Benihana - Fort Lauderdale, FL

Review summary

1. C

   Charles

   Fort Lauderdale

   1 review

   1.0

   1 review

   Dined today

   1. Overall 1
   2. Food 2
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 2

   Our reservation was for 7:30pm. Didn’t get seated until 9pm. It was quite obvious that they were under staffed since the manager was waiting tables and the armed security guard was serving drinks. Other people with reservations left. The restaurant should not have taken reservations and should have told us from the beginning that it would take hours to get a cook (got there 7:20 - left 10:30). The meat was dry and the portions were very small. This turned out to be a very expensive bad experience and I won’t be back to Benihana again (definitely not that location).
   

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2. D

   Donna

   VIP

   Atlanta Metro

   5 reviews

   1.0

   5 reviews

   Dined 1 day ago

   1. Overall 1
   2. Food 3
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 1

   Absolute worst dining experience … open table reservation for 6:30 pm- was seated 45 mins later and did not receive 1st course until 8pm. Soft drink not delivered till second course after second request. Got up from table to seek server for water refill - could not find them. Asked another server for water - said he would find server. Never received water. Bought and paid for Emperor’s Feast but never received included green tea or ice cream for dessert. No toilet paper in women’s rest room. Very poorly managed restaurant. Water view is lovely, noise level is very high and hibachi food was good when finally received.
   

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3. P

   Patrick

   Dallas

   3 reviews

   2.0

   3 reviews

   Dined 1 day ago

   1. Overall 2
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 2

   Didn’t get seated until and hour after our reservation. Seemed understaffed. Drinks took a long time. Had to order twice because server lost our order. Never asked if we want more drinks. Food and chef were good. Super loud in the crowded restaurant. Had to get our own boxes to pack our food to go. Kids meals were supposed to have ice cream but server just disappeared and never offered it. Probably saw her a total of 3-4 times. Counting when she asked us for our orders a second time.
   

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4. Y

   YVON

   Orlando

   6 reviews

   4.0

   6 reviews

   Dined 1 day ago

   1. Overall 4
   2. Food 4
   3. Service 3
   4. Ambience 4

   Even with a reservation made for 6 o’clock our party of four had to wait 45 minutes to be seated, which we found quite annoying, the entry and the surrounding area of reception was full of people just like if no one had made reservation and we could notice much frustration amongst all of them. Furthermore, the two receptionist looked somewhat lost in this kind of chaos. They were not smiling. They were like I would say frozen in front of this situation. And once we got seated, we had to wait another 45 minutes before the service began. I have to say, however, that at this very moment, the experience began to be much nicer. We welcomed the chef with applause and I must say it was very nice competent and professional. He made us laugh, and the food were cooked according to our choice selection. One final common on the premises, which would need a little more love and would have to be refresh. The restaurant is located in a very good spot nearby the canal and would certainly benefit if revamped, and if there were more lights to clearly show the sign of Benihana, which we could not even see a dark.
   

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5. Y

   Yenta

   Fort Lauderdale

   2 reviews

   3.0

   2 reviews

   Dined 1 day ago

   1. Overall 3
   2. Food 4
   3. Service 4
   4. Ambience 3

   Everything was fine until we were seated. The only problem was the seats were too close making it impossible to be comfortable. I like the fact that we were sitting close enough to see the water.
   

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6. W

   Wendy

   Fort Lauderdale

   4 reviews

   2.0

   4 reviews

   Dined 1 day ago

   1. Overall 2
   2. Food 4
   3. Service 2
   4. Ambience 1

   The dining experience at Benihana's in Fort Lauderdale was horrible. My Wagyu ribeye steak was delicious, but we will never go back. So noisy, so loud, it was impossible to carry on a conversation. People screaming in laughter, workers banging and clangin knives. There was a lot of smoke, not only from the fires they lit but also from the cooking of the food. In my case, the smoke from the grill was voluminous and it blew directly into me, burning my eyes, forcing me to breathe it into my lungs, making an oily film over my glasses, getting into my freshly washed hair. Horrible! I was not able to wear my glasses while driving because they were so smudged by the oily film and when I got home, I had to shower to get the smell and smoke off of my body and out of my hair. I also had to wash every bit of clothing I was wearing to get the stench off. Never going back!
   

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7. OT

   OpenTable Diner

   Fort Lauderdale

   1 review

   2.0

   1 review

   Dined 2 days ago

   1. Overall 2
   2. Food 4
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 1

   The hostess was rude and mean to the chefs and guests.
   

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8. R

   Robert

   Fort Lauderdale

   18 reviews

   1.0

   18 reviews

   Dined 2 days ago

   1. Overall 1
   2. Food 2
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 4

   Really disappointing expecting the “original” to be the best, not the worst. I’ll summarize the many failures: - 6:15 reservation, seated at 7:05 - zero interaction or “tricks” by the chef, just cooking (onion volcano, etc…) - forgot shrimp for one guest and forgot chicken for another. Took 20 minutes to resolve - waitress forgot drink orders, 30 minutes to see her and resolve - sauces were put out after most of the food was served And more… First time for most of party here…totally disappointed and turned off to go back to any Benihana again.
   

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9. S

   Steve

   Chicago

   10 reviews

   2.0

   10 reviews

   Dined 2 days ago

   1. Overall 2
   2. Food 4
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 2

   Well. We were seated promptly and then our server Took our drink orders and then our food orders. Soup and salad came immediately. Then it Literally took almost An hour after That for the cook to show up and begin cooking. Part of our party left and we almost all left just before he shows up. Never had that happen before. We will never return to Benihana again. I has also become expensive.
   

   Benihana - Fort Lauderdale, FLResponded 1 day ago

   Hello Steve, We're truly sorry to hear about your recent experience at Benihana - Fort Lauderdale, FL. We understand how frustrating it can be to wait for service and have to turn away guests, especially when you're looking forward to a delicious meal. We also apologize for the delay in service you experienced. We strive to provide excellent service and it's clear we fell short this time. We appreciate your feedback and will use it to improve our service. We hope you'll reconsider and give us another chance to make it right. Best, The Management Team
   

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10. OT

    OpenTable Diner

    Miami

    1 review

    1.0

    1 review

    Dined 2 days ago

    1. Overall 1
    2. Food 2
    3. Service 1
    4. Ambience 3

    We have been going to this location since it opened. Last night was the worst experience we ever had . Server was horrific . No knowledge and missing for 40 plus minutes at a time Chef did nothing to entertain and could barely cut the meat and veggies. Birthday celebration and we had to remind server 5 times and she still came out at end for ice cream order and again had to remind. I spoke with front and they could careless at how our party was treated. Truly disappointed by the entire experience and management.
    

    Benihana - Fort Lauderdale, FLResponded 1 day ago

    Thanks for the review. We're really sorry to hear about your recent experience at our Benihana - Fort Lauderdale, FL location. It's disappointing to hear that your party was not as enjoyable as it should have been. We understand that the service and the quality of food did not meet your expectations. We take your feedback seriously and will address these issues with our team. We hope you'll give us another chance to provide the exceptional experience you've come to expect from us.
    

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