Nicole

From the moment we arrived, the experience was already off to a great start. Cynthia remembered me from another restaurant, which instantly made the night feel warm, welcoming, and personal. I felt like I was a guest rather than just another reservation. Jacob, our chef, was incredibly talented and entertaining, keeping everyone engaged while showcasing his skill. The food was absolutely delicious, perfectly prepared, and made the whole experience memorable from start to finish. Benihana’s truly delivered on both hospitality and flavor. I’ll definitely be back.

Ceiley Davis

Had the most amazing experience recently with our host Mason and Chef Edwin! Ive been going here for family birthdays since I was 7, but tonight's service was beyond special. Even though it was super busy - Mason so skillfully and thoughtfully accommodated our picky eaters, kept the table clear, and made sure our glasses were always filled! Hes got amazing hospitality that turned a good night into a great night. Chef Edwin is also a must have chef! He cooked us some of the best veggies and meats I have tasted at this restaurant (maybe even ever?). Hes got phenomenal talent - even our picky eaters were eating his veggies which were seasoned to prefection! On top of his culinary skills his cooking proformance was top notch. Im excited to see them both again when my birthday comes around :).

Delilah Zumaya

What an amazing experience. Our waiter and show stopper, Pina was amazing. He was captivating and engaging from beginning to end. Absolutely an amazing experience. Definitely recommend.

Luis Moreno

Chef Piña was absolutely outstanding. From the moment he stepped up to the grill, the energy, professionalism, and skill were next level. The food was cooked perfectly—flavorful, fresh, and exactly how everyone asked for it. Every course came out hot and on point, and the presentation was just as impressive as the taste. What really set Chef Piña apart was the experience. He was engaging, funny, and made sure everyone at the table was having a great time without ever missing a beat on the cooking. You can tell he takes pride in his craft and genuinely cares about giving guests a memorable meal. Hands down one of the best hibachi experiences we’ve had. If you get Chef Piña, you’re in for a great night. Highly recommend.

Amanda Nicole Gómez

Paul is an excellent chef!!! Very entertaining, he made the evening so enjoyable! Will now on be requesting him as our chef when we return!!! Thank you Paul for such a wonderful evening

Ruta P.

Absolutely amazing! Food, service, the entire experience. Our server and chef were great, food well cooked and perfectly presented. Definitely recommend and will be back. First time we came it was too busy so we could only sit and eat in the bar area but this time made a reservation, worth the wait!

+20

Food was average. Fish and chips were the best thing we ordered, also had spinach artichoke dip and a chicken sandwich. Service was fair because she forgot our drinks, didn’t get the order right, and never came to check on us. Waitress seemed newish so she still got a good tip. The view was what we were there for.

Mad dogs es super busy and super fun. The staff was excellent. Fish n chips and the wings were super yummy and great drink specials . We will go back .

The pizza was the bombs 🔥 The pot pie was delicious The chicken sandwich that I had was not very appetizing. 😪 But when we come back, we will try other things 🙏

We just happened upon this place as we strolled the Riverwalk. It wasn’t busy, and we were seated immediately. I don’t think the hostess told the waitress she had seated us in her section so it did take a short bit before we were acknowledged. However, when our waitress (Faith) saw us, she apologized about the wait. She was a fabulous server, personable, kind and appreciative. We just had a couple of cocktails and lunch: chicken tenders and fish and chips. Quite tasty. I have NEVER ordered fried fish before anywhere. I have no idea what prompted me to order it, but it was a very good choice. This was a totally unplanned stop on our trip, but it was probably our favorite. We experienced so many rude restaurant staff on the Riverwalk—to the point we don’t want to go back. But the staff at Mad Dogs—especially Faith—were great. Thank you!!

Mickey D

Lino made it happen! Thanks Lino! I was losing faith in Benihana but Lino made up for everything. I think we found our chef again. 11/19/2025 Jesse O. was awesome as a Chef, very attentive. Linda really shined as support, expediting, and accommodating, great server, very attentive and helpful.

mireya lopez

We had lunch on Halloween. The service was good. The chef add a little of the sauce for my spicy chicken on his own and left the rest near my plate without asking me. I ended up adding the rest on my own. Husband scallops were over cooked. The fried rice was Ok not as good as other times. The beer nice and cold. Overall it is definitely cheaper to go during lunch time.

Sharon B

We went here for a birthday celebration. The parking lot was full but vallet was available for only $8. We had reservations at but still had to wait about 20 mins before we were taken to our table. Our waitress was good and checked on us often. It took awhile for the chef to come to our table but once he arrived, things went smoothly. He confirmed what everyone ordered and was entertaining to watch. The onion soup and the salad starters were good. The vegetable side dish had too much onions. It was mainly zucchinis and onions. It was a little disappointing. My shrimps and my steak were cooked well. I do like the sauces we were given with our dinner too.

Ambiance was truly stellar, and yes you get to keep your glass. However, we missed the keep your glass part and it was nearly $25 dollars for one drink. Also, all the beers on tap were generic. For a British Pub I went there expecting an english ale and was disappointed that there were none. Staff generally friendly.

We hit this spot for dinner on game night - it was buzzing. Got the flatbread and veg burger with sweet potato fries. Flatbread needed more crisp. Burger lacked lettuce/greens. Service was solid - funny greeter wanted to make biryani someday and the waiter was friendly too. Definitely worth a try.

Rachel Keita

My family and I have enjoyed many celebrations and dinners at Benihana Mission Valley, CA, but our prior two visits were frustrating—on one, we left after long waits despite having a reservation and went to a nearby teppanyaki restaurant, and on the other, a visit with a new chef was so slow that even after nearly three hours, our main courses were still not fully served, forcing us to leave for another event. The manager’s offer of a gift card for that experience was the main reason we decided to give it another try. Our dinner last night was much improved. Coming on a weekday around 5 pm helped with timing. Chris, our chef, was personable and efficient, making sure every dish was cooked to our satisfaction. Brian, our server—who mentioned he was only in his second week—was friendly and attentive despite being busy. The onion soup was lukewarm, but otherwise everything was good. While the hibachi performance is part of the fun, the food is ultimately what keeps us coming back. Some challenges will likely always remain: Parking is limited, especially with part of the lot reserved for valet only. The lobby will get crowded after 5 pm, especially on weekends, due to the limited seating area. The bathrooms could be cleaner. It can get quite warm inside due to limited ventilation. Even so, last night’s visit reminded us that with the right staff and small improvements, Benihana can still provide a very enjoyable dining experience. We may return, though it will likely never be our first choice for teppanyaki in the area.

My Le

If you want the Hibachi/teppanyaki show then you need to sit at the grill. There were over a dozen tables with grills that seat 8 each. You’ll be sharing space with others. We shared the filet mignon ($54) 5 course meal that comes with onion soup, salad, shrimp, vegetables, 2 dipping sauces, rice (option to upgrade to chicken fried rice), hot green tea. The 6 course has ice cream added. The chef did his thing with the dancing utensils and egg along with the I heart u rice. Loved that he automatically split our portions on the plate. Instead of an upgrade, we ordered Chicken rice ($9) by itself. We were shocked that it was the same size as the others who upgraded. The rice was just full of butter and bland. We also ordered Shrimp crunchy roll ($19) and Chili ponzu yellowtail roll ($25). The crunchy roll was not crunchy. It was like old panko. I think Benihana lost its touch over the decades and we were not impress by the quality of food, smaller portions and high prices.

+22

First restaurant we tried on the River Walk and it was disappointing. We sat at an outdoor table for about 10 minutes, watching uniformed staff casually chatting without paying attention to us. I eventually flagged down the gentleman who was calling in customers. He joked that we were in his “blind spot” (the owner would understand what he meant). Once we finally received service, things were acceptable. Food and drinks were decent. However, one important issue was that the wheelchair lift was out of order, meaning there was no accessibility for wheelchair users to enter the restaurant, not ideal.

Mariana “Ana” Brown

Made reservations for my hubby and I for 6pm on Friday. Was able to get into valet, checked in and the hostess did not inform us of the wait. While we waited and kept waiting, we kept seeing folks come up to check on their table. That's when we found out they were over a hour behind on reservations. We weren't too hungry yet, so we waited it out. There were other parties that were not so happy and canceled their reservations and understandably so. Fast forward, we were called for our table ar 7:15. My first white peach sake sangria wasn't mixed, no garnishment, see pic. Food order put in around 7:30, chef came out a little past 8:00. Our chef was awesome, wagyu delicious, family we were sat with were super sweet. We were done with dinner at 9:15... timing was way off, if it was a system issue- they allowed entirely too many reservations.

Lakeith Hastings

This place use to be very good back in the day but has changed for the worse. It’s very run down. It looks like the owner doesn’t invest in the upkeep of their business. The service is subpar. I use to love this place. We waited to be seated about 30 minutes after our reservation and then another hour until our chef made an entrance. The chef was disorganized and seemed agitated. The food wasn’t bad but not worth coming back. Benihanas will forever be in my rear view moving forward. It was nice will it lasted.

Se Strick

I had visited last night the young lady who took my to go order was patient and understanding. The portion was NOT what I'm use to getting when I'm home in Atlanta. The chicken fried rice was a very small scoop over the rice 🍚, it was 8 small pieces. It was also pre-made in a big steam pot, at the to go area. I also ordered my sister a Hibachi Chicken dinner $35 this was her 1st time. The portion was unbelievable the rice was half size and the vegetables was non visible the chicken looked like it was pre-cut and pre-cooked. Not pleased at all. Waisted my money

Jeremy Johnson

We made 8pm reservations on father's day, expected it to be busy but not a 1 hour wait to be seated. Family of 6 and 4 young kids we were finally ready for dinner. Then the mgr came to inform us that we needed to move and they are adding another family to the table and if we don't like it we can leave. Great.... it's 915 the kids are hungry and we are now sardines at the table. To make matters worse the chef didn't come to the table until 10pm to start cooking & he was ready to go home saying he had been there since 10am. The show was mediocre if him cooking our food. Our waiter was amazing and very empathetic to the time and amount of people smashed at our table. Don't know if I would go back with service like that and a $400 bill.

What a horrible experience. I don't often write 1 star reviews, but I'll make an exception for an experience where I have absolutely no desire to come back. A romantic Riverwalk experience is the wrong expectations for Mad Dogs. That should've been obvious by the uniforms the staff wear. They're really going for bar maiden rather than any sort of decency. We sat outside in hopes to enjoy the Riverwalk atmosphere, but Mad Dogs seemed to actively work to destroy this. Right next door is a lovely jazz band playing where the patio can here it, but inside and just outside at Mad Dogs, they blast horrible music and have huge sports games. The music was a stark contrast with what was going on next door and hearing them both was quite unpleasant. Then at 9pm their musicians started blasting their own music and we new we had to leave soon. There was no warning that this would start within 35 min when we were offered our table. Sitting right next to us there was a man smoking a cigar right next to us, which was frequently leaving a stinging odor as we waited. That didn't add to the atmosphere we were looking for. We ordered a Texas Chili Mac burger and the soup, which the waitress tried to order, but found was sold out. Fine, but usually you'd be told what is sold out before being asked what you'd like. So we switched to the Longhorn Steak and Ale pie. And we waited for about 20 minutes before our waitress coming to tell us they're all out of that pie as well! So we changed to the Cottage Pie as a last ditch option, when we really should've left. Surprisingly 5 minutes later our order is out. The food was hot and the Cottage Pie was decent. The burger was inedible. It was quite obviously sitting under a heat lamp for those 25 minutes. (Ironic because it was cool enough outside that a heat lamp would've been nice on the patio.) It made the top bun crispy while the bottom was soft. The meat was poorly cooked and also dry. The rest of the toppings were such an afterthought they detracted from a dry overcooked patty. The Mac and cheese were in such low quantity that I thought they forgot them. When I brought up how the burger was so bad I didn't want to eat it, our waitress just offered to discount it. Apparently that didn't mean remove it or make it right, but instead give $1.90 off the price. Which ended up being about half the credit card fee I didn't see posted. Mad Dogs was really an affront to all 5 senses.

DO NOT RECOMMEND! Staff was inattentive. Sat down, no service, not offered a drink after a few minutes waiting and very few people in the restaurant. We were passed by several servers literally moving chairs. Bartender, Jackie, was rude, rolled her eyes and made a comment to a server as we were leaving. We were only addressed when we got up to leave the restaurant. It was painfully obvious we were not welcomed in this restaurant. Would like to speak with corporate office regarding my experience tonight.

Terrible food and very slow service. We got the Scotch eggs, they were 90% crust. Then we ordered the cottage pie. Pulled off the top layer and there was maybe 2 tablespoons of filling. Had to send it back. We had to wait a full 1/2 hour just to pay for the appetizer and beverages. No refills offered during the time there either.

I don’t often leave bad reviews, however, the service we received was particularly poor at Mad Dogs. When we arrived we were told to sit anywhere we would like so we chose a nice table outside to enjoy the riverwalk. In my opinion the table we chose was likely in a blind spot for servers, but I do not think that warrants the mediocre service we received. We ordered a drink from our waitress, received it, and then seemingly got ignored by her for the next 20 minutes. This was particularly disappointing because we wanted to order more and instead of being approached again we watched our waitress stand around, not even engaging with other guests, for a lot of it. After the second attempt to flag her down as she passed us failed we eventually resorted to flagging down a different server to order another drink and some fries. It took another several minutes for our server to reappear to ask what we would like to order. In total we interacted with 4 different servers and the 3 who weren’t assigned to serve us did a better job than our original girl. If dining on the riverwalk please consider dining elsewhere. As for Mad Dogs, y’all should consider removing the table to the left of the stairs closest to the river as I believe this blind spot issue greatly contributed to our poor experience.

Tamar Caspi

My son chooses to go here every year on his birthday. Sometimes we don’t get a reservation in time and end up at Shogun. Last year we were told it was an hour wait for our reservation so we left and went to Shogun. I made the mistake of not going back to Shogun this year. I made the reservation in advance for 6pm on a Sunday for a party of 6. Once again Benihana made us wait but this was to a level that was beyond unacceptable. Jesse O our chef was the saving grace - he was awesome! But our 6pm reservation turned into being sat at 6:45pm and we only received Jesse at 8pm because I spoke to the manager and asked if we would be eating soon. Our server (name withheld because I’m not here to get her in trouble) was sloooow and just bad. From being sat at 6:45 we weren’t greeted and offered drinks until 7pm. It took another 15 minutes to receive our waters and we insisted on placing our dinner orders at that point because we didn’t know how long it would take her to return. Salads arrived at 7:30, onion soup at 7:45. No apologies or explanation from our server or management for the delay. Zero communication. The bussers and servers from tables surrounding us were super apologetic. Jesse arrived, was told he should rush over, only to find our flat top was never turned on by our server. So we had to wait again for it to heat up. We were all starving at this point as we had been waiting two hours and had been keeping our appetites ready all day. Jesse at least understood the assignment and sent over edamame. Of course we tipped him well because he was great, entertaining, cooked the food well and was super accommodating for a food allergy, but after all that it cost $500 with tip for a party of 6 — we each got specialties but we could have spent that same money and received much better service and food and ambiance and not waited 2.5 hours to eat. The Benihana experience is no longer what it was. It’s not worth it whatsoever. They really ought to be ashamed of themselves.

adam schoenen

Went to celebrate my birthday on 12/30. My party of 3 was seating in the lounge area (not a cook top) pretty quickly. The waitress took our order at 5pm. At 6:30pm, still waiting for our food, I asked the waitress what the deal was, and she told us that she had no idea, and that the kitchen was not communicating with her about the slowdown. At 7:15pm, we received our ice cold food. Raw mushrooms, overcooked steak, a few pieces of cold shrimp, and basically raw vegetables. We told the waitress our food was basically inedible, and she gave a brief apology and told us she would speak to the manager. They took $30 off of our $160 bill, most of which was so cold or undercooked that we couldn’t eat it. Probably the worst dining experience of my entire life. Been going for a long time, but never going again. Don’t know whose fault it was, but someone should be fired. Waitress was fine, but could have communicated better. Not gonna hold it against her though, as I’m sure the night was shitty for her too.

Angelica Flores

Wow. I hate to leave a bad review at such a loved restaurant for YEARS but my sisters and I had THE WORST experience last night. We arrived a little before 9, group of 3, no reservation. Was told by a younger dark haired staff member the wait would be 30 - 45 minutes but probably less so we said okay thank you and proceeded to wait. I want to say almost an hour began to pass. You could tell the a lot of people were leaving in not the greatest moods and we wondered what was going on. Multiple waiters came up to the front area and would tell the host "we're almost done" "just _____ amount of hours left to go" and comments like that which made it clear they were not having a good night. Eventually more than an hour passed and out of no where, the rudest blonde haired older lady appeared with the dark haired hostess and out of nowhere addressed us in an extremely rude tone and proceeded to say "I'm gonna keep it real with you. It'll be an hour and a half or more before you get seated at a table for the show with a chef" which was confusing since we had already waited an hour and had been told by the hostess it was gonna be a "way less" wait when we arrived. Someone else then asked us if we'd like a regular table which we hesitantly said yes to and I so wish we had just left right then and there. The waitress' attitude who sat us was disgusting, her demeanor just through our night completely off. No hello, no smile no nothing. She asked for our drinks in a rude manor and her facial expressions just looked like she either didn't want is to be there or be there herself. Whatever it was, we got up and left because it is crazy to be treated that way by what I would assume was the manager (older, blonde hair woman) and the waitress (older dark haired short woman) after waiting so long, not making a fuss, etc. We just wanted to have a good night amc take our youngest sister there for her first time and we were left with such a bad experience.

Rudy Sanchez

I am very disappointed with my experience at this restaurant. I showed up on time for my reservation I was ask to wait for 10 minutes then ask to wait again for the party that was joining us. Only to find out the other party is at the bar double fisted with alcohol. Then the other party proceeded to insult us in Spanish because I had an issue with their rudeness and disrespect for other customers. The fact I was expected to sit with the other party or wait even longer just seems wrong. This if truly the decay of customer service and just being kind and respectful to all.