Ichiban
| Address: | 1914 Catasauqua Rd, Allentown, PA 18109, USA |
| Phone: | +1 610-266-7781 |
| Site: | ichibanpa.com |
| Rating: | 4 |
| Working: | 11:30AM–2:30PM 11:30AM–2:30PM 11:30AM–2:30PM 11:30AM–2:30PM 11:30AM–2:30PM 12–2:30PM 12–2:30PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 15
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A Private User
"Below Average Flavors, 2x the Price" best describes our last experience at this vastly overrated Japanese steakhouse. Oddly enough, "Ichiban" means #1 - perhaps #1 in price, certainly not in flavor. Sushi: Average. The fish was of average quality, the rice was not well prepared, fell apart when even the slightest pressure was applied to it, and the proportions of rice to fish were - odd. Teriyaki Chicken: Below average. Stay home, chop up some chicken and add Kikoman - bland, flavorless, boring. It was depressingly flavorless. Miso Soup: A bit salty. But otherwise.... you guessed it.... average. Certainly not the "fresh, salty essence of the sea" that is the ideal. Ginger Dressing / Salad: Different, odd. Im not sure if it was great or just strange. Seemed "lemony." But otherwise OK. Overall Quality: The fish was firm, cleanly presented. But lacked that "melt in your mouth" quality that is the hallmark of truely "fresh" sushi. You cannot fake the quality of fresh, sushi grade ingredients, and the tuna, for example, seemed to have the "Cryopack" feel to it. Price: outrageous for such boring food. We ordered Sushi Regular and Teriyaki Chucken and noodles for our 4 and 7 year old, tempura appetizer, 2 diet cokes: $70 + tip = $80. Seriously, thats 2x the price of A1 in Trexlertown for the identical meal including the bambinos. Its worth the extra 15 minute drive, based on OUR experience. Compared to the other placed in the Valley: overpriced, average quality, with disapointing sushi - even by Lehigh Valley standards. Perhaps their hibachi service is fantastic, but after this experience, Im sure well not soon experience that.
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J Whit
This review is conducted on Sept 2, 2012, the day before labor day. Ive been to many habachi resturants before and this one is a good value. The service was great and staff was attentive. I always go with the filet mignon and shrimp. The filet was juicy and tender. The proportion of meat was decent. 8 cubes of filet. The shrimp was good too. Fried rice was good. I asked the server to have the cook make it with chicken but they politely declined. It could use improvment on the cook entertainment side, however, I came for the food and it was good. Ive been to at least six different habachi chains all in the NYC area and this one was cheaper and competitive food wise than the ones from that area. I would recommend this place to anyone looking for habachi in the area.
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Robert Blake
Less than 1.5 miles from my stay.........ordered tempura shrimp/vegitables.............requested some soy sauce and or hot mustard/horse radish/ wasabi.....something hot to dip my shrimp in. Everything was undercooked and for 16.00 3 shrimps a broccoli, an onion ring and a slice of carrot was all there was. over priced under cooked lack of attention to detail PS I agree with jiji.........when I questioned what was in the bag prepared, the lady was put off by my asking so I then proceeded to have her open the bag to see and finally she stated "oh look, right there dipping sauce" I replied no hot mustard/wasabi/horse radish? a dumbfounded look. What happened to customer service and quality?
MA
Mark Lichtenwalner
It was an interesting experience. I was disappointed that all the foods was cooked with the same sauce from the fried rice and noodles to the steak, shrimp, salmon, scallops, chicken and vegetables. The sauce was on the sweeter side so probably not good for diabetic. There was no offer of making something spicier if you liked that. It was tasty but nothing special. I have had similar quality food at an all you can eat buffet with a grill where you can pick what you want and tell them how spicy you want your food. $30 for a combo dinner with 2 meats.
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Kitsuyuutsu R
My favorite restaurant! We go quite frequently! Staff is very nice, food is excellent! Yeah, its not the cheapest meal, but for the quality, amount of food and great atmosphere, its worth every penny! Plus its one of the only places where I trust eating sushi made with raw fish. I recommend the orange dragon roll, delicious! And theyre the only place I know that can get filet mignon well done. Im very picky, I hate pink in my beefs. They never fail to get it just as I like it. Great place!
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Annie Trinity
Its... okay. Sushi is about average quality... Reasonable prices. Waitress was nice, but not too good with English. Had some trouble ordering a custom roll which is usually a staple of sushi restaurants. Took forever to get served though even when it wasnt crowded, and sushi doesnt need time to cook. I might have gotten a bug there once. Honestly, I should probably be rating it lower when I lay it all out, but Ill still probably go back eventually.
MI
Mike German
Between the iceberg lettuce covered in generic "asian salad sauce", crunchy spicy tuna roll filled with... sawdust?, and the hot stone pot that was 95% rice and no flavor things were pretty disappointing. Oh! And the happy birthday boat pineapple was unripe, bitter, and crunchy. At least this wasnt our real birthday dinner? If boring food served Hibachi style is your thing, they have that on the other side of the restaurant too.
AM
Amber Gordon
Not the best Japanese Ive ever had but still very good. The hibachi cooks are fun and its great for large groups. They have a full bar and offer a variety of Japanese dishes like sushi, appetizers and noodles. They offer pretty fast take out even on Friday and Saturday nights but make sure to double check your order before hanging up- Ive had mix-ups a few times.
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A Private User
I do love this place!! My favorite place!!! I love their sushi and rolls. I love their Korean food selections!! I love their other Japanese dishes like katsdon. I love their hibachi too(try fried rice instead of noodle). One of hibachi guy works there more than 8 years at least, and he is very friendly.
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Nana
Never had an issue yet and have been a customer for quite some time. Drinks are on point alcohol wise that is. The food is very good as well. I will continue coming here. Over all atmosphere is great. Price is very reasonable for the amount of food you get. Staff is very courteous.
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Stephen Thiede
Overpriced and small portions for the food. Had the beef teriyaki, sushi was good but still overpriced. Everything is an additional 1.00 charge or 1.50 charge for not explicitly written on the menu Low stars strictly for the prices. Riding the coat-tailes of the chain imo.
ST
Stephen Tatasciore
Pretty good sushi but certainly on the expensive side for lunch. There were no lunch specials, only a full menu. Lunch for two people was ~$60 with no alcohol. To me thats an expensive lunch. This may be a better choice for dinner but lunch was a flop...
MI
Michael Edridge
I read Jiji Castillos terse comment and can only say that I have eaten at Ichiban on countless occasions and have always been treated with courtesy and respect. Perhaps that critics own attitude provoked a justified response.
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Dimitrios D
Ichiban is a decent Japanese hibachi place. They also serve basic sushi, that while not anything spectacular, will satisfy. Its not worth coming to unless you live in the area; but is good for what it is.
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Timothy Leffew
They happily accommodated my brother and I although it was twenty minutes before closing and they were eager to perform the flat grill techniques that are not native to Asia but merely theatrics in America
