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A year after graduating high school, Redwood City resident Jonathan Maldonado has opened his first food truck.
“It was never easy to find a hibachi place around the area, especially one open late,” the 19-year-old said.
So he opened his own. Fire Hibachi is a food truck parked near Redwood City’s downtown area that’s open until midnight or 2 a.m., depending on the night. It offers a variety of hibachi favorites and specializes in hibachi burritos ($18.95-$24.95), known as burribachis, which are burritos stuffed with classic hibachi offerings, like meat, fried rice, grilled vegetables and homemade sauces. Maldonado’s favorite is the super burribachio, featuring steak, shrimp, fried rice, vegetables, yum yum sauce and diablo sauce.
Maldonado, who grew up in East Palo Alto, graduated from Menlo Park’s TIDE Academy in 2023 and plans to later study business engineering in college. Opening Fire Hibachi in October was Maldonado’s debut in the food and beverage industry, and he hopes to eventually expand the food truck into a brick-and-mortar restaurant.
Lobster, salmon and shrimp plate with grilled vegetables and vegetable fried rice ($50.95) from Fire Hibachi, a food truck in Redwood City. Courtesy Fire Hibachi. 
New York steak and chicken plate with grilled vegetables and vegetable fried rice ($35.95) from Fire Hibachi, a food truck in Redwood City. Courtesy Fire Hibachi.
With the help of his cousin Yedib Sanchez, Maldonado developed the recipes for his food truck. In addition to burribachis, Fire Hibachi offers a variety of fried rice dishes ($10.95-$15.95) and entrees featuring grilled vegetables, vegetable fried rice and your choice of meat, including chicken teriyaki, Filet mignon, scallops and even lobster ($21.95-$40.95).
Fire Hibachi also has a kids’ menu with smaller portions ($9.95). For drinks, find popular soda cans as well as housemade Shirley Temples ($6.95). A menu catered toward vegetarian customers is still in the works, according to Maldonado. Fire Hibachi’s head chef is Domingo Jimenez Lopez, who is also a part-time chef at Sakura, a teppanyaki restaurant in Redwood City.
“We’re family-friendly,” Maldonado said. “We’re passionate about our customers, passionate about the food. We try to have the best, the freshest produce, the freshest food.”
Fire Hibachi, 726 Main St., Redwood City; Instagram: @firehibachi_. Open Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday from 4:30 p.m. to midnight, Friday and Saturday from 4:30 p.m. to 2 a.m.
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