Benihana

Hosted a work event here week before last with 9 colleagues. While the food was very good, the experience was not.
One would expect the Chef’s at these sort of places to be high energy, entertaining, and engaging (and that’s certainly what we saw all around us), however our chef seemed disinterested in us and not all that friendly. He also didn’t really engage with anyone in our party.
We were all super excited to have dinner here together and spent a good chunk of change eating here, but left feeling disappointed.
I won’t be going back to this location.

Benihana Torrance has steadily declined in service over the last couple years. Food is still mostly good but my drink order came wrong, server forgot my son’s steamed rice, I had to beg for water, my side of corn was forgotten. It wasn’t even a super crowded night. No apologies at all from management for the poor service. Yet I can hear the servers complaining about and making fun of the customers. Rude and not worth the stench of our clothing as we leave. Sorry but we’re done, this was our last time here. I’d rather drive to Pasadena to Tokyo Wako.

Normally love going to Benihana, but I was fairly unimpressed this time. Went to the sushi bar and got the wrong order three separate times. After telling her I was still short 2 orders of salmon (4 pieces salmon) and 1 order of unagi (2 pieces unagi), she brings one plate of 2 pieces of salmon (2 down, 2 to go), then 1 plate with 1 piece of salmon and 1 piece of unagi. HUH?! Finally gave up. Not happy at all. Still short one piece each.
/​annoyed

I think the last time I went to Benihana’s was when I was a kid and completely forgot how fantastic the food is. The lunch specials are really reasonably priced, delicious, and you can even do takeout or sit in the bar area without having to sit down with a bunch of strangers while watching chef do a great show with the volcanoes etc. While the fanfare at the hibachi grill is fun once in a while, this has become my new favorite restaurant for takeout at lunchtime.

I had an amazing experience at this Benihana location! Food was great and very flavorful, our chef Orlando did a great job entertaining us while he cooked the food! I hate waiting so long to be seated but it was totally worth it! Xoxo

I love this spot so very nice. The food is always great as well. Orlando and Kenny are my favorite chefs here. They give the most amazing show

I have found my new Benihana location!
My friends and I have been at a loss since our beloved Beverly Hills location closed last year. I first tried Santa Monica and then Torrance last night. I can’t sing enough praises about our experience. We arrived ahead of our reservation time and were seated early. The service from our server and chef were timely and attentive and the food quality, taste, and preparation were what we’ve come to love and crave from the Benihana experience. I asked for a bowl of the garlic butter and the chef went the extra step to suggest putting it on the grill so the butter would melt. Later, the manager came over to our table to ask how things were and to thank us for coming in.
We didn’t visit the bar but it looked like an inviting space — an open area with a lot of seating at tables and at the bar.
It was a bonus that our fellow diners were friendly and all South Bay locals and found that there were many connections between them.
We will be back!

Glad that they renovated the bar area. And so pleased with their specialty cocktails. Love their Lychee Martinee. It’s so
Delish!!!

I go to this location very often. Recently, I started a «lunch chicken Yakisoba» diet. So, far I’m almost at my goal weight. So, I’m trying to go everyday between 11am & 2pm. It’s only $ 11 + tax. Dinner Yakisoba is the same portion size and doesn’t include fried rice. If you go alone the wait is almost never more than 15 minutes cause it’s easy to fit someone into the cooking tables. Since, most parties rarely add up to exactly 8 people. There’s usually at least 1 seat remaining that they seat you at. I went the other day. They said it’s a 45 min. wait. I sat no more than 5 minutes and they called my name. But, parties of 2 or more do take longer.
I’ve been to the Newport Beach & Anaheim locations several times. But, I prefer the Torrance location for a few reasons.
Luckily, the total of calories after everything is only about 1,200 calories. The great part is you feel full for the rest of the day. So, eating that one 1,200 cal. meal each day making losing weight easy.
I’m very health conscious so I order my lunch chicken Yakisoba:
1. Yakisoba w/​no Yakisoba sauce & with no green onions or fried onions w/​extra cabbage & mushrooms (620cal.)
2. Miso soup w/​no green onions & no seaweed with extra tofu. (very healthy & only 10cal.) Salad is 88cal. so I avoid.
3. Habachi veggies with no onions and extra zucchini.
4. Veggie fried rice with no veggies and only egg and mushrooms.
I tell the cook no:
1. no sauces (dipping, soy, etc)
2. salt
only use
1. black pepper,
2. regular butter,
3. sesame seeds.

There’s over 70 Benihana restaurants in the US, and I’ve been to a bunch of them. This is probably the worst location I’ve ever visited.
I won’t bore you with the details, but it just seems most of the staff is not experienced, or properly trained in customer service. This location definitely doesn’t meet the Benihana standard to which I’ve experienced across the Nation. Side note, the best location I have ever been to was in Orlando, Florida.
We shared the Hibachi Shrimp, Rainbow Roll, and Shrimp Crunchy Roll. The hibachi shrimp was way overcooked, and the fried rice that came with the hibachi, had a burnt taste. We couldn’t eat it.
Eating at Benihana is never a quick meal, but out of all of the locations I have visited, this was the slowest by far.
The rolls were good. I would come back just for the sushi, but nothing else. Usually, Benihanas is a trusted name, and a go-​to in an unfamiliar city, but I can’t say the same for this location. I’ll give it some time, and try it again, and hopefully I’ll be able to raise the rating.
If not for the sushi being so good, this would be a 2 star review.

Food is great, service is decent, wait time is awful. Prepare to spend upwards of three hours here on any given night. At that point, is it worth the price? They should be paying us for our time.
I recommend the Seafood Diablo.

Wish I could give ZERO stars! The wait time here is ridiculous! Give me a break! You have 3 hosts standing around the front doing nothing. Hire more people or something because the wait time here should be illegal smh! Warning do not come here really hungry because you will starve to death!
Also Management is terrible they treat you like they don’t care that you are a paying customer!
First and last time I ever come here

Came here for an Asian experience & good food. The person performing/​cooking on the grill was not Asian. He was unsure of himself & he was throwing the rice all around the grill which caused it to hit all seven of the customers being served at one time or another.
He left in the middle of cooking our food to do who knows what. He didn’t tells us he was leaving but the person filling in for him did introduce himself & let us know he would be filling in for a while. Ian, the original cook returned & never apologized or acknowledged his absence.
It’s expensive to have dinner at this restaurant but you don’t mind the expense when you are entertained by the cook. In this case, it was not very entertaining dodging the fried rice in the cooking process & some of the other items on the grill.
I was not pleased with this visit.

For all the Benihana lovers like myself…
Worst experience I’ve had at Benihana!!! (SHOCKING)
WAITING: I don’t think it’s good practice to make your guests wait 2+ hours on a Thursday night. I’ve been to Benihana several times and I have NEVER waited that long.
MANAGEMENT: The staff does not take well to customers asking them questions about the wait time or anything else for that matter. This takes on from their manager, who continuously brushed us off and it wasn’t until the 4^th or 5^th time we asked for a manager that he revealed HE WAS the manager. Not only did he call my family and I liars but continued to tell us how he would have us wait as long as he needed to in order to fill tables.
CUSTOMER SERVICE: I work in customer service and the way the staff handled the situation is completely unacceptable. I tried to level with the staff, including the manager, and explain why I was upset. They continued to roll their eyes and make clear gestures that they were irritated. Talk about great customer service (not!)
It was my familly’s first and last time going to Benihana. I raved about how great it was and turned out to disappoint everyone. Not to mention it was my dad’s and my birthday. Never again!!!

Beni-​to-​the-​HELL-​NAHHH!
I’ve heard enough impressive reviews and eaten at this place enough on previous occasions to proclaim that my experience (04.05.16), was a complete fail!
I know I’m not in this alone because as my girls and I were dining in, a group of 2 were also having difficulty understanding as to why the food quality was so poor. Their food arrived cold to their table just like mine did. Unlike me, they asked for a manager on shift and asked for a re-​make of their entire entrée. I wish I had done the same but we were in a time crunch and felt I’d hold back my party. So I stayed silent.
My girls and I went in right before the lunch hour was over (3pm) in order to have their lunch boats. The hype wasn’t all that, nothing to see here guys.
You can choose from chicken, salmon or julienne steak. I went for the steak and a friend went for the salmon. I have to say, presentation was a 3.5÷5. Take a look at the picture, you’d think it’s perfection or close to it, but look closely and it’s sloppy. The sushi was falling apart and the steak wasn’t cut all the way all the way. The tempura wasn’t golden and crispy, definitely leftover status. Again, my steak arrived cold and tough to chew. I totally wasn’t impressed.
The lunch boat also came with sides of soup and salad. The mushroom onion soup had flavor, but room temp. when served to me. What a let down. Honestly, the best part of the lunch boat would have to be the salad. Cold, fresh, dressing was on point, it looked good too.
Around 3pm, it’s down time for everybody there. Lunch is technically over so the rush is over with. The more we should’ve had their full attention. Our server (from the bar) tried to justify she had a rough rush and that caused her to be all over the place and forgetful?!! Our meal was suppose to come with a bowl of steamed rice, we had to waive her down and ask for it. Why do we have to remind our server that? Idk, I must’ve been starving and very impatient from a long hike. But I feel it’s not an excuse to have no sense of urgency. Its part of being a server, am I right? To add on, she never checked up on us willingly. We kept asking her for what we should’ve been given to begin with, i.e. tempura dipping sauce. I was too upset to ask for her name.
Oh, I’m not done. Benihana serves raw seafood, y’all know. I happen to be allergic to yellowtail, highly sensitive, if I may add. I’m not asking for much, I just hoped my server was kind enough to reassure any of us if there should be any allergies she or the chef should be aware of. That’s all.
Overall, a $ 13.90 lunch boat was a 2.5÷5. Huge portion, but lacking flavor. I wouldn’t order it again.
I appreciated the modern themed decors. However, the layout of the entire restaurant was a maze! I’m not a huge fan of having a chef cook in front of me either. Or at least I wouldn’t mind if the food tasted amazing! I don’t suggest the fried rice, so bland.
I hope others have a better experience than I did. It’s been a minute since I’ve been to a Benihana (same location), now I know why I never paid another visit aside from yesterday.

First time in lots angles to try Japanese tepanyaki.
We went there about 12:30, although it is Monday, we were still told to wait about thirty minutes.
We ordered three mixed combination, including scallop, large shrimp and lobster, also chicken fried rice. The chef is nice, humorous, and interact with customers, show some technique of cooking, just like performance. The combination includes salads, mushroom soup, fried rice, shrimp, main dishes and beef, huge amount, easily felt full fora adult. My lady friend are only half amount.
The materials are fresh, tastes also awesome, especially the scallop, beef is only ok, no much difference.
Total cost is $ 180, average per person $ 60, a little expensive.
All In all, it’s very interesting experience!

Had a family dinner here on Chinese New Year Eve. Benihana is a great place to celebrate holidays with family or friends, the ambiance and atmosphere is just PERFECT! I have always liked to watch teppanyaki chefs showing off while cooking at the table, I never get tired of it, so much fun!
I had Sumo roll as appetizer, it was a baked roll, very flavorful and delicious. Seven of us ordered different entrees and shared with each other.
Tuna steak and salmon were very refreshing and tasty for parents. Shrimps and scallops were fresh and yummy. Filet was tender and flavorful. Seafood Diablo was so good, I liked the thin udon a lot. Everybody loved chicken fried rice. Dessert tempura banana was so yummy, sister and I enjoyed it so much. Food was absolutely delicious as always!
Our waitress was very attentive and friendly, she brought us four kinds of hot sauces, even packed us some to take home. We liked the chili paste and sweet spicy sauce the most, they were great with fried rice and udon noodles.
As usual, Benihana doesn’t disappoint, great food and service, we LOVED everything!

I’ve been here PLENTY of times! There were some good days and some bad days. I’ve been coming here since I was a kid and watched this location grow. I always see new renovations or tricks from the Chefs. This place is always crowded so I mainly come here for special occasions– usually birthdays, Christmas, or New Years Eve. If you join the Chef’s Table you get $ 30 during your birthday month (only available on weekdays)!
If you’re cool enough to see this review, get the Chateaubriand. the BEST meat on the menu, so tender! It won’t disappoint!
And MAKE A RESERVATION! This restaurant offers a great dining experience :)

My birthday Night! I printed out my yearly birthday coupon for $ 30.00 off and I decided to bring the family and have a fun night out.
Hell yes!!! Umma order everything and then some!
I’ve been coming to this location for over 25 years and always always have been greeted by the Japanese woman and man that have worked here forever. Always! Walked in the door ready to see my favorite Japanese traditional greeters…
Ohhhh Kay … Not Japanese… Really not feeling this! I’m blackish, Irish, Italian. This said, I don’t have a race problem. But, where the hell are my Japanese people??? Wait… Is this Benihanas? Looks different. Not a Japanese feel anymore. Americanized. Weird, am I in the right place? Looked at the menu the girl was holding.
Says «Benihanas «.
We sat at the bar while we waited. Ordered a bunch of drinks and sushi. One of the bartenders I recognized. He has always been very shy. Was really good to see him. A familiar face.
I found one other Japanese person in the restaurant. One that I recognized. Ive known them for all the years we’ve come here. We hugged and they hugged my kids, which by the way are all grown up.
Their all gone! All fired and replaced. Benihanas was purchased by new owners and hired a whole new staff. Japanese presence is no longer evident here. There were huge diverse and ethnic changes made. And no Japanese?
We are finally called to be seated. Our waitress was new, and she was Japanese! Arigatou Gozaimasu!
Our chef was a young man. Early twenties. Not Japanese, but heck, I’ve rarely seen a Japanese chef here. They are mostly all Hispanic and they know their stuff and they do it well! I looked around the room and saw a few familiar chefs working their magic.
Our chef was definitely a newbee. Usually, the Chefs, they introduce themselves and cross the knives on the chest and bow. He forgot to do this. Or maybe they don’t do it anymore. Who knows. I thought it was a very cool thing to do, But what do I know?
Poor guy. It’s taking him forever to cut the shrimp. In his frustration, he takes his knife and runs it across all the lined up shrimp, in two big swipes. Scoops the tails up with the spatula and deposits them in his cart. Huh? I think I remember the chefs used to fabricate them individually, super fast, and toss the tails in their hats. Or maybe they cut that part out too. But, what do I know? I’m old. Memories are hazy now a days.
But here is when «The Red Flag» goes up. I got a little concerned when the Chef threw raw chicken onto the grilled onions. I immediately looked up at him to see if he was aware of what just happened. I said to myself «dude, what did you just do?» But he just ignored me. So, I got his attention, told him about the mistake he made, cross contamination, salmonella and all that jazz, but he just shrugged it off, like no big deal.
Hello! Raw chicken meets cooked food! He didn’t have a clue or did he just not care? WTF! This Chef was not trained in food safety??! Now we have a problem. I’m not willing to get sick for a free meal! I’m ready to get the hell out of here!
For the sake of my family and «Not» wanting to make it a big deal, I sat back, and shut up. They all could tell I was really upset. They all saw what happened. My kids are not Chefs, but they «do» know better. And I taught them well. «No onions» all the way around the table! All of the contaminated onions were deposited in the Cooks cart to mingle with the shrimp tails. See that?.. I just demoted him to Cook… Why? Cause he’s an idiot! Chefs know better.
The cook constantly left his station in search of more sauce, looking around to see where to grab it off another Chefs cart. This happened four times, when he could have just asked his helper to bring another container of the stuff! Idiot!
Didn’t seem like this cook was trained at all. No tricks, which Benihanas is famous for! Not even a shrimp tail in the olé hat trick! No applause for you buddy! Oh… Right. My bad, he did make a Micky mouse face in the rice. Is that it? Uuugg! I’m so happy I have a coupon today…
This place is beautiful to look at. They made it look very modern and less Japanese. They did hang a few pictures of Japanese umbrellas and lanterns and such. Beautiful Reno, though authenticity is lacking. Food safety training is lacking. Honestly, This was not a good time! Very very sad! Next year I’ll take my birthday coupon to the Santa Monica or Marina location.
Torrance, I’m unfriending you and deleting you from my Facebook page!
~Chef Cirque

I learned it’s always best to call ahead and make a reservation here. Lunch, dinner, whichever, make a reservation even if it’s for a table for one. Otherwise, expect to wait up to 2 hours for a table!
There’s truly something special about dining here. The dinner show, no matter how many times I see it, always puts a smile on my face. It’s entertaining! Choo-​choo! Here comes the onion train! Du-​dug du-​dug! It’s a beating fried rice heart!
The ambience is awesome, open space and tables are set up around teppan style grills. Perfect for large parties! There is also a side of the restaurant with tables and no show. Not too sure what the difference in price is because I’m all about the show. Service is spectacular! On my particular visit, Jennifer was our server and she delivered excellent service! She made sure I was satisfied with my drink and always checked up on us. Pablo was our cook/​entertainer and he had some smooth moves! I ordered the filet mignon lunch special which came with vegetable fried rice and grilled veggies. Everything tasted delicious! I love the soy sauce, dipping sauces, and more recently I got to try their chili paste mixed with mayo. Bomb! I dipped everything in it!
Overall, my experience has always been great at Benihana. My first time at this location and it definitely won’t be my last. Parking is a breeze too!