Benihana - San Francisco, CA

Benihana - San Francisco, CA reviews from people who’ve dined at this restaurant. Based on recent rating.

Review summary

1. D

   Dee VIP

   San Francisco1 review

   1.0

   Dined on April 20, 2025

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

   1.5 hour wait even with reservations! That really spoiled the experience for us.
   

   Benihana - San Francisco, CAResponded 7 days ago

   Hey Dee, we're really sorry to hear about your wait time. We understand how frustrating it can be to wait, especially when you've made a reservation. We always aim to provide our guests with a smooth and enjoyable dining experience, and it seems we fell short this time. We appreciate your feedback and will definitely use it to improve our service. We hope you'll give us another chance to make your next visit a more enjoyable one. Thanks, Benihana - San Francisco, CA Management Team.
   

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2. S

   Stacey VIP

   San Francisco7 reviews

   2.0

   Dined on April 20, 2025

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

   I rarely give poor reviews but .... this place can’t manage reservations. What should have been a fun evening out was not. We waited 30 minutes past our reservation to be seated at our table with a pair who had waited one hour past their reservation and another group that had a reservation when we were actually all seated. Dinner took forever with very long gaps in service. We all ordered the six-course dinner. Never saw the promised hot green tea and were only offered ice cream a good 12-15 minutes after they had finally cleared our dinner plates. Server was way more focused on capturing us in photos then serving us, refilling our water glasses (not) or bringing the bill. Our chef did a great job slicing, dicing and lighting up an onion but the food was all crazy salty. The mixed vegetables were only zucchini and onions. The soup tasted like beef bouillon water and every protein honestly tasted the same. The salad was chopped up iceberg with a clump of slowly defrosting dressing—what’s up with this place? Thriving on the tourist trade. Beware!
   

   Benihana - San Francisco, CAResponded 7 days ago

   Hello Stacey, We're sorry to hear about your recent experience at Benihana - San Francisco, CA. We understand how frustrating it can be to have to wait beyond your reservation time, and we apologize for the inconvenience. We're glad to hear that you enjoyed our chef's performance, but we're disappointed that our food and service did not meet your expectations. We value your feedback and will take it into consideration to improve our services. We hope you'll give us another chance to make it right. Best, The Management Team
   

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3. M

   Melissa

   San Francisco2 reviews

   5.0

   Dined on April 20, 2025

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

   My family and friends enjoyed everything. And we got free ice cream as a little treat from our waiter. Overall it was 10/10
   

   Benihana - San Francisco, CAResponded on April 21, 2025

   Hey Melissa, Thank you so much for your kind words! We're thrilled to hear that you and your family had a great time at Benihana - San Francisco, CA. It's always a pleasure to provide our guests with a memorable dining experience, and it seems like we hit the mark for you. We're glad you enjoyed the food and our little surprise of ice cream. We look forward to welcoming you and your friends back soon! Best, The Management Team
   

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4. J

   Jessica

   Unspecified1 review

   2.0

   Dined on April 20, 2025

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

   Food was not worth the cost. All the meat was over cooked, rice was very dry and mixed veggies were only one strip of zucchini and some onion. Our cook was very quiet did not do any tricks or anything cool and just seemed rushed. We were out of drinks multiple times and had to keep flagging the waitress down then didn’t get the waters we requested twice. Very disappointed overall and the cost was very high.
   

   Benihana - San Francisco, CAResponded on April 21, 2025

   Hi Jessica, We're truly sorry to hear about your disappointing experience at Benihana - San Francisco, CA. It's clear from your feedback that we fell short in providing the quality food and service that we strive for. We understand that our prices may seem high, but we're committed to ensuring that our dishes are cooked to perfection. We appreciate your patience with our staff, and we're sorry for the lack of drinks and any mix-ups with your water. We'll take your comments into account as we continuously work to improve our service. We hope you'll give us another chance to make it right in the future. Best, The Management Team
   

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5. R

   Renee VIP

   Raleigh4 reviews

   3.0

   Dined on April 18, 2025

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

   They were super overbooked and it took us 90 mins to get our food! The chef was super rushed and a bunch of other tables left due to frustration (we had a large group so no other options). From what I’ve heard, it’s non-standard that it gets that busy (6:15 reservation on a Thursday, we finally left after 9PM), so just FYI
   

   Benihana - San Francisco, CAResponded 5 days ago

   Hi Renee, We're truly sorry to hear about your experience at Benihana - San Francisco, CA. We understand how frustrating it can be to wait for your food when you have a reservation. We're taking your feedback seriously and will work on improving our service. We hope to serve you again and provide a better experience. Best, The Management Team
   

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6. M

   Maria

   San Francisco1 review

   5.0

   Dined on April 16, 2025

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

   Everyone was wonderful, from the hostess to George our cook, I went there for my partners birthday and as a first time experience for the both us, and we had a great experience, the food was flavorful and they had spicy options.
   

   Benihana - San Francisco, CAResponded on April 17, 2025

   Thanks for visiting us, Maria! We're thrilled to hear that you and your partner had a great experience at Benihana - San Francisco, CA. It's wonderful to know that you enjoyed the flavors and our spicy options. We always aim to provide a memorable dining experience for our guests, and we're glad we hit the mark for you. We look forward to serving you again soon!
   

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7. A

   Astrid

   San Francisco1 review

   3.0

   Dined on April 15, 2025

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

   We went on a Monday evening and surprisingly it was very packed. We had a reservation at 7:30pm and got there a bit earlier but were seated by 7:30 which was perfect. Our server was really great and kind. We were told they were short staffed so it might take a bit longer than usual to get a chef which we totally understood and were okay with, we know they weren’t expecting a busy Monday night. It was 8:30 at this point and we still had no chef but had our soup and salad served so we were still doing good. The tables that had gotten there after us, got a chef first. We were still okay with waiting a bit longer because we didn’t think it was going to take too long. Then it was 9 still no chef. Another table had been seated 1 hour and half after us and then they got a chef to start them up even though we were there 1 hour and half before them with a reservation. That was very disappointing because we have always loved benihanas and this experience completely ruined it for us. Everyone in the restaurant had a chef and getting the experience but our table. At this point we were ready to leave when 15 minutes later a chef finally came to start us. He was great as well. Everything was great except the having to wait and still getting served last after all the other tables who had just gotten there got served. Our server was very apologetic and we could tell he felt bad so we did not take it out on him, and still gave a good tip!
   

   Benihana - San Francisco, CAResponded on April 17, 2025

   Thanks for the feedback, Astrid. We're truly sorry for the wait you experienced, especially on a busy night like Monday. We understand your concern about the wait time and appreciate your understanding. It's great to hear that you had a good experience with our service and food. We're glad the chef made up for the situation and you had a positive experience overall. Your feedback is invaluable to us and we'll certainly use it to improve our service. We hope to welcome you back to Benihana - San Francisco, CA soon.
   

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8. J

   Jaqueline

   San Francisco1 review

   1.0

   Dined on April 13, 2025

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

   Worse service EVER! Waited over 1 hour w/ a reservation b/w being sat and our chef. No utensils, dirty menus/cups. Late appetizers…
   

   Benihana - San Francisco, CAResponded on April 18, 2025

   Thanks for visiting us, Jaqueline. We're truly sorry to hear about your experience at Benihana - San Francisco, CA. It's disheartening to know that our service did not meet your expectations. We strive to provide a smooth and enjoyable dining experience for all our guests and it seems we fell short during your visit. We appreciate your feedback and will certainly address these issues with our team. We hope you'll give us another chance to provide you with the high-quality service you deserve. Sincerely, The Management Team
   

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9. t

   tiffany

   San Francisco4 reviews

   5.0

   Dined on April 13, 2025

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

   We love Benihana! We visit here at least once every 2 months from the north Bay Area. Always hits!
   

   Benihana - San Francisco, CAResponded on April 15, 2025

   Hey Tiffany, Thank you so much for your continued patronage and for giving us a perfect rating! We're thrilled to hear that you love Benihana and that our food and service continue to impress you. We strive to provide our customers with the best experience possible, and your feedback is a testament to our efforts. We look forward to welcoming you back to Benihana - San Francisco, CA soon!
   

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10. D

    DIANNA

    San Francisco3 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on April 12, 2025

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

    I really enjoyed the food and show today. I haven’t been here for a long time and forgot how delicious the food is. The staff was attentive and service was excellent.
    

    Benihana - San Francisco, CAResponded on April 13, 2025

    Hey Dianna, We're thrilled to hear that you enjoyed your experience at Benihana - San Francisco, CA! It's wonderful to know that our food and service lived up to your expectations. It's always a pleasure to have our guests back, and we're glad we could make your visit memorable. Thank you for the high ratings and for your kind words. We look forward to serving you again soon. Best Regards, The Management Team
    

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