Shinjuku

I have frequented this establishment occasionally for the last couple years. Overall, food and service was great. (well, compared to the Denver Benihana anyways) However, during my last visit, things did not go so well. We sat at a normal dining table, not the ones with the grill. The host (who I must mention provided *EXCEPTIONALLY GOOD* service) ended up performing most of the (inattentive) waitress's duties. There was a period of roughly 45 minutes where the waitress was nowhere to be found. I ended up leaving a very generous (for the level of service) 10% tip.



When the charge hit my credit-card account, I noticed that I was overcharged. Generally, I prefer call the restaurant to give them a chance to rectify the situation before calling the credit-card company, because sometimes that can lead to a "black mark" on their merchant account.



I call the restaurant during non-peak hours (before dinner) and asked to speak with the manager. I got the third degree from whoever answered the phone. She was asking all sorts of questions that I felt were inappropriate (I didn't know if she was the waitress, which would have been a certainly conflict of interest here), such as: Who I am, what's my business I have with the manager, why am I calling at this time (???), etc. I politely explained that I am a customer and that there is a discrepancy on my bill, and I would prefer to speak to the manager to resolve this issue. She then proceeded to tell me in a very demeaning manner that he is very busy and doesn't have time for such issues. I argued with her for a bit and she reluctantly handed the phone to the manager.



At first, he seemed genuinely concerned and indicated that he wanted to resolve the issue. He took my information down and said he would call me after the dinner rush. Never did.



Next day I called again and the same person answered the phone, this time, flat out refusing to get me to the manager. At this point, I told her that he has an hour to get back to me before I call the credit-card company. I got a call back within 15 minutes. This time, he was very argumentative and disrespectful. Now he is playing dumb and claiming that he doesn’t see the problem. At this point, I ask again that the overcharge be corrected, now along with the entire tip to be refunded. If the waitress had actually done her job, I wouldn’t have to waste time fixing her mistake. He then proceeded to tell me that was way out of line because I only left a 10% tip (for sub-par service) and the waitress works very hard for her tips. I proceeded to inform him that “work” is the keyword there, and the absence of it. Instead, the manager insisted on arguing with me and lecturing me on the morale of perusing such a small overcharge, now asking rhetorical questions such as what my friends must think of me for perusing this. I informed him that theft is theft. Period. Plus, if you steal a small amount from every customer that comes in, it will certainly add up after a while. I also had to remind him that tips are not to be expected, and furthermore, it is *NOT* the customer's duty to make up for poorly paid employees, especially when very poor service is on the table.



He made it clear that he had no intention of rectifying the situation, and clearly did not care about repeat business. Generally, I will give a restaurant a second chance, (after all, we are human and can have a "bad day") however, due to the manager and staff (excluding the host) being insulting and downright rude, there is no way that I will ever consider returning.



It is also worthwhile noting that this is the second time that my credit card was overcharged on the tip at this restaurant.



Bottom Line: Double check your credit-card/bank statement after visiting here!

My fiance and I have been to Shinjuku numerous times and have always had very good services and the food has always been cooked to our order. We have always gone during Hibachi Happy Hour which is from 5 to 6 Monday thru Friday. We have always ordered the same thing him steak and myself shrimp we share it. Were else can you eat for 2 for 25 dollars its a very good deal. If you go in with a bad attitude and expect everybody to bend over backwards for you that attitude stays with you for your whole meal. Next time go in with a good attittude and you might enjoy yourself. in other words get off your high horse and come back down to earth with the rest of us.