Kaika Teppanyaki Asian Fusion — Restaurant in Jacksonville

UPDATE: Timothy Noble (owner/manager?) swiftly reached out to me with a very apologetic email insisting that he offer a gift card so that he could try to make it right. We accepted and were blown away by the contrast of this visit versus our last! We were greeted promptly by Timothy as we entered the restaurant. He sat our family of four at a hibachi grill within minutes of our arrival. The service and food were of the caliber we were used to from visits previous to the last. Megan did not appear to be employed there anymore. Thank you, Timothy, for turning a bad lemon into a redeeming lemonade! We thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of this visit and will be returning. We greatly appreciate the measures you have taken to ensure that we have an exceptional dining experience at our neighborhood Hibachi restaurant. Wishing you and Kaika continual success!

My family and I dined here several times before, no complaints, just praises; but today was altogether different. Negativity is not in my nature, but I was so shook by our experience today that I can’t NOT say anything, especially since everyone I know has strongly urged me to share.

My son graduated kindergarten today and wanted his favorite meal—hibachi. I called the restaurant at noon to ask if a reservation for hibachi lunch was necessary. Megan said, “yes, a reservation is definitely needed! We just have to have two for a chef to come out and everyone has to be present to be seated. Our tables are full right now and hibachi ends at 2pm.” She said much more but this sums it up, verbatim. I made the reservation for 1:30pm for 2 people.

At 1:15pm, we walked into an empty restaurant, save one couple at a hibachi table. Megan was at the host stand on a personal call on her cellphone. She finished her call and got around to acknowledging me. I say, “hello, we are here for the 1:30pm hibachi reservation.” Megan says, “Okay, yeh.” She continues to talk about personal subject matter to another female worker who had just begun sweeping the foyer. My son and I sat in the front to wait for the table, as we were not given any instruction otherwise. After about 10, maybe 15 minutes, I asked her when we’d be seated. She told me we had to wait for others who wanted hibachi to come in before we could be seated. I was puzzled: my son and I together are two people here yet we are seemingly ignored and refused business. I ask again, “do you think it’s worth waiting a while longer for other people to show up so we can be served?” Megan goes into how she doesn’t know, it’s a restaurant, and it could pop off at any time. It wasn’t until the other female worker mentioned that my son and I could sit and eat the lunch hibachi portion together right away that Megan actually agreed to that effect. By that time, I was overwhelmed with her talking over me and evading every question I had. She admitted to making my reservation for two and for advising me not to come in sooner since the tables were apparently full, but still didn’t take the initiative to seat us. I said I guess we’ll just leave since nothing I said resulted in us being escorted to a table. So, we went down the road to eat elsewhere.

It just didn’t sit right with me, the whole strange experience. So, I called the restaurant and asked to speak to the manager. Guess who? Megan. She immediately starts with “I already contacted the owner and told them what happened. I have witnesses who heard me tell you everything. You can come back to the restaurant and I can seat you now. We just sat some people for hibachi.”

She called the owner, claiming witnesses because she was trying to cover her tail! She knew what she had done and wanted to plead her case, anticipating that I would give feedback. Mind you, the only other person near us during the face-face interaction was the other female worker who confirmed that I could have been seated earlier...

Giving Kaika five stars because it has everything you would want at a teppanyaki restaurant with a few surprises. First of all, this restaurant is in a shopping plaza, which meant there were plenty of parking out front. I was very glad to find out we didn't have to circle around for street parking. Second of all, the restaurant is beautiful. I stopped several times during dinner to enjoy the different details of the interior decor. Third of all, the service was excellent. Not only was our server very attentive, but the hibachi chef was also very funny and entertaining. We took advantage of the Yelp check in to get free hot sake. Everybody got a small hot sake. What a great way to start the meal.

There is a bar and dining section inside if you didn't want to sit at a hibachi table. The cocktail selection has some fun offerings. The most pleasant surprise, were the noodles that came with the hibachi meals. Not only do you automatically get fried rice at no up charge, you also get a portion of teppan noodles at the end of the meal. SCORE!!! I was beyond excited to learn this from our server. Option of miso or onion/mushroom soup. House salad can be topped off with their ginger dressing or ranch. I decided to order the scallop and steak combo. Everything tasted good to me. Our chef also tossed broccoli in the air for my table to catch. Fun times.

I picked this for dinner because it was my friend's birthday. We wanted to surprise her with a cake at the end of dinner. Our hostess helped us store the cake in the fridge while our server helped take it out lit with candles we prepared when it was singing time. Not only that, the birthday friend's boyfriend proposed to her, which was a complete surprise to me. The restaurant gave us a free bottle of champagne for a group to enjoy a toast. Our chef even came back out and sang a song to congratulate them accompanied by his ukulele....! Palm on face!

Was it because I went with good friends that made this so enjoyable? Was it because it was my friend's birthday? Was it because I also got to witness her engagement? Was it just because the food and service was great? I would have to say all of the above. Overall this was a great restaurant if you're looking for a fun time or celebrating...

My dinner tonight was ruined by a server named Megan (Meghan?). She asked for my order, then as I began telling her my order, she turned to another person and asked for their order; the person wasn't part of our party/family. I said, "Excuse me, I wasn't finished." When I requested my food cooked without sauce, she said that everyone at the table would have to agree to having no sauce. I attempted to explain that I have had my food without sauce in the past. She made a 'disgusted' face, and said that "The chefs are new, and it's up to them." I said, "Never mind; I don't need to have anything else". I had ordered an appetizer. Instead of leaving it at that, she continued to make excuses, saying that I could speak to the chef, that she would speak to the chef, and generally making a big deal out of my decision to not order an entree. I raised my voice and said, "ENOUGH. Drop the subject!" Apparently, she didn't care that I might be allergic to the sauce, or that I might not be able to have the sauce due to a medical condition, nor was it any of her business why I didn't want sauce. Whatever the reason for my not wanting sauce on my food, it was not a subject for extended discussion whilst seven people were waiting to order. Instead of purchasing a full dinner, I had a soft drink ($3.50) and an appetizer ($7.00). The rest of the adults in our party had $35.00 worth of food, each. Lost revenue for the restaurant. I added a hefty tip to the payment...I paid forour party's meal... which she may think was an apology from me. It was not. She needs to receive more training, so that she doesn't cost the restaurant customers. I sincerely hope that she's new and tonight was the result of inexperience. Although my family loves Hibachi, I won't return. Management can...