Sad, grew up going here in Dana as a kid. As did many of the people who grew up down here. They have fallen off. As a family of four with a reservation they sat us in the back forgot to serve the main soup and salad and then when they are full of people at other tables they have a trainee do the cooking who doesn't engage or communicate. Rushed through. Don't take your kids for birthday dinner sadly. Waste of time and money. read more

Best teppan restaurant in OC. Make sure that you order extra ginger sauce with your meal!

Food (4/5 stars): I'm a sucker for teppanyaki -- great meal and entertainment! It's not as good as Benihana, but still worth trying Experience (5/5 stars): * Price: kinda pricey, but worth * Wait Time: not too bad * Service: good and friendly * Parking: there's a parking lot * Ambiance: it's all about the entertainment here! read more

Ichibiri - Chicken Teriyaki - Sushi Bars Near Me - Dana Point, California

If you love teppanyaki, but dislike the corporate feel of Benihana, you'll love Ichibiri. I grew up going to Ichibiri for teppanyaki and hadn't been back in decades. I wasn't disappointed and found the servers and chefs to be friendly and attentive. The restaurant was bustling and clean. As with most teppanyaki places the prices are a little high, but you're paying for the entertainment and a "private" chef. I got the chicken teriyaki and halibut with the fried rice. The food tasted fresh, cooked perfectly, and nicely seasoned. Although they use plenty of butter, I found the food to not be overly greasy. I found it to be better tasting than most of my Benihana experiences as well. read more

Ichibiri - Fried rice and onion volcano - Sushi Bars Near Me - Dana Point, California

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terrible we were running 5 mins late and they refused to hold are table for extra 5 mins terrible terrible it was for my grandpas 80 birthday they deserve to go out of business read more

Fantastic lunch special menu. Their salad with the orange dressing is phenomenal. I highly recommend the beef teriyaki.

We always have the best time when we come here. The chefs are so good at keeping the little ones engaged! 10/10 recommend

Love Ichibiri, always have, always will. We've been eating here for 10 years. Love the Teppan. Not big on Sushi at all. Love the soup, salad, pot stickers and the mixed tempura. read more

Tasteless, not Japanese, extremely expensive for what you get. Plastic cups, chipped miso bowls, and extremely large portions are a dead giveaway. Do not waste your money. read more

Reliable and delicious teppanyaki at a reasonable price point. Highly recommend the steak/shrimp combo or the steak/chicken combo.

We wish this was better. We actually tried this twice on our vacation and they are so not nice about vegans. The first time we were told we had to have butter they cooked our tofu right next to the steak and lots of cross-contamination we were charged extra for Sriracha, it's expensive and poor quality service and very average food, the salad dressing was water down. They are very cheap about everything but charge a lot if you have allergies or food preferences do not go here they don't care. read more

Everything was wonderful! The wait took a little while, but it was worth the wait! Recommend if you like a more authentic Tepenake experience (it reminded me of Sho-gun in Mission Viejo... since it closed, I haven't found a Tepenake place that I like as much that is nearby). read more

Ichibiri - Happy Lunar New Year and early Valentine's Day! - Sushi Bars Near Me - Dana Point, California

Was my first time, and truly a new experience. I have to say the customer service is top notch and the facility is clean. I would order here again read more

So much fun with friends! A nice little gem hidden in Dana Point. Fun, good food, and extremely reasonable prices. I will definitely look forward to coming back again! read more

Ichibiri - Sushi Bars Near Me - Dana Point, California

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I haven't been here in ages. One of our family members really wanted to go and we reluctantly went. I'm not a fan of teppanyaki because I like to eat all my food together but each part is cooked separately in front of you. We came early at 5 pm so we were able to take advantage of early bird pricing. Service was very good. She was quick bringing out beverages and good at keeping up with refills. Our chef was a nice man and cooked 7 meals fairly quickly. The potion for early bird is smaller but it was still a ton of food so the regular portion is gigantic! It can definitely be shared or saved for leftovers. We were able to order, eat and be done in about an hour which is crazy good! They didn't take forever to give us the bill. Overall a good experience and totally fine for kids. read more

Ichibiri - Teppanyaki - Sushi Bars Near Me - Dana Point, California

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Hands down one of the best Teppanyaki grills in SoCal, been open for 30 plus years and always has the best food!!! The whole experience from the minute you walk in the door is just a good time, staff is super friendly, the atmosphere is great and the food is always excellent! If you don't want to sit at one of the large grill's you can ordered anything off the menu in the normal seating area by the sushi bar. read more

Terrible food quality, the lady who was I believe the owner tried to add more expenses than what was on there and the food which I tasted was definitely gone bad. Overall terrible experience, would not recommend read more

We were staying at the Waldorf Astoria Monarch Beach for a few nights and wanted something other than the restaurants at the hotel. Found this restaurant through Yelp. It was really yummy. Prices were good - I'd go again. read more

Very prompt service after being seated at teppanyaki grill. Quite a show the chef puts on. Food was fresh & cooked to perfection. Birthday boy was acknowledged with a small bowl of ice cream as the lighted tambourine kept time to the birthday song. read more

Worst service time. It's a very unfortunate experience. My husband and I wanted to celebrate and I love teppan grills. We don't get to go out much because we have 9 month old and I'm pregnant so going out is a luxury for us. We were so excited to come out to eat. We have never been here so we made reservations for 7pm. We got there a little before 7pm. When we arrived we thought it was a cute, cozy type of place. It felt very warm and appeared family friendly. We were so happy. But, no one was at the front to greet us. We were standing there waiting for service. About 20 minutes later someone comes and greets us and asks if have reservations and then they seat us. A little while later they seat another couple in our table. And we all sat there for another 40 minutes with no service. No drinks! Nothing. Finally someone came and asked for our drink order and appetizers. Yet no drinks or appetizers arrived. At about 1.5 hours of waiting we got up and left as did the other people at our table. It was busy but that is not excuse to wait 1.5 hours for a drink of water that never arrived. I'm upset they wasted 1.5 hours of my time. I'm upset at how much I was looking forward to eating here and we are still extremely hungry, yet not even a glass of water arrived. This was supposed to be an amazing night of celebration for my husband and me. Yet here we are at home cooking steaks. I'm pregnant and starving. It is so disappointing. I'm really upset. read more

Everything! The food was amazing, but the service was more than disappointing. We decided to make a reservation for our 41st wedding anniversary, big mistake. We were seated with a group of young men from Dana Hills High School celebrating Home Coming. They were all very respectful and we had some good conversations. Soup and salad were served in a timely manner. The boys we sat with all ordered water as they were too too young to order alcohol. The chef was amazing but the waitress went MIA. She never came back to see if anyone needed refills, their water, my husbands coke, or my wine. She never delivered the checks, so the boys we were seated with got up and went to the hostess to pay their bill. We were left sitting there waiting for our check. She never returned. The bus boy came to clear the table and we asked for the waitress. Never came. Asked for the manager, a young man came and we expressed our concerns. He was hesitant to do anything to resolve the situation. We live in Ocean Ranch, Laguna Niguel. We are a college educated professional couple. We have lived here for 25 years and have the means to eat in the best restaurants in Orange County. Seriously disappointed with the poor service we received tonight. Will not be returning to this restaurant any time soon. read more

Our go to hibachi place. Great food, and good portions!! You for sure get more bang for your back here than Benihana. This place is better than the reviews give it credit for! read more

This is by far the best sushi I've ever had. We came in on a week night and sat at the sushi bar right away, it was immediately very welcoming, the gentleman preparing the sushi has clearly been doing this for years and has perfected it. The flavor combinations were spot on, the fish tasted fresh and the price was reasonable for good quality sushi in southern California. The wait staff was very friendly and fast. There was a family at the table in the other portion of the restaurant celebrating a birthday for what looked to be a 2 year old, someone came out with a guitar, sang happy birthday and a few other songs to the little girl, they seem to be family oriented. All around a 10/10 (would recommend to a friend) experience. read more

Ichibiri - Sushi Bars Near Me - Dana Point, California

Very Noisy and food wasn't that good. Found it a bit greasy and very salty. I know many reviews are excellent so maybe we just picked a bad night. read more

SO delicious! We came for the sushi and it did not disappoint. Every roll we got was delicious. Sake was good. Service was fast and friendly. Will have to try the teppan next time. We did not have to wait for a table on a Saturday night, though the teppan area did look busier. I already can't wait to come back. read more

What a find! We were craving Hibachi Japanese and we came across Ichibiri Japanese Restaurant in a shopping center in Monarch Bay. Don't let the location fool you - it was so clean and organized inside. They also have a sushi bar and tables if you aren't interested in the grill experience. Plenty of friendly staff on a Friday night and no hesitation to seat us at the grill even though we were going to be the only two at that table. The Chef was all in and the food was absolutely delicious. Portions were huge and prices were reasonable what you were served - we took leftovers home. They will also allow sharing for a small fee. You can't go wrong here- can't wait to go back read more

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My family loves to go to this place. The teppan can be very entertaining depending on the chef that you get. All of the food is super tasty, tho the sushi is a little expensive. The early bird special is a good deal too. This is our go to with guests that have kids and get togethers. Good times! read more

It's really not fair that this place has a 3.5 rating. I wish I could give it a 4.5 because I would say that's most accurate. There's a place in Phoenix called Ah So which edges this out in better sauces and salad. They have a happy hour special which is really a great deal for slightly smaller portions - which is still plenty. Had the filet and shrimp and it was exactly what I expected. Service was great. Location is convenient for locals but would be tricky for out of Towner's to get to on the PCH in Dana Point. read more

This restaurant has a fun atmosphere, good food and friendly staff! Definitely coming back!

It's surprisingly hard to find good teppanyaki in this part of OC. These guys do it up.

Great food, fun environment!!! A family favorite! They offer early bird specials and the Tappan grill is outstanding.

The food was fine but came out lukewarm. This is the worst service I have had in a long time. The waitress did not care about our dietary restrictions and gave us meat someone in my party cannot eat meat/fish. I would recommend going to Riptide in Mission Viejo or Benihana in Newport Beach. read more

I am a massive fan of this place and have been since I was a kid. Would highly suggest this place. Teppanyaki is where it's at though they have sushi, etc. as well. The service isn't the fastest, but they're usually packed so it completely makes sense. The waitresses are the best and the chefs are always a blast. Never a bad time (unless they're too busy for us to be seated!). It's usually a little loud in there due to the crowds, so be ready to repeat yourselves within your conversations! One thing I would change is the situation with the teppanyaki to-go orders - They're significantly smaller than the in-person orders but the exact same price. Some nights I don't have as much time but would still like the food, but never order their food to-go as the portion size is just so insanely different. read more

I've been going to this location since 2007. They have Awesome food every time! Teppanyaki style and Good sushi! Nice size pieces. You don't feel like they are super small or anything. They have good drinks! Heavy pours! Mai tai's are especially good! Staff is super friendly!! Just go early if you can. Just 2 cons! If you don't have your full party there don't bother trying to get seated. They will not do it. Also once you do get seated be prepared to wait a long time. Recently our entire table didn't get serviced for the first 30 mins of us getting there. No one checked on us for water or anything.I got up and asked the bar for waters since the kids needed something. But we know going there once they come take your drink order just have them do your meal order! It speeds up the process. Overall great place to eat!! read more

Waited for 45 minutes after our reservation time. Waitress took forever to take our order. When our hibachi chef came he tossed rice at my head. Food was incredibly mid. Would not reccomend coming here unless your looking for disappointment. Go to Benihana, they have much better food and service. PS. Bring cash as there is a credit card surcharge. read more

We live in San Juan and this is the closest teppanyaki restaurant. We took our daughter here to celebrate her birthday and we had a great time. The place was full of people and had a few other birthday parties so the energy was great! Everyone joined in singing happy birthday to all parties. It made it a fun night. Our service was very good and attentive, so I give 5 stars for our servers and our chef. The 2 star rating is for the food. It was very disappointing from start to finish. The overall taste wasn't very good, especially disappointing was my pricey halibut fillet which was very dry. read more

Our family loves this place. Fun dinner spot. We enjoy the food by the Teppan. The restaurant does seem like it needs an update or renovation, looks kind of old and run down. Otherwise it's great! read more

Went here because Rip Tide was booked for the night, and I'm so glad it was! I called and was able to make a reservation for the Teppan bar an hour before I arrived. It was very crowded when I got there, which was a good sign for me since I had never been before. My boyfriend and I were sat in the back section where it took about 30 minutes from the time being sat to the time the Cook arrived to begin the show. It was quite a long time, but I knew it was because it was so busy. I'm glad they provide the soup and salad prior. The soup was pretty much just broth with a few, and I mean a few, pieces of cilantro. But, that's not what I came there for. The cook we had did not do most of the fun tricks and things, but he did make the notorious volcano and tossed small rice balls to each of us to catch which was enough for me. The food though, which is what I came there for, was delectable! The meal came with fried rice, chow mien, cooked vegetables, a few shrimp pieces, and the meat! I ordered a 2 meat combo, rib eye and teriyaki chicken. They were both so good. They do charge a $5 split charge, but rip tide is $6, so I knew it was coming. Overall, I no longer think I will be going to Rip tide because this restaurant was cheaper, we received more food, and the food that was made was just as good! Yes, the restaurant is quite small, but it is all about t read more

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what an awful experience... the food has gone down substantially from all the past 7yrs i've been coming here. the chef oscar was as rude as can be and im still puzzled as to why. never a good experience when you go out to enjoy and it just sucks from every angle- i won't be back read more

Ok not sure whats going on here but it seems like a management problem that isn't getting any better. After reading the reviews i can see why we had a difficult time here tonight before getting fed up and leaving to go to a different restaurant. Me and my wife wanted to try this place out because anybody who reads my reviews or follows me knows im a diehard sushi Japanese food loving guy. I walked in and wasn't greeted for about a good 5 minutes until i walked up and had to interrupt the guy at the reservation stand and ask him for a table for 2 and i gave him my name, he wrote it down and then stuffed the paper underneath a shelf or drawer then said it would be a 5-10 minute wait. Well that 5-10 minutes turned into 25 minutes and i got up and asked why we have been just sitting and waiting while other couples were just walking in and being seated after just a couple of minutes waiting! I wasn't given a answer she just walked away. Yes it was crowded but there was empty clean tables and empty dirty tables that weren't getting cleaned that I noticed while observing for 25 minutes. I saw people sitting at there tables turning around looking for a server waving their hands trying to get someone's attention. After 30 minutes of waiting and being ignored i got up and told my wife we were leaving this hole! Im wondering if Ichibiri means "Your On Your Own" in Japanese! read more

Ichibiri - Surfboard log! - Sushi Bars Near Me - Dana Point, California