Aoki Teppanyaki Waikiki — Restaurant in Honolulu

Husband and I were really excited to try this place out while staying at the Hilton. The prices are high but that’s to be expected when you’re dining out in Waikiki. My issue is that the prices don’t reflect what you receive/quality of the food. I ordered the filet mignon entree that comes with shrimp appetizer, appetizer salad, grilled veggies and ice cream dessert. Sounded awesome! I also added on the scallops for an additional $12. My husband ordered a drink that never came, but that didn’t bother either of us really. Mistakes happen, and as long as we weren’t being charged for it we were cool. The grilled veggies weren’t what either of us expected. It was just zucchini, onions and bean sprouts. It wasn’t bad but it seemed like an odd combination.

I asked for my filet to be done medium rare which is a temperature I order all the time at steakhouses. It came out straight up raw and was running with blood all over my plate. It ended up killing my appetite to see everything on my plate swimming in blood. The salad was not tossed at all and just had a big dollop of thick dressing sitting on top of the lettuce so you have to mix it yourself. It wasn’t a good or really even an acceptable presentation for a bill for 2 coming out to $100+. It just felt really subpar and just lazy. Another customer at my table ordered the scallop add on as well and got 5 full scallops. After 10 minutes I asked our server if they had forgotten my scallops since it seemed everyone got their add ons but me. I was told that mine was still coming. The chef eventually put one and 1/2 scallops on the grill and that’s one I got (I’m not kidding). One and a half??? What is that? The other girl literally got 5 full scallops served to her right in front of my face. We absolutely shouldn’t have been charged a full $12 for not even 2 scallops. I was really appalled by that.

The chef was friendly and personable which is why I’m not giving one star. Overall the food is under seasoned and either overcooked (shrimp) or extremely undercooked (filet). The portion sizes do not reflect the high prices. But what really took it over the edge for me was the fact that the scallops portion that I received was SO inconsistent with what another customer at my table had received and I was still charged the full price. Really wish we had gone elsewhere for dinner.

Overall, I wouldn’t come here again and I can’t recommend...

I dined at this restaurant many times. In general the food, service and staff is very good and friendly. Tonite it was a horrible experience because of chef Mikey. Pretty much from the start it was apparent that he was acting with an air of authority and was trying to be funny but with an air of obnoxiousness. That continued and got worse as time went on. He flipped my bowl of fried rice although I asked him not to and he ended up dropping it over the table and onto my plate, made a mess and had to clean it up and of course put it back in the bowl for me to eat, which was not extremely appetizing. When I asked for more ginger sauce he thought it was ok to touch the part of my straw that goes into my mouth with his hand and pull it from my drink to put it into the container he serves it from, and said “why don’t you just stick it in there and drink it with a straw”. Totally inappropriate & obnoxious. I ordered filet mignon which I always do and because I like it well done I asked him to cut it in bigger pieces, to still have it come out nice & tender. All chefs I’ve had before gladly accommodate the request and it comes out very good. Not Mikey! He cut it the way he said he cuts it for everyone. He went thru cooking it and it looked shriveled and I knew it was going to be a problem. I guess he read my unhappy look on my face, and when it was all done he asked if I wanted a new steak. I said yes and we had to go thru it all again. Of course everyone else at the table was eating but me. The rest of my food was going cold due to Mikey thinking he knows best and ignoring the customer’s request. We had a couple more unpleasant exchanges, and then everyone was done, paid and left. I was all alone at the table eating my cold food because that’s what Mikey decided should happen even though this was MY dinner, not his, and I WAS THE PAYING CUSTOMER NOT HIM. It happened to also be my birthday dinner and this obnoxious chef thru his lack of culinary talent and plenty of attitude, ruined it for me. WHEN YOU PAY $80 FOR A DINNER YOU SHOULD ENJOY IT. I DIDN’T...

This was my first time at Aoki, but not my first Teppenyaki in Honolulu. We had a reservation on 17 Feb for dinner and there was no issues with that. Arrived a bit early and was seated immediately.

The menu was pretty straightforward but the prices seemed a bit higher than other comparable teppenyaki spots and their competitors. From other reviews and pictures from 7 months ago, their flagship special price went from $250 to now $500, however their other specials did not double in price.

Our server, Kelly, was great and very pleasant. She kept our waters filled, but none in our party received the advertised green tea. Apparently none of us wanted the tea because none of us asked for the tea.

The ambiance was nice and noisy (it is a teppenyaki place after all). All the plates seemed to be hand crafted and painted. No issues with cleanliness of glasses or plates and all the chopsticks are single serve wooden chopsticks.

The food and flavors were pretty standard and predictable for a teppenyaki place. Collectively we added several add ins, to include shrimp, scallops, and squid. The squid was probably our favorite as it was a nice thick slab that our chef cooked to perfection. The grill itself probably is not set high enough to get a proper sear on the scallops, but they were still cooked well, not overdone and dry. As other reviewers mentioned, they did have a

Our chef was the standout and the MVP. his name is Jet and incredibly he remembered me from when he cooked for me and my fiance 7 years ago when he worked at Kobe. We talked story and how things have been and how things have gone in the intervening 7 years. I wanted to buy him a beer because it was almost like find a lost friend.

We average going to a teppenyaki place once a year when family visit from the mainland. We have been to Tanaka of Tokyo more times than I can count. The only reason I can imagine coming back to Aoki is for a table with Jet...