No Name

Everyone should experience Benihana atmosphere... It is very joyful place, especially if you need to celebrate an event or just want to spend some quality time with the family and friends. Food and services are great.

+3

michele cedros

We had a fantastic dinner! The staff were friendly and very attentive. Our Chef was not only entertaining but the food was cooked to perfection. We would definitely go back and recommend it to our friends and family. Worth every penny 👌

joshua Lovos

Bieowno way 10/10 would do again.Im too full. Food & service was 10/10 super flavorful & fast! Incredible and super skillfull. 1000/10 it is super good i would come back every day if I could it’s so yummy yummy.

Pamela L

I haven't been to Benihana for years and thought I would try the restaurant because I wanted to see how the Peace Plaza renovations were coming along and to help a local business. As soon as I walked through the door, I was greeted by two persons with a smile. They advised me that it will be about a fifteen minute wait so I went to the bar. It happened to be "happy hour" so I ordered pan fried gyoza dumplings, shrimp tempura, vegetable spring rolls and a White Peach sake. The food came piping hot, just the way I like my food. Ingredients taste fresh and food presentation was good decorated with a real orchid flower. That sake drink was perfect - delicious and appealing. I should have ordered another sake for dinner because at dinner, that same drink was doubled ($18). I was seated at a table with a couple being engaged that night and a family of three celebrating the mom's birthday. My grill/table companions were nice and friendly. The person who took our orders had a super nice personality; she made you feel welcomed; she listened intently when taking our individual orders and kept checking in to see if we needed anything (eye to eye contact which made you feel special). Our chef was charming and personable. He did his usual tricks when preparing our food. He checked in with us individually to double check on how our preferences were and likes/dislikes. The menu was hard to understand. It was so confusing that I simply ordered one of the fixed price dinners. I could not understand why rice did not come with most fixed price dinners. Anyways, I ordered one bowl of chicken fried rice - portion was small and overly priced. I never paid that much for even a small bow of rice. Overall, the food was so so - they all tasted the same since they use the same seasonings (garlic butter) when cooking on all dishes (except for the green salad). The cheesecake was not worth ordering or eating. It was not restaurant made, was semi-frozen and horrible that I only ate one bite. It was super expensive for that small slice of cheesecake. I am giving it a four star because you are paying for the ambiance, a show from the chef and probably the same price if you ate elsewhere. It's a good place to eat with entertainment with good, efficient, friendly service.

+11

Sardor Azimovich

We recently dined at Benihana, and it was an unforgettable experience! The food was absolutely delicious, cooked to perfection right before our eyes. The chefs were not only skilled but also entertaining, making the whole meal a memorable event. The staff was attentive and friendly, ensuring that we had everything we needed. One tip: make a reservation ahead of time to avoid wait times, as this popular spot can get busy. It’s definitely worth planning ahead to enjoy the full experience without any delays. If you’re ordering a 5 or 6-course meal, be sure to ask about additional items, as the bill can add up quickly. Overall, we had a fun and flavorful dining experience!

+7

Mat Lit

The dinner was just so incredibly fun and an experience that can’t be easily reproduced. Our chef, Erin, was extremely adept and fast with the spatulas and knives. Much respect to his skill and training for being able to put on such a show. Enjoyed the chateaubriand which was cooked perfectly juicy and seasoned well. The rest of the food was quite salty, and had a similar flavor profile (soy, salt, butter). While getting seated doesn’t take too long, waiting for a chef may be a different story. After arriving on time to our 6p reservation, we were seated about 6:10p. After ordering, we probably received soup 15 minutes later, then salad another 15 minutes later. I don’t think the chef came until 7p. We finished our meal and left at around 8:15p This wasn’t a problem for us, but I would recommend diners to allocate a good amount of time in their plans for their meal. Overall, I had a blast. It takes a long time and the food is so-so, but watching the performance of a skilled entertainer/chef is a treat and absolutely worth it.

+3

Came here cuz a nearby restaurant had a really long wait and there was no wait here. The staff was super helpful and quick. Ordered a mango nectar drink which was delicious. The ramen I had was Kinuki(?) and it was only okay. The ambiance of this place is nice and can seat a lot of people, very clean.

We had to get ramen while we were in Japantown. The ramen here was delicious. I got the Spicy Ramen with medium on the spice level. I wanted to play it safe since my friends make fun of me that I can only handle “white boy spicy.” The broth was super flavorful and complex. My friend got the Wantan Ramen since he’s a sucker for chicken-dashi broth. He loved it! It wasn’t busy since we were here on a Thursday night. They are centrally located in Japantown and I recommend coming by to satisfy your ramen cravings while you’re here. 🍜

Friendly staff, clean store and only thing I am not satisfied is rice taste not right for Japanese food, a bit dry.

Larry Ross

Classic teppanyaki experience. Server was slow in delivering drinks and missed on beverage. Food quality is good and portions are generous - no one should go home hungry. The show is what makes all worth it. Great for family special occasions.

Michelle Chan

I’ve been to the Benihana on Post Street in San Francisco about half a dozen times over the years. Although I haven’t visited recently, I felt it deserved a belated shout-out. I usually went either with my son when he was younger, or with a group of friends, whenever I was looking for a festive night that felt special. To be upfront: I don’t go to Benihana for the food. Don’t get me wrong—the food is good—but in my opinion, it’s not worth $50 a plate. What makes Benihana worth it is the *experience*. And on that front, Benihana delivers above and beyond. If you really want to make the evening extra fun, tell them it’s someone’s birthday—even if it isn’t. You’ll get a free ice cream and the joy of having the entire restaurant sing to you. How often does that happen? Honestly, calling the Benihana chefs “chefs” feels like underselling them. They’re performers, comedians, storytellers—magicians of the moment. Every meal comes with a unique show, and they know exactly how to engage the table so you feel alive while you’re dining. That’s why I kept going back, again and again, even with the steep price tag. The food may be just okay in my opinion, but the experience is unforgettable. Trust me: if you have a special occasion, go to Benihana. You can get good food anywhere, but you can’t get the kind of Benihana experience anywhere else.

Matthias pumpkin

Freddy the chief was entertaining and made the food taste. The servings are larger than other locations. The place is very large so the noise level is high. Venting is also good as our clothing wasn’t covered in oil and smell of our food. Great place for a birthday meal

+2

Jenny Xu

Came here for date night and enjoyed it! Good: - The experience is quite fun, we did a communal table with 6 others and still felt like we had a front seat experience. The chef's do a lot of fake outs and also flip the food into their hats or in front of you and it's as much a magic show as it is a cooking experience - I liked the seafood udon dish better than the yakisoba trio, the sauce in it was a lot better - Portion sizes are good, we got so much food! The miso soup and salad that came at the start also filled us up Bad: - Pretty expensive to keep going too often - Took us almost an hour to get seated even with a reservation. Overall this was a fun enjoyable experience, but a bit expensive to go too often.

+5

Hilda Liu

I went there during restaurant week and it was so crowded with kids :) it is a very friendly kids restaurant and I can tell why. The chef play a lot of magic and interacts with you a lot. They gave children hats if it’s their birthday. The food was okay, not the most yummy I tried but acceptable. The environment is definitely loud and crowded, so consider that when you come in.

+4

The restaurant was pretty average. The small plates and dishes they gave us weren’t very clean, which was a bit off-putting. The ramen was decent—not great, but not terrible either. The staff were really friendly and attentive, which was nice. The atmosphere was okay, but I personally didn’t like the lingering old smell. There was no lid for the water they provided. The hygiene could be improved.

To be honest, the ramen here is not very special and you can make it at home. Ordered the Yamadaya ramen $18.50 , the noodles are thin, but the texture is not very good, you can even taste the raw noodles. The soup base may have fish flavor, I was thirsty 30 minutes after eating so I think the soup base should mixed from condensed soup base . For topping , here is the pork belly instead Chashu . Service is average , they did their job , that’s all !

Went here because it's my son's favorite Ramen house, but I found just ok. Located in the heart of J town, I'd imagine it gets a lot of traffic. My son ordered gluten free noodles, but they messed it up and he had to wait until it was resolved. I thought my bowl was extra tasty and sadly I was right for the wrong reason. After we finished and I was driving away, I got hit with an MSG rush starting in my lower spine up my back into my head. Leaving a headache for about an hour. Warning.... if you're sensitive to MSG, order something without the broth or just don't drink it : )

Suan Yeo

Come here for the entertainment from the chefs. Absolute stars of the restaurant. Food highlight was the chicken fried rice and wagyu beef. Everything else was oversalted or just weird. On the pricey side of things for the quality of food, but you're paying for the show. If you come with a group of 8 you get the whole table to yourself.

+3

grungir

Atmosphere and foods were just as expected. However the performing was somewhat less entertaining than what I enjoyed in NY years ago. The service lady was nice and made us comfortable. I might try another time if I get a chance.

Lady Von Wake

The food and chef were great! A little pro tip is dont go if you are starving. The wait time even with a reservation is still an Hr. That's if you are sitting at the tables where they cook for you. Expect to not be served any food until about 20 minutes more, while you wait for the chef to start cooking all the table guests food as well. If you are willing to wait it out and don't have to rush to go anywhere else. The food is good. It was an interesting experience at this location. I did see a few guests leave the line because it was taking too long. Make sure you ask if the friend rice is included with your set They add the charge later as a side item.

+1

Been visiting this joint for years for good ramen near Japantown. To be fair, I have not tried the other ramen houses within the japantown complex itself but this place compares favorably with similar eateries on the peninsula. On my most recent visit in Dec 2023 the quality of the food seemed to have gone down a little from years before. Nevertheless the ramen broth is flavorful, the chashu and stewed pork are soft and flavorful and the egg well done (firm outside and soft inside). The ramen texture is not great. Appetizers are fine - portions are big but the quality is so-so. We had the fries with cheese, geso karaage and house salad. Extensive menu beyond ramen. Sep 2025 update - not sure what happened but the food quality has plummeted since we ate here a year ago, and definitely nothing compared to what it was years ago. The tonkutsu broth is tasteless, the noodle texture was off and the tsukemen was terrible. Will not be returning.

Tourist Trap. Go somewhere that values your hard earned money. Do not get the coconut curry. They randomly tossed in a lemon and carrots in it. It wasn’t even listed in the ingredients. Broth was diluted and watery. Service is average, nothing that sticks out. Ambiance is dark and dingy. No music and smells of cheap commercial chemicals like Fabuloso.

Came at the end of the lunch rush nearing 2pm. The place felt convoluted and people didn’t receive their full orders having some people start before others. The broth in my Yamada Ramen was bland and the egg upon biting it was cold, it felt like I was eating it raw. Granted I will not be coming back.

We were out checking out the Blossom Festival and ended up in line at this spot—mostly because everything else was packed and this seemed like the best of the options. Big mistake. What followed was one of the worst dining experiences we’ve had in a long time. You know that feeling when a good meal brings people joy? Yeah, this place doesn’t deliver that. Every dish we tried was off. The gyoza tasted like it came straight out of a Costco freezer bag—bland, rubbery, and weirdly artificial. Ever had something so oddly “pipe-flavored” that you start questioning not just the plumbing, but your life choices? That was us. I ordered udon and my partner got the spicy ramen. Both were terrible—easily the worst ramen I’ve ever had. And trust me, I’ve had instant ramen that puts this to shame. Honestly, second place in the “worst food” category goes to Dumpling Time in San Jose—just to give you a sense of how low the bar is here. The shishito peppers were a whole other offense. They should be grilled—smoky, blistered, and tender. These? Crunchy like they were trying and failing to be bell peppers. And serving them with a side of mayo? That’s not just wrong—it’s a betrayal of everything good and holy about Japanese small plates. Service? Painfully slow. We waited forever to be helped, and you could just feel the awkward energy around the room—people nodding like they were all in the same boat of disappointment. The water was lukewarm, no ice, and tasted like it had been sitting in jugs all day. Not a great first impression. To top it off, the waiter basically tossed the receipt at us and clearly didn’t know how to handle our complaints. Thankfully, another staff member came by and comped our ramen and noodles, which we appreciated. Moral of the story: if you’re in San Francisco and craving ramen, do your homework . Don’t be fooled by the reviews—this place is not it. I’ve had better ramen at gas stations.

JeoMel Transportation

This was takeout order. I can't believe I wasn't provided any of the sauces that normally come with your steak and seafood. They didn’t even give me salad dressing for the salad. I guess you have to order and pay for sauces and salad dressing. I don't know. I posted a picture of the portion of steak, shrimp, zucchini, onions, and mushrooms, the steak and shrimp portion was normal but the veggies not even close. I paid extra $11.50 for the fried rice with shrimp and the rice was very dry and had very little onion, and the egg was almost non existent and small portion. I never order takeout but thought Benihana is a reputable restaurant. Wow what a difference compared to dining in the Cupertino location. Just can't get over what a waste of money for the meal that didn’t include what comes with it when you dine in. Salad isn’t good without the dressing and the sauce for the meat and seafoodIt was the filet mignon meal and I paid $78.51 that included the undeserved tip not to mention the attitude the guy had when the order was picked up.I would like a refund .

This is by far the worse ramen I'd ever had. Firstly, the service I received was terrible, server had a massive attitude and was borderline throwing our food at us. But surely it's fine because the food is good right? Wrong. Out of the 4 ramens that we've order, I only would've willing eaten one. They put looks over taste. None of the broths were creamy and was served like it was heated up. On top of all of that the broth is for some reason bitter. I'm sorry but this is just one gigantic tourist spot. If you want some good ramen just go to Marufuku 2 blocks away cheaper and better.

Edited 7-6-24: hate to say it, but a lot of what I used to love about this spot in no longer present. I understand that inflation is brutal right now…. But….Portions have gotten cut in half despite the price being the same. I’m not being dramatic here…. My bowl was 50% full when dropped off at the table. Not to mention that the ramen had the chintzy’est portion of pork…. it was laughable. The chicken karrage is still awesome with its different style options…. But as a whole it’s evident they’re trying to save money downsizing. Its was so obvious that I’m stuck with ‘voting with my wallet’ and not coming back. Que Serra Serra…. Change is the only constant. This place does Ramen right. The Black Garlic is the heavy hitter on the menu. Service is good but can be a bit hectic around dinner rush. It is also quite loud in the main dinning room. I know this is a chain but the quality and service is outstanding and easily in the top 5 of ramen spots in the city worth checking out. The ‘experimental ramen’ section of the menu has some really interesting options as well

I gave it a one star because I can't put down a zero star. I am a lover of Asian cuisine and let me tell you, this place is a tourist trap. It's terrible and a waist of your $$$$$. We love ramen soup but it was watered down, no flavor or taste. There's no way it took 20 hours to make the broth. My braised pork rice bowl was 99% rice that tasted old, 5 very small thin pieces of very dried up pork and a table spoon of shredded cabbage with some mayo. There's no sauce what so ever on the meat or rice. My recommendation, don't go.

The Korean chicken karage I ordered was undercooked and gave me food poisoning. The other food was crisp but had such a weird consistency in the inside. On top of this our server forgot to give me our melon soda until I asked at the end. Would not recommend.

Everything tasted left out and reheated. Waxy and chewy karage, waxy bao buns, soggy tempura left sitting in the seafood ramen, over cooked noodles and barely warm broth and very little seafood. We specifically asked for the sea food ramen to be boiling hot, and was told that “all our broths are boiling” nothing was even close to hot. House ramen lacked flavor, bland broth and overcooked noodles with very little meat and bamboo and cold egg. We did not finish the ramen. Wanted to give them the benefit of doubt after reading the reviews and waiting a while. We asked more than once for napkins, water cups and chopsticks. There were a few groups of 4 but by no means were they slammed! $87 down the drain. Unfortunate because it’s the perfect weather for ramen. Let’s hope things improve and maybe today was just an off day.