming back. He invite us back again he is so lovely person.

The food is great (steak and tuna doneness) with great chef showmanship. But the whole place is very noisy to have any proper chat and during dinner, the wait staff is understaff and too busy to serve us properly.

Fun experience, it's a show! A bit tacky, but still worth it. Fried rice is really tasty, and everything else is good quality... Make reservations, or plan on waiting a long time.

I'm giving 5 stars because the service was good and it was a nice presentation, the staff was welcoming and attentive, my experience at Benihana was fantastic! The server she was super nice, The food was delicious, and the hibachi chef Francisco put on an amazing show. Everything was cooked perfectly, he was really nice honestly, If you can let chef Francisco know that his show was wonderful, please, thank you

Francisco!! If you are lucky enough to have Francisco as your chef, you are guaranteed to have an incredible experience. My group had an incredibly fun experience due to the great food, sure, but Francisco facilitated a fun, interactive, and positive experience that put us over the top.

"Shoutout to the amazing bartenders Ruben, Tomas Aldrich, Rick, and Hoa at Benihana's! They absolutely rocked it, providing 5-star service that went above and beyond. Despite the stress from waitstaff and clients, they stayed cool, made exquisite drinks, and were super friendly. Thank you for making our experience unforgettable!"

Another birthday has passed, so of course we had to take advantage of the complimentary $30 birthday dinner coupon for being apart of their e-club! We kinda decided to come here on a whim, and we were able to get a table seating quickly via their reservation system. Pro tip, if you are going last minute, don't put your name on the list, just do it online because in the past we asked for a table in-person and we were told there wasn't anything available soon, but when we checked online, we were able to get a reservation right away. I got the usual, Benihana trio and it does what it needs to do. The garlic butter on everything is what I'm really here for. We asked for their special spicy sauce (orange one) but got something completely different and that was missing piece of the meal. The chef kinda burnt our fried rice which was a bummer too. Other than that the food was what i've come to expect from benihana's, good but not great. Aside from that, the menu prices have definitely seen an increase since my last visit, but honestly, you are paying for the show at the table. I think the experience really depends on your chef. From my last review, the chef at that time was best i've ever had, and the last couple times we've come it hasn't been up to that level. Even with the birthday coupon, once you add up drinks and entrees for two, it's still a meal that's going to run you $150+.

If you have the extra money to spare on a dining experience, Benihana at Jtown is a reliable place to go. Ive gotten at least a handful of times, if not more so. I've always found the food to be good and I know it's more than I normally pay, but the cooks are great for entertainment. However, first and foremost, they are first cooks, not entertainers, so go slow on the questions and requests unless they are related to your order. I don't normally order drinks here, except the non-alcoholic kind. Great place to bring the kiddos. I wish you didn't have to it with other people, but I get it. It's not economic to have a show display for just 1-2 people when the table seats 8.

I haven't been to Benihana for years and thought I would try the restaurant because I wanted to see how the Peace Plaza renovations were coming along and to help a local business. As soon as I walked through the door, I was greeted by two persons with a smile. They advised me that it will be about a fifteen minute wait so I went to the bar. It happened to be "happy hour" so I ordered pan fried gyoza dumplings, shrimp tempura, vegetable spring rolls and a White Peach sake. The food came piping hot, just the way I like my food. Ingredients taste fresh and food presentation was good decorated with a real orchid flower. That sake drink was perfect - delicious and appealing. I should have ordered another sake for dinner because at dinner, that same drink was doubled ($18). I was seated at a table with a couple being engaged that night and a family of three celebrating the mom's birthday. My grill/table companions were nice and friendly. The person who took our orders had a super nice personality; she made you feel welcomed; she listened intently when taking our individual orders and kept checking in to see if we needed anything (eye to eye contact which made you feel special). Our chef was charming and personable. He did his usual tricks when preparing our food. He checked in with us individually to double check on how our preferences were and likes/dislikes. The menu was hard to understand. It was so confusing that I simply ordered one of the fixed price dinners. I could not understand why rice did not come with most fixed price dinners. Anyways, I ordered one bowl of chicken fried rice - portion was small and overly priced. I never paid that much for even a small bow of rice. Overall, the food was so so - they all tasted the same since they use the same seasonings (garlic butter) when cooking on all dishes (except for the green salad). The cheesecake was not worth ordering or eating. It was not restaurant made, was semi-frozen and horrible that I only ate one bite. It was super expensive for that small slice of cheesecake. I am giving it a four star because you are paying for the ambiance, a show from the chef and probably the same price if you ate elsewhere. It's a good place to eat with entertainment with good, efficient, friendly service.

I visited Benihana in Japantown on Saturday, November 8th, 2024, for SF Restaurant Week, drawn in by the special $45 pre-fixed menu I'd booked on OpenTable for 6:15 pm. Nowhere on OpenTable or Benihana's location page did it state that this offer was only available Monday through Thursday. It was only after asking the hostess if I could see the Restaurant Week menu that I was informed, with little explanation, that they weren't offering it that night. This was incredibly disappointing, as the Restaurant Week deal was my main reason for choosing Benihana, especially for celebrating an anniversary. Adding to the frustration, the hostess was extremely rude and dismissive, responding with attitude when I asked where it specified that the deal was restricted to certain days. She simply shrugged and brushed me off, offering no apology or assistance. Despite our disappointment, we decided to stay and go with their $39 per person lounge menu, since we'd already paid for parking and were hungry. However, we were kept waiting about 20 minutes just to be seated. Once seated, it took another 15 minutes for the server to take our order, despite us letting them know we were ready. I understand it was a busy night and our server was prompt in delivering our food post - order. Our server was the only one providing service in our area so I do appreciate him doing his best. As a proud San Franciscan who has visited this Japantown Benihana many times over the years, I am deeply disappointed by the decline in service and communication. This experience shows a clear lapse in customer care and communication that doesn't live up to the expectations one would have for an established restaurant in such a vibrant part of the city. I will say that their steak was still good, but was not a fan of their soup, salad, or spicy tuna roll appetizer.

Benihana is such a fun time! You are guaranteed for a fun time, and the food is yummy too! I feel a bit unjustified for the overall rating of Benihana on yelp and feel there is some misalignment between expectations and reality. You come to Benihana for the overall dining experience, to get a show, and eat pretty good food. Is it Michelin star quality? No. But for the overall experience and food quality, it is great. Our steak was cooked perfectly medium rare. However, it is pretty pricey so make sure you're cognizant of that. We made a 7 pm reservation on a Tuesday and got seated right away. Our Chef added some extra tricks in his performance that definitely WOWed us. Our server was also attentive and checked in multiple times throughout the evening to make sure we had everything we needed. One thing to make sure everyone is aware of is that you will SMELL a little bit. Your hair and clothing will take in some of the grease...yummy buttery grease :)

I grew up eating Benihana lunch boats regularly and I think it was the first sushi I had. Having experienced a lot more in the culinary world, I know now that Benihana isn't really authentic Japanese food - especially not the sashimi. I still enjoy the California rolls though. Now my partner and I go to Benihana twice a year for our birthdays. Be sure to sign up for their email list for the $30 birthday certificate! We've always had a good time here. We've come with and without a reservation before and it's been generally about the same experience with a short wait. You'll be seated with other people unless you have a large enough group. The food is decent and enjoyable, and the show put on by the chef is an oldie but a goodie. Parking is free after 6 pm but can be a bit challenging. Cons: the place looks a bit tired. The food is pretty Americanized (if that matters to you) and expensive for decent but not gourmet authentic food. There's a lot of kids here which is fun to watch them experience it for the first time and usually fine unless their parents are not keeping them in line and the kids are horsing around in the dining area and hitting your chair multiple times as they run around.

Who doesn't love a Benihana? I'm so lucky I can walk to this location, because Benihana is one of my favorite restaurants of all time. It's consistent, fun, delicious, and you really get 2 meals in 1 because the portion sizes are so large. I think it's a good deal for what you get - dinner and a show! This location is perfect. It's so fun and cute to explore the cute shops in this shopping center.

The food here is plentiful. The serving sizes, especially for the lunch boats, are several meals with of food. Very filling. The vibe was very quiet, only some older folks in at mid-day and two workers at the time. The service was extremely slow for the amount people inside. I felt bad at first for the waiter as he seemed like he was having a tough time, and possibly was serving both of the groups here, and the sister grill next door. That is until it seemed like they were intentionally ignoring us when we were trying to check out. They would seemingly drop eye contact and turn quickly or hurry away. I'm unsure if it was just a bad day for them, but the food was great, just plan for possibly waiting a while if there's actually a large number of people inside.

Incredible service, Sabri Jarraya made us feel at home and gave us some great offers and Eric was amazing at the grill (even if it's his first day, lol) had an amazing time. 20 out of 10.

I recently visited Benihana for a birthday celebration, and it was everyone's first time there. From the moment we arrived, the staff was welcoming and attentive, making our special occasion even more memorable. The highlight was when they sang "Happy Birthday" to me in Japanese, adding a unique and personal touch. The teppanyaki show was entertaining and expertly executed, with the chef showcasing impressive skills while preparing our meal right at the table. We ordered the lobster, which was fresh, succulent, and perfectly cooked. Each dish, from the hibachi steak to the fried rice, was delicious and beautifully presented. The atmosphere was vibrant and engaging, making it a perfect spot for both special occasions and casual outings. Overall, Benihana exceeded our expectations. I highly recommend it for anyone looking for great food and a unique dining experience!

The atmosphere is super lively, noisy, and a great place to celebrate or dine with a large family with kids or a huge group of friends. I've actually never been to a Benihana before, but it was a fun time. We had a reservation and was sat down quickly with another large family. After sitting down it was a bit cold while we waited for our food but we quickly warmed up while the surface heated up! The food was a little too salty but good overall. We had the sashimi and crispy rice starters - the fish seemed fresh. We also had the filet mignon and scallops which was delicious alongside grilled veggies. We swapped rice for noodles which was stir fried with their garlic butter yum! Our meal also had the salad and soup to start. You have to experience it at least once if you've never had Benihana. The tricks and the personality of the chefs make it all worthwhile. We also got a birthday treat of sherbet! Which brought me back to the sherbet I would love to het as a kid in those bigger tubs. Kitschy but you gotta try it at least once with loved ones!

This was our first time at any Benihana. My partner received a birthday coupon, for $30 off a $60+ order. They do verify the birthday with ID. We had a 5:00pm reservation on a Tuesday. We were seated around the grill with 3 other groups. They try to fit 8 people but with 7 people, it already felt a bit tight. Our chef, Alex was nice. With a bit more practice, confidence and experience, he has potential. He messed up a few times: broke some bowls, missed adding the egg into the fried rice, served the wrong steak to someone, missed some tricks, and a bit messy. I could see he was trying. But the whole experience felt awkward. I ordered the Hokkaido scallop set - $40.30 with chicken fried rice upgrade - $6.80 and my partner ordered the Surf Side - $47.10. With everything that the set comes with, it was a lot of food. I had 10 scallops in my set and they were of a good size and cooked well. The birthday boy received vanilla ice cream with a candle at the end. If you have any dietary restrictions they could accommodate such as less salt or no butter and they will cook it separately. Also at the end of the meal they offered to take your picture to print out as a souvenir. When it was time to pay the bill it took a while. The whole experience took about 1.5 hours.

I'm giving 2 stars because the service was good and it was a nice presentation but I was disappointed that the fried rice was terrible. The rice was crunchy. The chicken and shrimp were bland with no flavor at all. Fried rice was hard and not brown at all with no flavor, horrible fried rice. We didn't complain but we all agreed Benihana had fell off. Our food comes with hibachi vegetables but all we had was zucchini and onions. I've had Benihana in the past-one I always had noodles (that wasn't an option). And when I had the vegetables it came with carrots, broccoli, etc. They split one zucchini for 4 people. Our bill for 2 was $144 not worth it at all. At this point they are just surviving because of the name and location.

My experience at Benihana was fantastic! The food was delicious, and the hibachi chef put on an amazing show. The filet mignon was cooked perfectly, and the fried rice was full of flavor. The atmosphere was lively, and it made for a really fun night out. I was seated right away, and the service was excellent throughout the meal. I couldn't have asked for a better dining experience. I'll definitely be coming back soon!

We came to celebrate a kids birthday and unfortunately had not received the birthday certificate for the kabuki club yet. Last year, we brought our certificate, but it wasn't honored because they said it was a weekend and too busy. We spoke with the manager, Effram, who was helpful in helping our little one get the special mug. He was so thrilled and had the best birthday here at Benihana. Service was quick and food was delicious as always. We were so immersed in the show that I forgot to get some pictures, but everything was absolutely delicious.

baffling. pictures say it all. ordered filet mignon medium rare. first is how my steak was served and the second was how they "recooked" it. absolute worst experience at any hibachi restaurant. don't let shawn cook, he'll try to kill you. even the other ppl at the table were shocked. my gf and i went to celebrate my birthday, and they sat us with another family who also had a birthday. never even gave the dessert that is supposed to come with the order. never left a restaurant more upset. manager didn't give a care in the world. terrible

We came in yesterday for dinner to celebrate a birthday. For a Wednesday I felt it was very busy. We had a reservation but waited a while compared to previous experiences I had here. It seems not enough chefs available for all the tables. but overall the service was great from all the staff. Food and entertaining were great. Parking was easy to find but I do know it could be difficult at times specially during the weekends but there is a parking lot available near by. Looking forward to coming back. Until next time. Chao!

Food was excellent & in comparison to other Benihana's the wait time was drastically short even as it seemed a Busy day. Made a last minute reservation, sat at the bar for some pre-dinner drinks and the bartenders were very attentive. Clean and upkeep was great, bathroom fully stocked and no puddles of water. Overall great experience! S/o to our Hibachi Chef Freddy he was great

The service here was horrible the place wasn't even full everything we order came late our waiter always disappeared and then when it was time to pay the bill she had the nerve to ask me oh you didn't leave a tip Yea I know I didn't leave a tip...your service wasn't good I'm not cheap I always leave a tip but I'm definitely not coming here anymore Benihana in Burlingame is way better

This is my first time coming to Benihana. I have always wanted to try it out. They have set menus, which means that it comes with soup, salad, veggie, rice, and meat. We chose rocky something. It comes with chicken and steak. White rice, veggie, salad, and soup. For an added cost of $6.60, you can choose fried rice. White rice is free. The veggie was cucumber and onions. Then they also give mushrooms. I asked for the steak medium rare. But it was more on the well done. They give you maybe 1 piece of shrimp cut into little pieces. You also get a scoop of ice cream. The fried rice was really good. I added extra garlic butter and added the spicy sauce. But it ends up being too much oil in the end. It was around 45 for the steak and chicken meal. The meal also comes with salad, which had ginger sauce. The soup I was refreshing. It has green onions and thinly sliced mushrooms. They di have a lunch menu. Which you have to ask for. I was told it's half the price. But you do get salad, soup, 2 meat options, rice. Next time I will choose the lunch options.

I had so much fun! Thanks for the easy check in and service provided by Steve! Server, bartender, chef, everybody played a great role as a team to give me an elevated experience. My table was great! Had three birthdays including me! I love their birthday deal that provides $30 gift certificate once you spend $30 or more. The food I like! Especially the experience of seeing the art mastery of the chef! The entertainment is stellar! Comical and funny! I recommend ordering from happy hour if o get some drinks and that delicous shrmp sushi rolll which was so good! Crunch munch slice jalapeño! Great way to start before 7 before my 7 reservation ! Thanks again for the great service provided! Looking forward to more birthday celebrations here!

Do not come here for the food. OK so we booked a table and managed to get seated 45 minutes after our appointed time since they didn't have tables when we were there. After getting seated we were all confused how to order but also half of us were high. You order by picking a main (meat, fish etc) and you get a 5/6 course meal around it. Our chef exuded an air of having to deal with drunk rowdy parties for 12 plus hours. Honestly, it was a vibe. Stoic as he was, his delivery of the culinary feats was spectacular. We fed him energy and he fed us food. Yes king. A fantastic piece of obligate mutualism. You know when birds live off zebras and because they eat the ticks and the zebras let them because ticks fkin hurt? That was us and our chef The food was enough to fill us up but was otherwise pretty bland and mid quality. Being seated so late was really terrible and the whole place is very rowdy. But also it was fantastic because it was rowdy and everyone here is having a birthday and providing good energy. Won't be here again unless someone says they're going for their birthday, then yea I'm willing to throw some more money away

I've been coming to this Benihana with my family since I was a kid so I can tell you exactly what I love and dislike about this spot. What I love: - great space and location - can accommodate a large group - sushi boat lunch specials are affordable and decent for the amount of food they give you - happy hour on the weekdays What could be improved: - wait time for food can easily be over 30 minutes - quality of sashimi is barely passable for the price you pay - over cooked proteins (e.g. ordered medium rare, came out medium) - inconsistent quality and taste (i.e. miso soup can be perfect one day and inedibly salty on another day) - generally expensive for what it is - servers are nice but service is bad. (E.g. sashimi assortment came out but rice didn't come out until the rest of the food came (40 minutes later).) When I was younger the quality was definitely better but over the years I've been consistently disappointed, especially by the wait time. Can't say I recommend coming here unless you want to experience hibachi.

Stopped in for a bite before heading over to the Fillmore. Haven't been into this place in many many years. The place hasn't aged well. The interior could use a bit of a fix up. Looking run down. Also I have to point out of the management if they are paying attention. The mens bathroom was absolutely disgusting. It was 5:30 pm and it clearly had not been cleaned or stocked the entire day. And it was a Thursday so you can tell me it was that busy. Also graffiti all over the walls. It was just very gross and not appetizing,. Aside from that I sat at the bar. The bartenders were very friendly. I'm keeping it keto so had the seared tuna app, onion soup, and side salad. All very good. Aside form the nasty bathroom, I had a lovely visit thanks entirely to the wonderful bartenders. I could come back because of them.

I have only eaten here for co-worker's birthday lunch. I like some of the fun tricks they do, but I have seen that in other similar restaurants as well. Fun group dining experience with friends or coworkers eating together. Slightly pricy for the food, but I think once in a while special occasions celebrating is fun and worth it. Located inside Japantown. Service depending on who you get. Some chefs are more fun and engaging while some just do the bare minimum.

we came for my boyfriend's birthday. i was extra excited since it was my first hibachi experience(i am 24 years old lol). our chef Shawn seemed like he did not want to be there. very low energy and dropped his tools a few times. but whatever. the worst thing was that he gave my boyfriend raw filet mignon! even the family sitting with us said "it looks like it's still breathing." my boyfriend and i were both excited about this experience but left very disappointed. you would think they would put in a little extra effort for a birthday dinner, but they did quite the opposite. such a terrible experience we didn't even stay for the ice cream that was included in our meal. the server forgot to bring out the ice cream, so the family with us HAD to tell her that it was included. after bringing out their ice cream, the server had the audacity to ask if we wanted any??? on top of that, they overcharged us with a hefty $22 tip. that kind of service did not deserve any type of tip and they had the audacity to charge us $22?! i don't typically leave yelp reviews, let alone any out of spite but geez! terrible first time experience and terrible birthday experience for my partner.

Thank you to the Benihana team for making our night! I made a reservation for 16 people and the staff here was adaptable, understanding and patient, despite me changing the party size a couple of times prior to my reservation. The service before my reservation was great. The day of my reservation, I got to my reservation early just in case I needed to do anything. Luckily, I did since the restaurant was busy. I checked in and went to the bar. The staff at the bar were so nice and made delicious drinks. I got the Benihana Long Island and it was great. I would rate it a 4 out of 5. Once my entire party got in, we did have to wait for a few minutes, but we got seated 15 mins after our scheduled reservation. The staff were friendly and answered any questions that I had regarding the process of ordering. Shoutout to Carlos for being a fun chef and doing cool tricks! I got the following: Spicy Hibachi Chicken: 4.5/5. It was pretty good, wished it was seasoned more but the spice was perfect. Chicken Fried Rice: 5/5. I've always heard great things about the famous Benihana rice, and I had to try it and omg it was so mouthwateringly delicious. Overall, I enjoyed my time at Benihana and plan on convincing my friends to have more events here!

Amazing food and amazing services by Jorge! Very friendly and very talented and funny! An amazing show he displayed! Definitely coming back!

This location is so busy but the staff are amazing and work so hard! We walked in with a large party and realized that I made the reservation for the wrong day, but the staff still accommodated us and the food and drinks were amazing as usual. The server and the chef were both wonderful and took great care of us, the fried rice is still the best around and the sake was delicious! Highly recommend!

We had the best experience at Benihana San Francisco! It was a great family dinner. Francisco made it so special for us, his talent and creative presentation made the experience exceptional. We will be requesting Francisco again!

Traveled to SF specifically to try Benihana. It's HYPED. Sorry not sorry. The service from the cook was A1 definitely better than the service from the server. She was nice but not very consistent and then seemed to have an attitude towards the end of the night. The food was okay. Honestly nothing had that "WOW" factor. Other than the steak. Everything else was pretty basic and under seasoned. Had higher expectations and will not be back.

Benihana has a great atmosphere! Very lively and fun. It's perfect for a special occasion like a birthday or any celebration. For kids and adults! Since I had a party of 6, I made a reservation online a week or so ahead of time. We had a short wait to get seated. There was a couple who was sat at the end of our table with us since the tables can fit around 8 people. There weren't any issues with sharing a table, it was not awkward at all. We all ordered different sets which came with soup, salad and rice (or upgrade to fried rice), and 2 dipping sauces for the meat/seafood. The fried rice was really good, I would definitely recommend upgrading to it! I got the seafood diablo which was a seafood mix with udon, I enjoyed it. The portion sizes are pretty big and the chef also asked for my spice preference level. Our chef Antonio was really fun and entertaining! He did a bunch of cool tricks which made quite the show! I went to Benihana once before when I was a kid and the onion volcano was just as cool as I remember. Antonio was also very attentive and checked in with us about the meal and offered to refill our sauces when they were low

This was my first Benihana experience, our teen had been and wanted to come back! We stopped in on a Friday afternoon for a late lunch. And we were seated quickly, we sat with a few other folks around where they do the cooking. The first thing I really noticed about this place is how loud it is! The clang-ing of the cooking utensils is nonstop and loud, honestly a little too much for me and I'm not usually that sensitive to sounds, so a caution to those that are, be prepared! My partner put in her ear plugs, hah. Anyway, I get it, it's a fun experience and maybe the food is just ok... I was happy they had a vegan option and they were mindful of that and cooked it first. And yeah, it was just ok. I think coming here once was enough for me but I will say they have some talent and were fun to watch!

Wow! Hard to be get much worse than this. Abysmal service, egregiously slow, non responsive and a total zoo. Waited a full 1.45 hr and still no food service. Bathrooms a disaster. Honestly, laughable were it not priced like it used to be. Avoid at all costs

What's a birthday If it's not a Benihana Birthday? We came here to celebrate the belated birthday and we had a great dinner! We all ordered different variations of the hibachi dinner and one of us got sushi. Everyone loved their food (tuna steak and the steak were highlights). They gave us a complimentary dessert for our friends bday and sang a fun little song! Only complaints is that our chef made a lot of little mistakes (he might have been new) and the bathroom was very dirty. They def make enough revenue to put some mula into cleaning that bathroom. All in all it was a fun experience and the food was great! Japantown is such a cute little spot for a fun night out!!

We went to Benihana before heading up to Chicago 360. It was definitely a memorable meal! Though the service was slow due to the high volume of customers on a Sunday evening, the servers were amiable and professional, and the overall ambiance was on point. Our chef was great, he performed many cool spatula flips and egg tosses (though he did drop the egg and spatula a few times), as well as the flaming onion volcano. The complimentary appetizers of salad, soup, and fried rice were a delicious addition, but the overall food was standard. We ordered the Shrimp Crunchy Roll, Spicy Tofu Steak, and Hibachi Chicken. The main appeal was the entertainment to see cooked it in front of you, not so much the flavor. The passionfruit matcha tea was probably my favorite, sweet but earthy!

Excellent service, amazing menu, great food, Freddie San is the best! He's entertaining and very skillful! Such a fun night celebrating my daughter's birthday! Thank you!

Despite the initial delay to our reservation, the overall experience was fantastic, with excellent food and top-notch service. The atmosphere is clean with a hint of lively noise from various entertainment grills. It encapsulates everything you'd anticipate when dining at Benihana.

Set a reservation for 8:30pm. Got seated and was told to wait 30 mins for prep after ordering. After waiting until 10pm and no chef coming we ended up leaving! Very unprofessional to make customers wait almost 2 hours to even begin cooking. Do not come here if you value your time! LITERALLY go anywhere else in SF

We were the first group seated for lunch, yet the people who sat at our table later had their orders taken first. The older lady server seemed nice enuf, just clueless. I had the filet mignon lunch, $43 for onion soup, fried veg, steamed rice, standard small salad. Ordered the steak extra rare, but it was cooked medium. Very small amt of steak (maybe 6 tiny pieces) w a few thin mushroom slices. The light marinade was good enuf -- didnt need to dip the steak in sauce. The vegetables (zucchini & onions) were cooked fine but totally soaked in a HORRIBLY strong sauce, which ruined them. Tasted like poor quality sourish soy sauce. So strong u couldnt taste the veg. I left the veg totally uneaten except for one piece, yet of course nobody offered even a partial refund or even asked if it was okay or if i wanted it to go (no bloody way). Worst part was, I couldnt stop the chef from dropping one thing after another into that awful sauce soaking half the plate, & we had no paper napkins i could use to remove as much of the sauce as possible. The steamed rice took forever to show up. The fried rice & vegetables were long done before it came. Guessing the fried rice would have been horrible too if that sauce was in it. It didnt look good or like there was much in it. Considering what i got, i'd say the meal was worth $6, not $43 plus tax/tip. We had to ask for everything included with the meal, even the hot tea, which we got so late i probably had 3 sips before we had to leave. The server never mentioned it or asked if we wanted it. We had to call her over to ask for it. Not recommended.

I love coming to this Benihana anytime I am in the city. Friends and I usually sit in the bar area and the staff is really nice. Went today, got the steak hibachi with pan fried gyoza, delicious! If you're in Japantown and are craving some good hibachi, I recommend Benihana.

This was an extreme terrible experience. In all honesty this place should be reported department of consumer affairs. We were overcharged in our bill, the menu price was completely different than every single item on the bill. See photo. The waiter told us they simply "raised their prices". In the end we simply got a small discount in our bill, but to think that they've been overcharging every customer before us?!?! This was not the worst of it. First, our reservation was at 8:15 and wasn't seated until 8:45. Second, our chef was extremely inexperienced and unprofessional, he broke the egg on our food, messed up on 80% of the teppanyaki tricks. Third, I asked for medium rare on my steak and it came well done. I could not eat any of it. This was not acceptable. Also the bathroom was gross. STAY AWAY FROM THIS CHAIN.

Francisco is the BOY! He knows how to chef up and rizz up all while putting on a show. Strongly recommend that you request him if possible. Authentic Bay Area cuisine, can't go wrong with this hole in the wall.

Come here for an entertaining experience, but don't come in having high expectations for the food. Otherwise, you'll leave disappointed and wonder how in the world dinner at a mediocre chain restaurant ended up costing $315 for four adults. This was my first time at a Benihana, so I thought the whole experience of watching the chef cook and do tricks was pretty entertaining. The ambiance was pretty lively and loud, and tons of kids were here celebrating birthdays (probably because of bday freebies). However, the food was disappointing. Immediately after getting seated, I noticed how dirty the grill was and saw leftover stale food particles from who knows when. The menu I got also had a bunch of sauces on it that got all over my hands. Also, the servers try to upsell you from steamed rice to fried rice without telling you that this would cost extra. It's so sneaky that they do it without letting you know upfront! After placing my order for a 5-course hibachi steak meal, 40 minutes passed before I finally got the first course, which was a very salty soup! Note that I was here on a weekday, so who knows how slow service would be on a weekend. I was excited for my steak, but it ended up being a bit too chewy and not as flavorful or tender as I had hoped it would be. Overall food quality was disappointing, and all the items tasted the same because the same ingredients were used for everything - tons of garlic butter, soy sauce, and too much salt.

Really great and underrated happy hour (4-7p). Plenty of seating at the bar, great service, an easy place to meet up before a movie at Kabuki or karaoke at Dimples or Festa. In order of preference: Salmon Avocado Sashimi Pork Gyoza Dumplings/Tokyo Wings (Spicy) Tokyo Wings (Black Pepper Teriyaki) Spicy Edamame

I ordered a Hennessy Sidecar from Kax at the bar and she made it really good! On top of that, she was super friendly!