After a decade of loyal patronage, our love affair with Kyoto is officially over. This review is a long time coming. For a local spot charging a steep $80 for a two-person takeout order in 2026, the absolute bare minimum they could do is get the order right. There is a reason Kyoto no longer lists their prices online--they continue to hike them exponentially every year. But while the prices skyrocket, the service has completely tanked. They consistently screw up carry-out orders, even after reading them back to you over the phone. Our experience last Friday night was the final straw: *The Roll Mistake: They forgot our Spicy Girl Roll and charged us for a basic spicy tuna instead. When we asked them to fix it, it took 45 minutes and they tried to charge us full price for their error. They eventually knocked off a measly $8, but it absolutely should have been comped. *The Gyoza Mix-up: We got home to find the gyoza we specifically ordered steamed was fried. *Zero Management: When I called to complain, the high schooler on the phone informed me that no manager was even on duty--on a busy Friday night. If you're going to charge premium prices, you need to deliver accurate service. Kyoto has completely lost its way, and they have lost a decade-long customer. Save your money and go somewhere that actually respects your patronage. read more

Overpriced and not worth it. Ordered through doordash. Meals were $31.50 for steak or chicken, vegetables, rice and salad. Worth about $15. Also ordered skewers that were left over from lunch with sauce over part of it. Inedible. They left a meal off our order, but did deliver it when I called them. The workers just don't care about customers or the food. I ordered based on a roommate recommendation. What an expensive mistake. Never again! read more

Love this place! Sushi and hibachi are always on point! Look forward to weekly sushi dates and seeing Ronald and Tom!! read more

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I would rather get mauled by a pack of hungry rats and left in the sun to die then to eat here ever in life again. As a first time visitor I was left with a bad taste for not just the food. At first our waitress was pleasant, however we quickly learned she was inattentive, she barely half the order right and the part she didn't even put the spicy mayo on the side the chef was ignorant asf. The establishment needs to be closed packed up. the sushi was late and warm. we did get the sushi until after he had cleaned up the our station then the chef tried to say it was my fault when his waitress didn't even take down the order I regret ever stepping foot into that establishment. and after that horrible experience we paid for our food and left because we didn't want to get charged with stealing hated it. read more

I went to this establishment Sunday with friends and was disappointed to say the least and after doing som research some of these positive reviews are from people who work at this establishment and have no real input the food was drastically over priced I paid $50 dollars for chicken hibachi and a scallop roll which was originally 28 and 13 but because I asked for side condiments it was extra, our waitress was unprofessional and only brought half of our meal. so we ended up going to a place in gambrills much better service and the staff was friendly read more

"What? I can't do shots?" Response from the owner while we waited over an hour for our sushi order and watched him do multiple shots. Our order still wasn't finished after all that time, and we eventually had to ask for the last item to be removed from the bill because we had an event to get to and couldn't wait any longer. read more

we have used Kyoto for catering and celebrated my birthday at the hibachi table.Last month we went where we usually sit at the tables in front of the sushi bar those seats were full so we sat directly in front of the sushi bar we were not greeted or even given water 5 minutes later 2 young gentleman in baseball hats were seated at the same area the waitress was very attentive to them and another couple that was also seated after us every one was served before us us and the waitress was very attentive to them.the largest problem was that this all happened directly in front of the owner and he did nothing about it we will not return to our favorite sushi place read more

This is the best Japanese steakhouse and sushi bar in the area. The food and service is great. I highly recommend.

This lace has best food and great prices! We continue to come here over Sakura! Never disappoints

Kyoto's sushi hits like a ninja star! Creative rolls are unique, pure flavor bombs. Sushi Chefs Ronald & Tom? Hilarious sushi masters, slicing fish and slinging jokes like pros. Under 5 stars? Bro, did you get lost? Snappy service, fresh fish and good times read more

The service and management was awful. The menu has a line that says menu and pricing can change without notice. They think this allows them to charge for rice even after I inquired about what was included in my meal and I read the details of a hibachi meal including soup, salad, 2 shrimp and steamed white rice, fried rice was an extra$2. I already ordered noodles on the side bc it was not included. But the server assured me only white rice was included. Management was defensive and rude, called my father names and made snarky remarks towards me read more

We enjoyed our lunch here at the Kyoto Steak House. It was a weekday (late lunch) in Severna Park so I know it's not the best barometer of a restaurant - thus the 5-stars. All I know is the food and service was a good as it can get. The price was right and the place was clean and comfortable. It's a HUGE space. We sat near the sushi bar. One person at the bar and another table near the window. She tried to seat us by the other people but we asked for the table away from the "crowd". I've always wondered why they try to seat everyone together in an empty restaurant. I got the fatty tuna sashimi and almost passed out when I ate it. OMG. I want to go get that again tomorrow. Such a great value and with the protein and no carbs, it practically melts the fat off of your waist! This would be a great place for groups, Friday or Saturday nights or whenever. Check out my photos I uploaded too. I hope to return. read more

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This is a bummer as we used to love ordering takeout from here. Not only were we over billed the last time we ordered but this most recent time we didn't receive any chop sticks or soy sauce. Normally not an issue but eating on the go tonight and this is big disappointment. The sushi is excellent. Generally at great spot and our most frequented joint in SP. read more

We waited an hour to get seated. Our chef was very funny. The server was bad. She took forever to get our drinks. Then she didn't turn on the grill, so we had to wait for another 15 minutes. She only checked on us twice. The portions are smaller than any Japanese steakhouse I have been to. For 27 dollars, we didn't get a whole new York steak like most places. They split two amongst 3 people. The price isn't worth the amount of food you get. I never finished my hibachi, but here I did. I probably wouldn't come back to this hibachi just because the prices aren't worth it. read more

We had some issues with our order today. My wife went back and spoke to the manager. Did not hesitate to resolve the matter. Could not have been nicer and right away puts the customer first. We will continue to go as the food is fantastic. I appreciate the manager resolving it so fast. read more

The steak tasted like rubber. You couldn't chew it. Waist of money. Will not go again.

Be very careful when ordering! We ordered two extra sides of shrimp- they charge $15 for each side.. Shrimp meal is $23- veggies only are 16- instead of charges 7 for the shrimp! They double it without telling you -as the manager stated- the unpublished menu. They also force tips of 18% on all parties( not in menu either) We had to have to cook get refills- waitress was never around- Worse place ever! read more

This place does really well in the sushi rolls. The staff is so friendly and hospitable. It's not far from downtown so it's not overpriced and you're able to get in and get acquainted with the locals. I highly recommend! read more

Kyoto Steak House - a platter of sushi - Japanese Near Me - Severna Park, Maryland

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I've been coming here for quite a few years now and it's consistently wonderful. The staff is always helpful and responsive. I was eating sushi on keto and the owner would make any roll that I wanted, without the rice. This is some of the freshest sushi I've had anywhere in the area. The Japanese steak house dishes are delicious as well!! I'll never stop coming here! read more

Even during a global pandemic, this place never disappoints. The salad dressing continues to be on point. My favorite restaurant in Severna Park. read more

Kyoto Steak House - a plate of food and a bowl of salad - Japanese Near Me - Severna Park, Maryland

I've had everything here from the bento lunch meals to sushi to hibachi dinners...not the best I've ever had, but all consistently good. The staff is very friendly and attentive and the atmosphere clean and pleasant. Prices are reasonable too. Since they are near my home, I have eaten here many times and recommend it. read more

Kyoto Steak House - my 2 year old grandson helping celebrate my 75th birthday playing drums on the hibachi table at Kyoto - Japanese Near Me - Severna Park, Maryland

Okay, this has become one of my favorite sushi places, and it's in Severna Park. Not just my fav, but my wife and sons enjoy it too. We stopped coming for the dog and pony show -- you know, where everything's cooked in front of you then shrimp is tossed up so you can try and gulp it down like a seal. Instead, we go to the sushi area where all the chefs know us by name. The sushi selection is diverse, fresh and the conversations with the fish masters are excellent and genuine. They really love what they do, the customers they do it for and we love what they make. There are too many favorites to mention here, but if you're looking for a place to take the kids or just want to enjoy some of the finest sushi, then Kyoto is a great place for you to try. read more

Just came back in to Kyoto again. we are regulars. saw Brandon J's 1* review from 3 months ago. I was one of the "young punks" and witnessed the woman and her family act completely rude and insolent to the owner. I am 44 years old and a business owner. The owner brought us a celebration drink because it was one of our birthdays. We weren't pointing or even cared about this family on the other side of the restaurant. At the end of their meal that clearly they were having fun at, laughing and enjoying at the hibachi on the way out the woman threw a temper tantrum near the sushi bar demanding free items and discounts when there were no visible complaints during their meal. She turned to us and asked us how our meal was and we said we have had no problems here in the years we have been coming here. She was screaming she would leave a bad review if she did not get a discount and clearly did not understand the normal charges on her bill even though the owner repeatedly and calmly tried to explain the bill to her. I personally believe she may have been highly intoxicated based on her slurred speech. read more

Four of us showed up Saturday night for dinner. The place was packed and the wait was 45 minutes. We decided to sit at the Sushi bar and deal with an awkward conversation looking down the bar at each other. We ordered different creative roles and had a nother great dinner. Great service, excellent price/value. read more

Horrible service from the owner.The current drink menu shows $6 drinks but when you get the bill they were $9 and all he had to say was were working on new menu. When our food came we all got double fried rice which is usually plenty so can have it the next day and we barley got enough for one portion. All we wanted was the drink prices fixed since the menu did show they were $6 not $9 and the owner didn't wanna hear it and sat with some young punks and did shots with them as they stared and point fingers at our party of 9. Completely unacceptable and he told us reviews mean nothing so I'm hoping this one will help some of you because the owner could care less.0 stars read more

Best sushi ever! The food is great, the owner is even better. No sushi restaurant compares.

I visited twice to this place. My impressions are exactly the same both times. The food was good. The hostesses were friendly both times. The waiter, Tony, however lacks good professional manners. For starters, he talks as if we're chummy homeboys, "Yo, my name is Tony. What you want?" instead of, "Hi, my name is Tony. Are you ready to order?" He doesn't have the right vocal tone for this line of work. He comes across too abrasive rather than polite and professional. As long as he is the waiter, I would not recommend this place. Plenty of other Japanese eateries nearby with much friendlier servers. read more

My family will not be going back here, my 5 year old found a ROACH in her rice as she was eating it....yum. and the cook was aggressively hitting my 5 year old in the face with the shrimp at the end when they toss it up so people can catch it in their mouth, except he didn't toss it up gently he turned the spatula around and flung it excessively hard in her face several times. read more

My family went here on a Wednesday evening and the place was packed. We were a party of eight and looking forward to the food and the show provided by the chef. We were disappointed with both. Evidently due to the large midweek crowd he was eager to simply go through the motions with us and greet the next table. My grandchildren are young and have seen the show with the fire and the shrimp being tossed to those around the table. The chef simply didn't bring his A game that even. In his rush to move on to another table, seasoning of the food was limited at best and the food was very bland. I would be hopeful that our next visit to this place would be much improved as all of our prior visits here were pleasant. read more

Sushi was bland and tasteless, Whole Foods has much better quality sushi. The ambiance in the restaurant was boring, I nearly fell asleep. All in all, I will not be returning to this establishment read more

The customer service was very bad they are very rude. The owner of the restaurant did not care he was very rude and mean to us and if you're smart don't go to this restaurant you'll be very disappointed. They need to be called out on the prices the overcharge people without letting you know they lie their service was a minus zero ,and I felt very sick from there food read more

Maybe it's sushi that keeps this place in business -- it certainly isn't hibachi. Having been a Sakura patron for a long time, my children and I decided to try Kyoto on a Monday night. My first impression was that it was severely understaffed - 1 sushi chef, 2 hibachi chefs, 2 servers. Granted, it was a Monday night, but the service was terrible. We did not get refills, my son had to ask 3 separate people for yum yum sauce, I didn't even see the bill before I paid, I just handed over my card in an attempt to get out of there. Unfortunately the food was as terrible as the service. I've been dining in hibachi restaurants for over 10 years and have never needed to salt my food until now. Everything was bland, the fried rice was dry and tasteless, and the soup was lukewarm. Also -- completely odd -- they don't serve yum yum sauce with their meals. You must ask for it separately. We asked for carryout boxes and to-go yum yum sauce. I was expecting a normal sized ramekin for the sauce and was given something resembling a thimble. The one redeeming factor was the chef was personable and interacted with my kids very well. We will never be back. read more

Wife and I checked this place out because of other reviews. I'm a big fan of Japanese Steak houses. This place has good steak and chicken and not much else. Avoid the sushi and appetizers, drinks are a bit expensive too but that's most places. I'll never understand a place that serves warm sushi. I'm certain there are better bang for buck places around Annapolis.. when I find it i'll review. Wait staff and chef were very nice. read more

We went here as a last minute decision on my birthday because we wanted to stay close to home and planned on celebrating the following weekend. BIG MISTAKE! We were seated immediately at a hibachi table and waited about 15 minutes for them to take our drink order. We then waited another 10 minutes for our drinks and the waiter took our dinner order. We ordered a bowl of miso and a side of edamame for my daughter and my husband and I ordered off the hibachi menu.....50 minutes after we have been seated we are still waiting for our food!! At this point, I tell my husband I just want to leave because my 4 year old is hungry (her soup had not even arrived) and was getting restless. I did not blame her since I was feeling the same way. I mean, how long does it take to heat up a bowl of miso and edamame??? It was not that busy, but we were the only ones at the hibachi table. I am not sure if they were trying to fill the table or what, but allowing a guest to wait 50 minutes is ridiculous. As we go to tell the waiter we are leaving, he is bringing out the soup. So, we let our daughter start her soup, ask for a to-go container and ask for the bill. My daughter had ordered an orange juice and wanted to take it with her, so we asked for a to-go cup. He has to ask a few other for containers and then hands me over a soup container!! Really? Now, this is just comical. He tells me not to worry about the bill, he did well enough that night and will deduct our bills from his tips. He just asked that we left him a tip. Being the person I am, I paid my bill and left him a tip because I was just so annoyed that this waiter was so clueless. I have never walked out of a restaurant, but was not going to wait another hour or whatever it would take to eat. Needless to say, WE WILL NEVER GO BACK!!!! I almost called to complain, but figured that would not make a difference. To bad, because we are new to the area and would have loved to find a Japanese place to frequent. read more

Sushi bar only: I didn't get sick! That's good! Hey, and the sushi wasn't bad either. Honestly, though, this is one of those places that I wouldn't go out of my way for if there was another sushi place closer. They've got you standard rolls, typical Japanese beer, and decent service. Watch out for the other customers though. I got stared down by an 8 year old while I was there. She looked pretty tough, like she might jump me and take my wallet or something. Scary. read more

Kyoto is part hibachi steakhouse, and part sushi bar. The hibachi tables certainly put on a good show and take up the bulk of the floor space, but it's the sushi we go back for. We've tried a handful of sushi places in the Annapolis area, and we keep going back to Kyoto. The sushi is *always* fresh. There's a great selection and variety, with a guide on each table as to the precise contents of each roll. The straight salmon sashimi is always my favorite (that's a good indication of how fresh the fish is---with sashimi there's nothing to hide any "off" flavors). There are a number of rolls that are also divine, particularly the rainbow roll and the rock-and-roll. The sushi chefs have a nice sense of artistry; the food is always presented beautifully. The staff is very friendly and helpful, and we've always received our food in good time. Sometimes I like to mix things up with some miso soup, vegetable tempura, or pan-fried dumplings, all of which are quite delicious. The place appears a little bit small and dark, and the menus are a bit worn, but don't be put off---the food and friendly service are excellent. read more

This has been my go-to Japanese Steakhouse for the last 10 years. No other Japanese Steakhouse compares. The quality of the food is excellent and incredibly consistent. I have never had a bad meal at Kyoto. The salad dressing is considerably better than typical type found at chains and the soup is always hot and fresh. The filet is always so tender and there is never any fat. Every sushi roll I've had at Kyoto has been phenomenal too. Along with the food quality, the service is great as well. Everyone enjoys the theatrics at Japanese Steakhouses but I appreciate that Kyoto keeps it simple and not too over the top. I will continue to patronize Kyoto for years to come, especially now that I am living back in the area! read more

This business is poorly ran and the food is very uninspiring for being a hibachi grill. My family loves a solid hibachi grill! But this one was awful and unethical. We were sitting in the dining room while a drunk man was cussing and yelling. Management was completely unfazed. There were children eating there and the waitresses were being harassed for a solid 20 minutes. Finally the cops came to escort him off premises. I found out later another patron had to call them! At the end of our mediocre, Jerry Springer like meal, our poor young waitress was the only one to apologize and told us that this happens often. This guy in particular has gotten wasted there on Tuesday (currently Sunday afternoon) and they just let him sit there until he got himself up and left. It was downright scary. We spent over 300.00 and left confused, upset and quite honestly unnerved. read more

Best Sushi in the area! They have super fresh fish and Ronald the sushi chef is wonderful! I have been going to Kyoto's for 10+ years and it is always my 1st choice. read more

It has been a while since I have randomly decided on my own to try a restaurant I know nothing about, but as I have a rare night without my family, I am sitting in this restaurant. Over the years over a variety of media, I have tried to adapt my review style. That said, my overall ranking of stars is determined at the end by an equation: (Quality + affordability + service) ÷ 3, and then vary by authenticity. Initial Impression: Fun, lively environment. Lots of popularized Asian (not necessarily Japanese as advertised by calling it "Kyoto") things decorate the entiere restaurant. Quality: 3 stars Over all, I enjoyed the food, it just wasnt amazing. I ordered Gyoza, edamame, and sukiyaki (thin beef) which came with veggies and fried rice. The beef and veggies were tasty but the fried rice was about the same as me putting vegetable oil in a pan and putting some rice in, then dumping in a bowl. Pretty tasteless really. I tried dumping beef and veggies in it, but it did not improve that experience. The gyoza were really just pot stickers, which I notice many people think they are the same thing, but they are not. They were hot, crispy, but definitely a really cheap brand. The edamame was not boiled in salt water; instead they were boiled and then had sprinkled with salt, certainly not the way they are meant to be prepared. But again, overall, it wasn't repulsive. Just, kinda, cheap knockoff food. Affordability: 4 stars For two appetizers and one entree, that also came with salad and soup as well as the fried rice, $30 really wasnt that terrible. I feel warm, full, and generally happy. Service: A Big 5 Stars I never had to ask for drink refills, food came fast, I could see big families were taken care of as well as I was, sitting just by myself. They have a lot of help in the dining area which is rare to see in such as a place. Every single person smiled doing their job, naturally. You can tell when people don't like their job but each person looked like they were having a great time while working. Very respectful as well; all pleases and thank yous were both noticed and appreciated. Authenticity: 1 Star The food is as authentically Asian as I am Asian (not even close). After spending ten years in Japan, I can tell you that they get away with that by being the only real Asian-like food in the shopping complex. Summary: What I can tell you is this, it is a lovely little place. Even though I won't be returning, the amount of obvious repeat customer retention is astounding. First name basis with cooks, waitresses, and hostesses was massively apparent from every single table I observed. As such, I won't let me being spoiled through authentic experience ruin the reputation of a family run restaurant that inspires that kind of loyalty. KYOTO, you have earned my respect. Well done; 4 stars. read more