Kobe Japanese Steak House & Seafood

Came here for a friend’s birthday. I have mixed reviews about this establishment. My biggest CON was the DISGUSTING BATHROOM! I feel for the food’s price point the bathroom could at least me clean and have toilet paper! We made a reservation and although some of our party was late we were seated quickly. Our chef was super! He had a lot of energy and was very animated. There was nothing special about the food it was average. Now our chef was great our server not so much… my friend ordered
White rice we asked the server 3 times for her rice by time the rice arrived she was finish with her meal. I had to constantly ask for more water and there was a lot of mistakes on our bill. Overall the experience was okay but not really worth the money

Previously I had a less than appealing customer service experience — this past trip on 29 December was a last chance of sorts. And Kobe delivered a turn around experience. Our server, Eric was attentive and on the ball. My brother wanted a sushi appetizer and my husband wants a sushi meal rather than hibachi. Eric made spot on suggestions about which sushi rolls to try (he suggested the Spicy Dynamite, Avenue Maki and the Yuppy Maki) all three were amazing, and we also ordered a Spicy Tuna Maki roll.
For our hibachi meals, our cook (regrettably I do not remember his name) was engaging and entertaining. He kept the birthday girl engaged, as well as the rest of our table (we shared a table with two other parties). He cooked our food perfectly (steak, shrimp, chicken and tuna steak).
All in all we were quite pleased with our experience and intend to return.
Nota bene: while I listed this as $$, our party averaged approximately a $ 25 – 35 (without alcohol). This could easily cross into the $$$ category.

This place is a joke. As soon as you walk in, your greeted with a snarl. Every time I come here (which isn’t often) the host is always rude and dressed like a slob. The bathrooms are always filthy, during my last visit I told the manager about the bathroom about halfway through our meal. When we were ready to leave, it was still disgusting. Toilet paper everywhere, and the room smelled like urine, I’d hate to see what the kitchen looks like. Our server was slow, but friendly. Honestly the cooks are the only employees I enjoy at this establishment, they are always friendly and accommodating. The food is great here, such a shame the rest of the staff makes it such a miserable experience.

I had this same experience in San Antonio at the Kobe there… sheer perfection. Other places can’t seem to grasp the concept that in restaurants with teppanyaki grills, SEAT PERSONS DINING ALONE AT THE SAME TABLE AS OTHERS instead of saying «we only seat at the grille for two or more.» That is not good business practice.
now on to the review.
I was in the mood for Japanese so I wound up in White Marsh, knowing they had several good places to try. The one I Went to last time, snubbed me by saying the above, «we only seat for two or more, but we’ll be glad to seat you when the other party arrives» talking about some others that had made reservations. Well, ten minutes later I was on my way to Kobe. But I digress again.
Once the table was full, I wound up ordering their steak and seafood combination. If memory serves it was steak, lobster, and I substituted shrimp for scallops. They did that at no extra charge, which impressed me even further.
Out come the soups and salads, which were excellent, and I forgot something Kobe does that I’ve never seen before… lo-​mein/​soba noodles AND rice. I always wondered about that but forgot to ask about it.
I definitely wound up taking some home. Kobe never disappoints. My only beef is that this spot is only open for dinner.

I’ve been to hibachi a handful of times and never have I had such awful service. Firstly, it was just the husband and I and we ordered a California roll as an appetizer. Simple enough right? It didn’t come out until we were getting the meat portions put onto our plate. By that time we were ready to eat our meal and had given up on the sushi roll. We let it go and decided to not say anything. The chef was wonderful. The food was good. However, as soon as the chef put the food on our plates the waiter brings over our check and gives us boxes and a bag for our food!!! We haven’t even had one bite of our food and we have the box in our hands! There was no room on the table so we had to hold the boxes in our lap while we ate! I’ve never had this happen.
He brought us the check without even waiting to ask if we wanted dessert. That was a stupid move on his part since we usually do get dessert and his tip would have potentially gone up.
Also, the family next to us had two small children. The father ordered steak hibachi for them. They couldn’t have been older than 7 years old. The chef gave them adult portions and when their bill came they had been charges for adult meals. The waiters response when questioned: you didn’t specify «child’s meals». Really?!?
Ultimately the experience was the worst I have ever experienced at a hibachi grill. For the price we are paying. It’s worth it to go elsewhere.

If I could leave less than one star I would. They totally earned Zippy! Get there at 7:45 for reservation for a party of 6. Everyone ordered sushi and some hibachi. Before Hibachi is fully cooked and served, the waiter brings the check at 8:30 and says, I’m so sorry but I have to close out your party and do my side work, so we can close out the register. Mind you its 8:30 on a Monday night, yes they close at 9, but to bring the check at 8:30, before the meal is even served. I spoke to management, no apologies besides, «your server should have told you». So meanwhile, since the server brought the check, I flip it over to show I’m not ready to pay it, and this hairball of a server jumps, as to come get the check, for which he already earned an automatic 20% tip for a party of 6.
The service is horrible, and the sushi was almost as bad. Besides being with my family, the best part of it was the Hibachi chef! The rest plain sucked!!!
We will NEVER go back to Kobe Japanese Steak House & Seafood restaurant in White Marsh/​Nottingham Maryland, or any other location for that matter… and our party of 6 who were at dinner, along with the other diner (at the hibachi section we were in) have told everyone we know on (or off) social media to boycott and to never go to this restaurant. 6 – 7 people telling everyone they know should make an impression on this place, that not only do they need to step it up, they need to get rid of the night managers, and the servers who are asking to clear the bill and cash register before the guests have finished their meals. This place needs to turn over its staff and managers who were on the night of 10÷12÷15 between 7:45pm — 9:00pm
We used to love Kobe Japanese Steak House & Seafood restaurant in White Marsh/​Nottingham Maryland… NO MORE.
Please pass this message on to anyone you know, they will thank you, and I thank you as well.

Everything here was great here until a six legged friend came to party. That’s right y’all, a cockroach was squirming around on the table. It came up from the bottom, made a uturn around my plate, and shimmied toward the grill. By then, the chef jimmied that thing into the sink hole and pushed it down. Now here’s where things are gnarly. He did it with such ease and no surprise, that it makes me think this happens all the time. I was disgusted. I couldn’t eat anymore. I understand this is a breeding ground for insects and rodents of the like because of the nature of the restaurant. But still, ew and more ew! So, never returning here or advising anyone to come here because the waiter even said, «oh, I thought they got that fixed?» Um, hardy har. But this is a continuous problem.
As far as the good: the wait was supposed to be 30 minutes but we maybe waited 10 on a Saturday night around 830. The waiter was good and accommodating, and so was the chef. He brought continuous refills. When the manager was notified of this tiff, he was like «oh yea, I’ll have them spray tonight.» But when the bill came, it was still the same and there was no way I was paying for my meal when I didn’t even get to eat it. So, after another trip to the managers station, he comped my meal.
So, if you want some extra protein with your meal, this is the place for you. ;) I’ll be avoiding this joint forever.

Me and my BF went to this place tonight and it gives us the worst experience of Japanese food. We ordered 4pieces toro but the sushi bar chief just gave us two pieces of cooked toro without any explaining, after my BF tried one of these, we discovered the reason why it was cooked: IT WAS NOT FRESH AT ALL!!! I think they are trying to cover the smell and the color!
Oh and the uni, it was turing bad as well, no, I can say it was already bad! It literally made me through up!
The waiter was nice, he took the toro off of our check, but we still payed for the uni, cause it is not about money and I know I won’t come here again!

Kobe can be a hit or a miss depending on which chef you have cooking for you, but it’s just dreadful when you have a chef that’s heavy handed on the soy and butter. The show that they put on for you is cute and entertaining if you have younger ones. My niece usually lets out a shriek when they do the flames and it feels like it nearly burns your eyebrows off. If you have a more adventurous chef they will get a few laughs out of you and be prepared to catch some shrimp! I always put the napkin up over my blouse so that it doesn’t make a huge grease stain when the shrimp slaps you in the face and rolls down onto your shirt haha.
I’ve tried a lot of combinations, but I usually like to opt for the steak and scallops which in my opinion tastes the best and you get the most bang for your buck. The steak is tender and the scallops get a nice charred flavor on the hibachi grill. It can get pretty pricey, so I usually come here once in a blue moon or when I have friends/​family in from out of town. The portions are pretty generous and each meal comes with rice, noodles and veggies. If you like sushi, my favorites are the sashimi specials, California cream maki, spicy scallop (it’s raw), and yuppy roll (this one’s fried). If you’re there for a birthday you can order a special that consists of a drink in a (insert asian animal here) mug accompanied by a cheesecake with a candle and the servers who come out with a huge gong and shamelessly sing you happy birthday.
The service is alright on most nights, but sometimes the seating can take a while if you have a large party and it tends to get packed on the weekends so I would recommend making a reservation. You can always sit at the bar while you wait and order a drink or opt for sitting at the sushi bar if you don’t mind them making your hibachi plate in the back and bringing it to you. Also, you can’t get seated until your whole party has arrived so make sure to tell your flaky friends to be on time!

Loved the space. Great people work there. Sushi was quite good and served in plentiful amounts. EAT HERE.

This is my normal go to spot for sushi ! I know I can always count on them for delicious food. I really recommend the Chesapeake roll if you’re looking for something cooked with an awesome seafood feel, it’s a hearty roll!

The food and the cook was the only good experience at this place. I guess you can also say I got to feel reverse discrimination while here.
My buddy and I came here for a late dinner and we had to wait on my Girlfriend who was caught in traffic. When we got in we told the hostess we have a party of 3 and that we are waiting on her. Then we got seated and where saving a seat when the hostess came back and made us get up and go back to the front after our drinks where already ordered so they could seat a black couple and made us wait with the excuse «need to have all members in our party» this embarrassed us so we told the manager who only gave us 10% off and the issues only got worse from there.
While we where waiting for my girlfriend we were told we can’t be waiting past 930 or we would have to sit at the bar and not have the opportunity to watch the cook which is the only reason we went. When we finally did get to sit down we noticed there were a party of 5 (who were black) holding not one but three seats for members of their party who were not there yet. And to top everything off the waiter rushed us to paying and would not allow us to wait to determine what kind of tip we would have liked to have issued. I will never go here ever again as well as will advise others as to the food is also incredibly expensive for shitty service.

Good service, good food and a good show.

The customer service here is horrible.
As soon as I walked in the door, I explained that I was here for a reservation and provided the name. I was told that the reservation wasn’t there.
I then contacted the individual that placed the reservation and in speaking with someone else, they were told the reservation was there. After finding out that I was provided incorrect information, I immediately asked the hostess again, if the reservation was there.
No one apologized for the error. They just said they were looking at the wrong time. Had they listened to me they would have looked for the name and NOT the time because I never provided a time, NOR did they ask for one!!! While waiting for the remaining members of my party, as I was here 15 mins before our actual reservation time, they two girls at the hostess table kept whispering the entire time. I felt as if they were whispering about me, because they kept looking at me, covering their mouths and then began whispering. This occurred five different times.
Everyone else that has walked in the door after me with a reservation was greeted with a smile, asked their time and also asked for their name. Everyone else that walked in also was NOT black, so this really left a sour taste in my mouth.
This was my first visit to this restaurant and also will be my last visit!!!
I’ve never experienced anything like this before.

We love Kobe! We always go and sit at the tables in the back for the show while our food is prepared. There are only 2 places I will order steak — Ruth’s Chris & Kobe. The filet melts in your mouth. They cook it perfectly every time (medium well) and the sauce is just enough without overwhelming the dish. The rice, noodles, veggies, it’s all great! The portions are amazing. My husband and I typically get two meals out of them.
I took one star off because of their sushi. I had it today and it just wasn’t great. My Alaskan maki was falling apart and my spicy yellowtail had spicy mayo on top that tasted sour.
I won’t go back for sushi, but for teppenyaki and drinks we’ll be long time patrons!

We are from Delaware and was visiting Maryland for a family affair. This is a very nice place to eat. The food was great, portions were nice and the drinks were ok, the bartender didnt quit mix the drinks correctly which were sent back however our cook was very funny and outgoing he made the experience lovely. He tossed shrimp into my nephews mouth without any hesitation. He was perfect! Totally recommend this place.

This is a great place to celebrate a birthday or just have a unique dinner experience with friends. It is also a great place to take out of town guests or hard to please adolescents. The chef is also an entertainer who theatrically prepares you meals tables side.
I have not been disappointed with the food. The meats seem fresh and of good quality. I recommend combo entrees like filet minion and shrimp. Mmmm — so tasty! I also highly recommend upgrading to fried rice with you meal (just a few dollars more).
Remember to make a reservation, especially for weekends and definitely for holidays. Be sure to let them know if you are celebrating anything special.
This is a type of restaurant that everyone should experience at least once. It is also fun to go with others who have not had the hibachi experience yet!

I have only been here once, for my work’s holiday luncheon. I can’t tell you how the food actually tastes, because they didn’t listen to my allergies when I placed my order, and in turn I never got to eat anything.
I advised right off the bat that I was allergice to mushrooms. Well, when they bring me the soup, it has a huge chunk of mushroom floating in it. They advised me that they cook the soup with mushrooms, so just picking out a mushroom wouldnt work. So they take this away and bring me salad, which has cut up mushroom in it.
I sent it back too. When it came time for the show, I reminded our preparer of my allergy. When he started making the fried rice, mushrooms went right into it.
At that point I was as fed up as can be. I said good bye to my co workers, and I left to go find someplace who can accomodate someone with allergies.

I usually always go to Sakura in Hunt Valley but it was my coworkers birthday. I was starting to get sick so I was not in a good mood right when I walked in the door. There were about twenty of us. They sat the whole party a weird. (cant really explain it). I was feeling sick and I asked for tea, the tea was cold. I thought they were kind of on the expensive side and the food was just okay. Would I go back? Probably not

Ok — the only thing I didn’t like was the big flames — I was already hot enough and didn’t need that at all — thus the reason for the 4 stars!
The food was excellent — the price was in par with like places — the chef or whatever you call the guy that plays while cooking was amazing — and the service was great. I never had to ask for more drinks or more dipping sauce or anything — they were all quite attentive to our needs.
I would return to this place in a heartbeat — everyone should really check it out. My steak was SO tender and juicy and the shrimp was also amazing — for dinner you get the rice and the noodles — I was STUFFED and lovin it!