Hibachi-San — Restaurant in Riverside

Located in the HUB, I first tried Hibachi-San's Poke bowl in January 2019. I had the vegetarian option with tofu, and the following week I enjoyed tofu, watermelon 🍉 and beets!

Next I discovered their musubi breakfast bowl, and had sweet egg for my protein (instead of spam). With a mix of white and brown rice, this became my go-to rice bowl! 🍳😋 The musubi breakfast bowl was not on their menu, and depending on when they received their order, it was not always available. When offered, it was only available until 10:30 a.m. 🍚 January 2020, I was told it was discontinued, and March 2020 campus closed due to COVID-19.

I finally returned March 2024, and still no more sweet egg 😞 They were out of tofu a few days in a row while campus had just re-opened for spring quarter, and I felt sorry for the vegetarian students who live on campus. UCR severely lacks healthy options for students and staff in general. Now the only vegetarian protein is tofu, so protein for small bowls is 2x tofu, medium 3x tofu, large 4x tofu. Note that the menu at UCR Dining's website is severely outdated, showing $10.50 for a small bowl, $12 for a regular and $13.50 for large, when for 2025 the small bowl is $12.90. If they can't bring back sweet egg or the watermelon & beets, tempeh would be perfect additional vegetarian option to offer all day.

All that being said, I had given Hibachi-San 4 stars because they offer great toppings (to help make up for the lack of variety of vegetarian protein), they have a tasty spicy mayo sauce, and the small bowls are filling. Feb and March 2025 I took home his & hers poke bowls for dinner, for hubs Teriyaki sauce and I got my usual spicy mayo. I returned in April to do the same, and the cashier asked if I was OK that the Teriyaki contains bone broth(!) When I asked for soy sauce I was given 2 packets which was just enough for a small bowl.

It is not standard for Teriyaki to contain bone broth, it is just a thickening agent. The menu does not state this, and I would not have known to ask. I can't believe all the times I ordered 2x tofu, no one else thought to mention the bone broth. 6 years after my first poke bowl, that might have...

Honestly the poke here is amazing, I kinda looked down on it at first due to the price and comparing the portions to panda next door but the amount of fish/protein you get for a normal is amazing. Definitely a more healthy alternative to the more greasy food around. I would argue that its better than some poke places off campus. Like other reviews have said the line does get long around 12-1 pm so I have always gone around 11am or 2pm+. Depends on your schedule obv. Thank you to all the...

Pretty decent food selections from proteins to sides. Generally have beef, pork, shrimp tempera, and spam when it's available as the proteins and many of the sides and sauces are available. Food quality is on par and it gets me throughout the day. Lines could be long but they go by fast and service is great! Overall, it's a decent place to get...