Samurai Japanese Steakhouse & Cajun Seafood — Restaurant in South Carolina

TL;DR: I visited this restaurant with high hopes and was left utterly disappointed and disgusted by the events that occurred during my visit.

I cannot stress enough how awful our experience was at Samurai Japanese Steakhouse & Cajun Seafood Hibachi. We dined here the past Friday night and I feel compelled to share my experience with others looking to dine at this place. Unfortunately, our visit left much to be desired to say the least, and I believe it's essential to bring attention to the issues we encountered during our time at the restaurant.

My party and I arrived an hour before closing, and the restaurant was basically empty, which immediately raised concerns. As we were tried from our day of exploring the city, we decided to look past our concerns and give the place the benefit of the doubt. Although the absence of customers wasn't a promising sign, we genuinely hoped for a pleasant dining experience. However, our hopes quickly dissipated as the night progressed.

From the moment we walked in, it was evident that some of the staff's attitude toward us was less than welcoming. We were met with unwarranted glances that made us feel like we were intruding on their space. The most troubling incident occurred during our hibachi meal when we mentioned that it was a birthday celebration. The hibachi chef's response was deeply inappropriate and unsettling. He insisted that the birthday girl dance stand up on her chair, turn around, bend over and then “shake what her mama gave her” in front of everyone. Even after repeatedly objecting to the situation which was becoming very uncomfortable, the chef was being persistent and could not understand why we were angry at the unacceptable and blatant harassment the birthday girl had just experienced.

It is essential for any establishment to prioritize the comfort and well-being of its guests, which was clearly disregarded here. What made matters worse was the indifference displayed by other male staff members who seemed to leer at various times during our meal especially at the birthday girl.

We decided to bring this issue to our waitress's attention, hoping for a responsible and empathetic response. Much to our dismay, she made excuses for the chef and regarded the situation as a flippant joke, adding to our disappointment.

After leaving the restaurant and reflecting on the disturbing events of the evening, we felt compelled to contact management and voice our concerns. Regrettably, every manager we spoke to showed a complete lack of interest and failed even to offer a basic apology. The lack of accountability was truly disheartening and left us feeling unheard and undervalued as customers.

In sharing my experience, I hope to shed light on the concerning business practices and customer service at Samurai Japanese Steakhouse & Cajun Seafood Hibachi. It is my sincere hope that management takes immediate steps to address these issues, train their staff in appropriate conduct, and prioritize the comfort and safety of all their guests. No one should ever have to endure such an unpleasant experience when dining out, and it is crucial that this restaurant take this matter seriously and make the necessary...

If I had to describe this restaurant with one word it would have to be "lazy". This is apparent from the moment you get there and you can see the building's interior and exterior still has the exact same theming and decor as the previous restaurant; "the crab shack". "Hey boss! Should we put any work into making this place look like a Japanese steakhouse?" "Nah! Just slap the words "and cajan seafood" to the end of the name and call it a day." There is even a pirate statue on the front porch. You know?... Like they had in the days of the samurai 😂. How about the "wait" staff? Well, I guess that is an appropriate name, because there were plenty of staff standing around, and we certainly waited a long time for everything. The place was pretty dead, and we had a reservation, so we were seated immediately. So far so good. After that it was a 15 min wait for our drink orders to be taken, then another 10 for those drinks to finally get to us. At this point we see another table being seated. 10 more mins and we are finally having our order taken. My wife got some sushi which was quickly forgotten by our waiter (30 mins after placing the order she comes back out and says "I forgot you ordered sushi! Do you still want it?"). 15 mins later... Oh the table that got sat way after us is getting they're food... Hmmm....

At this point we had been seated for almost an hour when we finally got our salads and soups. My sister ordered some sake and we drank that, only to later notice the dried food on the inside of the clearly unwashed shot glass 🤢 she asked for it to be replaced and another sake. Both of these requests were quickly forgotten by our waitress and she needed to be reminded 20 mins later. So finally, at 7:20, 1 hour and 5 mins after being seated (and after the table that got seated after us had been eating for 20 mins) the chef finally arrives. This man is the only reason this place didn't get a 1 star. He was very good at his job once he made it to the grill. Specifically he was good with the kids and kept them engaged. 4/5 stars to that guy! As for the food, it was fine. If you love teriyaki you'll love this place because everything was slathered in it. My filot mignon, my wife's lobster, my shrimp, the veggies. Only the fried rice was spared. It wasn't terrible but in my experience, you don't drown meat in sauce when that meat is high quality, and given how many corners this place is clearly cutting, I doubt that this meat is of the highest quality and I seriously worry what the back end and food storage conditions look like. In summary, I've never seen a lazier establishment. From the atmosphere to the staff to the food, it was all lazy. The only person who seemed to be putting in any effort was the chef, and tbh it took him an hour to get to our table on a night with hardly anyone else there! I can guarantee I will never see the swashbuckling inside of this Japanese restaurant again, and my life will be all the better for it. Yo-ho yo-ho! No samurai's...

Top to bottom, this was an extremely trying and traumatizing experience. I wanted to take my family to dinner, and figured onion volcanos, spatula tricks, nice conversation w/the chefs is common to the experience. This was the complete opposite. We called in advance to make sure we weren't being an inconvenience by coming in by 9, and they close at 10. We got an awkward answer of approval over the phone and didn't think anything of it. The parking lot was completely empty, which didn't seem too odd. However, once inside, was where our experience went from ok to horrible. Our hibachi chef proceeded to make our food, which would've been fine, but while we ate, members of the kitchen would come in and out, just staring at us. Once we finished eating, the chef asked if there was a special occasion. Unaware of what was to ensue shortly after, we told him there was a birthday. As he was leaving, he muttered something under his breath, which we didn't hear. About 10 minutes later, we hear a banging noise for a few minutes. It gets louder and louder, until we finally see the chef walk in with a giant drum. He asks how old she's turning, to her response, he grossly mutters something about her being 16. He forcibly asks the birthday girl to stand up on the chair, turn around and ''shake what her mama gave her". Our entire party was extremely uncomfortable and we objected, but he was persistent. Our table was next to the corridor that led to the exit, and there was a man leaning on the corridor, just watching. Once the chef left, the waiter smirked, as if this was somehow a joke. We asked our waitress, in shock, if this is normal. She defended the chef, saying that "they do something different with everyone". Once we left the place and went somewhere that actually seemed safe, we called and demanded an apology. Whoever was on the phone with us acted nonchalant and saw no wrong on their part. Apart from this atrocious experience, the yum yum sauce was not good, proteins were overcooked and rice was crunchy. The other bad reviews aren't random; this is a pattern and this is not okay. Please be weary...