Get great hibachi without the show at Teriyaki House

Love hibachi but don’t want to pay for a show? Teriyaki House specializes in both teriyaki and hibachi in a clean but no-frills atmosphere.

A steak and shrimp combo at a teppanyaki restaurant, where they cook your food as a performance in front of you, costs $18-$22 in this area. At Teriyaki House, that same meal, sans performance and salad or soup, is about $14.50. Granted, the show is a major part of the experience, but if all you want is the food, this is a great way to avoid the time and tipping.

The hibachi menu holds the tastiest options for the best comparative prices, like salmon for $10.99, steak only for $9.59, and chicken for just $7.99. All hibachi meals include steamed or fried rice, veggies (mostly cabbage) and house sauce.

The second best menu for your money is the tempura — four pieces of lightly fried chicken or shrimp with veggies and rice for less than $7. Their vegetarian options also are plentiful and popular, like tempura broccoli and carrots or tofu as the protein in the teriyaki meal.

The teriyaki items are tasty enough but not as good a deal for your dollar. Other area restaurants have similar quality for similar prices; the beef and shrimp combo is $10.29 and chicken alone is $6.49. The appetizers, wings and fried rice meals were all fine but nothing spectacular.

We were pleased to find out that Teriyaki House now has the popular Boba tea, with imaginative flavors like cappuccino, taro and lychee, as well as our favorites like Thai tea and milk tea. They also offer fruity teas like blueberry or pomegranate and similarly flavored smoothies.

If you are craving good Japanese food but don’t want to sit with strangers, Teriyaki House in Macon is the place to go.

This story was originally published September 8, 2016 at 1:00 PM with the headline "Get great hibachi without the show at Teriyaki House."