Benihana - Carlsbad, CA

Review summary

1. B

   Behnaz VIP

   San Diego15 reviews

   1.0

   Dined 2 days ago

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

   We had a confirmed reservation at 7 pm to celebrate my elderly mom The chef did not start our food til 9 pm !!!! We waited for 2 hours for our food !!! The level of noise also was unbearable we could not even hear any of our guests Food was ok Really a bad experience Such a long wait is totally not acceptable
   

   Is this helpful?

2. D

   Desiree

   Las Vegas1 review

   1.0

   Dined 5 days ago

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

   Waited over an 1.5 hours over my reservation. My server left for the evening in the middle of dinner and I didn’t have a server until I flagged someone down at the end of dinner.
   

   Is this helpful?

3. M

   Malik

   Los Angeles1 review

   1.0

   Dined 5 days ago

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

   Our reservation was an hr behind, food also took exponentially long to be served.
   

   Benihana - Carlsbad, CAResponded 4 days ago

   Hello Malik, We're truly sorry to hear about your recent experience at Benihana - Carlsbad, CA. We understand that waiting can be frustrating and we apologize for the delay in service you experienced. We're taking your feedback seriously and will ensure that we improve our reservation and food service timings. We hope to have the opportunity to serve you better in the future. Best, The Management Team
   

   Is this helpful?

4. L

   Laurie

   San Diego1 review

   2.0

   Dined 5 days ago

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

   BEWARE it took 2 hours and 45 minutes for our 6pm reservation. We made a reservation 2 weeks in advance for 6pm on Saturday evening. We arrived shortly before 6 pm to a full lobby and full restaurant and told to hang out and they would call our name when our table was ready. So we decided to have a drink at the bar and wait... at 6:30 I went and asked when our table would be ready, told we were getting closer and it shouldn't be much longer. Finally at almost 7pm we were seated. Once seated we waited for another 10 minutes before the waiter took drink orders and brought the soup / salad pre-dinner offerings. At 7:30 we still did NOT have a chef, my husband asked the "manager" and we were told it was almost our turn. A gentleman at the companion table complained about 5 minutes later and finally at 7:42pm we got a chef. The chef seemed rushed, and all the cooking and the "show" was done by 8:19pm... at 8:25pm the waiter brought out bill and to go boxes trying to rush us off the table. At 8:34pm we left the restaurant. Between the 5 of us it was almost $600 for the evening. Absolutely ridiculous to spend that kind of money and it take 1 hour and 42 minutes to have an actual chef after having reservations. It had been about 5 years since we were there and not sure we will ever go back. The restaurant hasn't been updated or carpet cleaned in years and the bathrooms need some serious cleaning. Benihana needs to figure it out and have more chefs to handle the amount of people trying to dine at their restaurant. Not worth your time or money.
   

   Benihana - Carlsbad, CAResponded 3 days ago

   Thanks for visiting us, Laurie. We're truly sorry to hear about your experience at Benihana - Carlsbad, CA. It's clear that we fell short in delivering the quality of service we pride ourselves on. We understand how frustrating it must have been to wait for your table and for your meal, especially considering your reservations. We also apologize for the inconvenience caused by the uncleanliness in our restaurant. Your feedback is invaluable and will be taken into consideration as we strive to improve. We hope you'll consider giving us another chance in the future.
   

   Is this helpful?

5. P

   Paige

   Los Angeles1 review

   3.0

   Dined 7 days ago

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

   The food was good, but this was our second time making a reservation and then having a long wait for our table. The first time, we were quoted an hour even with a reservation so we left. This time we were quoted 20 minutes, which ended up being 40. Then once seated it took a long time to get our food, so the whole experience took two hours.
   

   Benihana - Carlsbad, CAResponded 6 days ago

   Hey Paige, Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback. We're glad to hear that you enjoyed the food but we're sorry to hear about your experience with the reservation system and the wait time. We understand how frustrating that can be and we apologize for any inconvenience caused. We're always striving to improve our service and your feedback is invaluable in this process. We hope you'll give us another chance to provide a better dining experience. Best Regards, Benihana - Carlsbad, CA The Management Team
   

   Is this helpful?

6. J

   Jean

   Los Angeles1 review

   1.0

   Dined 7 days ago

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

   For starters, this was a birthday celebration for my wife and me, but there was no effort made to make the experience special. The chef arrived late, appeared disoriented—possibly intoxicated—and made no attempt to create a memorable or exciting atmosphere. The entire table was visibly upset with his behavior. Additionally, the server was slow, and the chef didn’t even prepare the child’s meal. To make matters worse, the manager was outright disrespectful and showed no interest in resolving the situation or making things right.
   

   Benihana - Carlsbad, CAResponded 3 days ago

   Thanks for visiting us, Jean. We're truly sorry to hear about your experience at Benihana - Carlsbad, CA. It's clear we didn't meet your expectations, and for that, we apologize. We strive to create memorable experiences for our guests, and we're sorry to hear we fell short this time. We also regret any dissatisfaction you experienced with our service. We will address these issues with our team to ensure we maintain the high standards we strive for. We hope you'll give us another chance to make your next visit a better experience. Best regards, Benihana - Carlsbad, CA Management Team
   

   Is this helpful?

7. M

   Mary VIP

   Los Angeles176 reviews

   5.0

   Dined on April 3, 2025

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

   Tableside entertainmant and good food. A fun place Andres was a great table-side Chef!
   

   Benihana - Carlsbad, CAResponded 4 days ago

   Hey Mary, Thank you for taking the time to leave us a review. We're thrilled to hear that you enjoyed our food and the tableside entertainment at Benihana - Carlsbad, CA. We're always striving to provide fun and memorable dining experiences for our guests. We've noted your feedback on the value and we'll continue to work on it. We hope to see you again soon!
   

   Is this helpful?

8. A

   Andrew VIP

   San Diego13 reviews

   3.0

   Dined on April 3, 2025

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

   Great food but make sure you avoid high traffic times. You will experience a long wait past your reservation time.
   

   Benihana - Carlsbad, CAResponded 6 days ago

   Thanks for the feedback, Andrew! We're thrilled to hear that you enjoyed our food at Benihana - Carlsbad, CA. We're sorry to hear that you found the wait time to be longer than expected, despite the restaurant being at a lower traffic level. We always aim to provide our guests with a smooth dining experience, and we appreciate your patience. Your feedback is invaluable and we will certainly take it into consideration to improve our service. Looking forward to serving you again soon!
   

   Is this helpful?

9. J

   Jennifer

   San Diego1 review

   3.0

   Dined on April 2, 2025

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

   We have been to this location a few times over the last year. We have always made a reservation and we have always had to wait about 10 minutes past our reservation to be seated. But tonight, we waited 20 minutes past our reservation time. Then once we were seated, we waited another 45 minutes for our chef to show up. Nobody acknowledged the extended wait time, no offer of a complimentary appetizer to tide us over. Eventually I asked to speak with a manager. He apologized but nothing beyond that. While I know Benihanas is an experience dinner, 1/2 of our time was spent waiting. Disappointed in the poor scheduling.
   

   Benihana - Carlsbad, CAResponded on April 3, 2025

   Thanks for visiting us, Jennifer. We're sorry to hear about your recent experiences at Benihana - Carlsbad, CA. It's clear that we fell short in meeting your expectations and for that, we apologize. We understand how frustrating it can be to wait for a reservation or for your table, and we apologize for the inconvenience caused. We also regret that you felt your time was not valued. We're continuously working on improving our service and your experience will be shared with our team. We hope to have the opportunity to serve you better in the future.
   

   Is this helpful?

10. L

    Lisa

    San Diego1 review

    2.0

    Dined on April 1, 2025

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

    Very slow service. It took 10 minutes for someone to come to the front desk to check us in. Another 10 minutes to be seated. Food was good but the service was very slow.
    

    Benihana - Carlsbad, CAResponded on April 3, 2025

    Hey Lisa, We're truly sorry to hear about your recent experience at Benihana - Carlsbad, CA. We strive to provide our guests with efficient service and delicious food, and we regret that we didn't meet those expectations this time. Your feedback is invaluable to us, and we will definitely address this issue with our team to ensure it doesn't happen again. We hope you'll give us another chance to provide you with the quality experience you deserve. Best, The Management Team
    

    Is this helpful?