THE ESSENCE OF DELICIOUSNESS Umami means "the essence of deliciousness" in Japanese (Ajinomoto.com). Just think about seaweed and shiitake mushroom flavors that: * Taste spreads across the tongue. * Lasts longer than other basic tastes. * Provides a mouthwatering sensation. (Ajinomoto.com - Umami's 3 distinct properties). Umami was very understated and my dishes lacked deliciousness. BINIHANA - Temecula must significantly improve its Umami game. Here's why. STIR-FRIED CHICKEN RICE * Diced chicken lacked flavor beyond basic pepper. * Veggies were sparse and tasteless. * Rice was cooked and flavorless as well. * Eggs were chopped too fine or not used. TERIYAKI WINGS * Wings were a bit tough. * Glaze was bland. * No seasonings penetrated the wing meat. It was painful paying $35 for the two dishes ordered. And, I don't like paying big brand prices, for too little flavor satisfaction. ARNOLD SCHWARTZENNEGAR RATING I Won't be back! read more

Benihana - Temecula - $35 order - Sushi Bars Near Me - Temecula, California

RJ and Charles were amazing, they were a lot of fun and we had a wonderful time and will be returning :)

Every few years it is fun to come here. Their lunch specials can't be beat during the week or if you sign up for the club, they send out a birthday certificate, for kids as well. My kids always enjoy the show and I'm obsessed with their salad dressing as well as the sesame chicken entrée. Perfectly with their fried rice and a drink this is a fun and kitschy meal that we always enjoy. read more

I went to Benihana for my birthday, and it was one of the most disappointing dining experiences I've ever had -- especially for the price. Our chef was clearly inexperienced, and while I understand that everyone has to learn, basic elements of the meal were completely missing. There was no egg in the fried rice, no sesame seeds on the chicken, and the zucchini was undercooked to the point of being raw. The mushrooms had no garlic butter and were dry from sitting untouched on the grill. For a restaurant known for its flavor and showmanship, this was unacceptable. We had a 7:30 reservation and didn't leave until almost 10 PM. I expected a longer dinner -- it's Benihana, after all -- but the excessive delays and lack of quality made the experience drag on in the worst way. I spoke with the manager, who offered a free return meal, but that doesn't make up for the fact that I spent my one birthday dinner of the year here -- and paid over $120 for food that was poorly prepared and lacked the basics I could've done better at home. I've always thought of Benihana as a fun and reliable place to celebrate something special. After this experience, I won't be back. read more

We had a great experience at this location. We got sat at the grill right away. The chef David came by quickly and was entertaining. Our server Megan was bubbly and attentive. Would definitely come back again! read more

The quality of the food here is good however the price is kind of steep when you can get the same thing at Shogun down the street for a lot less. read more

Kelly the chef was amazing Perfect wagyu steak that came with an amazing cooking skills read more

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I've had Benihana many times, including on a cruise ship, but this location is exceptional. Josh the manager's customer care is the best one could ever expect. I've had a terrible day dealing with people at other restaurants recently and this was a refreshing change of pace. I ordered to pick up and it was smooth, but my kids love the dine in cooking show so we will be doing that for sure. PS- they have love for the vets so ask for a military discount. Thank you Hosh for making my day. My wife is thrilled which means I am thrilled. read more

I'm currently in this restaurant receiving some of the worst service I have ever experienced. Will update on the food once we receive it. We had a 6 o'clock reservation and it is currently 7:15. 9 p.m. and we are just now leaving. This was a total let down aside from the food. The restaurant is dirty, loud and slow. The young man, Daniel, who cooked for our table was great. He is the only reason I am leaving 2 stars. read more

They never seem to fail with their inconsistent wait times. I had a 5:30pm reservation today for my son's 8th birthday. We arrived at 5:15pm. We had a total of 4 kids in our party, including a 1 year old which can be tough waiting for our table. We stuck around til about 6:30pm before we left. Terrible time management and this starts for the top. Management needs to get a hold of this. It's unacceptable not to stick to their reservation times. If we would have stayed to eat, we probably wouldn't have left til 9:30pm. That's a 4 hour window for dinner with 4 kids. Very disappointing experience. read more

We made reservations for 8 o'clock and waited at the bar for 45 minutes, but due to the lack of service, we chose to leave and find a better option. read more

They were way overbooked when we went. We had a 6:30 reservation and didn't get into nearly 8 o'clock. Our cook was not nearly as good as cooks we have had in the past. My châteaubriand was overcooked. It was a disappointing experience. We will not be returning. read more

My review is long overdue. We made reservations Father's Day weekend. They took us in right at our scheduled time. My first time at this location, it was nice and spacious. Chef Jonathan was very entertaining and made my 4 year old who was scared of the "fire" comfortable. Food was on point and chicken fried rice was delish (tends to be a hit or miss). Clarissa was our server and she was extremely attentive. I feel she checked in on us more than the usual (at other locations). Overall they've gained usual customers. read more

Number one teach your ignorant uneducated staff that work in a very high-end restaurant how to answer a freaking phone call they should not be answering the phone yeah hello!! Oh I mean Benihana Temecula. Me can you tell me what time happy hour is ? No I don't know. Can you check and see what time happy hour is ? No cause I don't know?! Let me just get a manager! for the prices that you guys are charging for food at least you could do is have the decency to train your stupid staff how to answer a freaking phone call in a place where two meals cost over $100.00 Seriously what a joke! read more

GREAT food, GREAT time. Ask for IAN as ur cook!!! Specially if you want good jokes lol we had such a great time and experience with him. He's amazing. 10 out of 10. read more

Jonathan was our chef and did a great job. Was friendly and enthusiastic. The food and service were good.

Very disappointed with the food. Celebrated a graduation here and invited our guests to dinner with us. Regretting I had not opted for Shogun to be honest. The chef may have been new. Very little interaction with our table. She tried her best I'm sure to cook, season and try the food tricks, but it was very low quality of entertainment. We didn't even get the onion volcano!? The fried rice which is usually my favorite part, was the biggest disappointment for me. Then, to top it off, the shrimp, steaks and filet mignon (requested medium) and remaining food selections also tasted bland. Not the same quality as I'd had in past experiences at the OC Benihana. read more

Benihana - Temecula - 6/2024 very bland and unseasoned over priced meal - Sushi Bars Near Me - Temecula, California

Meagan and Kelly were the best food and service was amazing. My steak shrimp and fried rice was cooked to perfection. Definitely recommend coming here and we definitely will be back soon. It was my wife's birthday and they sang to her and she received a free dessert. read more

A great addition to the Temecula area! This place is great for smaller groups who wanna enjoy a little show while they eat. The hibachi table seats 8 people. I would recommend making a reservation. They have plenty in their menu - dessert, sushi, alcohol, entrees, sides. The entrees part of the menu is a (5) course meal with (2) appetizers + the entree + dessert. I highly recommend upgrading your steam rice to their fried rice. Levi was a GREAT chef. His jokes were funny and his personality made dinner much more enjoyable. read more

Benihana - Temecula - SPICY HIBACHI SHRIMP - Sushi Bars Near Me - Temecula, California

A+ Clarissa and Levi made a great team and made our dinner experience awesome Thank you we will be back read more

Hibachi is always a good idea when accommodating large parties and more for the little ones. The chili shrimp roll wasn't the greatest thing. It sounded like a good idea but I wish I didn't get it. The soup always brings me back to life because it's hot. The food is over priced forsure, but hopefully the chef can really bring the experience for everyone. read more

Benihana - Temecula - CHILI SHRIMP ROLL (4/10) - Sushi Bars Near Me - Temecula, California

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If I could give this place 0 stars oh you know I would...me and my family are currently still waiting for our food to be cooked as I'm writing this review. It's been an hour so far. It's over priced, the soup is wayyy too salty. The waitress is a very kind women and she is very attentive and doing her best to accommodate us during this very very very long wait for our food. Wait they just came. We arrived at 5:30 and got our food at 7:18 but it was very delicious and our cooks were pretty nice and funny. I think we were just hangry but the wait for the food is outrageous and overpriced. read more

This place got rated down because of the food... the price did not suite the taste in my opinion. The star of the show here is the service, the vibes and the drinks. You'll feel good here and have a great time... but if you want the best tasting hibachi for the price there are better options I would rate this place a 3.8 so they got the round up. Happy eating!!! read more

Kelly was awesome! We had a birthday party here with a full table of friends and family and she was fantastic! read more

We came here for a father's day celebration. Not only did management give each dad a coupon for the next time they came but the service and food was also so amazing! Eric was the best chef we have ever had at a hibachi restaurant and we will request him in the future if possible. Clarissa was a great waitress and very attentive and patient with my crazy family haha 10/10 would recommend! read more

Food was amazing! Service was a little slow but overall good. Chef was funny and entertaining. Been to several Benihanas down in San Diego and first time at this new one in Temecula. So much fun each time and drinks are a A+ each time. read more

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Best mocktail Mojito I have ever had. Hannah did a good job ! She was so attentive and made my birthday feel very special. read more

Benihana - Temecula - Yummy Mocktail Mojito - Sushi Bars Near Me - Temecula, California

Ask for Ian!! He is worth the wait. It did take a long long long wait even with a reservation. Ian takes his time making sure our food is made the way we want. He has different techniques to make sure the food taste delicious. Plus his dad jokes are the best. Megan our server is also awesome as well. read more

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Worst experience at a restaurant had our reservation at 8:45pm but wasn't seated until 9:30pm our server didn't take good care of us kept mixing up the items on the bill and mixed up payment and was very slow and she insisted that we had to pay before we got our dessert too the chef(Gabriel) was ok but everything over all took so long we left the restaurant at 00:05 everything was disappointing wanted to talk to the manager but it was significantly late and he was busy to talk to another customer that sat at our table. read more

Benihana - Temecula - Sushi Bars Near Me - Temecula, California

As always Benihana is delicious that's no question at all. Food is always on point. The place is beautiful and well ventilated. Service is good from the hostess to the waitress and chef. Entertainment and six course meals are always the best. In Mother's Day and I'm assuming any other holiday they're open they struggle with the reservations and staying on time. People with reservations from 7-7:30 were still waiting their tables at 8:30-9pm. read more

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We decided to try Benihana on a Sunday afternoon for the lunch. We noticed that they weren't very busy, and they hadn't planned their staff correctly, so they didn't have enough chefs to handle some of the people that were there. Our chef was interesting, but his Program seemed to be extremely rehearsed, and not well received by the three different parties at our station. Without mentioning other competitors, Benihana felt like a cheap copy. The food wasn't really exceptional, but it was good. I was a little disappointed. read more

It's my birthday today and I had a reservation for the Temecula location I must say my chef Gabrielle was amazing young, funny, and customer service was on point thank you for my special day read more

Benihana - Temecula - Food and birthday desert - Sushi Bars Near Me - Temecula, California

First, George was amazing. If it wasn't for him, our experience would have gotten one star. We were seated by a very friendly young lady, she took our drinks and had to switch out for break. Her replacement was not nearly as nice, and even seemed to be having a bad day. Empty drinks, whatever, it was kinda busy, it happens. But when I'm trying to clarify how we wanted the leftovers portioned, she snapped back at me, "I know!" And even the random guests at the other end of the table said, "oh, damn!" Turns out, she didn't know; they weren't packed how we asked. So, that, a few days and $200+ later, I still regret having my fiancées birthday lunch there. Even the kids made fun of me after that and the other attitude/off putting things she said, but eventually that lightened the mood a bit. George was phenomenal: great chef, entertainer and conversationalist. Wish I saw him later to give the tip directly; I'm hoping it got to him. read more

We came in Saturday night and for our anniversary. Omar was truly exceptional. When I say that this man went above and beyond during when performing and cooking for the table tonight. The way he remembered things, names, food allergies etc was great as well. The food was all cooked rather perfectly. We will be coming back and requesting Omar! read more

Tried the new Benihana in Temecula and it was pretty good. The food is what I come to expect. The service is always fun and the setting is exactly as I expected. Seems like the prices are steadily climbing but that's everything these days. I would definitely come back as we have always enjoyed Benihana so it's great one opened pretty close to where we live. Thanks for the good time and can't wait until next time! read more

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We came here to celebrate my sister's birthday and the experience was amazing! Kevin the chef was funny and very entertaining. Maggie our server was very prompt with our drinks and very pleasant :) Thank you! We will be back read more

Visited Benihana off of Ynez, we were greeted by very welcoming staff, the environment was very nice and clean, the food was superb and the hibachi chef did an amazing job. Enjoyed a great experience and their manager Nabil was very professional, friendly and helpful. We will definitely visit again soon. read more

We had a great time! We made a reservation and were seated quickly upon arrival. Our servers were great and kept our drinks filled. We had Ian for our chef. Every thing tasted amazing and he was hilarious! He was on top of everything! It seems a little pricey but for a great dinner and a show it was worth it. The only critique would be to plate the onions earlier in the meal. I noticed most tables didn't get them until the end and by then most people are done eating. read more

Great food! Thank you to the chef! I really like the fried rice It was for a bday so everyone had a really good time ! read more

Service amazing! Chef amazing! Food amazing! Ambience amazing! Managers amazing! Chef erik was a 10/10 always great food n a great show read more

Benihana - Temecula - Chef Erik - Sushi Bars Near Me - Temecula, California