Iron Chef — Restaurant in Puyallup

I could honestly cry from how miserable this experience was. My wife and I were so excited to try Iron Chef Steakhouse for her birthday—we even made a reservation. But from the moment we were seated, things just started going downhill fast.

Our waitress approached us with an awkward, almost uncomfortable energy that set a strange tone for the night. The menu was surprisingly small, but we figured we'd share a steak and scallop combo with noodles—something we've done at other teppanyaki-style places without issue. Right away, the waitress made sure to point out the $7 sharing fee, which felt a little unnecessary but whatever, we were still hopeful.

Then we waited. And waited. Starving. Eventually the chef came out—talked way too much and kind of killed the vibe. It felt like a show for him, not for us. And here’s where things started to feel off: he began cooking for the other family at our table first. Not sure if it was because they ordered full meals, but it definitely felt like we were being treated differently.

Then came the whole "catch the broccoli in your mouth" bit. I missed a few times and clearly wasn’t into it—but he just kept going. At some point it stopped being fun and just felt awkward.

The portion of noodles we got was laughable. It was smaller than a kid’s portion and we were expected to split that between two hungry adults? The steak and scallops were divided too, but with barely any noodles, the meal was all grease and no balance. On top of that, the steak wasn’t cooked properly and the scallops were underdone. Both my wife and I felt sick the entire night after.

Despite leaving almost everything on our plates, they were quick to clear them, making us feel rushed. Even the ice cream for my wife's birthday was underwhelming—a single tiny scoop with a candle stuck in it. No song, no gesture, nothing that made it feel special. Just something slapped together and clearly not done with care.

Then came the final insult—the bill. We were charged an unexpected $5 upcharge for the noodles the waitress never mentioned. Then, after running my card, she came back and said, “Oops, forgot to charge you the $7 sharing fee.” So now I’m questioning whether the $5 charge was real at all. It felt shady, dishonest, and just the cherry on top of a frustrating night.

Oh—and the strawberry lemonade? Disgusting.

All in all, for one tiny piece of steak, a couple of scallops, some vegetables (mostly onions), and a laughably small scoop of noodles—with all the upcharges—it came out to nearly $70. SEVENTY DOLLARS. And we left hungry, sick, and mad. That price would’ve been fine if the food, service, or experience were even remotely good—but it was just insult after insult.

We left heartbroken that this was how my wife’s birthday turned out. I rarely write reviews, but this was hands-down one of the worst dining experiences I’ve ever had. Save yourself the money, the stomach ache,...

On 15 June 2017 for dinner with my family that was visiting from the East Coast to have dinner at the Iron Chef, total count of us was 12 adults and 2 children. The chef came out and started cooking the beans (off to the right side), Veggies, and rice. The chief did a trick with raw eggs and was thrown to my sister, she didn't catch it and the egg went all over the floor. No clean up or another egg came out to be put in the rice. In the mix of our group there is someone that can't have gluten which was known. Chief from New York City didn't cook or had available enough rice or Veggies for the group of 12. WHY? My daughter in-law that is gluten free had her food cook on the same grill and happen to get 1/2 the amount of food then the rest of us. When cooking for someone that is gluten free you do not cross contaminated. She happen to get sick the next day and that not fun. Now we are having our Steaks cooked by the same chief, he doesn't ask how we wanted it until they were already on the grill, then he was one short. Now lets go back to the beans which are still cooking on the right side of the grill and never been stirred yet. After all the dinners were made chief started cooking our shrimp appetizer and my sister was asked to catch the piece of shrimp but she said NO because she doesn't like seafood. When this process was done he went to put two shrimp on her plate and told him again NO but he proceeded to put it on her plate. By putting this shrimp on her plate she wouldn't finish eating her dinner because it touch her other food. My sister told him she doesn't like shrimp! Why are we getting our appetizer last? I did complain because the meal cost average of $27.99 per person and having the service suck, wasn't worth the money. Iron Chief when you have a person that is Gluten free they shouldn't get half the portions or cooked on the same grill. If you happen to get half portions you would complain as well and if you got sick too. The waitress told me the manager wasn't here and ask if she could call her because it was bad service. Remind you there waitress had no customer services. Waitress talk to the manger on the cell phone but I wasn't able to talk. Manager gave us 10% off the bill but three bills already was getting 10% because they are military. Waitress even told me that the manager said "it he said she said on the service" REALLY. I usually go to Japanese Steak house in Olympia but we all were tired and what something close to home. I will not be going there or bring anyone to this restaurant. Thanks for only the 10% off, that...

We have been to this Hibachi restaurant several times for the past 10 years, about once per month. When COVID hit, we were concerned about how their business was doing given a majority of the chefs are great. For the last 10 years, the number of bad experiences we could count on one hand. What restaurant doesn’t have an off day? The experience always differs each time and thats what we enjoyed.

However, tonight we dined. Seated per normal and the staff was great per usual. Until it came to one item. We ordered a side of garlic for both my mother and I. Normally, and for the past few years, every chef has always cooked the garlic before moving onto the vegetable and meat. Every time. Tonight, however, the chef blended only one serving of garlic into the vegetables, which were served to everyone. This was after asking, what we thought, if it would be ok to cook the garlic after the rest of the meal. Because of the required masks the staff have to wear, it makes it difficult to understand any speaking. When we did not get the sautéed garlic, we flagged it ask why we had not gotten the garlic which is an extra cost. He explained he had mixed it in with the vegetables which was served to the rest of the group. I looked through my plate and found no garlic present any where on my plate. Same with my mothers.

The lady serving drinks and clearing tables told him to go ahead and cook the garlic, which he dumped a full serving onto the grill. She brought out the second serving. When I approached the owner after paying inquiring why had he thought it was ok to originally mix it in with the vegetables at the start, I was met with defensiveness and her denying he had done anything wrong. She claimed she watched him put the original order of garlic on the plate and we had received a second order each. I told her that no, he had not and it wasn’t until the end of the meal that we got the garlic. She continued to argue.

10 years of spending in excess of $100 a meal, often times with $20 tips to the cooks, and additional tips to the servers. Tonight, we only paid for the meal and will not be back. No matter the cost of the item, this should not be shared with the rest of the group if they did...