Samurai Sushi & Hibachi: User Reviews

We got the LivingSocial deal ($20 for $40 worth of food) and we took a trip out last night.

We were seated right away and opted for the hibachi (yes, it's actually teppanyaki.) We got our drinks quickly, and our soup came fast, hot and tasty. The sushi rolls came soon after - decent, but overpriced.

The chef was funny and we enjoyed the show for the most part. My husband thought using the small doll "pee pee" to put a fire out was funny but I thought it was a little weird. Whatever.

The steak was darn near perfect in doneness but the chicken was a little dry. Both were lacking in flavor. Also, the whole dish had too much oil.

The service was good but not fantastic.

After the tip and $40 off, we spent about $45. Again, it was a good dinner, but not $85 normal price good.

Overall, I'd say it was a decent experience - a nice night out for the hubby and I. I doubt we'll be back though - it just cost too much for what we got, and there are better options out there.

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I understand that sometimes restaurants have unfortunate events that are out of their control, but this one was so bad that I needed to write about it. I made reservations for 2 on Sat., December 18th for 7:00. We got there a little early and were seated rather quickly. We didn't get drinks until 7:45 and didn't get our food until 8:45. Our sushi came AFTER the food was being cooked at the Hibachi grill instead of as an appetizer. There must have been some grillers who quit/didn't show up because for 12 grills there was only 2 people grilling, one happened to be the owner who had to jump in last minute. The waitress was so overwhelmed as they ran out of numerous items on the menu that she didn't bring drinks for 45 minutes. She forgot to put in our sushi order 3 times. The food was "so-so". There were 3 other people complaining about something or other to the owner who was trying to grill at the same time. I will never go back to Samurai again even if this isn't how normal nights are.

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Fantastic maki combinations! Ambiance is very nice, modern jazz music and plenty of open seating. I've been eating here since they opened.
The previous reviews are either at the the wrong restaurant or hicks from the sticks. Miyabi has higher grade sushi, but Samurai is not far below, and i come to
Samurai for the maki, not the sashimi.
This is a great place for sushi and fun with family and friends!

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Our group visited this restaurant on 7/7/2010. The ambiance and decor was par for the course for a jordan creek area restaurant, no surprise there. We were seated in fairly short order as it wasn't crowded. Drinks were served fairly quickly and were good, although overpriced....$4 for a bottle of Sam Adams is ridiculous in Iowa. The server informed about half of our group what the specials were, leaving us 'first timers' who couldn't hear her to fend for ourselves.
Our orders consisted primarily of Sushi, some of the japanese fried rice variants, and one ordered the Katsu chicken. This particular dish was, simply put, CRAP: Two batter coated deep fried chicken breasts over a bed of lettuce. Seriously??? KFC could've done a better job than this! Also it was COLD--when this was pointed out to the waitress, she actually TOUCHED THE FOOD with her finger and told the diner that it wasn't cold but she would have it remade--yeah, while everyone else at our table was already eating??? Wow. Overall, portion size was TINY!!! You'd get nearly 3 times the fried rice at say, Thai Flavors, and larger rolls at just about every other sushi place in town. Flavor was bland at best, even the Miso soup was highly forgettable. Seriously, there are far better restaurants than this place.

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I have worked in the food service industry for most of my life and have never really complained about any meal; until now. Having family that owns an Asian restaurant elsewhere in Iowa (albeit not Japanese) I have a basic concept of what good Asian food and decent service is. I received none of the above at Samurai. The sushi was mediocre and overpriced, and the hibachi food was overpriced, tasteless, and full of oil. The portions were also extremely small! And, to top off the terrible value, we did not even receive our miso soup or salad before the meal. Service was awful. The server and chef made me feel like I was a burden to them. I should have just made some fried rice at home instead. Don't waste your money on this place, there is far better fare for your money in Des Moines.

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The previous reviews are very interesting.

My Wife and i went to Samurai for a quick bite before a movie on Friday night. We got there at 5:30 and there were probably 5 other tables so the service was impeccable. Everything was prompt and the server even recommended a dish that turned out to be our favorite.

The restaurant is very boring looking in my opinion, I felt like i was in a warehouse.

We ordered 2 salads, 1 regular sushi roll, 1 specialty roll, and 2 sashimi. With 2 beers the total came to $62 which i thought was outrageous.

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My wife, daughter and me had an early morning visit to the Porcelain Goddess. Same complain watery in the caboose area... we all had the fried rice, daughter and me had the filet migon, and wife had the New York steak. IF one of us had the problems then we could say we probably needed to go, but all three of us, that is a coincidence..

I do miss however, the "cook the steak, steak, steak, cook the steak, steak.." mantra.

They seriously need to improve on their quality. The only revenge I got was to suggest on the wife she should have ordered the salmon skin salad... She turned green and then ordered me not to say another word because she was driving....

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We went there for a late night dinner. Seated right away but had the feeling that we were not really welcome for the grill. However we tried. My daughter wanted the Japanese soda and asked for a glass. the waitress said she couldn't have one and would have to drink out of the bottle. The chef came in... Chinese, not Japanese, but if he can cook, who cares. He rushed through the service, with the exception of large amount of alcohol he poured on the grill and set fire to it, it nearly burned my wife 's face... no apology. Then he tried to get me to drink some sake out of a plastic bottle from hell. The sauces were weak almost watery.. and the conversation from the chef was oh my god the person kept saying :steak, steak, steak, steak, steak.... until I wanted to reach across the grill and slap him. The fried rice was terrible, yup eggs, and some seafood sauce dumped in and very eggy. 78 dollars later, i was ready to leave. It is not Ohana or Benny Hanna or Garfield (Hawaii) it is a poor man's grill . You'd think by now the would have something better going on. IF you say you are open until 10:30,then by god you better be serving at 9:00 like you would at 6:00.
I will not be returning in this the next life... maybe the owner has a concept, but his service folks are clueless. They need to do some serious thinking about what they serve to get those rich folks across the street to want to eat there. I 'd rather have had a baked potato than endure that again

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Im shocked by some of the negative views of this place. We had a wonderful experience! I was surprised at the delicious and fresh sushi and the staff was great. Go on a Monday night-all you can eat for $25. My only complaint was that I left very uncomfortably full!

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I love how half the reviews complain about having to wait a whole 30 minutes to get there food on an all-you-can-eat Sushi night when the place is packed! What did you expect? The food would be ready in five minutes? You ordered 6 rolls and your order is behind the other 15 tables who ordered ahead of you! Of course it's going to take a little bit of time!

Also about the service... Well can anyone tell me of any place they have ever been too where they are be served by Asian people with limited English skills that the service has been exceptional? It kinda comes with ther territory. It like going to a bar-b-que restaurant in the ghetto and expecting wonderful service as well. You don't get. You kind of have to trade off the exceptional food for the lack of service. If you want some annoying, attentive server strung out on meth keep going to Friday's, Applebee's or Olive Garden and then eat your terrible factory made dinner by a bunch illegal Mexicans in the kitchen.

I love the other complaints on here like, "The restaurant is too big/vast," or "Too much space!" What? So you would pefer some cramped sushi place like Taki where other tables are practically sitting on you lap?

Also people complain about the prices, do you expect a roll that is a foot long, wide as a can a pop, with five different fishes and two veggies in it to be four dollars? The "whopping" price of $12 for a roll that size should be expected.

This place is hands down the best sushi place in town. The Amazing roll is the best sushi roll in town.

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