Kyoto Japanese Steak & Seafood

My family and I come here often, at least once a month, and we absolutely love it! Their chefs are so entertaining and funny while they cook the food, which is always delicious, (their sushi is also top notch). The staff is polite and attentive and the atmosphere is just fun! Kyoto never disappoints and every visit is great experience. We love going to Kyoto! more

We made reservation here for 4th of July celebration. My family and I are from California so eating at Japanese restaurants is almost ta ritual. This ranks as one of the worst places we have ever eaten at. My wife was not happy with the high prices and the poor service. We should have checked out the reviews before eaten here. I will say the only good part about this restaurant is the exotic look from the outside. Like all the other reviews on here, this place really needs a face lift on the inside. It is really gloomy inside and the furnishing is obsolete. If they want to get better reviews, they need major renovation inside. The food was mildly decent. Our chef was certainly not very entertaining. The service was mediocre. It felt like eating in a restaurant in downtown San Francisco, barely anyone spoke coherent English. Not to mention we got charged extra for fried rice. We couldn't get two salads instead of one soup and one salad. They were not very accommodating in terms of being flexible with the combination. I told the waitress that I was allergic to shrimp. I wanted to see if I could get more vegetables and pay the difference. She said no! Whatever comes with it is what I am going to get. There was no substitution. I highly doubt some extra vegetables would cost more than the appetizer shrimp they give you with your meal. This is the worst experience we ever had. more

We made reservation here for 4th of July celebration. My family and I are from California so eating at Japanese restaurants is almost ta ritual. This ranks as one of the worst places we have ever eaten at. My wife was not happy with the high prices and the poor service. We should have checked out the reviews before eaten here. I will say the only good part about this restaurant is the exotic look from the outside. Like all the other reviews on here, this place really needs a face lift on the inside. It is really gloomy inside and the furnishing is obsolete. If they want to get better reviews, they need major renovation inside. The food was mildly decent. Our chef was certainly not very entertaining. The service was mediocre. It felt like eating in a restaurant in downtown San Francisco, barely anyone spoke coherent English. Not to mention we got charged extra for fried rice. We couldn't get two salads instead of one soup and one salad. They were not very accommodating in terms of being flexible with the combination. I told the waitress that I was allergic to shrimp. I wanted to see if I could get more vegetables and pay the difference. She said no! Whatever comes with it is what I am going to get. There was no substitution. I highly doubt some extra vegetables would cost more than the appetizer shrimp they give you with your meal. This is the worst experience we ever had. more

I've lived in Williamsburg for 20 years and had never heard of this place until the other night. I thought I would grab a few friends and check it out. We were very pleasantly surprised by Kyoto. The restaurant looks great from the outside - you certainly get the vibe when you walk into the restaurant. All of the hostess staff was very friendly and promptly got us seated. They were able to make sure that our party got great seats. more

I've lived in Williamsburg for 20 years and had never heard of this place until the other night. I thought I would grab a few friends and check it out. We were very pleasantly surprised by Kyoto. The restaurant looks great from the outside - you certainly get the vibe when you walk into the restaurant. All of the hostess staff was very friendly and promptly got us seated. They were able to make sure that our party got great seats. Abi & Kim provided excellent service behind the bar - they were both very personable and made our overall experience that much better. We also visited on a Saturday and they had a DJ as well. We had originally planned on staying for dinner and ended up staying until they closed after the music was over. The food was fantastic and the sushi bar in the back really complements the rest of the food that Kyoto offers in the front of the restaurant. Our group will certainly go back again and we'll likely make another night out of it! more

This is our first visit to the colonial capitol. We decided to try hibachi on our first night here. We do hibachi about twice a month back home in Boston. The restaurant looks nice on the outside but it is totally disgusting once you stepped inside. There was a weird odor as we walked into the double doors. The carpet looked dirty and the table was not wiped off completely. There were pieces of rice and bean sprouts left on the table. The plates for the sauces had dried up sauces on them. At where we were sitting, we saw some ants crawling across the hibachi table. There was also a spider hanging over the hood of hte grill. We told the waitress about the bugs and she was oblivious about it. When we got our drinks, the waitress pushed the straw down on of the drinks to make it go down with her bare hands. That was not a good idea. I told her that they need to get straws that are wrapped up to be more sanitized. She did not respsond to my comments and just asked us for our orders. When we were done with the soup and salad, our bowls were never cleared off the table. The prices for the meals were outrageous. This is the first place I have ever been to that charges $2.50 for fried rice. You have got to be kidding me! I told management that his was crazy when I walked out of the door and they just laughed and smiled. It was a big mistake for us to walk into this place. We should have left when they told us the fried rice was $2.50 extra. Even the people sitting across from us were not happy with the extra charge on fried rice. Maybe we should have read reviews before coming to this place. They seriously need to get the health department in here to check this place out before they allow them to open business. My family and I do not recommend this restaurant to people who are visiting the area. more

This is our first visit to the colonial capitol. We decided to try hibachi on our first night here. We do hibachi about twice a month back home in Boston. The restaurant looks nice on the outside but it is totally disgusting once you stepped inside. There was a weird odor as we walked into the double doors. The carpet looked dirty and the table was not wiped off completely. There were pieces of rice and bean sprouts left on the table. The plates for the sauces had dried up sauces on them. At where we were sitting, we saw some ants crawling across the hibachi table. There was also a spider hanging over the hood of hte grill. We told the waitress about the bugs and she was oblivious about it. When we got our drinks, the waitress pushed the straw down on of the drinks to make it go down with her bare hands. That was not a good idea. I told her that they need to get straws that are wrapped up to be more sanitized. She did not respsond to my comments and just asked us for our orders. When we were done with the soup and salad, our bowls were never cleared off the table. The prices for the meals were outrageous. This is the first place I have ever been to that charges $2.50 for fried rice. You have got to be kidding me! I told management that his was crazy when I walked out of the door and they just laughed and smiled. It was a big mistake for us to walk into this place. We should have left when they told us the fried rice was $2.50 extra. Even the people sitting across from us were not happy with the extra charge on fried rice. Maybe we should have read reviews before coming to this place. They seriously need to get the health department in here to check this place out before they allow them to open business. My family and I do not recommend this restaurant to people who are visiting the area. more

My family and I were visiting Virginia for my grandparents' wedding anniversary about two weeks ago, during Memorial weekend. We made reservation for 10 people at Kyoto. In fact, Kyoto was actually the third Japanese restaurant we tried while visiting. Let me say that it was the worst of the three we visited. First, the food was mediocre. The shrimp were burnt and the filet mignon was overcooked when I asked for medium rare. The portions were small. We were still hungry after paying over $35+ per meal. Fried rice was extra!!!! I have never paid extra for fried rice. The other two Japanese restaurants did not charge extra for fried rice and the portions were quite generous. We left with doggie bags at the other two places. Second, the drinks we ordered were so watered-down that we barely finished. My husband and I ordered a flaming volcano. The drink supposed to have around 4-5 shots of different alcohol. What we got was a basic fruit punch with lots of ice. The drink was bland and they charged us around $11. My cousin and her husband ordered two other drinks that were also very light on alcohol. Basically, they were drinking juices the whole time. They were charged $16+ for both of their drinks. Third, the service was absolutely horrible. Our waitress did not refill our drinks and she stood at the bar conversing with other waitresses and the bartender. I have to motion to her in order to get something. She never smiled and rushed us the bill when we were still eating. We got the vibe that she was pissed off or something and did not want to serve us. She looked annoyed and did not want to communicate. We asked her about certain items on the menu and all we got was "I'm not too sure" response. Fourth, the restaurant looks dirty and unkept. The counter was sticky and greasy. The silverwares have smudges on them. The paint on the plates were faded. Don't even get me started with the napkins. I got a napkin that has a cigarette hole in it. My daughter has one with white fluffy stuff all over it. This is a big disappoint for my family. more

My family and I were visiting Virginia for my grandparents' wedding anniversary about two weeks ago, during Memorial weekend. We made reservation for 10 people at Kyoto. In fact, Kyoto was actually the third Japanese restaurant we tried while visiting. Let me say that it was the worst of the three we visited. First, the food was mediocre. The shrimp were burnt and the filet mignon was overcooked when I asked for medium rare. The portions were small. We were still hungry after paying over $35+ per meal. Fried rice was extra!!!! I have never paid extra for fried rice. The other two Japanese restaurants did not charge extra for fried rice and the portions were quite generous. We left with doggie bags at the other two places. Second, the drinks we ordered were so watered-down that we barely finished. My husband and I ordered a flaming volcano. The drink supposed to have around 4-5 shots of different alcohol. What we got was a basic fruit punch with lots of ice. The drink was bland and they charged us around $11. My cousin and her husband ordered two other drinks that were also very light on alcohol. Basically, they were drinking juices the whole time. They were charged $16+ for both of their drinks. Third, the service was absolutely horrible. Our waitress did not refill our drinks and she stood at the bar conversing with other waitresses and the bartender. I have to motion to her in order to get something. She never smiled and rushed us the bill when we were still eating. We got the vibe that she was pissed off or something and did not want to serve us. She looked annoyed and did not want to communicate. We asked her about certain items on the menu and all we got was "I'm not too sure" response. Fourth, the restaurant looks dirty and unkept. The counter was sticky and greasy. The silverwares have smudges on them. The paint on the plates were faded. Don't even get me started with the napkins. I got a napkin that has a cigarette hole in it. My daughter has one with white fluffy stuff all over it. This is a big disappoint for my family. We visited two other restaurants, one in Fairfax and one in Richmond (where we normally go because my husband's parents live there), both included fried rice in the meal. The prices were almost 10 dollars cheaper. In fact, i got the lobster, filet mignon, and shrimp at Sakura Japanese Steak House and Sushi Bar in Richmond for only 30.99 (including fried rice). I got almost the same meal at Kyoto Williamsburg for $40+. If you want filet mignon, you have to pay almost $3 more. Then, you have to add another $2 for fried rice. If you got their lobster and steak, the price is already $35. That's a $10 difference. Compare their prices and you will see why we are so disappointed. Finally, we were very upset and offended when the waitress put a service charge/gratuity on our bill. We are not cheap and often tip very well, around 20-25%. I feel like we weren't given the best service because the waitress knew already that she's going to get a tip no matter how bad the service was. We had to call her twice in order to get our water and iced tea refilled. I have been to many Japanese restaurants for the last 15 years. We have been to hibachi restaurants in New Jersey, Philadelphia, Washington D.C., Maryland, etc. This is by far the worst experience we had. I do not recommend going to this place. The only good thing about this place was the chef we had. He was doing the best he could even though he dropped the egg on the floor. more

My family and I love going to Japanese Habchi restaraunts. This was the first we went to since moving to VA, and for the most part, we were pretty disappointed. It was nothing like what we've come accustomed to at other similar restaurants. Your first impression when you walk into the front door is that its a bit run down. The fish pond in the foyer looks like it hasn't ever been cleaned, so you immediately get the impression that the restaurant is a bit dirty. more

My family and I love going to Japanese Habchi restaraunts. This was the first we went to since moving to VA, and for the most part, we were pretty disappointed. It was nothing like what we've come accustomed to at other similar restaurants. Your first impression when you walk into the front door is that its a bit run down. The fish pond in the foyer looks like it hasn't ever been cleaned, so you immediately get the impression that the restaurant is a bit dirty. The service (waitress) wasn't bad, but that's as far as I'll go with that. The chef was mildy entertaining, as most habachi chefs go. The food left a bit to be desired. You get no choices when it comes to your salad and soup. They have one choice for each. Chicken broth soup, which actually seemed more like hot water with some green onions in it. And salad with Ginger dressing. Take it or leave it. We left it. The main course wasn't bad, so I guess that was the restaurant's one and only SEMI-redeeming quality. Then came the bill. It was my wife, my 9 year old son, and me. My wife and I each had steak and shrimp, and one sushi role. My son had the childs shrimp. We each got a soda. Including a $5 dollar tip (whcih was being VERY generous) I spent $101 dollars and change. So, my overall opinion... EXTREEMELY overpriced for the quality of restaurant you're getting. I definately don't recommend it. more

Kyoto has fresh sushi. The steak is to die for. The atmosphere is nice and the chefs are entertaining. My favorite is the shrimp tempura. I would recommned this restaurant. more

I love the hibachi grill at Kyoto. The chef's are very entertaining, and the food is outstanding. Their fried rice is my favorite! Their sushi is also pretty good, but I have also had better. The atmosphere in the hibachi grill area is fun, like any other Japanese restaurant I have been to. However, the atmosphere in the sushi bar area is less than picturesque. Also, the prices are relatively high because of the restaurant's location in a very touristy area of Williamsburg. more

We have eaten here twice on 2 separate visits to Williamsburg. We all enjoyed our food and our young children LOVED the show on top of it.\r \r We didn't try to Sushi, but everything else we ate was excellent. more

I?ve only been there once, but is was pretty impressive. This restaurant has plenty of eye candy; it?s a good place to go for a date. I personally think it was a bit pricy. But the environment of the sushi bar and Japanese grill almost make up for the cost. Overall, I?d say ?pretty good?. more