For the past 55 years, our guests have come to Benihana for some of their most special and significant moments. From birthdays to graduations to engagements and anniversaries, we’ve been at the center of it all. And while our guests may have started coming to our restaurant as a destination to celebrate these monumental moments, a crave was born from that first visit that keeps our guests coming back for more.

At Benihana, we pride ourselves on our use of hand-selected, high-quality ingredients. From our fresh vegetables, to our sauces made from scratch, to the USDA Choice cuts of beef we hand-cut on premise, our chefs spend hours preparing and ensuring every ingredient meets our high standards.

It’s our dedication to these high standards and the expert craftsmanship of our talented Teppanyaki chefs that make the Benihana experience unlike any other. We provide a high-energy, entertaining dining event that excites the senses and gives our guests reasons to celebrate, every day of the year.

As we celebrate our own very special occasion this year, our 55th Anniversary, we curated the top 55 reasons we have been able to ignite the Benihana crave within our guests, time after time after time. While there are endless reasons to indulge your Benihana crave, here is our collection of favorites that sets our restaurant experience apart from any other.

What’s the reason you indulge your Benihana crave?

  1. USDA Choice is our Choice. We serve USDA Choice to make sure your steak is tender, juicy and flavorful.
  2. Let it Rest. After grilling our meats, we always let them rest before slicing to ensure the meat is at its juiciest and most flavorful.
  3. Fresh Flavors Every Day. We create our sauces daily from scratch.
  4. Ginger Addiction. For our ginger sauces, we bring in fresh ginger each morning, then peel, grate and mash it ourselves to achieve the highest flavor potential.
  5. Perfect Conditions. Our teppanyaki chefs present our guests with the meat before it hits the grill so they can see the condition.
  6. Full of Flavor. Every cut of meat we use is lean, tender and full of flavor, making it ideal for grilling.
  7. Hand-Cut on Premises. We hand-cut each piece of chicken and steak so we can inspect each cut prior to serving our guests and ensure we are providing the best piece possible.
  8. 28-Day Aging Process. The aging process helps to preserve the flavor and juiciness without adding preservatives.
  9. Simple Preparation. Because our steaks are high quality, we prepare them very simply, in order to allow the natural flavors to shine.
  10. Homemade Staples. Our onion soup has been a homemade specialty since the restaurant first opened in 1964.
  11. Fresh from the Start. We prepare our salad with fresh vegetables, including crisp greens, red cabbage, carrots and grape tomatoes, all tossed in our homemade ginger dressing.
  12. A Traditional Ending. In keeping with Japanese tradition, we serve hot green tea at the end of each meal.
  13. Sweet Treats. Our six-course meals include ice cream or sherbet for dessert.
  14. California-Grown Rice. Our rice is grown in California. Once the rice is mature, each grain is carefully harvested to ensure it is perfect, tender and fluffy when it’s cooked by our chefs.
  15. Japanese-inspired cream sauce. Our Yum Yum sauce is prepared daily from scratch. The result is a fresh sauce with just the right balance of garlic and smoky spice notes.
  16. Spicy Customization. Our dishes are prepared directly in front of you so you can see (and adjust) the level of spice as it’s made.
  17. Fresh New Flavors. We’re always innovating and adding new cocktails to our menu. Try any of our limited-time offerings to explore fresh new flavors.
  18. Full Range of Flavors. Each entrée is served as a 5-course meal giving guests a full range of flavor profiles to satisfy every crave.
  19. The experience at Benihana is unlike any other. A high-energy, entertaining dining event excites the senses and culminates into a delicious meal.
  20. Dinners Worth Celebrating. We’re there to celebrate every occasion with you and will even send you a treat for your birthday when you sign up for our Chef’s Table program.
  21. Sweet, Delicate Flavor. We remove the lobster from its shell at the grill and prepare with melted butter and a hint of lemon juice for a naturally sweet, delicate flavor.
  22. Locked-In Freshness. Our sea scallops come from Canada’s George’s bank, just off the coast of Nova Scotia. Once caught, they are immediately shucked and frozen within 45 minutes, guaranteeing their freshness is locked-in when they arrive at our restaurants.
  23. Golden Perfection. Our scallops sear to a perfect golden color because they have a lower moisture content than most other scallops. We cook them by giving them a quick sear to ensure they won’t dry out. The result is a mouthwatering natural, sweet and briny flavor.
  24. Fresh Taste of the Sea. Our lobsters are sourced from the cold waters of the northern Atlantic, along the shores of Maine, known for producing the best-tasting lobsters in the world.
  25. Tender and Flavorful. After lobsters arrive in our kitchen, we prepare them by steaming to ensure the meat is tender, flavorful and cooked evenly.
  26. It Starts at the Source. We use only saku, AAA cut blocks of tuna, meaning the meat is fresh, moist and the highest-quality steak available on the market.
  27. Delicate Texture. We serve our tuna medium rare to bring out the bright red color of the fish and ensure tenderness. We then add a sesame seed crust to protect the tuna from overheating and give it a crunch to complement the tuna’s delicate texture.
  28. The Ocean’s Greatest Treasures. Our Ocean Treasure entrée gets its name because we believe it is just that – the greatest treasures from the ocean in the form of some of the best seafood: lobster, shrimp and scallops.
  29. Sushi for Everyone. Not all sushi is raw, either. We offer an extensive selection of cooked rolls to enjoy.
  30. Healthy Options. Our fresh nigiri provides a healthy meal of fish and steamed rice at only 40 to 160 calories per piece while sashimi is just about 25 calories per piece.
  31. Let us be your Guide. Sushi is the opening act to the full Benihana experience and our experts are on hand (and right in front of you) to guide you through every step of the way.
  32. Popular Rolls. Our most popular sushi options include the Spider Roll featuring soft shell crab and the Shrimp Crunchy Roll featuring tempura shrimp.
  33. Palate Cleanser. Ginger plays a very important role in the sushi experience. Not only does it provide some serious health benefits, but it cleanses your palate between different kinds of sushi.
  34. Sushi isn’t just a dish; it’s an art form. Our sushi classes allow guests to dive into how sushi is made, the interplay of ingredients and the artistic presentation.
  35. Open up Your Senses. Served hot, miso soup opens up the senses and enables your palette to fully take in the flavors of the upcoming sashimi and sushi courses.
  36. Customize your flavors. Mix and match the different sauces and spice levels to fit your tastes.
  37. White Wine and Seafood. Seafood has very light, delicate flavors, which means it needs a light drink pairing. White wines are an ideal match, as they mirror the light flavors of seafood and provide a refreshing palate cleanser between bites.
  38. Beer and Sushi. Japanese lagers tend to pair very well with sushi. These light-bodied beers are crisp and clean, which make them ideal for complementing multiple types of specialty sushi rolls.
  39. Sake and Sashimi. Sake comes in a few varieties, but all tend to pair well with different kinds of sashimi.
  40. Red Wine and Steak. A hearty steak has strong flavor, which calls for a full-bodied wine to accompany it.
  41. Tuna and Cold Sake. Tuna’s mild refreshing tones pair well with a refined, mellow cold sake like the Dassai 50 (Junmai Dai Ginjo from Yamaguchi).
  42. Yellowtail and Crisp Sake. Yellowtail, with its creamy, fatty texture and more assertive flavor profile, pairs well with a dry, crisp sake, like the Suigei (Tokubetsu Junmai from Kochi).
  43. Salmon and Mild Sake. Salmon has a smooth, fattytexture that pairs well with a milder Junmai, like the crisp, elegant Kikusui (Junmai Ginjo from Niigata).
  44. Shrimp and Balanced Sake. Shrimp isn’t particularly fatty, so it pairs well with a balanced and elegant sake, like the Shizumu-No-Mai (Junmai Gingo from Akita).
  45. Eel and Umami-Rich Sake. Eelpairs well with an umami-rich sake with a higher acidic level and slight sweetness, like our Benihana Hot Sake (Junmai).
  46. Japanese Infusion. We separate ourselves from those average cocktail offerings by incorporating traditional Japanese ingredients like yuzu, plum liqueurs and sake, all of which help to create new flavor dimensions for those looking to explore innovative drink options.
  47. Master Mixologists. Our mixology team always ensures the new drinks are balanced—too sweet and your palate gets tired, too strong and many find the drink unpleasant and, therefore, undrinkable.
  48. Rigorous Training. Our teppanyaki chefs must go through weeks of rigorous training in order to perform the delicate balancing act that is the Benihana experience.
  49. Mouth-Watering Hibachi. We sear our mouth-watering hibachi shrimp appetizer and flip the tails right into our chef hats, a classic trick that never disappoints.
  50. Onion Volcano. Some chefs turn the volcano into the “engine” of a veggie train they delicately push across the grill, choo-chooing along with our younger diners.
  51. Performing Magic. A few of our chefs even perform “magic” by making eggs or lemons multiply or disappear right before guests’ eyes.
  52. Full Sensory Experience. The experience at Benihana is unlike any other because guests get to enjoy seeing, hearing, smelling and tasting the food prepared in front of them.
  53. Bring the Kids! We’re all about creating great memories for our guests, and that includes the kids! That’s why we developed our Kabuki Kids program, designed to celebrate our younger guests and encourage their love of high-quality food.
  54. Perfect Rhythm. It takes months of constant training and testing in order to gain the skills and technique to stand behind the 500-degree grill and effortlessly flip a fork and spatula into the air in perfect rhythm.
  55. Master Showmanship. Our chefs aren’t in the back of the kitchen, they are the stars of the show.

Sense a crave? Learn more or make a reservation today. https://www.benihana.com/reservations/