Ichiban is such a nest restaurant to visit if you're looking for a good time and some laughs! I visited last week with my boyfriend and a friend from college on Sweetest Day. We asked for the hibachi seating. Basically, you can get regular restaurant seating which is specifically for individuals ordering straight from the kitchen. You can also get hibachi seating, which is a bunch of stools at a bar surrounding a hibachi flat top grill. This may mean that there will be strangers sitting with you, but the environment is so friendly and exciting that eventually everyone is having a great time together! We all placed our orders. For starters, we each got a small bowl of miso soup (rather bland, but still tasty) and a small salad with a seemingly mayonnaise based dressing. My boyfriend and friend got chicken and steak hibachi. It looked fantastic. The grill chef wheels out a cart full of sauces, rice, protein, and vegetables all ready to be stir fried to perfection. The chef lights the stove on fire and it blazes fiercely before your eyes. It's so thrilling. He flips his spatula and plays tricks with the eggs before cracking them. My favorite part was when he stacked the onion rings and lit them on fire. You are truly paying for both delicious food and awesome chef skills. He made stir fried rice which was so delicious. My boyfriend allowed me to try some of his food, and the chicken was probably the best I've ever had at a hibachi grill. The steak was a bit too tough, but they have you request it a level lower than you generally get it because it's cooked at such a high temperature. I'd like to recommend asking for it to be two levels lower than your usual request, because it still gets quite cooked through. The vegetables were, of course, lovely. I personally ordered two veggie rolls. It had cucumber, carrot, pickled radish, and asparagus in it. It came with a helping of ginger and wasabi. It was quite good, and was 20% off as well! I could have eaten a third roll, because they are rather small (but cut into quite large pieces). However, after tasting some of my boyfriend's food it's safe to say we all left feeling quite filled and fulfilled. Thanks for an awesome night, Ichiban! read more

Ichiban - Two veggie rolls (20% off) - Japanese Near Me - Ann Arbor, Michigan

Had such a wonderful time with my family there. We ate here after a small wedding ceremony. We wanted to have a fun dining experience and that was delivered. Started with drinks at the bar where CHELSEA welcomed us and suggested we started with sake bombs! Fun way to start the night. She offered great drink suggestions. My drink she had a special touch "just for the bride" with three fruit rings. Once we sat at the table Aly our server was great with our large party of 16 and separate checks. The food was great. I had chicken and steak. There was a variety of things order fr m everyone at the table and everyone from Grandma to the little ones had fun. read more

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The food is ok even taking into account this is Michigan. I usually adjust my reviews accordingly and I typically don't compare Asian restaurants to their counterparts in New York. So the hibachi is ok. Safe bets are salmon, chicken and steak. But the sushi is like really bad... Skimpy ass portions on the fish and rice. Honestly my rolls looked anorexic! The main problem is the management and surly waitstaff. Honestly the European American servers are ok but many of the Asian servers are really curt. Our server didn't even check up on us once. Based on 2 visits. read more

If you like Benihana, you'll be disappointed. The flavors here were off. I don't recommend.

I've waited about a week to write this review because I was so frustrated with my latest visit to Ichiban. Six of us went out to for a group night out and made it to the restaurant around 8:15 pm on a Sunday. We knew they closed at 9 pm so we got there considerably before 8:30. The waitress comes over to our booth asks for our order after we had just sat down. We asked for another minute to compile our sushi orders. Before we have been able to fill out our sheet the waitress returns and says, "I don't want to be a biach, but the sushi bar is closing so I need your orders." We were a little take back by the comment but provided our order sheets promptly. Throughout the rest of the meal we didn't receive the extra items we requested like napkins, sake refills, water refills, or a request of how our meal was going. The waitress was cold and basically rude. It wasn't until the bill arrived that we understood why. As a side note, some of our poor service could be attributed to the fact we arrived just 45 minutes before closing and the sushi bar was closing 15 minutes after we arrived. However, if a restaurant has posted hours until 9 pm I would hope you could order food and receive courteous service up until that point. When our bills came the waitress had placed all of the alcohol on one person's bill with the explanation, "yours was the least expensive bill so I added it to yours." Upon request she didn't want to divide up the drinks among the other checks. While we were looking over our checks we noticed an 18% gratuity was added to our bills because we were a party of 6. Now let it be known that I am a serious tipper and so is my boyfriend. We rarely tip less than 20% and frequent Ichiban at least twice a month though we managed to avoid this server. After seeing the 18% tip added in the service became clear- She was annoyed we were coming in late and knew because of the size of our party it wouldn't matter what the quality of the service was she would be walking away with at least an 18% tip. After all that I felt obligated to bring the situation to the attention of the manager. I explained how we brought our friends to Ichiban, frequented it ourselves, and rarely found service poor enough to leave a tip less than 20% but this was one the only times we didn't want to leave a tip at all. We didn't not want to pay the gratuity we just wanted him know how his wait staff was treat the customers. When we got ready to leave and had all paid our bills in full he presented us with a gift card and inviting us to return. To be honest, I think it will be a while. There are plenty of other sushi restaurants near by, some with better quality sushi and outstanding service. Since we started going to Ichiban a few years ago my reviews have decreased in stars every time. I think it might have to the point where we need to find a new outlet for our sushi addiction regardless of the gift card! read more

I've never had a worse experience at a restaurant, ever. My friends and I went there for a nice dinner, and sat on the hibachi side. My boyfriend and I opted to have sushi and ordered a katsu-don as well. When the sushi rolls come, the waitress brings a small dish to mix wasabi in for everyone but me. I thought she had just counted wrong, but she never came back with another. I had to flag her down to ask for one. Then when our dinner came, our waitress brought out the wrong item. When I told her, she got annoyed and said that she had no clue what a donburi was, so I described it as being a rice-bowl with pork katsu on top. She returns 10 minutes later with a bowl of rice and a different wrong item. When I tell her, she actually told me that this is what I ordered. I tell her no, and she starts to argue with me, and tell me that the item I want does not exist. I ask her to bring me a menu so that I can point out what I want. She ends up bringing the manager who also doesn't know what I'm talking about. When the mess was finally figured out, we got our food, but the waitress then neglected to give us utensils to eat it with. Considering that katsu-don was on the menu, and is fairly common in Japanese restaurants, I really don't understand why no one could figure out what we wanted. And I am not the only customer who had an issue with the service. The party across from us also had an argument with the waitress on what they ordered and what the waitress told them they ordered. And to top it all off, I got splashed with hot oil during the hibachi demonstration. Needless to say, I don't know if I'll be going back. read more

This sushi is bad. They also had a wrong listing on their menu and i did not get what i thought i ordered. they gave me no accommodation

Two stars... Meh.. is right. Once again.. 50% dinner rolls is the only real draw. Unless you get sucked into the whole hibachi thing which I find an utter irritation. Problem is the rolls are americanized and mostly lame, so 50% does not make the sushi twice as good. If you aren't picky and don't know better.. Ichiban will totally rock your world. They seem to make their money back on everything else, like miso soup, house salad, seaweed salad, and such. Have lame friends who want to go get drunk on hot sake and eat crappy sushi.. so I still have to go there. The Sashimi plate $21 comes with a iceberg salad and miso , no half off here.. but not bad. Oh yeah... disinterested servers.. every time. read more

Not bad food but forgetting a major dish is not good. Did give credit. Told us to order after food is delivered. Closed when incomplete order finally got here. So when we tried to reorder missed dish no answer. Closed for orders. Phone went to answering machine. It is not very good service. Free offered but not open when they finally delivered. Almost immediately did call and guaranteed free. Could have taken order. Nope!! It makes one pause given the many other options available. That deliver complete orders. Stand behind their offer to make up a missed delivery. Not bad food. Very bad service. Cannot trust. read more

We came here for a birthday dinner late on a weekday night. We were immediately greeted although the restaurant was a bit dim and difficult to see. We were immediately seated at a Hibachi table with another couple and waited a few moments to be greeted until after another couple joined us. Our waiter was friendly but not super attentive, we had to repeat both our drink, appetizer, and entree orders a few time as the waiter had a hard time hearing us. We ordered a big beer to split and it came quickly with two frosted glasses. We also ordered some edamame but this, for some reason, wasn't coming after 15 or so minutes so we had to ask again for it, and apparently they forgot about the order. Luckily we had our miso soup and salad with a creamy ginger dressing to keep us occupied - also unique in it's own way and a great start to the meal. The Hibachi presentation itself was awesome. Our chef was friendly, quick, and extremely talented. We ordered the steak (medium) and tuna steak (medium) and both were exceptional. The fried rice was fresh and flavorful, buttery and salty and delicious. It also came with a side of vegetables and these were very fresh and watched them cook right in front of us. Everything was so tasty, I easily became full. Little did I know that our birthday boy also received a massive helping of fried ice cream slathered in whip cream and topped with a sparkler and a song. A great time and I think it's a wonderful place to celebrate and have som fun! read more

Loved it! I didn't have hibachi, I can't get myself to order any hi bachi when there is a sushi menu sitting in my face. Ordered SIX rolls (shared with the bf) and ALL were amazing. Do yourself a favor and get the TIGER EYE roll. I don't even remember what was in it but I was in ecsta-sushi! The habachi chef was great though and the food came out quick. For a party of 10-12 people we were out in 1.5 hours. Do that in a freakin Applebee's. RECOMMEND. read more

We decided to check Ichiban out on our trip to Ann Arbor for our anniversary. I was a bit nervous as the other reviews were so-so, but we were really happy with it. The service was top notch and they always refilled drinks. The chef was enthusiastic and cooked our food to perfection. My only (minor) complaint is, they have a VIP dinner for 2, which was 3 of every type of meal, except scallops. I asked, and they said scallops was $5 extra. Why? If they had lobster on there, no reason to not have scallops. Definitely recommend Ichiban. read more

My son had his 12th birthday there. He had a great time and both food and service were great!

We visited Ichiban for a birthday/graduation celebration. We sat on the hibachi side. Everybody else in our group ordered hibachi and I opted for sushi. My California, Alaska, and Spicy Crispy Salmon rolls were very tasty, fresh, and presented nicely. They were 30% off the menu price and the menu price was comparable with other sushi places. The hibachi chef did a nice job. He kept us all entertained while doing his work. Our kids especially loved his performance. The resulting fried rice, tuna, chicken, and steak were all very good. My wife thought the sauce on the tuna was too sweet. She would have rather had it without a sauce. Unlike some of the reviews here we had no trouble with the service. We were given drink refills before we had to ask for them. I would not hesitate to return for another meal! read more

The service was horrible and there was no one in the building. Also our food was cold and the server didn't bring our appetizer until our main course. read more

My friend and I visited Ichiban a week ago... Our service wasn't so great...It seemed like our waiter only cared about watching TV and dropping things off to us when they were ready. Which meant that after we waited 10 minutes(and yes I timed it) to get our water and tea, ALL of our Pre-entree, appetizers, and entrees came out within a minute of each other. I know that sometimes people can have an 'off' day, but this guy clearly didn't care about whether or not we were enjoying our meals... I had to ask for a re-fill five times, and it seemed like a CHORE to my waiter. My friend didn't even want to finish her meal, because she didn't feel well, and I was just irritated at that point. After we boxed up our leftovers, we wanted dessert, but apparently, our waiter didn't think it was important to ask us, so instead we had to ask AFTER we received our check, and he looked even more annoyed with us. I LOVE sushi, and Miso Soup. Things of that Nature, but if I get shitty service ANYWHERE it just ruins it for me... This is the second time I've had to write a bad review about a restaurant, and it upsets me... I hope the managers learn how to hire better staff members. I won't be back to Ichiban for a while. read more

This is very unfriendly Japanese resturant anywhere the food is not that great which makes it worse the Hibachi Steakhouse is average the Sushi is average depending on what kind you order The worst is the management arrived 15 minutes before closing hours as advertised and written on the door was refused service and I have been there few times for lunch for convenience and noticed they do that often Do not recommend them many good other choices very close by read more

Yes love this place great chefs good show and lots of sake. Sea food and steak yes I will come back

I come here at least once a month for their awesome lunch specials. I have had their habachi grill and although it was good, it wasn't different from other restaurants with habachi grills. The lunch specials are very affordable and with great portions! My favorites are: Tonkatsu with fried rice (great fried rice) spicy salmon roll spicy california roll tempura ice cream tempura cheesecake spider roll The service is always nice and i do like the booths that have a bit more privacy. read more

As stated by most previous reviewers, the 50% off sushi dinner rolls is a fantastic deal. Nothing I have ordered here has been below the sushi level of, say, Totoro. Unfortunately, I'm not one of those people who gets to go to Miki often so I'm unsure of certain standards that may already be in place. Ichiban is infinitely better than Sushi.come and is a way better choice for dinner. I sat in the Hibachi grilling area once and it was stressful. I'm not really a people-person and prefer to eat in non-claustrophobic areas. Sitting with a stressed out mom and her three daughters with their boyfriends was awkward to say the least when it was just my father and I dining. So now I always choose to sit in the regular dining area and my dad always orders steak and shrimp combo hibachi dinner which comes with rice, salad and "miso" soup. I used to love their miso soup, now it seems like half the time you receive real miso and the other time you get this clear broth with an off-putting flavor and some sad mangled mushroom floaters. The shrimp tempura here is fantastic. Huge, fresh tasting shrimp with the perfect amount of crispy panko. The MI and Ann Arbor rolls are my favorite and for a spicy kick I love the spicy yellowtail topped with spicy tuna roll. Sorry, the name has eluded me. I have always had wonderful service and have never had to wait for a table, surprisingly enough. It can get slammed there on Friday/Sat nights. read more

This is the best sushi I've found in Michigan... And at the best prices to boot. 50% of all rolls for dinner time, and it's dinner all day on Sundays. My friend brought me here when I was on my way out of town after Thanksgiving, and I thanked her profusely for introducing me to this restaurant. It's really a gem, even if it is just a Michigan sushi restaurant. I'll be passing through again... 50% off decent-quality sushi is nothing to sneeze at. read more

Over 2010, I went to this place at least half a dozen times. I kept hoping it would improve... but it never did. If you just want sushi to go the carry out the food is fine. The sushi quality is average (no rolls really stand out). If you want a sit down experience I would advise you to go somewhere else. The decor is beautiful but, the wait staff here is terrible. The only thing they do fast is seat you. The tea was rarely refilled and it seemed to be a long wait for everything. Bottom line I WILL NOT be returning. read more

I drive by Ichiban a lot and finally stopped in for an early dinner. I don't think I'll be going back anytime soon. My friend and I sat in the regular dining room, not the habachi area. The edimame tasted frozen and dry but the gyoza appetizer was really good. The two rolls we got were meh at best. Spicy was not spicy at all. The hot tea tasted like it was made with fish water! The service was inattentive, which I can forgive if the food is great. Sure the prices are low, which I guess is all that matters to most reviewers, but when it comes to raw fish I expect much better than meh. It seems like the place to go when you don't really like Japanese food, a restaurant with training wheels. I would like to try the habachi room, I'm dorky enough to like that silly food theater. But not a sushi destination. read more

Worst customer service experience I have ever had...with the manager. I was asking simple questions on the phone about the reservation policy and the manager began complaining about "customers like me" who constantly refuse to respect the policy. He told me that I probably "have money," but that it won't work here to get the big reservation and reminded me that there's plenty of other good restaurants in Ann Arbor. He used an extremely rude tone and I am still in awe at his comments. read more

Been eating here 10 years and sushi and habachi is alway great and love squid salad. Alway good with cold asahi!

Came here for lunch today because i was in the mood for something different and i left feeling pretty good about myself. First came the side salad with there yum-yum sauce, which was good actually (better than benihana). For my meal i the chicken and fillet Mignon, which was good, with the fried rice, which was ok. To me overall, this place is good, but not great. Everything is solid but not spectacular. read more

You get what you pay for. It's on the cheaper side for Hibachi, and as hibachi usually tastes, its pretty good. Honestly though, f*cking up hibachi is like being a painter who can't paint. If you can see past the "oooh" flaming onion and "ooooh" pieces of shrimp being thrown at your face, it's pretty simple cooking. But, I really hate the shrimp being thrown at your face, seriously. No means no. On the upside, I give you permission to call me Oscar the hibachi Grouch. As much as I rip on it though, I love hibachi fried rice. Greasy comfort food. Also, their sauces are sweet and yummy, so very fitting for the average American palate. Ichiban reminds me of a McDonald's of Hibachi. They need a playpen for the children dining there. I guess the flying shrimp trick works for distraction. So the conclusion-- you want $30 hibachi meal for $20? Go here. The discount off sushi deal is such a joke though, why they even serve sushi, I don't understand. Firstly, it's not a deal. It's been posted as 20% off for as long as I've seen them around. Honestly, if they just lowered the prices on the menu, I'd be more apt to appreciate them, rather than consistently feeling like they are trying to trick me into thinking I am getting some "deal." Deal or no deal, personally I think the sushi is pathetic. In quality, quantity, and size. I wish hibachi grills would designate one hibachi grill table in the corner to a no-frills experience, priced accordingly to the food and not the show. I've seen it all and it's always the same thing, novelty is bound to wear off at some point. I also hate having to wait on everything in my meal being served like they are separate courses, I end up being full by the time my meat is done. Just cook the damn delicious food in front of me and serve it to me timely, that's all I ask... which isn't unique to Ichiban, I know, but hey, I've been using this as a vent sesh. Aaaand it's served to be cathartic. kthxbai. read more

I visited Ichiban for a sushi lunch with a co-worker. The restaurant was fairly empty and we were seated & served quickly. For $10 I received 2 rolls of my choosing, miso soup & a house salad. The value was great and the perfect size for lunch. I'll skip reviewing the miso soup, as I don't care for it. The salad was less than impressive. First, the dressing is very creamy and not the normal ginger carrot dressing that I'm used to at sushi/hibachi places. My salad was also drowning in the dressing. Second, the standard iceberg was fine, but my bowl was like a quarter hard core pieces. I was impressed with the selection of rolls that you could chose from. All of the standard rolls (California, Tuna, Eel, Salmon, Shrimp, etc) about 10 to chose from. I had the spicy tuna and the shrimp tempura. The spicy tuna roll was fine, but not stellar. There was almost too much spicy sauce and the tuna was 'tuna salad' vs. a nice slice of tuna. The shrimp tempura was very good. Two crispy tempura shrimp & fresh cucumber. I wouldn't go rushing back, but I definitely would recommend for a nice valued lunch if you are near the area. The normal dinner prices for sushi seemed really reasonable too. read more

The food was delicious and staff very friendly. I had the lobster and shrimp hibachi and they served great portions of food. My boyfriend had steak and shrimp hibachi and enjoyed his food as well. I will certainly be back to visit. read more

Ichiban is my new "go-to" place when I am in the mood for inexpensive, tasty rolls. I love their spicy tuna - just enough bite to make things sing, nicely flavored with sesame, soy, green onion...delicious! I also enjoy any/all of their vegetarian rolls *I developed a shrimp/crab/lobster allergy over the last few year...WAHHHH!!!* but my friends tell me the cali rolls etc. are fresh and tasty. We liked the beef appetizers (all of them) but the agadashi tofu was vile (slimy, undercooked, fell-apart). We've dined on the steakhouse side a few times, was markedly better than Champion House - and few bucks cheaper to boot! Staff are very nice. read more

We started going to Ichiban due to the 50% off sushi banner in the windows. Being a sucker for sushi, I wanted a great deal and was willing to try it. The initial few experienced seemed the same, adequate sushi, terrible wait staff (you would be lucky to get everything on time, or actually serviced within 10 min of sitting down). The 50% made us happy. Alas, it was not meant to be, the cheap sushi dream was blown when they bumped it down to 30% off. Sure not much of a difference in price, it didn't matter to my wallet. However the service was just as terrible and put us off. In the end I can only give this place 2 starts due to its sushi and previously attractive discount. The wait staff are not very professional, and never prompt. As others have noted, some have attitudes or are always rushed, always seems under-staffed (I'm sure its a management thing). If you want some savings on sushi, and can stomach the staff, go for it. I should mention I have only come here for the sushi, not the steak. read more

This place is okay..the best part is the half off rolls which they make you think its a special but its always like that. Stay away from the tuna and plain salmon ones since I normally get them when going to a sushi place but the size is VERY VERY small and not worth it compared to everything else on the menu. The spider roll is also unimpressive. Other rolls I would recommend would be the dragon, tiger, ann arbor, and philly rolls. I guess a downfall is I like when miso soup and salad comes with the meal but they don't do that. Its normally pretty empty when I go and there are enough people working that you do get your food fast. If you are planning to eat in do not go last minute since they will only do take out..... read more

Please note that this review is for their hibachi only. I came here with coworkers for lunch and experienced hibachi for the first time. What a pleasant experience. Not only was our grill master hospitable, funny and entertaining, but the food was delicious! I had the chicken hibachi and I was a bit skeptical at first about the taste of the food made right in front of me on a grill. But after it all came together on my plate and they gave me that yum yum sauce...I was hooked. I don't know if it was the company, the food, or the fact that it was a Friday, but my overall experience at Ichiban was a good one. I didn't try any of their sushi menu, but as far as their hibachi food goes, it was delicious. I definitely want to take my husband there some time. Oh and the great thing is, they have lunch specials on the weekends too! read more

I ordered two rolls and chicken katsu to go. I took the wrapped bag and go home (I should have checked, I guess!) The two rolls are totally different from what I ordered, they didn't give me the rice and salad the comes with Katsu! I called them and they didn't even apologize, they just said "yes, it is here, come and get it". We started eating to find out that half of the katsu are from a burned batch! Really! That's a lot of mishaps in one order! Not going back again. read more

This is a review for hibachi - I have yet to try the sushi. I went to Ichiban with someone who was reluctant to try Japanese food. This was a great introduction. The show made the wait for the food well worth it. I had the veggie option and my dining companion had the steak. We both loved our dishes. The starter soup is beef-based, but the server asked if I was a vegetarian and gave me the option of miso soup instead, which I greatly appreciated. The salad dressing was amazing. It's not cheap, but between the food and the entertainment of the preparation, it was worth it for a fun night out! One note - they try to fill up your table around the grill before starting, so it may take a bit. Don't go here if you're in a hurry! read more

Stopped in tonight on the way home for a quick bite and a couple of drinks at the and had a fantastic time. The bartender Alex was incredibly friendly and kept me entertained so well it felt like a true experience rather than just a quick pit stop, as well as informing me about the specials of the evening she also answered all my questions about different types of sake and which was the best for me. Will definitely be coming back soon to see her and eat some more delicious sushi! read more

We had reservations at Ichiban for 7 p.m. on Saturday in Feb. We checked in when we arrived at 5 before 7 and again at 7. After nearly ten minutes of being all but ignored, we asked when our table would be available. The host told us at least 20 minutes. When we reminded them that we had reservations for 7 they told us there weren't any tables available. That was unacceptable so we walked out. We won't be coming back. I am not sure what kind of establishment Ichiban is running but judging from the shouting at waitresses across the restaurant it is not a very professional one. If a host knows that there is a reservation for 7 it is his responsibility to make sure that the table is ready and available. Not to give it away to whomever walks through the door. To be fair, the food is very good. I just don't think it is worth the disrespect. read more

Was in town for an event nearby and decided to stop in for a bite to eat and some drinks with my buddies. The bartender Alex was absolutely fantastic! She made sure we got everything we needed fast and that everything was perfect while we were there! Not only that she had some great recommendations as well. My favorite being the Tokyo roll! I have never been one for sushi really before but this thing was incredible! Couldn't be happier with the service from the bartender and the quality of the food here! A+! read more

Since they've lowered it to 30% off the sushi I think we've been back once and the bill was substantially higher than I had thought (spoiled by that half off!) and the quality of the sushi - for the price - wasn't worth it. However, we enjoyed it as a last meal from them until they do price adjustments again. Their hibachi grill, while nice, still lacks in flavor and some of their regular dish items I can get for equal (in some places better) taste for less. Bring back that half off so we can resurrect our sushi and screwdriver nights!! read more

I'm giving three starts because there is a 50% sushi during dinner hours special. It was relatively inexpensive. I spent a little over $20 for 7 rolls. I would not pay the regular price for what I was given, but for what it is, it's not bad. The rolls seem a bit on the skinnier side than normal. I was lacking a sizable amount of wasabi on my plate. The plates are big, square and for the most part awkward. My waitress seemed to have her head in the clouds, but the other server seemed to be on his 'A' game. My green tea was nice and hot and had good flavor. Overall I'd only come here for the half of deal, which according to the sign goes through the end of January, other than that not my choice. read more