Koto Japanese in Lynchburg

Hibachi and Japanese meals cooked before your eyes by talented and entertaining chefs. Watching your food prepared is almost as much fun as eating eat. Giant portions, you will always leave with a full stomach and a doggie bag. My chef supplied me with all the Yum Yum sauce I craved, and my server refilled my pot of tea. All in all, a wonderful experience. Ive been here a dozen times, and I plan on making a return visit very soon.

Great service with a large group. Great cook and waitress. Much better experience than the “other” in town!

This has become my go to spot for sushi. Great food, great service!!!!

Trying not to choke on this dry, unseasoned teriyaki chicken. Very disappointed. First and last time here

We haven’t been here in years, but decided to give it another try. The whole place was dirty & needs a deep cleaning! We had one chef cooking for two tables and he was taking food from one table to the other. The food was gross!! We had undercooked meat, a syrupy sauce on everything, & no flavor to most of it. Do not waste your time or money here!

THIS PLACE WAS AMAZING!!!!! I went there to eat for my birthday, and I couldn’t be more pleased! I got vegetable fried rice which was SO delicious and the yum-yum sauce was one of the best ones I’ve ever tasted! I also got a salad which was very yummy and the ranch dressing I got was definitely the best I’ve ever tasted.100000000/10 completely recommend

I love the hibachi at this place. Its hands down my favorite. Dolon is my favorite cook. Hes hilarious and the food always tastes amazing when he makes it, so we normally request him. The drinks are delicious with great prices. My only complaint is the sushi. I dont recommend that at all. They dont follow directions when you ask for something to be removed. My to go sushi had avocado and cream cheese even though I asked for neither. One roll was also DROWNING in mayo.There are multiple rolls that dont list cream cheese as an ingredient but they add it anyway. My sushi order has LITERALLY been wrong twice on Doordash, once on Uber, once on Grubhub, and I swear to God my pick up order was wrong. John, the sushi chef, remade it and it was STILL wrong!!! I said I wanted a refund and for them to keep the food and John begged me to give him another chance. Im literally sick of them. I will never eat the sushi or order delivery.

I went here over the weekend and the place was a total let down. I had to wait 10+min for my soup evem tho the whole table aside from me received one straight away. I ask two other watresses for my soup as well. Our waitress was hardly seen. They used alot of cheap vegetables like cabbage and carrots to cut the habachi vegetables with but what really got me was they added their own tip of like 20% to my bill even tho I was one person and they still wanted a bigger tip because and I quote we have to share all tips with the chef. That chef was the only highlight of the meal and should have received the intire inflated tip.

We doordashed food, couldn’t eat more than 2 pieces of sushi. My friend got the hibachi chicken teriyaki and it was chewy and we couldn’t even get it down. it was very disappointing. The crab Rangoons are terrible. There’s nothing in them except for maybe a dime of the sauce that was also terrible.

Wasnt impressed with the décor The place needs a refresh the entrance ways not very inviting the floors need to be cleaned up. Ive eating there twice once this April for someonebirthday before then in 2006 and it hasnt changed. Ive been to the Benihanas in Manhattan New York, Very disappointed in this place, the only thing that save them is the food.

The customer service was awful. The manager took our orders and wrote them down incorrectly and was unwilling to adjust the bill because of his mistake. Also the noise was unbearable from the table behind us. Never will be going back there again.

Its a great place to hang out with friends, by yourself, or on a date. You get to watch your food being made right in front of you, so you know its fresh and made to order. It is really dinner and a small show. The hibachi chefs that we have had have all been great and the waitresses we have had have all been super nice. If you go for dinner on your birthday you can get a hibachi entree for one cents.

Absolutely wonderful. The waitress was fantastic and the cook was entertaining. So glad we chose to bring our family here tonight.

The server was pleasant, the chef was entertaining.There are things that have changed and not for the good. The half cup of soup was like dirty water with 3 small scallion slices. The yum yum sauce was not the same flavor, bland, and pale in color. Tasted more like mayonaise. Vegtables were mostly onion. The worst part was the 2 across from us. 1 woman worked there and was off shift so a lot of bantering was going on from the door way to her, back and forth. At one point she got angry at something and began yelling and threatening to go outside with this other employee. The yelling was loud and intimidating. Her small child became afraid and clung to the grandmother. No manager or anyone did anything about this altercation. Our dinner date was made very uncomfortable to say the least. Then our check came, to our surprise an 18% gratuity had been added to the total. No one told us or mentioned this, I just happened upon it while signing and attempting to include the tip! This is typically done for a large party, not a couple. They have also done away with the early bird special, as well as raised their prices. But that seems to be the same everywhere.This restaurant is in serious need of a deep cleaning.This will sadly be my last visit.

Our 2nd trip to have lunch...again food was delicious...tea was not watered down...our server was very pleasant...this place will probably become a weekly place to enjoy a lunch out with co-workers...

They decided to get rid of the garlic soy sauce the only dressing and sauce I used on my salad and on my rice and veggies cant eat there without it sorry but I will not be returning

The only reason it even gets 1 star is because of the chef he was the only good thing. The place is dirty as heck. We had to chase the server down for soup. She also copped an attitude because of explaining the automatic 18%. Not pleased with it for the cost of food. Never coming here again.

Giving this a 5 star review bc this deserves front page**I have provided pics of dinner below**GHETTO MANAGEMENT with an attitude.High priced ROTTEN MEAT that will take your breath away, literally, as the projectile vomit spews all over the walls.They offered 50 percent off the filet but the ticket came and we were still charged full price for the ROTTEN MEAT, instead of half for the ROTTEN MEAT. The rest of us that at were cleaning it up or flushing it down later.Management didnt want to listen to me so I posted here in hopes others would. YW.

We made a reservation and got there and was told we were on the list but they had no tables. When asked how long it would be, we were told they could not give a time frame, even after making a reservation. Did not make it to table to try any food so not sure how good/bad they may be to rate that part.

Food is delicious,but service is lacking. Also Everytime I pay with cash the girls at the door short me at least a dollar. They have a new tipping policy printed out when you first walk in ,so I imagine the money short is not an accident.

Food was fairly priced. Service was horrendous to say the least and Sushi fish tasted off and old. Will never be back.

Edit (1/27/22- Adding another star after my latest visit. Service was a lot better than my previous visitsI’ve been eating here since Koto was Kyoto back in the day. Personally I feel the hibachi has taken a step back since the change so these days I stick with sushi. I’ve always heard mixed reviews but in my experience the sushi is always on point. Out of the last 3-4 visits I have no complaints with the food. However, the service leaves a bit to be desired. Nothing totally out of bounds but there are enough flags to knock off two stars

Ive ate at Kotos for 14 years. And tonight will be the last time I go there. I took my daughter there to celebrate her friends birthday. And the cook "Nate" was rude n had a nasty attitude. The grill was hot, our chicken n scallops n rice were not done. The waitress said she would get the manager bc they have had several complaints about Nate. The manager was just as bad. He tried to tell us our food wasnt raw. He okd the attitude of the cook. It was 8 of us n none of us were happy. I had to box my food take home to continue to cook it. No discount no apology. Ive never... they wont get my money again. The waitress was nice n she was given a nice tip. THE 2 STARS I GAVE CAME FROM OUR WAITRESS ONLY

This restaurant has REALLY gone downhill. Horrible service - and Im being kind. The furnishings and decor are from the 70s and were probably last cleaned in the 90s. The bar was a joke. The food was good and plentiful, but it was hard to overcome all the other negatives.

The people were very nice and they had great food. It was entertaining to watch the chef prepare the food. The food was for great value. They gave me a huge amount of steak and food for a great price. I would completely recommend you try it.

Food was great as usual; however, the server never refilled our drinks until the very end and she also would not use my 10 dollar off coupon which is valid until December claiming that it could only be used during lunch. The coupon clearly stated it was for dinner entrees; I doubt she even asked the manager about it.

Terrible service. My fiancé was picking up for DoorDash and they handed him the wrong food, then proceeded to yell at him for five minutes in front of everyone, as if it was his fault that they gave him the wrong order. Make it make sense! Very unprofessional, do not go here.

Will never go here again...it started good had a waiter take our order brought back the water and soup and took our order. Then after 20 mins another couple got seated with us. Then after they got served their drinks and soup that was 30 mins of no salad or refill. Then another table that got seated after us they started cooking their food. Then another 10 mins they asked were we good then we told them none of us at the table got our salads, and then when the cook came he didnt have the order correct had to go to the back and get more food. I finally got my appetizer once they started cooking and then at the end he forgot to give someone in my party of 5 their shrimp after we already got it straight. Then at the end the charged a surcharge that all of them split because they are not getting enough tips and thats pwr the waitress their. It based on the amount of food you buy. So my surcharge was $13 and then they tried to ask for a "separate" tip. I have no idea when they started doing a surcharge on your meal but I will never deal with this place again. Absolutely a mess and horrible service. And when I told them about the horrible service didnt even get a sorry for the inconvenience or anything and it was me with 5 children so yea definitely will not ever get my money again.

No one was wearing masks, sushi chef coughed on my food, looked like an old Ponderosa inside. Do not recommend. Two stars only because it was cheap.

The cooks were terrible ! They acted as if they couldn’t hear me. Overcooked my food and gave me a shortage on things because I asked for more. Even tho I offered to pay !

My family had a wonderful experience on 7/23/2021 for our daughters 12th Birthday. She had not been to a Japanese Steakhouse before. From the time we walked in, the hostess greeted us with smiles and even joked with us because I called out the wrong number of people in our party. We were laughing all the way to be seated. This set the tone for our AMAZING night. Christy, our waitress, was down to earth and kept us smiling. She helped me with my drink selection and I loved her recommendation of one of the two drinks with Midori in it. LOI was our Chef! WOW!! He came out, flashed his smile and OMG he entertained us the entire time. There was NEVER a dull moment at our table. We did notice a party at another table with a different Chef, not having the experience we were having, it was quiet at their table. We were laughing, smiling and enjoying ourselves at ours. I cannot tell you how thankful I was to get Christy and LOI!! LOI gave us nicknames once we shared who was in our party, my daughter was Birthday and my son was Allergy because he’s allergic to shellfish. Christy stayed on top of our needs. She was wonderful. Thank you LOI and Christy for a very fun and memorable experience for our daughter’s 12th birthday. Oh, food was great too. 😋

If I could have given zero stars I would have. Service was awful!! Three tables that came after us got their food first. The drinks we ordered were either wrong or didnt taste good. Our grill wasnt turned on so our food was cook at the other customers grill. And of course they came after is and was served first. To top it all of the bill was wrong. Even after they supposedly fixed it we were still overcharged. This was the worst experience ever!!!!!

We ordered Koto through DoorDash Pickup. Two meals, nothing difficult. My husband called when he arrived and they confirmed his order was being made and the would bring it out curbside when it was done. After waiting an hour (our son was sleeping in the car seat and he didn’t want to wake him to go insidehe called back and they said that the Door Dash person came and picked it up. Well, for one, we don’t have a delivery address in DoorDash because our home address doesn’t exist yet in their system (new build). DoorDash who confirmed that no one picked up the order. Keep in mind, my husband was sitting in the curbside pickup parking space for AN HOUR after calling to notify of arrival. On top of this, the employees at Koto were rude and unhelpful and did not offer to remake the food. They only stated that that the food was being delivered to our home by Door Dash. Thankfully, DoorDash refunded the money immediately once we called, but the horrible service here should be noted.

Good food. Really love the "show" and watching your food being prepared. Staff is friendly and you definitely get your moneys worth for the meal. I went for an early dinner on a weekday and it was not busy at all. A group of friends going would be a really fun time.

The wait times are ridiculous even during times where the restaurant is nearly empty. Staff members walk by and refuse to offer any help to those waiting. My order ticket sat for over 20 minutes while the sushi chef meandered around. He had to be reminded of my order by another staff member to START preparing my order while I sat in the takeout area the entire time.

Free Birthday Meal...good foods, drinks and entertainment at Hibachi table. Family and friends together again :)

First time here and it will be my last. Ordered pick-up tonight and stood around for 15 minutes before being helped as no staff was anywhere to be seen. AND THEY MESSED UP OUR ORDER ON TOP OF IT! I didn’t know you needed to be a brain surgeon to serve hibachi and run a restaurant. Saw potential customers walk out as they too were waiting so long and I can’t blame them. Absolutely ridiculous

Went there for the first time and was surprised by how good the restaurant is. The decor and layout are great, the server was amazing, the chef who cooked the hibachi in front of us was great and had lots of skills. He kept checking with us and another guest to make sure we had everything we needed (utensils, chopsticks, extra sauce, etc). The price of the food was very affordable too. I enjoyed the sushi, calamari and the hibachi. Without realizing we ended up staying there for quite a long time after finishing our food, so the only thing I wish we had done was add more tips for taking up the space. We didnt feel like we were rushed to leave, so that was nice too. Definitely going back there again and taking my friends with me.Only thing I did not like is that theyre not letting people sit on individual tables, you have to either sit at the hibachi grill area with strangers/other customer or at the bar. So if youre sitting at the edge, you will not have 6 feet distant from people sitting at the other hibachi grill table.

We celebrated my moms 70th Birthday here and they gave her a free entrée and sang to her! The food and atmosphere were top notch!

The food was excellent! We did hibachi and our chef was excellent! He was very professional and very skilled at the hibachi! He said he had been a hibachi chef for over 20 years. I would have given it a 5 star but I gave it a 4 because the place is very old and it showed. The bathroom is horrible and the floor was so sticky, my shoes were actually sticking to the floor! They do have beautiful decor in the restaurant. A little upgrade of the floor and tables would certainly get you better ratings.

My boyfriend and I were cruising around Central VA and were in search of Japanese food. Given the positive reviews of others, Koto seemed to fit the bill. However, there was much to be desired. We cant say for sure if this was an "off" day or not, but regardless, we will never be back.Pros: Our waitress was friendly, the service was relatively quick and the sushi was acceptable.Cons: The shrimp was drowned in Teriyaki, the steak was tough and similarly drowned in sauce, the "green" tea tasted like potpourri, we are pretty sure at least some of our vegetables were frozen at some point, and the rice tasted like it had been cooked and reheated.Sorry, Koto. Just didnt meet expectations.

We had a delicious dinner last night for my birthday. I think it is great that they offer the Birthday Special to anyone that provides their drivers license with your picture and birthday on it a free single dinner entree. Their food and drinks make it worth a stop in for a meal.

I placed an online order. In special instructions I asked for yum yum sauce.I would have been willing to pay for yum yum sauce but no one told me that it was not included. As far as Im concerned the yum yum sauce helps make the meal, no type of sauce was included.one of the items in my order was the shrimp and steak combination platter, the vegetables were in a separate container floating in soy sauce. does shrimp look like it has been steamed and put in soy sauce, the shrimp will also floating in soy sauce, steak was supposed to be medium well but was dried out. Ive been going there for about 25 years but, always dined it, always a wonderful dining in experience. The young lady who gave me my order told me that the chopsticks were in the bag they were not! I definitely will not be placing any more to go orders from here as I am very very disappointed!!!!!

Good food. Good service. Friendly staff. The portion sizes are always more than enough and tasty.

Wonderful staff, a great Hibachi experience, and incredible food. Ignore the portion in my picture, I couldnt help diving right in, and once I did it was hard to stop and take a picture.

The food was very good and our chef put on a great show for us. Plenty to eat and everyone in our party of 6 had a good meal: steak, filet, scallops, and chicken. Hef paid attention to our person with food allergy (to seafood). The soup was very good but the salads had way too much dressing on them. The ranch dressing had a unique sweet flavor to it. Overall the restaurant was showing its age and could use some TLC to spruce it up a bit. I wouldnt be averse to going here again, but Id probably try another Japanese Steakhouse the next time I am in town before I head back here.

This is my go to for great food and great service. If you can wait ask for Dolan he is fantastic and if you have to wait it is worth it. We have never been there and didnt have a great time.

My first time in this restaurant highly pleased. Great service everyone was very friendly and helpful. The hibachi chef was great the food was delicious plan to come back. Couldnt eat it all brought home.

Food was good and staff friendly. Enjoyed a free birthday meal

Great place to eat. I used to come more often as a child and havent for years until last night. The chef was very nice. It took a bit of time for a chef to come but it was a very nice time. I would definitely go back.PS there was rice on the bottom of my sisters plate when we first got it.