Mikimoto Japanese Steakhouse, 826 W. Lincoln Highway, is sure to please any Japanese food lover. It offers a hibachi grill and a sushi bar. The atmosphere of the steakhouse is atheistically pleasing. It is decorated with fancier-looking light brick walls and black accents. After walking in the door, the customers are greeted with a hostess at a booth.

The lighting is slightly dim, which gives the diners a comfortable feeling. “Of age” diners are shown to the bar while they wait for a table.

While reservations are taken, the restaurant staff did not seem to be on time during my visit. I made reservations for 6:30 p.m. and was not seated until 7 p.m. I usually do not mind waiting on a busy Saturday night, but a half hour seemed like a little too much when I had made reservations that morning.

The service was good overall at the hibachi grill. After being seated at the traditional large eight-seat table around the grill, my two friends and I were almost instantly waited on and were asked for drink orders. After drinks were served and our hibachi choice orders were taken, we were served the soup and salad very quickly.

However, we waited at least 10 minutes before the chef came out to begin cooking our meals after we had already finished the soup and salad. I’ve been to another steakhouse much like this before, and while we were still eating the soup and salad, the chef was already there preparing.

The wait was a little uncomfortable. I thought it was going to flow more nicely. The chef was very entertaining and playful, though, and that made up for the delay.

The food was fantastic. I am not a seafood person at all, so I ordered the steak and chicken combo, but two hibachi shrimp were served with my meal. I decided to try a bite of the shrimp and I was very impressed. The steak was cooked to perfection, and even though the chicken was a little dry, I was given two different sauces to add flavor and moisture. With the combo, I was also served a choice of rice. The fried rice was also amazing.

I’m a very picky eater, but I was more than impressed with the food at the hibachi grill.

A friend who ate with me decided to try the sushi bar and was also very pleased. He is a seafood lover, but has only tried sushi once before and was not impressed. This sushi blew him away. He ordered a tuna sushi and an avocado and cream cheese sushi. He said they were very good and were perfectly portioned. The sushi was well presented on a long, white glass plate.

As for the price, it is only to be expected that it is a little pricey. Any steakhouse like this is set to be a little higher than just your average dinner restaurant. The prices were not unreasonable, though, and different choices offered a wide variety for any budget.

Overall, I was very impressed with Mikimoto Japanese Steakhouse. I wish they were open more during the afternoon, but apart from that, I wouldn’t change a thing about the restaurant. I will definitely be returning soon.

4/5 stars

The steakhouse is open from 4:30 to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 4:30 to 9 p.m. Sunday