Terrific fine dining experience. This was a last minute reservation that included young kids. They had a kids menu from the restaurant downstairs which was perfect. The Japanese food was very fresh and delicious. They even had fresh grated wasabi. The price was steep, but the food was well worth it.

Waiter was very knowledgeable, food was amazing...

Beautiful, delicious and just amazing. Best sushi in Pensacola!

Top notch food but it took FOREVER. Dinner took almost 3 hours. Wait staff extremely knowledgeable. Location is very awkward within the hotel. If it’s going to take as long as it did, I would rather be able to sit and truly watch the cooking process

Beautiful wonderful excellent waiter
Presentation 5 stars

AmaIng food!! Quiet intimate atmosphere and good waitress!

Charming and gracious host, perfectly paced and attentive service team...beautiful ocean view. Brace yourself for a gastronomic delightful experience! I recommend the "Sun Over Japan", "Omakaze", "Wagyu Filet" entree.

The best fine dining experience ever! Service was beyond exceptional. The place is beautifully decorated. And the food was amazing!

So I finally got to try Bonsai at The Hilton on Pensacola beach!
It was a sensory and flavor journey everyone should experience. From the profiles of the edible flowers and garnishes to the impeccably selected ingredients and tasting menu...
I went with a couple friends and we did the Omakase menu, it’s basically a tasting menu of various items and you can also include a wine and sake pairing. First of all the setting is beautiful and intimate. There’s also a nice deck to walk out on that overlooks the pool and there was a fire dancer out there! As far as the service it was a 10 we had Sara as our server. She was very knowledgeable and explained all the items in such great detail! The progressive infused gin cocktail and cool siphon sake (hot) were delicious! It’s worth it to go just to try those! The NAMA was probably one of my favorite things I had! Then we had the KOROBUTO pork belly appetizer and the Wagyu beef !!! Flavors were on point! I also recommend the nigiri/sashimi app as well! The hickory super smoked A1 tuna was delightful, the salmon brule had a very unique flavor profile(good as well)m but my favorite of the sushi rolls was the FLORIDA CITRUS then… yes there’s more! We had the hand rolled ramen, my friends had the KUROBUTO PORK ramen and I had the TAKO LOBSTER ramen! What can I say about that TAKO ramen but damn… those fresh rolled squid ink noodles 😋 lastly we had a very light dessert and some wine, the dessert was a matcha ice cream with mochi and red bean paste and fresh fruits! The perfect ending to a perfect dinner! Also, I want to mention we had fresh ground wasabi root and also a choice of soy sauce one was a dark rich soy sauce and one was a soy that was a Matsutake soy that’s light in color and it was my fav! I’m gonna buy that for my house! I would bathe in it, it’s that good! There were a few times I wanted to lick my plate but I was in public. Worth the go. Perfect for date night. Do it!

RE: World Class Experience With A Hidden Speakeasy Vibe

Ambiance is beautiful as it is private with views overlooking the Gulf of Mexico, service is delightfully detailed and thoughtful in every way from beginning to end. This experience is unlike any I've experienced. I highly recommend the Omakaze which allows you to have sampling of an impeccable offerings complimented with fine specialty imported soy sauce choices and fresh table side wasabi. I especially thoroughly enjoyed (maybe too much) the "Sun Over Japan" (sake, which were made with asian pears presented in a scientific physics flair) and "Shu-Hai" (progressive infused cocktail). That is honestly the best sake you'll ever have. Thank me later:)

Always spectacular! Best Sushi in Pensacola with impeccable service.

Not going to lie. My wife and I had the Omakase menu without wine and saki pairing.

Horrible experience.

The ambiance and staff were great. While it's in an odd location within the Hilton the restaurant is beautifully designed with great views. Staff was highly attentive and knowledgeable, it felt upscale, and was great for a date.

The meal is where I have issues. The presentation and staff were great.

First course was a pork belly with caramelized sugar. This was prepared well and tasted great.

Second course was nigiri. All of it tasted a little off. We go to high end sushi restaurants a lot... The salmon and tuna they served here wasn't very flavorful at all and the snapper, trout, and local catches smelled and tasted off. Almost felt as if it was old, frozen too long, or not kept at correct temperatures.

Third course was some form of Sushi Roll. Same as the prior course. Taste was off so we refused to eat it and sent it back. The servers/staff were amazing and brought out another roll to replace but instantly had the same issue so we skipped it.

Fourth course was ramen. This was absolutely perfectly prepared and amazing.

Final course was desert. It was good, but we were pretty burned out by our experience with the fish.

My wife and I eat sushi/sashimi constantly, both in high end restaurants like Sushi Den (Denver), Kabooki (Orlando), Mizumi (vegas), etc... We also go to local places in strip malls for quick boring standards like tuna, salmon, and yellowtail sashimi. We're not amateurs or new to the game. Something was very wrong with the fish last night and in the end I paid a whole bunch of cash to sit on the toilet sick throughout the night.

Wouldn't recommend or go again.

Best food I’ve eaten and this isn’t usually what I choose.
Our waiter was outstanding. There was no question on food or wine that he was unable to satisfy or educate.
Well worth it.

Unique little gem hidden on the 2nd floor of the Hilton Hotel. It had a nice outdoor patio with lights but it was not open at the time we were there in mid August. Had lovely service and the best food.

Amazing! Truly 5 star, best food, presentation, and overall experience in Pensacola. Pricey, but amazing.

Our experience was great. Robert was amazing, very detailed.

The food was excellent but the service was EVEN BETTER! Marcus was amazing. He knows the menu and made sure everything we ordered fit our tastes and likes. The chef came out after to make sure our experience was the best. It was expensive but very worth it. It was an excellent dining experience.

The wine prices are absurd; unfortunately our service was with a trainee who couldn’t remember many of the details of the menu. That’s fine, but at $300-$400 for 2 people, it’s not great. Most fine dining establishments train staff before allowing them to wait tables. But most of all the food was somewhat unremarkable, particularly for the price. The wagyu was a stellar exception and worth its price but otherwise the meal was not particularly noteworthy. The smoked maki is a fun presentation but the smoke flavor overpowers the fish. It’s performative food rather than good food. The rest was forgettable. I’d go again, but solely for the wagyu.

Delicious dining experience!

Located on the 2nd floor of the Hilton, bonsai offered my wife and I a much needed respite from our normal day-to-day. Service was outstanding, food was great, wonderful sake selection, and outstanding ambiance. Will definitely come back when we return in September! Also loved the fact they had real wasabi grated at your table.

First I was like in a Hilton? Don’t let that fool you. Beautiful restaurant. Great view of the ocean. The food is out of this world delicious and amazing. Just order it and enjoy. Don’t ask questions unless you have a serious allergy. The presentation - everything. Five stars.

Service and food outstanding. Nice wine list. Everyone from front of the house to the kitchen works really hard to make sure of a first rate dining experience. Be very glad there’s a place of this high quality on Pensacola Beach. No fried food to be found here!

An absolute feast for the senses.
My souls thanks you.

We enjoyed the starter appetizer, two rolls, the halibut, and a glass of wine, all beautifully prepared and presented. The fresh horseradish was the best we have ever had. Grateful to be sat beside the window for the evening in order to see the beautiful view of the gulf. Lovely birthday dessert at the end of our evening made our gathering even more memorable.

Reserved a table for a party of 3 about two weeks in advance. The dinner was amazing and reserving it was hassle free.

Amazing food, kind service, wonderful experience. Formal dining but family friendly.

The food and service were great! We had the pork belly appetizer, Tako Lobster ramen with squid ink noodles, and Halibut. It was all worth every penny. The portions are larger than you think so don’t order too much. Overall, we loved it and will be back.

This was our first time to Bonsai and the experience was phenomenal! Service and food was amazing! Highly recommend!

Great food, the chef's choice 5 course meal was enough food for 4 people and 3 of the courses were heavy on the sashimi, etc. The pork belly was delicious and included in two of the courses, wish they had included some wagyu beef instead in one course.

Nice table by the window with water view. Specialty food was delicious and not too filling.

Wow! DeMarcus is a fantastic waiter, the wine and Japanese whiskey are delightful and the food was phenomenal! Thank you for a once in a lifetime experience in a beautiful place!

Amazingly fresh sashimi, well curated wine and sake pairings, and some of the best pork tonkatsu Ramen I've ever had. If you luck out Sara will be your server.

Food was wonderful- amazing Wagyu beef and delicious pork. Rob , our waiter was outstanding.Answered many questions about the menu and ingredients. Unfortunately the venue is odd- on the second floor of the Hilton- by rooms....not an elegant setting for what you pay!

Excellent food and service. Would highly recommend for special occasion, but price would limit frequent visits.

Excellent fine dining sushi. Wonderful experience.

Ladies and Gentleman! Introducing to you ROWE JAVIER, Flordia's premier Sushi Chef. Stunning! Sushi has been part of my regular menu for years, but I have never had it this fresh or delicious.

Tucked away on the 2nd floor of the Pensacola Beach Hilton, the atmosphere is peaceful and serene. Overlooking the Gulf of Mexico, the view is enchanting. The service was inviting and meticulous (shout out to Rob our waiter, and Tebby our host).

If for any reason you delight in Japanese cuisine, take a trip to Bonsai. You don't even need to visit for a vacation, just go for the Sushi!

Top to finish, one of the best restaurant experiences I had the pleasure to enjoy.

5 STARS across the board.
Many thanks.
David

Our server was fantastic and the sushi/maki was amazing!!!! Our lobster ramen left us feeling we should have chosen something else as our main course. The lobster was tough and the tentacles were complete rubber. We were told the dish had a bit of spice to it but the broth was not very flavorful. The whole experience at Bonsai is very pleasant from a service and ambience perspective. I would highly recommend it for the experience but the cost makes it very hard to justify a second visit unless it is just for sushi appetizer.

Sushi was outstanding. Prices are NYC level. Wine prices are high especially for Pensacola.

Great experience!

Dinner was amazing. The view was superb. The food exquisite. The waiter was friendly and the perfect server.