Hibachi Express — Restaurant in Gainesville

Bland and insipid. Yes, I got a lot of food for the $23 I spent, but it was not particularly GOOD food. The steamed dumplings were heavy, better than frozen grocery store dumplings, and average by Gainesville standards I guess, but no comparison to Bentos off Jimmy Carter. The hibachi steak was overcooked, as were the vegitables. The 'fried' rice, if you can even call it that, was pale, bland, only had a tiny bit of egg and nothing else in it. The yum yum sauce is bought, not house made, and despite what the packaging says it is not "the best ever", it tastes like chemicals and is bland. Regarding service: At the register there is a sign saying 'Extra yum yum sauce .58 cents'. It also says minimum $5.00 for credit card charges. I told the guy TWICE that I wanted extra yum yum sauce. While waiting for our order to cook I checked the receipt, and sure enough, he hadn't rung up extra sauce. When I collected the order I asked if it had my extra yum yum sauce in it, ready for a fight. I was pleasantly surprised when he ran and grabbed an extra sauce and put it in the bag. Until I got home and discovered that the one he put in the bag was the ONLY one in the bag. If I had not requested my 'extra' at check out, I would have gotten none. And despite the lackluster appeal of the prepackaged sauce, the bland overcooked food would have been inedible without it. Forgot to mention the chicken egg roll. WORST EGGROLL I HAVE EVER EATEN IN MY ENTIRE...

I have only gone through the drive through, but their freshly cooked food never fails my expectations. Plenty of food, one plate could easily be split up in 3 meals. I usually order the steak, shrimp and chicken. The steak is perfectly cooked, chicken is never dry and I can never complain about shrimp. If you get their vegetables, they can be a bit soggy the next day. I've started to order without vegetables and will probably continue to do so. I've been wanting to try their scallops but I am very particular when it comes to eating them as if they're overcooked, they tend to be chewy and it's a turn off. Love their steak options and the rice is delicious. I ordered their chicken eggroll the other day and was super happy with the crispiness (not burnt). For the amount of food and options, the 3 meat and eggroll ran me around $11, again enough food for 3 meals....

I had the hibachi steak. A half order is a perfect lunch portion. The steak was cooked good and wasn't bad at all. The vegetables served with it were good, maybe heavier on the onions than the other vegetables, but I think that's about anywhere.

The rice was good and their yellow sauce wasn't bad. The chicken egg roll was a little dry and the outside was cooked a little too much, but overall want bad.

I don't think they use their A/C system because it was hot in there the entire time. Not much for atmosphere, but there was a singular fish in a tank by the door that I have since named Johnny. He looked like he could use another partner or 2 in the tank and some more decoration.

I will definitely return for...