PATRONS in a Los Angeles sushi restaurant weren’t expecting an exotic animal show on Sunday.

But after an alleged altercation with the eatery’s management, diner Hiroshi Motohashi decided to deal one more blow by releasing a 4m yellow python in the middle of Iroha Sushi of Tokyo.

Earlier in the day, Motohashi was filmed just outside the Studio City restaurant showing off his large yellow snake to group of kids. Later, he spent $US200 ($A265) at Iroha Sushi but things took a strange turn after his meal.

Employees told CBS Los Angeles that after Motohashi finished eating, he pulled out a small garden snake and started showing it to other diners. He then walked out — but soon came back with an even bigger reptile: a yellow python.

Many frightened customers fled the scene, said waitress Jessie Davaadorj.

“Get this thing out! You know, everyone’s like eating, so customers are yelling, ‘Get this thing out! Are you crazy’?” Davaadorj told the station.

Motohashi reportedly continued to scream expletives during the incident while staff repeatedly asked him to leave.

“We asked him like three or four times and he said, ‘no.’ He was like starting fights with the customers so we had to call the police and fire department,” said another Iroha waitress Sissi Dashtort.

The large snake was unable to get very far and was captured by Animal Control. Police later arrested Motohashi on suspicion of making criminal threats, said Lieutenant Jim Gavin of the Los Angeles Police Department.

According to the LA Times, Motohashi has a track record of unusual incidents involving exotic animals. In 2005, he was convicted in federal court of selling endangered animals and venomous lizards.

In 2011, Motohashi was photographed outside exotic pet shop A Glass Jungle with a 4.2m-long albino tiger python named Cleopatra.

Motohashi told San Diego Uptown News, “I love to educate people about the animals and let them see things they wouldn’t normally see … and I want people to see how they could take care of these animals responsibly.”