Benihana - Boca Raton, FL

Review summary

1. J

   Jonathan

   VIP

   New York City

   2 reviews

   1.0

   2 reviews

   Dined today

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

   They made us wait 1.5 hours for our table, with a reservation. We showed up on time. They severely overbooked the restaurant.
   

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2. A

   Amanda

   Orlando

   4 reviews

   1.0

   4 reviews

   Dined today

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

   The restaurant overbooked reservations, we had to wait an hour and a half past our reservation time to sit! Horrible experience
   

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3. E

   Evan

   VIP

   Fort Lauderdale

   2 reviews

   2.0

   2 reviews

   Dined today

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

   My complaint isn't with the restaurant or the staff. The issue is with their corporate offices that set the number of reservations they accept and when. Being that it was New Years Eve, I made my reservation about a month in advance. Of course it's going to be busy that nigh, as people would expect. Typically, if I arrived for my 7:30 reservation, I would expect to be seated somewhere relatively close to 7:30, knowing that there may be tables that need to be cleaned, or parties that had an earlier time staying longer. However, when we arrived, the hostess let us know that reservations were running an hour behind. We ended up being seated close to 9:00 for our 7:30 reservation. Through conversation, we found out that corporate sets the seating times. Of the 19 tables they have, they set up reservations to seat 48 people every 15 minutes. So, every 45 minutes the restaurant is full. If they allow walk-ins, it then sets everything back. The staff did everything they could within their power. But, they seemed to be stuck with an impossible situation. There were two people working in the bar, so drinks were slow. One of the managers worked the bar, and helped take orders. He absolutely looked defeated by the time he asked for our drink orders, which was probably 15 minutes or so after we were actually seated. All I can say is that Benihana is typically a fun experience. We've been there many times before, and on New Years Eve before, it's never been as bad as it was last night, and they really should do whatever it takes to correct that.
   

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4. M

   Melissa

   Palm Springs

   1 review

   2.0

   1 review

   Dined today

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

   We had a 730 reservation. We were not seated until 845. Didn’t receive a simple glass of water until 915. Overall the wait staff is pleasant and food was ok - but the wait was unacceptable
   

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5. R

   Ronald

   Chicago

   24 reviews

   2.0

   24 reviews

   Dined 1 day ago

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

   Benihana is one of my favorite restaurants. this year in Boca was completely understaffed. Our waitress was also a bartender. I can’t fault her, but she was not available for our needs. We had reservations and we didn’t get seated for an hour later than the reservation Most people didn’t get their white rice until they were almost finished with their meal after repeatedly asking and finally going to the front desk to get someone to bring it The chef did not have all the food to cook that was ordered including Lobster and had to go get more after he was done cooking the other people‘s lobster tails. They didn’t have the mushrooms and when the chef was saying goodbye one of the people at our table reminded him they didn’t get mushrooms. He left and got a few, but didn’t get enough for everybody that had filet mignon and were supposed to get them with their meal. He looked very tired We did complain to the waitress who spoke with the manager and they did give us 10% off however, this was my birthday celebration (which was not recognized even though I put it on special Occasion section on Open table and notified the Chef) and New Year’s and I expected it to be much better. On a positive note the food was very good.
   

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6. G

   Gloria

   VIP

   Toronto

   5 reviews

   3.0

   5 reviews

   Dined 1 day ago

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

   Crazy busy Shoved in extra chairs to make you fit in. Overbooked by a crazy amount of people Be prepared to wait no matter past your reservation time.
   

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7. K

   Kimberly

   Fort Lauderdale

   11 reviews

   5.0

   11 reviews

   Dined 1 day ago

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

   The service was great and the food was excellent and worth every penny.
   

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8. R

   Ruby

   West Palm Beach

   4 reviews

   3.0

   4 reviews

   Dined 1 day ago

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

   Had reservations but, it still took awhile to be seated - after seated the waitress was doing good - finally it was taking forever for the cook - 7:30p reservation and we were not eating until approximately 9:30p - calamari was undercooked - miso soup was subpar - birthday celebration- no plans to return even though my son enjoyed the Las Vegas sushi roll -
   

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9. g

   george

   VIP

   Toronto

   9 reviews

   1.0

   9 reviews

   Dined 2 days ago

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

   They have a policy of overbooking reservations. This is unacceptable. We waited an hour to be seated. Everyone had a reservation and waited an hour. They should be removed from open table. This ruined the experience. Other reviews warned of this. The restaurant doesn’t seem to care. Service of this nature is ruining trust in this app. Open table should remove this restaurant from the app.
   

   Benihana - Boca Raton, FLResponded 1 day ago

   Dear valued guest, we apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused and we thank you for taking the time to share your feedback. If you wish to contact us with further details regarding this experience, you may reach us by visiting our "Contact Us" page on our website.
   

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10. A

    Ann

    Detroit

    7 reviews

    4.0

    7 reviews

    Dined 3 days ago

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

    A fun, but expensive evening. Great for family time.
    

    Benihana - Boca Raton, FLResponded 2 days ago

    and we hope to see you again soon. We appreciate your kind words! It’s great to know you had a positive experience with us. We can’t wait to serve you again.
    

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