Nama Sushi Bar - Downtown Knoxville — Restaurant in Knoxville

We did not have reservations, so we were seated at the sushi bar, which was fine with us. Our waiter was kinda on the aloof side. He introduced himself as the name of one of the sushi chefs and then said his actual name. I thought it was a mistake until he did it again for the people sitting next to us. Anyway, he said we could order from the sushi chefs or from him. When he left, my husband asked the sushi chefs for a sampling of sushi for an appetizer. They clearly understood what we wanted. When our waiter returned he asked if everything was going OK, and my husband said that we had put in an order with the sushi chef for a sampling appetizer but we would like to order a sushi roll and a meal and some alcohol drinks. The waiter hijacked our appetizer order with the sushi chef and put it in his computer, I'm assuming so that he would get a bigger tip. The sushi chef then handed us a sample appetizer platter of dumplings and spring rolls which were half frozen and terrible and not what we ordered. When the waiter returned we told him how disappointed we were but he did not correct the order and actually put it on our bill, which we paid. The only thing decent about it meal was the sushi roll (ex girlfriend). The drinks were weak and the hot meal we ordered was horrible. It was supposed to be seared ahi tuna on a plate of vegetables, but it tasted like bland microwaved tuna on a bed of mostly red peppers with nothing Asian about it. We also wanted the experience of having the sushi chef prepare our sushi in front of us, but since our waiter hijacked us, someone else made our sushi roll so we didn't feel like we should or could tip the sushi guys in front of us who had the time to service us. This is the worst experience I have ever had at a Nama. I have been to the one on Kingston Pike and the one on Cedar Bluff, both of which highly out rank this...

Went here with a group for a friend’s birthday. We were put on a waiting list and given an estimated 35-45 minute wait. The host told us they would call us so we could go for a walk and not worry about clogging up their small waiting space. After 45 minutes with no phone call we went back to the restaurant checked in with the host. They had crossed our name off the list despite the fact they hadn’t called us. They verified that they had the right phone number (it was correct) so they clearly made a mistake. Not only that but they had written down the wrong party number. When the reservation was made 3 people were present but we clearly stated that there were 5 of us. The host clearly wasn’t listening and just wrote down what they saw instead of what we said. When we asked them about when they could seat us it took talking to 3 hosts before one of them could give us an answer and they said it would be another 25-30 minutes before they could seat us at the table they preferred to seat a group at, essentially moving us to the bottom of the list. I would expect that since a mistake was made an effort would be made to seat us as soon as possible, maybe even putting two tables together not normally reserved for a group. Also, at the very least, an apology. Instead, what we got was a nonchalant, “our group table is full now so it will be another 25-30 minutes”and the implication that it was our fault because they did not believe we said 5 people, not three. It clearly didn’t matter to the host that they so dramatically affected the timing of our entire night. I understand mistakes happen to the best of us, but an effort should be made to fix the mistake and they should take...

TLDR- food cold; hair in food. I’m gonna be THAT lady for a minute. Nama on Gay St. has gone way downhill from what I remember when I lived here 11 years ago. My car is still stuck in the snow, so I walked 7 miles round trip to get out of the house for a bit and intended to use a gift card I got for Christmas. I decided to get a hot dish after walking an hour in the cold, sweet glazed salmon. There were two other tables in the restaurant, and two guests at the bar. The bartender was my assigned server. I sat in a booth facing the bar and kitchen window (the heat lamp was off in the window). My food came up, and I watched it sit there for five minutes while my server mindlessly made tea for an empty restaurant. She finally brought my food and did not come back to check on me. It was cold. Since she did not come back, I walked up to the host stand to ask if they could pop it in the microwave for a minute or two. The manager walked up and said it would not be an issue. He brought my food back a few minutes later and I thought all was well and continued to eat. At the last bite, I found a hair in my food.

The manager was really friendly and apologetic. He gave me two $5 off coupons for a future visit. Obviously he comped my meal and felt really bad. I still tipped my server because she deserves an income despite her negligence.

I apologized to them multiple times for being “that lady,” but like- come on. The restaurant is empty, mine is the only food in the window, and I’m sitting there staring at it for five entire minutes, multiple servers and staff walking by it- leaving it there.

I won’t be going back to Nama! They are just not as good...