We have been to a lot of teppanyaki places, this place did not have any flare, the chef did not perform like other places he ignored a small child at the table and did not prepare her for a large flame that engulfed the table. The chef gave folks at the table the wrong food twice and did not know the difference between scallops and calamari The food was mediocre. After the meal we were sitting at The table and they cleared and reset the table while we there and then sat people at the table while we still there, how rude read more

I have been coming to Ninki for about 3 years now specifically for their sushi. I am picky about my sushi and Ninki always meets my expectations. The service has always been up to par. I have moved about 45 minutes always but still come back here frequently. read more

I used to love Ninki but they aren't the same. I got a chicken & shrimp fried rice and charged me $38. When I tried saying something they got super angry took them food and took my food and said they said I would get a refund but wouldn't take my card. I don't trust this restaurant read more

Punch me in the foot for not coming sooner! Amazing food, specials at lunch AND Hibachi?!? Add exceptional service and there you have it, our new go to lunch place. Told my son to order as much as he wanted..did not feel like cooking dinner.he ordered 3 rolls and I ordered Bento box. SNap your eyes shut and open them and wa la Sushi rolls and sashimi done! Bento box was on the way. Best miso soup I have had in a while and crisp lettuce and wonderful tempura. Server sent us home with drinks to go!!! Go now! Call me I will meet you there. So glad I finally tried this place out. Fresh, good, great service and lovely specials. If you can drink, great prices on wine and beer. But at lunch, maybe wait till dinner. Note the prices of many entrees go up 5 dollars at dinner. read more

I thought this place was pretty good! We got sushi and teriyaki chicken! They were both very good!

Terrible service do not eat here. We were rushed out did not even have time to finish our food. This was the absolute worst service I have had ever. read more

Disgusting!! Not very good. I ordered it via Uber eats. It was packaged well, was warm, and showed up on time. That was about the only good thing I could say about it, other than the fried rice which was still pretty average. That meat is not filet mignon, and if it is, you need to start getting different meat. There was no flavor, it was dry, and the presentation was gross. I can't even explain the texture other than it felt crumbly, I know that sounds weird, ha! The whole to go box was filled with liquid. The vegetables, and "filet" were both sitting in marinades, but it was just wet and gross. The soup was unbelievably salty. At first I thought there was dressing already on the salad, just to realize that the brown/yellow coloring on the lettuce was due to it being wilted. The broccoli also looked like it was probably a little questionable before they cooked it. The gyoza was fine. I've had much better elsewhere, including the frozen ones in my freezer. I was really hesitant ordering due to the reviews, but had been in years past and it was good.... But am now really regretting it. I would urge you to listen to the reviews, as the quality has gone down significantly. I stopped eating my meal half way through as it was just gross. If you want to be let down though, and kick yourself for wasting money.. order from here! read more

My girlfriend and I have eaten here many times. Tonight they messed up part of our order- sushi- and we had to drive all the way back to exchange the wrong sushi for the correct one. We asked for some consideration for their mistake and the inconvenience, and a younger girl came to the desk and accused us of eating the first order and trying to get food for free. I told her she was being rude and she said "fine, don't come here anymore". Unbelievable. She was nasty, disrespectful and we will NEVER GO HERE AGAIN. Stay away from these greedy, disrespectful people. read more

Ninki has renewed my faith in Japanese food in Nashville. I am a card carrying Japanese Food Snob. I lived in Japan for three years, my wife is Japanese, I cook and eat Japanese food all the time. Nashville has never had a Japanese restaurant that really stood up to my unreasonable expectations. Until now, until Ninki. I went to the Grand Opening event that was unfortunately scheduled on May 5th. If you speak Spanish or just like an excuse to drink and eat chips and salsa you understand why that might be a challenge for a Japanese restaurant. Nonetheless the meal and the evening were fantastic. Ninki is located in the shopping center next to the Belle Mead Kroger on West End. From the outside it is rather unassuming and will take a while for the locals to catch on to. Inside it is very sleek and elegant. There are two separate dining areas since they offer both Hibachi and a more traditional sushi and Japanese food menu. Overall I found the atmosphere to be very appealing place to spend time and enjoy a meal. The menu is broad and covers a lot of ground. I did not have the Hibachi so I cannot review that part of the restaurant. They have a full sushi menu and a great selection of unique Japanese specialties. I love a good hibachi, but with as good as the rest of the menu is I don't know if I will ever make it to the Ninki hibachi tables. If I had one recommendation for the menu at Ninki it would be to go exploring. They offer multiple dishes that are unique and definitely not offered anywhere else in Nashville or at almost any Japanese restaurant that I have been to in the US. Our group was fortunate enough to be seated with some friends of the chef so we got to sample most of the specialties on the menu. All of them were excellent and made me wish I had a bigger stomach. A quick recap of the meal is as follows: Salmon Ceviche Salad with shaved parmigiana and a wonderful dressing; Hon Maguro Tuna, the real deal and the best sushi I have had in Nashville; Duck Breast served Jibu-ni style which apparently means with a delicate mushroom sauce and grilled scallions, fantasic; Black Cod baked with vegetables in a paper wrapper which might have been the single best piece of fish I have ever had, moist and unbelievably full of flavor; Ribeye steak cooked on a ripping hot stone and flambed with cognac; Creme Brule; French Wine; Beer ; Lobster roll Sushi; Chocolate Cake. Honestly it is a miracle I was able to get up, but everything was perfectly sized and impossible to resist. Ninki left me completed satisfied and more than a little impressed. It is not a cheap place to eat, but it is worth every penny and then some. If you are a traditionalist the sushi is excellent and will definitely not disappoint. If you want to experiment then there is a wealth of great food waiting to be discovered. Explore the menu at Ninki. There are things there that cannot be had anywhere else in Nashville. read more

Where's my salad? Where's my soup? Where's my server? I know where the rest of the staff is-standing in front of the G-d Damned front door sucking down cigarettes. Classy. This place needs a GM that can run a restaurant instead of a flock of half-wits that can't. I've been to Japan, too dude and this ain't it. read more

Been going to Ninki for years and this was the last time. Horrible horrible service, took 21 minutes just for a server to come to our table. Then 40 minutes for our food. Not to mention that 4 tables that come in after us got their food and finished before we got our food. Not even busy and then didn't even discount our meal at all. Piss poor service at this restaurant now and they have lost a long standing customer. read more

Came in at 10pm and every worker greeted us with a "hello" as we walked through the restaurant to our seat. As we sat at the cooking table our waitress was super friendly and prompt! Our dirty dishes were picked up promptly and we ordered a bottle of wine and she poured our first glass for us and then would refill as she walked by. The cook was amazing! Not only did he cook with on point temperatures on our meats but he had a great sense of humor and interaction with our table! I highly recommend this establishment and give them a 5star rating across the board. Thank you and great job!!!! read more

Terrible service, waiter never asked for our drink order and after taking our food order never came back to the table not even to get our checks, we had to flag down another waiter. But the food was pretty good read more

I was not impressed. Prices are high and why have a lobster tank if it's empty? Too many gimmick rolls on the menu. If there are no live lobsters in the lobster tank, where are they getting lobsters for their fancy raw lobster roll? I'm guessing way dead frozen ones in the back. And if that's true, I certainly wouldn't want to eat it. I ordered some fried oysters and received fried chicken instead. It was actually kind of funny because the waitress insisted that despite it not looking like the picture in the menu, they were indeed oysters. I had each of my friends sample it before deciding conclusively that it was instead chicken. I ordered the sweet shrimp and received the standard raw shrimp on rice and fried shrimp heads. I ate one piece and nearly threw up. It tasted like an old aquarium, which is not a good place for raw shrimp to be. When I asked the waitress about striking it from the bill, she did. However, if that was my sushi restaurant and I was confident in the freshness of the food, I would have explained all that before striking it from the bill. The fact that they did not come over to speak to me speaks volumes about the freshness of their food. That is to say, it probably isn't very fresh. The hot food was a joke. My friend ordered bul golgi (Korean dish). It was absolutely pathetic. And it was 16 bucks. Unforgivable. The uni was good. For 7 bucks, I should hope that it is. Otherwise, I do not plan on going back. read more

So I'm here right now at Ninki ..... ordering carryout; waiting at the sushi bar; drinking a glass of Chardonnay. To my left is a quiet large screen TV, a cozy couple, and a semi-stocked bar. Behind me is a chatty group of girlfriends. To my right a large room with multiple tables romantically lit for good ambiance but with outdated decor. In front of me attentive sushi chefs. Oh, what's this? They hand me a 20% off coupon next time and thank me profusely for coming in. Do I need a coupon for sushi? Then the waitress hands me the bill. Ouch; $70 for 5 rolls, edemame and a glass of wine....but I haven't tried the sushi yet. So now I'm at home and I've just finished the meal. The rolls were small but REALLY good. Unique combination of flavors like tuna and mango, and bonnito (smoked fish skin) toppings. Will I be back? Yes, but only with my coupon. read more

Had lunch with a group of coworkers at Ninki today and we were all quite impressed. The decor was great and not something you would expect to find in a restaurant located in a shopping center - it has a fantastic, modern vibe that was very welcoming, though I can't say that I found the new age music to be the best accompaniment to my Japanese dining experience. As for the food, we tried an assortment of things. I can't recall the names of all of the five different rolls we ordered, but I think I remember there being a Butterfly and a Yum Yum roll in the mix - both received great reviews. We also ordered chicken teriyaki (quite tasty) and an insanely large portion of chicken fried rice that was delicious. There were a lot of interesting options on the menu - bibimbap & other Korean offerings and fois gras, for example - and judging off of our first experience, I can't wait to go back and be more adventurous. Prices were very reasonable and they do have a lunch menu. Definitely adding this place to our regular rotation - but on that note, I must make my one slightly negative comment and say that the timeliness of the service could be tightened up a bit. Seeing as how it is in an area that attracts lots of business lunchers, being able to make it in and out the door pretty quickly is essential. But since the place is still green, I have faith that this matter will get better with time. Overall, a great experience and a restaurant that I will enthusiastically recommend to others. read more

I love this place. Can always count on really good sushi, sweet staff, and just an over all good time. I recommend this place to everyone. I feel like it is soooo underrated! It's never really busy which is so crazy to me. read more

Here's my quick and dry review of this place, which I USED to frequent about once per week. I rated 4 out of 5, based on my experiences with other sushi restaurants in Nashville, because it is unfair to compare to some of the other sushi restaurants I've been to while living in Manhanttan, NY. I usually rate sushi based on three criteria. Rice, Fish, and Presentation. Here, the sushi rice is of good consistency and taste. Not too dry, not too mushy. Good overall texture. Not too sweet or too much vinegar, but seasoned right for my palate. Here, the fish is always consistent. Fresh and vibrant in color. The raw scallop is so-so. Sea urchin is good. Occasionally, they have specialty fish like Toro. The nigiri fish is sliced appropriately, in terms of size and thickness. Acceptable fish to rice ratio, but could be more delicate. Here, the presentation is average. I'm not expecting much, particularly since the prices are average. Again, not delicate but acceptable. As others mentioned, the location (in a strip mall) is quite deceiving. I would have skipped this place had I not stumbled upon it by accident. The interior is ok decorated with appropriate lighting. If it's busy, it can get a bit noisy inside due to the high ceilings and large interior space. Service is average, friendly. Sometimes a bit slow when busy, but expected. Sometimes when it's busy, they look clueless. They have sake, wine and specialty drinks, but I cannot comment on this since I get water. I love raw fish and shellfish. I love toro, hamchi and mirugai. Sadly for me, people in Nashville tend to favor the more common fish so this place doesn't carry the more selective fishes/shellfish on a regular basis. Ninki sometimes sells the fatty salmon skin, which I HIGHLY recommend. I typically order the nigiri or the chirashi here because ANY specialty rolls tend to mask the flavor of the rice and fish. I realize this may be desirable for some, but I prefer the raw taste. I eat all my raw seafood without any garnish - no cocktail sauce, lemon, nothing. Only wasabi and soy sauce. Sometimes, without it too. If I'm on a budget that day, I'll stick to ordering their maki rolls since it's always 50% off for dine-in customers. The hibachi is so-so. Not my favorite, but I come here for the sushi. Ok, so maybe this wasn't a quick review. Too bad we can't do a powerpoint presentation, complete with animation. I'll end by saying this...the place is Japanese owned and operated. Why is this important? Because it is. read more

Trash sushi and almost no service. I will never come to garbage chamber again. I don't know why some people even give five stars to this place. It's bullshit. If you don't want be angry and pissed off, try to ignore this place. read more

I'm sorry to do this to you, Ninki, as we've had a pretty good run during your 50% promotion (which seems to have gone on forever), but you're losing a star. The service on a recent night for a friend's birthday was confusing and infuriating. I've dealt with the slow service in the past, figuring it was worth it for such a great deal. On this particular night though, my entire table of 7 people were served their food long before I was. I waited patiently for a while - until the server started handing out individual checks and I STILL hadn't recieved my meal. I'm talking a good 20 minutes between my friends' food arriving and me sitting there hungry and angry. Turns out she never put my order in. How does that happen? I have not been back since, and it will take a good deal of convincing to get me back again. Sometimes you really do get what you pay for. read more

Attention!! The worst Japanese food ever. They lied to customer about having real Japanese cooks. The cook is actually from Korea (I learned Korean before, so I know) I never write any poor review. But after I had dinner there tonight, I think I need to tell people the truth. The truth is that their food sucks. I ordered Tempura Udon and some appetizers. First, no tempura came with my Udon. Second, the Udon is just Udon in very salty water. I have 4 friends with me. They all tried my Udon and none of them liked it. And it is not just the Udon. My friends ordered sushi as well. I am not sure how it tasted like but they told me this is their first time and also last time here. The fourth year I'm in Nashville, the first time giving a poor review. Please consider if you really want to waste your time and money on it. read more

Ninki has all the intentions of trying to serve Japanese food. However, it falls short of that, amongst other things. While its location is what brought me here, it is not AT ALL what you expect to see when you walk into a Japanese restaurant of any sort. It looks like a late 80's, early 90's bachelor pad. Kind of like black laquer threw up on Japan. No bueno. The service was less than decent, considering it was a fair 20 minutes between visits from our waitress, who was extremely hyper and difficult to understand because of it. Needless to say, we finally chose our Hibachi bowls (shrimp for me, steak for JTR), and then waited our "alotted" 20 minutes for the food. Did I mention we watched a table of four (who ordered before us) get their food 5-10 minutes before us? The food smelled great. I was extremely excited at the look of other people's plates, but when ours arrived, my hopes immediately dropped. The veggies were covered in butter and oil, and my shrimp was sitting very lonely on the other side of the plate by itself. A small heap of arugala made a nice wall between the veggies and the shrimp. The steak looked fairly appetizing, but the plate was also pretty sparse and lonely looking. At least serve this stuff in smaller plates so it doesn't look so pathetic! JTRs fried rice tasted like a stick of melted butter. Luckily, I found the silver lining on the menu: steamed rice. Recap? I won't be back. Proverb of the day: A Japanese restaurant's ability to not screw up a bowl of steamed rice is no reason to return. read more

I tried this spot out on Friday night with mixed results. While the chef did some great tricks to entertain my toddler, the food was not as good as I've had at other, similar places. I ordered the chicken and shrimp with fried rice and veggies. I'd give it a "C-." The meat was bland and overcooked, and I had to drown it in "Yum Yum Sauce" to make it taste better. The rice was undercooked and almost crunchy! Hubs ordered steak and shrimp and also damned it with faint praise. We also got cheated on our shrimp appetizer--never received it! Other places usually throw in some ice cream at the end but not so here. The tahini dressing on the salad was fresh and flavorful but the onion soup was salty broth. In the end, we ended up forking over $60 on a not so great meal. read more

Ninki has been a decent representation of Japanese food. However, tonight's experience was full of sodium and disappointment. I've had to download yelp to inform the general public that unless you want a mouthful of high blood pressure to steer clear! Although different strokes for different folks, this establishment will automatically charge gratuity without earning it. Overall, I will never come back. Thank you. read more

Great little place tucked away in a strip mall next to Bellmeade Kroger. I mostly have either had sushi or lunch specials but it is very reasonable for a Japanese Sushi and Steakhouse. I love the Bento box. Sushi, Tempura, Tofu/Beef/Chicken with miso, salad, gyzo all for $12 @ lunch. You can't beat this! Sushi specials are also excellent during the lunch hour and the they have some speciality items no one else in town has. ***'s due to the waitstaff. They are not very thrilled to be there. Maybe the management. Either way, its a good bargin for the money! read more

I can honestly say I appreciate only the finest sushi. Ninki offers amazing quality and the freshness is second to none. Service was attentive and non intrusive... just how I like it. Beside the superior sushi, the cuisine is a fusion of French and Japanese, a very suitable fit. The creativity matches some of Nashville's finer restaurants. They offer a full menu ranging in Rib-eye Steaks to authentic noodle dishes and obviously fresh fish preparations. They also offer Hibachi Grills and two private dinning possibilities. What was even more impressive was the selection of wines and specialty cocktails. The wines represented a worldly selection including Japanese Sake & Shochu, French, American and a few South American and Australian picks. The cocktails are not your run of the mill and were created with a local mixologists to fancy the cuisine. I would highly recommend this restaurant and visit twice: once for the sushi and once for the fusion cuisine... then you decide for yourself. read more

Even half priced feels overpriced when the service is so poor you cant get water when you literally flag down a woman holding a full water pitcher to return to the kitchen and then you have to add a tip on top of it. mediocre sushi from the one I got and I didn't hear any raving down the table of choices. You will smell unpleasantly deep fried coming away from this place. Overall, way too many better options to want eat here again. read more

The sushi is fresh and the price is perfect. I love stopping in here for lunch or dinner any night of the week. The miso soup is very good, and the portion size of their rolls and sashimi is spot on. It's a little jaunt out to Belle Meade for me, but well worth it as long as I don't go between 4:30-6:30pm and have to deal with the height of rush hour. read more

What has happened to this place? I ordered my usual, the Kiss of Eel and Spicy Crazy rolls. They were both warm. Eww. It gets worse. The fish was anything but fresh. I think they tried to cover that with about a cup of oyster sauce on each roll! And the roe was bleeding pink. Service was great! Two stars for my server. That is all. read more

We haven't been here in a long time and decided to try it again. Service was good and attentive and the food was great for the price. I'm a very picky sushi eater (I have eaten sushi all over the country) and I was very pleased with their quality. I ordered the salmon nigiri, Philadelphia roll & Titan roll. I was impressed! My daughter ordered the kids chicken/rice and loved it! It also came with vegetables. My husband had the steak teriyaki and all I observed was an empty plate. My daughter even got an amazing orange slice dessert! We live in the neighborhood and were much happier with this visit so we will be back! read more

Ninki - Farren with the flaming Titan Roll! - Japanese Near Me - Nashville, Tennessee

Absolutely delicious! Fresh sushi, fun atmosphere, great service! I LOVE this place!!!

My favorite place to dine for sushi the staff is always super friendly . The food is always fresh and the atmosphere is always very dark and romantic . This is a great place for friends or for a date . Highly recommending read more

I was extremely disappointed in almost ever aspect of Ninki. I was really excited to try this place out since it's really close to my apartment, but I should have known better based on all the previous spotty reviews. My girlfriend and I decided to stop in for lunch this past Friday, and even though there was not wait, the place was busy. The first thing I noticed when I walked in, was how huge this place was. It's not at all what I expected from the outside. With all the space in the restaurant, they didn't do a good job at filling it. It feels very empty, and cold. Now for the service. I honestly think our waitress chugged two Five Hour Energy's, and four Red Bulls before she came to our table! She had a heavy Asian accent and was talking a mile a minute. She tried to go over the lunch specials with me, and by tried I mean she flipped through my menu quickly and banged on a few pages. There were some things that were two for one and some things that were half priced, but which was which was a total guess. Between the time she brought out our drinks and when we ordered was probably fifteen minutes. And in those fifteen minuted we determined that their sushi menu was extremely over priced when compared to other Sushi joints in the city. So for lunch we both stuck to the Hibachi menu. I ordered the steak and L ordered the shrimp. Both tasted alright, but it was nothing great. I ordered a side of fried rice that tasted like I was eating a stick of butter. I added some soy sauce to it, but then it just tasted like I was eating a stick of salted butter. I asked for the steak medium rare and it came out medium well, emphasis on the well. But, when the steak is cut into cubes the size of dice, it's hard to cook then to any other consistency other than well. Thankfully the Hibachi menu was 50% off, it was one of the specials that our hopped up waitress banged on when we first arrived, so lunch was only 12 bucks between the two of us. Not a horrible deal, but I left shaking my head, swearing to never go back again. read more

I give this place 5 stars because my kids LOVE it! It's really conveniently located for our family of 5 to come here. We always sit at the Hibachi table and have the chef cook for us... yes, a little silly, but again our 13 and 11 year old twins just love it. We have often met families with kids there as well. The food is always fresh and we leave stuffed. read more

The better half and I stopped in at dinner for Teppanyaki. The location is very nice, but as other reviewers have said, it's quite large and feels a bit empty. For us, Service was prompt and friendly. We even had a table just to ourselves. Food was decent, but not great. I found the Sushi to be average (We ordered the "Sexy Girl"), but its possible I'm just a snob about such things. For dinner I had the Hibachi Salmon which was really good. I've never been to another Teppanyaki place that offered this so it was a pleasant surprise. The downside was the absence of Teriyaki Steak for the Hibachi. Overall I'd probably return, but only for the Salmon, which I did enjoy quite a bit, but it wouldn't be a strong recommendation to others if you are looking for something to just BLOW YOU AWAY. read more

We've never had the hibachi table but we always get hibachi at the regular table! We love their sushi, hibachi, and sake! They give you a lot of food and the service is great! read more

The hibachi service is horrible, but the food is pretty good. If you have a large party or want to have the hibachi service I HIGHLY recommend going somewhere else. (My personal suggestion is Tokyo Japanese steakhouse, which is right beside the gold parking lot for green hills mall, 8 mins away from Ninki.) read more

Ninki is one of my favorite lunch places. The sushi is great and inexpensive. My favorite roll is the Wasabi roll, which is always very fresh and filling. I also generally order the Philadelphia roll with fresh salmon instead of smoked and also add jalapeno. For both of these together (which is enough for two meals), my bill is around $12.00. It's a great deal. My other favorite is the Bibimbap on the lunch menu, which comes with soup and salad. This is $9.95 (I think?) and a ton of tasty, semi-healthy food. The hibachi is fine but not great. The one big issue with Ninki is the service. It is often terrible. To remedy this, I generally ask for my check as soon as my food is brought so that I don't have to wait to pay. Also, a lot of times you have to wait for the hostess to come to the front. Be patient-- it is worth it (although sometimes frustrating!). read more

Ugh..., I really wanted to give this place five stars, but it's so damn big. Whoever designed the build-out, forgot to add some charm. It's big as in sterile in not a good way inside. However, the fish is good, rolls are creative and the service was exceptional. The prices are a tad high. Granted, this is the owners third restaurant with the other two in Kentucky. Surprised it looked the way it did inside. Guess it didn't help our last visual reminder of the place as we walked out was of a lobster tank in the hallway. One lone victim was lying at the bottom. read more

Ninki is one of the few places in Nashville that doesn't make me grimace when it's picked for sushi night. The atmosphere is clean and relaxed and service is always friendly but leans towards the slower side. The menu has plenty of options at reasonable prices for the quality. They have a "half-off" sushi menu but it's always that price so it's really just the "value" menu. I find the rolls on that menu are a little more on the plain/smaller side than the regular menu but still pretty decent, especially for how inexpensive they are. I've always enjoyed everything I've ordered off of the regular menu and I've never left here disappointed. Most sushi places in Nashville are either low quality or overpriced for decent quality. Ninki strikes a good balance and it's a regular on my sushi rotation list. read more