A much better experience tonight because we beat the crowd. We got our own table for 5. Arrived at 6:20, done eating and left at 7:25. Ashley was our waitress, and Estuardo was our chef. Both were excellent. The food was very flavorful tonight. And I love the new rewards program. Now for my birthday I get $50 off! Such a great deal! Bathroom still needs to be updated. But for now I am very full and satisfied. read more

Multi-faceted experience at Benihana. We had a 2pm reservation and were alerted at 1:40 our table was ready, but when we got there at 2pm we had to wait over half hour for our table. The host was rude and unhelpful. After finally being seated our drinks didn't arrive until after 3pm. The chef arrived before the appetizers, so he had to sit back a few minutes while the hard working server caught up. The chef was very entertaining and the food was okay. The chef was unfortunately not able to catch any of the shrimp or mushrooms becausd he couldn't see given the glare from the broken window shade. But the flaming onion was cool. Quick checkout relative to the prior service. Food itself was still good, in that Benihana way. read more

My family and I went here for dinner and it was still good. Our server and chef were friendly and the food was good as always. They added a wagyu upgrade with different sauces that you can order separately without ordering the steak. The dining room was crowded as always but it was clean. Benihana will always be one of my favorites. read more

Benihana - Short Hills - Fried rice. - Sushi Bars Near Me - Short Hills, New Jersey

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I've been a fan of Benihana for so long. Over the years, I'd always go there for my birthday. I was so excited to come back and all I can say is it lived up to the hype. To start, I had to go with the classic soup - so delicious! I'm a huge fan of the white noodles, which I think are technically off the kids menu, so I had to have a side of those. I usually opt for lunch, since the special is so good. Can't go wrong with any of the proteins. The vibes at Benihana are always great. Love dinner (or lunch) and a show - the fire and tricks always get me. Great service all around. I'd always be happy to come back! read more

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Worst hibachi experience I've ever had! The grill had left over food on it upon sitting at the table. Mind you we had a reservation for 9 and was no sat down till 9:25. Not sure why the grill wasn't cleaned. Plates had hot oil on it so we had to ask for new plates. Their portions are Very small ! Alcohol drinks are watered down. They only used salt, pepper, soy sauce and butter to season. We asked about terriaki they don't have. Heavy on the salt ! No veggies ! Only mushroom and onions and the only people who got mushroom and onions where the people who got chicken and steak. read more

Benihana - Short Hills - Sushi Bars Near Me - Short Hills, New Jersey

First, let me say nobody was hurt while dining here -- just setting the record straight. That said, if it weren't for the fact that at one point I felt like I was being filmed for a TV show to capture my reaction to bad service, I'd genuinely be upset. Let's start with the soup. I watched the waitress serve everyone else, and I noticed her thumb (with a long fingernail) in the soup. When she handed me mine, I quietly tried to tell her, but she got defensive. I even challenged her: taste your nail -- if it doesn't taste like the soup, I'll pay for everyone at the table. She brought me a replacement, but at that point, I refused to eat anything she touched, even though they would have gladly brought me more. The chef at the grill provided a bit of comic relief -- but honestly, he was throwing shrimp everywhere except into people's mouths. I wanted more to drink, but I just muscled through the meal and ended up grabbing an iced tea at Wawa afterward. Verdict: Service issues overshadowed the experience. The food and showmanship didn't make up for careless handling and inattentive staff. I eat, I judge. The fork stops with me -- your feelings aren't on the menu. read more

Hmmm where do I start. Made a reservation for 8pm. Waited for 40 mins to be seated and no communication from any of thr staff as to why until we asked. We got a very unsatisfactory answer. Meanwhile I went to the restroom and I felt like I was at the Burger King that used to be downtown Newark and I had to check to make sure I waa in Short Hills NJ. Apparently, I was. Paper and toilet seat covers riddled the floors and there was no paper towels in the dispenser. Very unsatisfactory restroom, I'd seen worse. We get seated after 45 mins to hr waiting. Then another 30 to 40 mins to have someone come and begin the cooking of our food. Too late to leave and go elsewhere because that was on my mind as I waited and also celebrating my birthday which upon making the reservation that was advised as they ask what are you celebrating, I watched the staff go around and sing and clap for other tables, never came by my table. I mentioned to the Manager Joe that the restroom needed TLC low key where no other customers could hear even though there were other customers in the restroom appalled by the lack of service and cleanliness happening in the bathroom. MY food..I guess was ok but due to the lack of service and all balls being dropped my overall Experience at this location was not very good and definitely not what I have come to expect from Benihanna. The Manager Joe after mentioning 2 issues to him...absolutely gave off an Aire that he didn't get a care in the world as to how I felt as a customer and gave the brush off. Horrible Management. Menlo Park location is Amazing. I've also been to the Vegas location as well. Short Hills Get it together please. Melissa my server was accommodating so I do thank her for her services. read more

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The food in this place is really good, but the customer service is horrible, my order was supposed to be ready at 8:35, I came and ask the lady's in the front, they don't even look to you in eye, 3 people in 3 desk not one single person help us, eating inside is very nice, read more

It's hibachi. Can't mess that up. But the food is good. Less salt and crap than other famous ones on the Mtn. Better sauces. Fair prices. Really enjoy it read more

The food was great and the service was good, but the bathroom situation was absolutely unacceptable. As soon as I walked in, I gagged from the smell. The ladies' room had carpet in part of it ‍, the floors were disgusting, and the stalls were eroded. I have two small children, and there's no way I'd ever feel comfortable bringing them into a restroom like that. For a restaurant that does this much business, the bathrooms should be much, much better. Because of this, I will never go back. read more

Oh boy! This is a hard review to give, especially since this USED to be one of my favorite happy hour spots... this experience was very disappointing. The service just isn't what it used to be and neither is the food. First the restaurant wasn't clean. We went there at 3pm... why is there big pieces of food on the floor and lime slice? Not to mention the sticky table. When we walked in, it felt as if we were intruding on the employee break room, as there was loud talking between the employees and our waitress was just sitting at one of the tables. This is a stark difference to the experience I am used to having. The drinks were just okay and so was the food... some of it was freezer cold when I bit into it. They had to take it off the bill... to add the cherry on top, the system wasn't working and we had to wait 20 minutes for our bill that wasn't correct! $90!!... Needless to say, management needs to grab this place out the drain and bring it back to the quality establishment it used to be. read more

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I take no pleasure in giving a ONE STAR review, unless it's absolutely warranted. And this one, it's been a long time coming. Benihana has fallen off BIG TIME, especially this location. I have witnessed its steady decline for several years; if you've been here more than once, it's apparent. Quite frankly, i do not patronize this place outside of the annual birthday certificate they send via email (they say $30 off but you must spend $60, its totally misleading and ironically has different rules each year). Anyway, more than anything it seems like they just do not care, at all - about great or at least halfway decent customer service nor quality food. But my experience this evening, topped them all, in the worst way. The manager ANDY was abhorrently rude. AND his superior (who I assume is also a manager) began walking away while I was in the middle of my sentence. Half of what I ordered wasn't available then I was told it was after our meal was completed. Also ordered a salmon dish to go, waited at least 30 minutes and then told it's not even in stock. So nonchalantly. It's apparent why it's always empty inside, no matter the day or time. Also why they basically stalk you via email and text message to quadruple confirm your reservation. I will also be contacting their corporate headquarters. There's so much more to be said! Don't waste your time and/or money here, not even for takeout. Just go to the Edison location or somewhere else altogether. You'll be glad you did. read more

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I frequently go to Benihana in NY, however we were in NJ for my grandson's 2nd birthday. It's his favorite restaurant so we decided to go in NJ instead of NY. The front desk ladies were very friendly. I noticed that this one isn't like the ones in NY, we always get ice cream at the end. The waitress told us someone in our party didn't get it even tho her meal was $50 & it's the same one she gets at any Benihana we go to so that was weird. We usually get alot more vegetables in this one we only got zucchini & onions. I got filet minon & yes I order well done but it's still juicy usually, this one wasn't as juicy as I usually get it. Besides that everything else was good. read more

Benihana - Short Hills - Passion fruit Margarita - Sushi Bars Near Me - Short Hills, New Jersey

This is such a feel good spot. It's a place where you celebrate special occasions , gather your family and friends or go to meet other people. In this outing , for my family and I , it was a chance to meet a lovely daughter and father duo from Turkey. They sat with us during the hibachi experience and we spoke to them the entire time, lovely people. Our group ordered hibachi style chicken , steak , shrimp, salmon and even lobster . We thoroughly enjoyed the show and the food was great . Not a lot of soy sauce like other hibachi places and definitely did not have a lot of salt like other places add. The taste was just right. I have been to Benihana several times but never this location . I found it to be a little small than other locations but a great experience. I will say that I smelled like food for days, so don't go out afterwards lol read more

Benihana - Short Hills - Sushi Bars Near Me - Short Hills, New Jersey

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Been coming here forever, the food is consistently good, service was better than previous few times.

My son and I come here all the time. We love the flavor profile of the food but it sucks here all the time. Tonight we had the worst waiter. I finally got my drink when I finished my meal. He forgot everything we asked for in the first time round and the other family we sat with as well. Our chef was ok. Our rice was not fried. It was soft and soggy and most of the food was undercooked and oily. And no mushrooms with my steak! The place opened 2 hours ago and garbage is overflowing with diapers and all and 1 out of two sinks is broken. Also no one asked for our number for "benefits" or points read more

I thoroughly enjoyed eating at the Benihana in Short Hills, NJ. My family's experience was very pleasant, and we had the nicest server named Ishanel! The chef, Jayron, was entertaining with tricks and very accommodating for the vegetarians in my family, and cooked the tofu first, and the food was delicious as usual. I definitely recommend eating here because you will have the experience of a life time! I have eaten at this Benihana at least 20 times, and every time the food, people, and atmosphere gets better! read more

The food, ambiance and service were all bad. Waited way too long for food that wasn't great. The bathrooms were gross.

Good ginger dressing on their salad and fun times at the Hibachi table. The guy sitting next to me seemed to be glancing at the train tracks behind us rather frequently, but hey...you don't mess with the railroad, right? Especially when it's going east. -Dr. read more

The fun element was definitely there! And as long as you don't expect an authentic Japanese cuisine from your experience (with a fat wallet), you will certainly enjoy your meal. We came here after watching an episode on Jimmy Kimmel about changing their careers to be a Benihana chef - I now have a lot more appreciation for the chefs there, seeing some of the trainings that they have to go through. The upgrade to the fried rice was worth it. My steak was rare and juicy, exactly as I asked for. The lobster was a bit dry, tho. read more

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Friendly staff. Fun presentation. Okay food and atmosphere. I've had better hibachi elsewhere. The restaurant doesn't deserve the super low star rating it has -- but the complaints are understandable. For the price, one expects a nicer restaurant (this one probably hasn't been refurbished in 30 years, and the view of the outdoor patio through the windows, where there used to be nice outdoor seating and plants, is now cracked sidewalks and stacked furniture), cleaner bathrooms, rice not stuck to the chairs, a livelier cooking presentation, and better food... Okay, so that does make it sound bad, but, really, the food was pretty good and everyone was nice. It's just that when you drop a couple hundred bucks on a meal, expectations are higher than what you get here. I can see why a lot of people might only go here for the birthday discount meal. But hopefully it gets spruced up one day. read more

The restaurant was dead mostly. $150 for 2 Adults, 2 kids that just ate rice and 2 horrible sweet ice tea. For what you get it's insanely overpriced. The presentation is lame. No fun jokes or tricks anymore. The broth had no flavor. The salad with ginger dressing was bad. The fried rice wasn't' memorable. Chicken was okay. Shrimps weren't cleaned properly and the filet had the quality of a costco loin. Overall hugely disappointing. This chain won't be around much longer. We won't be back. read more

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My first time here !!!! Pros: the service is soo good ! And the food is delicious! I enjoyed the flavors of the mushroom and the onions ! The smell is delightful! I really enjoyed the chicken and shrimp Cons: none Price $: mojito $16 , $105 for 2 people read more

Benihana - Short Hills - Sushi Bars Near Me - Short Hills, New Jersey

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first, we get there and had a reservation and had to sit there for 15 minutes waiting. then our waitress comes over and takes our drink order and we were a little confused on the menu so we asked her about the menu and she gave us so much attitude. We also let her know that there was two birthdays at the table and she did absolutely nothing about that. Then we ask if the hibachi comes with miso soup and the salad which she responded with yes, just to bring us out the miso soup and it was so cold and so salty, and it was honestly the worst miso soup I've ever had in my entire life. She failed to bring out our salads which I later highlighted to her and she asked us if we wanted them to go at the very end of the meal. who wants a salad to go. no one. I asked her if she could do something to Take it off the bill and she's blankly stared at me and asked me if I wanted it to go again. No I don't want it to go. I want money off. We asked for a steak cooked medium rare and you honestly could've thought that the cow was still alive with how it was cooked. the other people who got the steak cooked medium it was essentially burnt to crisp because of how grey it was, and the fat was still on the cow. it was a seven dollar up charge for fried rice and seasoning on the steak which is actually insane and our waitress also came over maybe once during our meal and couldn't even put anything on the table. she got us drinks 10 minutes after our food was done. She had to make us do everything ourselves. She was so rude and gave us so much attitude zero out of 10 would never recommend someone come here. I was very fed up with this considering I work in a restaurant and this is unacceptable. I asked to speak to a manager, and when I explained to him what happened, he just grabbed the check out of my hand and walked away and took 25% off of our meal which don't get me wrong 25% off meal is great, but he could've at least given me somewhat of a response instead of just blankly staring at me like he had no idea what I was saying. Our waitresses name was Alexa and she was genuinely so rude and was talking to the table next to us like nothing was wrong and like she was a very nice person, but to us was acting so rude. DO NOT COME HERE!!! read more

My husband and I had not been to this Benihana Restaurant in years. We will never go back. It was mostly little kids birthday parties, with kids, coloring books, and spilled food under the tables (no one cleaning up either), making a mess, very noisy. The carpeting in the restaurant was filthy -- a bad sign. The food quality was 2 stars, but the mess and noise was too much, never again. read more

Daniel is a great chef, very entertaining! Good is really good, and cooked fresh on the Hibachi in front of you. read more

Benihana - Short Hills - Chicken and Beef - Sushi Bars Near Me - Short Hills, New Jersey

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We had a great mid-week meal recently at Benihana, Short Hills. Ashley, our server, was fantastic and Vincent, our chef, dazzled us with his magic and his cooking! Everything was delicious. We loved the shrimp the best. We had Mai Tais that were also yummy! We will be back very soon! read more

Before we get to what really made this an awful experience, let's discuss the penny-ante, five and diming that goes on. I haven't been to any Benihana in a very long time, so I don't know if this is chain-wide or only the Summit location. The food was OK, not great. We waited close to an hour before the chef rolled out his cart. With one of the orders for the other party st our table, the steak was ordered 'medium' for the child. The chef cooked the meet, but a couple of pieces were left uncooked. He saw they weren't cooked, but slid them.onto the plate anyway. What made this visit extra special was the overhead exhaust fan. Since it wasn't strong enough, there was smoke that not being absorbed and the air conditioning would push what didn't exhaust to our side of the table. When we called over thr manager, he laughed it off by saying it has been a problem for 18 years! The lack of consideration let me know he wasn't looking for repeat business from us, which is lucky for me since I would never step foot in there again. read more

I came yesterday to celebrate my son's birthday . I made reservations for 430 pm for a party of 4 grant it one of the guest came 10 minutes late but I was told as long as we know what she would order it's fine. We get seated at 440 ... my guest has arrived . We're just sitting there 25 minutes goes by then 30 so I asked the waitress how much longer do we have to wait ? I mean say something to me , why should my family and I just sit around and no one saying anything , the cook finally arrived at almost 530 what's the point of an appointment ? When I see ppl coming in after us and they already started their cooking . But besides that overall th food was great . I would go back but this time I hope im not sitting around for an hour for a 430 booking . They didn't even give my son a cake . read more

Terrible service. Don't waste your time. Had a reservation for 7:45pm and wasn't seated for dinner until 9:15pm. They need new management

i've been celebrating our family's birthday at benihana for the last 22 years and i loved i!!!! but this year was different and im not coming back if this is going to be the future new rules on food. the chef was rude, he cursed at us when i asked if he added garlic because it did not taste like it, food with no garlic at all mkes the difference and it did not taste the same. long story short i left unhappy and not planning on coming back with these new rules about not cooking with garlic. benihana in general was a nice experience when celebrate birthdays. it was unique and i think in the last 5 years its loosing all that. no pictures, no singing happy birthday and now no garlic! amazing.... its a no for my family to go back. read more

The handling of our pickup order was a total disgrace. After waiting at the host stand for about 5-6 minutes Joe showed up. His attitude and lack of people skills was not what you would expect at Benihana. I suspect that Joe is part of the ownership or the GM of this franchise. If he was an employee he would have been fired a long time ago. Our order was placed a half hour before we arrived - Joe said it would be another 5-10 minutes. After waiting almost an hour Joe now was complaining that the delay was due to our order being TOO LARGE. During our wait I had the opportunity to share our delay experience with 2 customers arriving to place take out orders. They thanked me and promptly left the restaurant. I was happy that the food was hot and fairly good. read more

We ordered lunch takeout today and the food was really bad. My wife got headache and toothache right away after eating the crispy Calamari. It was hard like rocks. We got back to the restaurant and the manger said we have no proof. read more

Had a reservation. Was told 30-45 minute wait upon arrival. Turned out to be 90 minutes. Manager was dismissive. Blamed corporate. Only saving grace was staff was very nice and apologetic. Disgraceful. Will not return read more

Located on a steep hill, they have parking in the back and they open pretty early. I was there at about 11: 40a and another table was already finishing the meal. This is a popular location for birthdays and parties, the chef is entertaining as he cooks the food in front of you at the grill. They have an area just for sushi bar and cooked meals if you don't want to sit at the grill. No iced tea ready when I arrived. Cocktails were available for lunch, though. The menu is more drinks than food. Up to eight comfortably at a dining grill seat. They had a good show and the flaming onion, no shrimp throw this time (that's always a good way to get your shirt dirty if you can't catch with your mouth), but you get a salad, soup, white rice, veggies and your main course(s) with the meal. I had the ribeye and chicken. The soup was good, an onion soup, simple and savory. The ginger dressing was on some bitter lettuce which made the salad less palatable. The stir fried veggies were fine. Yakisoba additional on the meal was $4.50 and too sour of a sauce, could've used light sauce to make it easier to eat, I ended up leaving most of it on the plate. The shrimp was fine, and chicken cooked dry. The ribeye was a good taste and could've used a bit more pepper, but they did cut all the fatty part off to let grill for decor. Ironically the teriyaki beef and white rice looked really good for the selection. Maybe next time. Ice cream for the table helped with the post meal relaxing. Overall come here for the service and cooking show, but don't expect fine dining; it's grilled stir fry as a side dish to the entertainment of the chef. Lots of people enjoying a lunch cocktail. read more

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Came here for Valentine's Day. Heard great things and had never been. Service was not good. We made a reservation to sit at the bar and proceeded at a hibachi table with other people. So we told the host that we reserved the bar. They then sat us at a table right next to the front entrance, which was freezing. So still no bar lol. Then a waitress came *without menus* and asked us if we knew what we wanted (what?). We asked for a menus and before we could even take a look at them she kept asking us what we wanted, which obviously makes no sense. Then we had a waiter come and service us. He's spoke so fast that we couldn't understand what he was saying but we ended up putting our order in. The food took forever to come out, but when it finally did, we started with our sushi rolls. I had the crunchy shrimp and my partner had the crunchy lobster. They were good. Then our fried rice came out, which we couldn't eat upon receiving because nobody actually gave us any utensils. The waiter came back with forks, no spoons, and no napkins. The fried rice was OK, nothing special, except I did find a big piece of chicken fat in mine, which was pretty unpleasant. read more

Benihana - Short Hills - Fried rice with Chicken - Sushi Bars Near Me - Short Hills, New Jersey

We had a 4:30 reservation for a large party. We entered the restaurant at the same time as other large parties all with the same reservation time. 40 minutes after our reservation time we still were not seated and when we asked how much longer until the table was available, we were informed that the party for the table we were going to be seated at just stated having their food prepared. read more

I came here for lunch on a Thursday afternoon with a friend. I actually tried to come for dinner last year, but it was too packed to be seated, so I didn't end up eating that night. So i'm glad I was able to experience the food this time. My server was really sweet and patient while we figured out what we wanted. Our chef was really kind and very personable. The overall hibachi entertainment part was really short, but I understand since it was the middle of the day and our table only had the two of us. The dumplings & wings were delicious. The hibachi rice was amazing. The chicken and shrimp were kind of smaller portions than I thought it would be. I got a benihana strawberry lemonade that was watered down a bit. Overall, the food was okay. They had plenty of parking, but the restaurant is on a very steep hill by Morris Turnpike, so driving in is a little hectic. read more

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The food wasn't good. The pork dumplings tasted like the frozen ones from costco. Our steaks were burnt. Our yakisoba noodles had a lot more soy sauce than needed, it was not mixed well. Our order was missing mushrooms, but it was supposed to be included. When we mentioned it was missing, they just apologized but didn't adjust the final price to reflect their mistakes. The teriyaki chicken was okay, but was no different than any other $10 fast food teriyaki chicken and definitely not worth $36. Waitress was nice and friendly, but she was also really busy and didn't tend to us a lot except for the beginning. Mostly the food wasn't good. Please further train your chefs on mixing the ingredients well and the timing of cooking a steak. Will not come back. read more

Benihana - Short Hills - Yakisoba Noodles - Sushi Bars Near Me - Short Hills, New Jersey

Hi. I am eight years old. I was at Benihana because my Grandpa took me and my sister to see the food show. It was the WORST! We got a reservation there and still waited 25 minutes for a table. Finally when we got our table, we waited an HOUR for someone to come. Finally they came. The show was fine, but the food wasn't the best. My aunt sent back the fish because it was too "fishy". The food took so long that my Grandma went to the manager and yelled at him! Benihana was so loud that when we got home, my mom had to lie down on a bean bag chair. We were all very happy to leave the restaurant. So if you are thinking about going here do NOT. Go ANYWERE else! read more