Bonsai Japanese Steak House

I love this little Japanese steakhouse and it is my fiancés absolute favorite. He praises their sushi. We brought our two year old for the first time today, and I really loved the extra attention he got from the chef. Our chef was courteous and comical, and made sure to give my toddler extra peas and carrots, as well as cut his chicken up in bite-​size pieces.

This place is just… Amazing! The food is so great and amazing! It’s so much food so you are guaranteed to be full after you get done eating. I love Japanese stake houses and if you like them then give this place a shot. It’s my first time to this place and all I can say is wow! Note for the staff there: Keep up the good work!

I’ve only ever had the sushi here, but I’ve always enjoyed it. If you’re just getting sushi, you don’t have to deal with the mad rush and noisy crowd of the hibachi section, which is nice. The sushi servers are always very friendly and helpful. I’m a huge fan of sushi, but definitely not an expert. The servers and chefs here are always willing to make a suggestion or answer a question for you.
The food comes out really quickly, which is great. I’ve been here a bunch of times and it’s never been crazy crowded (again, at least in the sushi section). The sushi is really good! My friends and I all really enjoy it. We come here pretty often as a group of five or six, and it’s always a pleasant experience. I rarely feel like making the trek out to Lakeland, but for good sushi that’s pretty affordable, I’m willing!

Bonsai is awesome! Great food! Great drinks!!! Awesome wontons ask for duck sauce to dip them in!

My hubby and are regulars here! We love everything from the hibachi to the sushi. We prefer this place over all others. We’re here for our anniversary as well as Valentines Day, we love it that much. Their food is the best in town.

Been here twice both times I ordered from I kitchen and while the employees have always been great! The food always leaves something to be desired. The first time I ordered the food was lacking the curry «gravy» from the curry vegetables. The second time I received something I didn’t order and was informed they were out of curry.
I’ve heard the 3^rd time is the charm and I was informed they would have curry back in stock the next week and I’ll post back if I try it again.
Atmosphere: 4
Employees: 4
Food: 2
Avg: 3

I have been coming to Jackson on business once a year for over 7 years and I love Bonsai. I’ve only had sushi there– but it ranks with some of the best I’ve had. Highly recommended

We stopped in while visiting family in Jackson and were surprised that the line was out the door for the hibachi, but no one in the sushi bar — it was our lucky night! Great sushi, friendly sushi chefs and waitress and no wait for some very tasty sushi and drinks! Definitely worth a try if you’re looking for good sushi in the Jackson area!

Best hibachi in Jackson. Now, granted that’s not saying much considering this towns track record with Asian cuisine but I really dig the place. Portions are huge and perfect for late night snacking. Never had the sushi here but I’ve heard it’s decent. True, the «floor shows» have gone the way of the dodo and I’m not sure there’s even a Japanese chef working there but they cook the food right and the flavored are solid. Price wise you are paying the average going rates and out of the 4 other «hibachi» places in town, it’s the best value. I go here maybe twice a year for special occasions and it has never failed me in all it’s years of being open.

This is a perfectly fine hibachi place for lunch. The prices are reasonable, the food is pretty good, the staff is nice enough. Otherwise, it doesn’t really waver from the status quo.

Worst hibachi I’ve ever had in my life. I’m from out of town and we stopped by because there were a ton of people waiting outside so I thought that was a good sign. The décor was outdated and when were taken to our table, my first thought was that I felt like we were in someone’s basement.
SOUP/​SALAD:
The soup was pretty standard, nothing great but nothing bad. Salad was completely drenched in dressing that tasted like thousand island dressing. When I say drenched I mean drenched.
CHEF:
The chef was okay, wasn’t all that interesting and was definitely trying to cook the food as quick as possible and get out of there. He had no interest in being entertaining at all.
EGG THROW: (WHAT’S THIS YOU SAY? KEEP READING)
So most restaurants do a shrimp throw where the chef cuts it up into itty bitty pieces and throws it at the patron to catch it in their mouth. Here, they did egg. Really? WHY would you do it with egg? Almost no one caught it and it kept getting in people’s eyes and hair. What a horrible idea, I’m not sure who thought of that but that is the worst idea EVER!
SUSHI:
I ordered a sushi roll, the spicy tuna crunchy roll. It came with 8 huge slices so I was excited but it might be one of the worst sushi rolls I’ve ever had. It big but completely flavorless, I wasn’t even sure what I was eating was tuna, there was no spice at all, and the roll was falling apart, they definitely did not squeeze the roll enough to be kept together.
HIBACHI FOOD:
You get 2 pieces of shrimp with whatever you order, I was so grossed out when I saw the chef did not de-​vein any of the shrimp. So I had black veins throughout mine; did not eat them. I ordered the filet mignon and it was fairly good. I have to say that the portion sizes are ridiculously large. Very very big. The fried rice was standard, the vegetables were ok but overall the meal wasn’t all that great. And typically there is 1 sauce for seafood, 1 sauce for meat, yea you get one, that thousand island dressing AGAIN.
SERVICE:
The service was terrible, he never stopped by to ask if we needed anything, I had to constantly stop him for something and he seemed annoyed by it and was very obvious that he was annoyed which made me really irritated. Good service = good tip. Bad service = bad tip. Duh. But this guy obviously didn’t care.
VERY IMPORTANT:
If you look at the grill, on the outer parts and in the cracks, there is gooey black goop everywhere and stuck on food EVERYWHERE. I mean EVERYWHERE! So then I have obvious concerns about health and safety of the food I just ate. I think this place has massive health code violations.

Our meal here wasn’t just bad… it was Really! Really! Bad! The soup was awful. The fried rice was awful. The shrimp was awful. The chicken was awful. Everything was so bland and flavorless.
Our chef was B-​O-​R-​I-​N-​G! He did nothing to entertain us or the other poor patrons seated with us.
Service was awful! There were two waitresses serving our table and they were both slow and scatter-​brained. Drink refills were very slow to come and I had to ask for chopsticks 3 times before I got them.
The décor was old and tired which left a dreary atmosphere.
Over $ 40 for the two of us and we both left hungry and irritated. I have been to many, many hibatchi grills and this one was, without a doubt, the worst. Even if someone else was paying, I wouldn’t return.

Pretty bad food. REALLY BAD SERVER. Empty glasses, plates piled up, food was flavorless. Would have given 2 stars if server wasn’t awful. She messed up my order, forgot drinks, etc.

I love BONSAI! This is what I could compare EVERYTHING to– even when I lived in Florida. Nothing could hold up to the BONSAI challenge– however, when I moved back home, BONSAI was not as good as I remembered.
Very disappointing.
I will try it again, but I feel that it has kinda faded with popularity…

The original Japanese steak house in Jackson. They were the first. I enjoy Japanese just like the next guy. Japanese restaurants all do the same tricks. The Food is good. Period. That is what separates these restaurants from one another. The food at Bonsai is good.
Things that I have ordered that were good.1.Chicken and Steak (pink sauce)2. Shrimp Tempura Roll 3. Crunchy Roll (no Roe).

They have sushi, but I wouldn’t recommend it. It’s ok but it’s not what you go to a hibachi grill to order.
Their hibachi is ok, the chefs do the standard little show while they cook your fried rice and food goods.