Benihana - Burlingame, CA

Benihana - Burlingame, CA reviews from people who’ve dined at this restaurant. Based on recent rating.

Review summary

1. SN

   SNelson VIP

   San Francisco65 reviews

   2.0

   Dined today

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

   Be aware that a reservation just means you’ll get in. The time is not honored and you still have to wait. We had a 6pm reservation and got seated at 7pm.
   

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2. OT

   OpenTable Diner

   Philadelphia1 review

   3.0

   Dined 3 days ago

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

   The food was amazing, but our car got broken into and all of our stuff was stolen.
   

   Benihana - Burlingame, CAResponded 2 days ago

   Dear Guest, We’re deeply sorry to hear about the break-in and theft from your car during your visit. While we’re glad you enjoyed the food, we’re truly sorry that this unfortunate incident overshadowed your experience. Your safety and well-being are incredibly important to us, and we regret any distress this situation caused. Please know that we take security concerns seriously and will review our measures to help prevent such incidents in the future. Thank you for bringing this to our attention, and we hope to provide you with a safer and more enjoyable experience next time. Best regards,
   

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3. S

   Sal VIP

   Chicago14 reviews

   2.0

   Dined 3 days ago

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

   Feeling so torn about this experience. 5 stars to our attentive server Thomas and to James, our charming and talented chef! We were seated promptly, cocktails flowing, followed by plenty of delicious food!! The end of the night however… Consistent with many OpenTable reviews we walked to our car to discover that the back windshield had been shattered in a burglary attempt. The same exact thing happened to another group in the parking lot at the same time. We were fortunate to have had nothing stolen, but the other group had four roller bags and four work bags with laptops taken from their vehicle. The Burlingame police were fantastic and the manager was apologetic, but they did nothing to compensate us.  When I pointed out that our experience aligned exactly with multiple reviews the manager shrugged his shoulders and walked away. The policeman commented that this was his fifth trip out to this restaurant with the exact same issue and that he had been to the restaurant multiple times already in the month of March. He was on a first basis with the manager! Likely this locals targeted due to the heavy amount of rental cars/proximity to SFO. Hopefully now that STK has acquired Benihana hopefully they will invest in a secure parking lot or mandatory valet parking for this location. The waitstaff and chefs worked their butts off to make us happy and deliver a fantastic experience. It’s a shame to have it all spoiled at the end by a well-known and chronic security issue. Benihana, please solve this so that we may return and enjoy your restaurant again!
   

   Benihana - Burlingame, CAResponded 2 days ago

   Dear Sal, Thank you for sharing your experience and for recognizing Thomas and Chef James for their exceptional service and talent. We’re thrilled you enjoyed the food and overall dining experience. However, we’re deeply sorry to hear about the burglary incident in our parking lot. Your safety and peace of mind are incredibly important to us, and we’re truly sorry this unfortunate event overshadowed your evening. We understand your frustration with the response you received, and your feedback will be shared with our management team to address this serious concern. We appreciate your suggestion and hope to improve security measures soon. We’d love the opportunity to welcome you back for another great experience. Best regards, The Management Team
   

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4. A

   Amanda

   San Francisco2 reviews

   2.0

   Dined 6 days ago

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

   The service and food do not warrant the cost. The quality of food and overall experience has diminished so much over the years - it's disappointing to say the least. Fried rice - one of the reasons people go there - is no longer included with the meal, but is an added extra. The restaurant has 20-30 tables and only 5 chefs making their way around on a very busy Sunday evening. Reservation times are only a suggestion, as you are kept waiting 20+ minutes to be seated and then even longer before you get your first bite of food, e.g., we had a 5:15 reservation and at 6:15 there was still no sign of any food coming our way.
   

   Benihana - Burlingame, CAResponded 5 days ago

   Thanks for the review, Amanda. We're sorry to hear that your experience at Benihana - Burlingame, CA didn't meet your expectations. We understand your disappointment with the changes you've mentioned. We value your feedback and will certainly consider it as we strive to improve our services and offerings. We hope to have the opportunity to serve you again and provide a better dining experience.
   

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5. C

   Charles

   San Francisco10 reviews

   1.0

   Dined 7 days ago

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

   I made reservations for 8 o’clock. We were still waiting in line at 9 o’clock. It was terrible. They didn’t even acknowledge we were even there and I checked in. I kept going up how much longer how much longer and they didn’t even care. We will never go there again
   

   Benihana - Burlingame, CAResponded 6 days ago

   Thanks for visiting us, Charles. We're truly sorry to hear about your recent experience at Benihana - Burlingame, CA. It's clear that we fell short in providing the timely and attentive service that we strive for. We understand how frustrating it must have been for you to wait in line for such a long time, and we apologize for any inconvenience caused. We appreciate your feedback and assure you that we will address this issue to improve our service. We hope you'll give us another chance to provide the exceptional dining experience we're known for. Best regards, The Management Team
   

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6. S

   SAVENDRA

   San Francisco1 review

   1.0

   Dined 7 days ago

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

   my appointment was 7.30 pm . we were seat at 9pm. it was very unacceptable. please consider appointment value. understand 30 minutes late. but not 1.5 hrs.
   

   Benihana - Burlingame, CAResponded 6 days ago

   Thanks for the feedback, Savendra. We're really sorry to hear about your experience at Benihana - Burlingame, CA. We understand your frustration regarding the delay and the seating timing. It's certainly not up to our standards. We value your feedback and will certainly address this issue with our team. We hope to have the opportunity to serve you better in the future.
   

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7. J

   JEANNINE VIP

   San Francisco151 reviews

   3.0

   Dined 7 days ago

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

   The food was excellent, but the service was very poor. The server didn’t come around and it took forever to receive the bill or get his attention. He was not personable. The restaurant was full; however, the service was below subpar.
   

   Benihana - Burlingame, CAResponded 6 days ago

   Hey Jeannine, We're glad to hear that you enjoyed the food at Benihana - Burlingame, CA, but we're really sorry to hear about your service experience. We strive to provide excellent service to all our guests, and we apologize if we fell short during your visit. We appreciate your feedback and will certainly address this with our team to ensure it doesn't happen again. We hope you'll give us another chance to provide a better experience. Best regards, The Management Team
   

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8. J

   Joe VIP

   Tahoe63 reviews

   5.0

   Dined 7 days ago

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

   Always a great experience and a great place to celebrate a Birthday! Thank You!!
   

   Benihana - Burlingame, CAResponded 6 days ago

   Hey Joe, We're thrilled to hear that you had a great experience celebrating your birthday at Benihana - Burlingame, CA! It's always a pleasure to be part of the Benihana family. Your kind words mean a lot to us. We're glad that we could make your special day memorable. Thank you for your support and we look forward to serving you again soon! Best Regards, The Management Team
   

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9. JC

   JessecaC

   San Francisco6 reviews

   1.0

   Dined on March 8, 2025

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

   We like this place and look forward to this. It’s a big deal every time we come here because it’s an expensive place. Every time we come the service is worse and they make us feel like we are bothering them to have dinner. My 14 year old made a comment before we walked in and said “I hope they’re nice to us this time,” unfortunately it was worse. I spent $400 here tonight and for me as a single mom, this was beyond me. I just wanted us to finally have a nice evening and feel a little fancy but the experience ruined that for us. Our server was disgusted with our whole table, instead of asking what my mom wanted to order he pointed and looked at me “what does she want?” Then to my teenager “what does the boy want?” He didn’t seem to acknowledge that we were also there as paying customers. It was an upsetting evening but the food was great.
   

   Benihana - Burlingame, CAResponded 6 days ago

   Thanks for the review, Jesseca. We're truly sorry to hear about your recent experience at Benihana - Burlingame, CA. We pride ourselves on providing excellent service and it's clear we missed the mark this time. We understand the importance of special occasions and we regret that we fell short. We take your feedback seriously and will use it to improve our service. We hope you'll give us another chance to make it right. The Benihana - Burlingame, CA Management Team
   

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10. R

    Rachael VIP

    San Francisco24 reviews

    4.0

    Dined on March 8, 2025

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

    Had a wonderful time with the family. The food was great, good portions, entertaining. Fun for special occasions with a group.
    

    Benihana - Burlingame, CAResponded 6 days ago

    Thanks for the review, Rachael! We're thrilled to hear that you and your family had a wonderful time at Benihana - Burlingame, CA. It's great to know that you enjoyed our food and found the portions to be good. We strive to make special occasions fun and entertaining for our guests, so we're glad it added to your experience. We appreciate your feedback on value and we're always working to provide the best experience for our customers. Looking forward to serving you and your family again soon!
    

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