Benihana - San Diego, CA

Review summary

1. a

   arturo

   VIP

   San Diego

   2 reviews

   2.0

   2 reviews

   Dined today

   1. Overall 2
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 2

   We had reservation at 8:30 pm, got seated at 9:40 pm, chef arrived 11:10 pm. We waited 2.5 hours to get our food when we had reservation 8:30 pm and arrived ag the restaurant to check in 8:25 pm. Horrible waiting times. They actually brought green peas on the house for the wait time, pff.
   

   Is this helpful?

   Report
2. K

   Kira

   VIP

   San Diego

   10 reviews

   1.0

   10 reviews

   Dined today

   1. Overall 1
   2. Food 4
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 3

   Running 1hr behind on reservations with no notice prior to arriving and still showing reservations available on OpenTable. We ended up in the bar paying the same $$ without the real Benihana fun ambiance. Server in the bar was good at her job but no personality at all and acted like we were bothering her by being there.
   

   Is this helpful?

   Report
3. M

   Michael

   Orange County

   1 review

   1.0

   1 review

   Dined today

   1. Overall 1
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 3

   Besides the food, worse dining experience of my life!
   

   Is this helpful?

   Report
4. A

   Alondra

   San Diego

   2 reviews

   3.0

   2 reviews

   Dined today

   1. Overall 3
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 2
   4. Ambience 5

   Our chef told us some chefs had called out which is why it took longer for him to get to our table to cook. The waiter tried her best but took a while to bring out the soup and salad. Overall, I recommend getting a table rather than sitting where the chef cooks. Also, book during the week instead of the weekend it was busy on a Saturday. Food was good though. Also, drinks are crazy expensive so I’d just reserve to a lemonade next time.
   

   Is this helpful?

   Report
5. S

   Susan

   San Diego

   15 reviews

   5.0

   15 reviews

   Dined today

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   Very smart for the restaurant to cut back slightly on food amounts instead of jacking up prices or decreasing quality of food and seasonings. Everyone is still full and there is less food waste, while keeping the restaurant profitable.
   

   Is this helpful?

   Report
6. WA

   WillnAli

   VIP

   San Diego

   9 reviews

   3.0

   9 reviews

   Dined 2 days ago

   1. Overall 3
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 3

   We had a 7:00pm reservation, checked in at 6:45pm when they explained there was currently an hour and a half wait, they were just seating the 6:00pm reservations. FYI, you might want to call ahead and see if they are on time or running behind. After we finally got to our table (8:15pm), the service and food was excellent! Fausto was our teppanyaki chef, and he was magnificent. Always enjoy it more when there’s a show and dinner. Erick our server, went above and beyond, 5 stars to Erick!! He will be the reason we try Benihanas again.
   

   Is this helpful?

   Report
7. C

   Cecilia

   San Diego

   9 reviews

   1.0

   9 reviews

   Dined 2 days ago

   1. Overall 1
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 1

   Dear Benihana, I am writing to express my profound disappointment with the subpar service we received during our January 2, 2025 visit. Despite having a 6:30 pm OpenTable reservation to celebrate my husband's birthday, we encountered numerous delays and inefficiencies. Our friends traveled 71 miles from Menefee, California to celebrate with us, and were initially informed of a 30-minute wait. We opted to get drinks and sushi while waiting but were informed the sushi bar area was not open after we were waiting for 45minutes. The hostess was unsure of the wait time and suggested contacting the corporate office. I was very thrown back by her response to me. We were seated at 8:00 pm, but delays persisted with inattentive service from our waitress. The chef, Chris M., was apologetic and did an excellent job, but poor service from the hostess, manager and waitress marred the experience. We departed around 10:50 pm not because we wanted to but because of the lack of service we were receiving. The Benihana staff looked tired and overworked which explains the lack of service we were encountering throughout the night. As over 30-year customers, we were disappointed and hope you will address these issues and provide better service in the future.
   

   Is this helpful?

   Report
8. L

   Larry

   San Diego

   3 reviews

   4.0

   3 reviews

   Dined 2 days ago

   1. Overall 4
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 4

   This is a difficult review because on one hand, once we were seated, the ambiance for my son's birthday was exciting, the food tasted great, and the service and experience provided by Mia and Cal were outstanding. The unfortunate thing was that our reservation for this Thursday evening was at 6:!5, and we weren't seated until 8 o'clock. The hostess (working hard and managing to keep their spirits up) had to tell others that there was a delay of up to two hours after their reserved time. Understandably, several folks were upset and canceled. Others like us stayed. It had been 27 years since we were last at Benihana, and we really wanted our family to have the experience. In all, we had a great time, even if it was a late night.
   

   Is this helpful?

   Report
9. R

   Rosenda

   San Diego

   1 review

   5.0

   1 review

   Dined 2 days ago

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   I love Benihana the food is so good and I always enjoy a really good chef!!!!!!! Food was made with love
   

   Is this helpful?

   Report
10. K

    Kentrea

    VIP

    San Diego

    2 reviews

    5.0

    2 reviews

    Dined 3 days ago

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5

    We ordered the Benihana trio and I thought the portion of steak and chicken was very small. The portion size used to be much bigger so we were disappointed with that
    

    Is this helpful?

    Report