Tokyo Restaurant — Restaurant in Spruce Pine

We stopped here to eat today for the first time, after driving on the Blue Ridge Parkway from Boone to Little Switzerland.

Although the restaurant was clean and the server was polite, I could only leave 2 stars because of the super small tank that housed a super large fish . I looked up what type of fish it was, and the closest I could find is one called a Giant Gourami. If that’s correct, it’s supposed to be kept in a 300 gallon tank? This one was in maybe a 50 gallon tank at the MOST. No landscaping rock/gravel/plants. Just a blank tank. With a smaller tank mate. When we placed our hand near the glass, it came over to our hands. Just heartbreaking.

Dinner buffet pricing was $10.99 plus your drink. I guess that’s ok for folks that eat lots and lots of chicken. But why can’t Chinese restaurants have dishes for vegetarians? Other than noodles and butter-soaked carrots? How about some bean curd/tofu, or even just mixed vegetables like broccoli/carrots/cauliflower? I had to pick broccoli out of the broccoli/chicken dishes.

So for positives: server was polite; lo mein noodles were the thin kind, not the super thick ones like lots of places use now; my husband liked the chocolate pudding; and if you’re a carnivore that eats lots of chicken, you’ll be happy with the variety of selections for chicken.

Sorry, but after being a vegetarian for over 30 years, I can’t give more than two stars b/c of the inhumane fish tank and the minimal...

The biggest problem this restaurant has is seating a larger party of 6 or more people. They or the hostess or whoever is in charge just cannot move tables to accommodate larger parties. We generally wait more than 30 minutes.... to an hour for seating in a small cramped space. They take many groups of 4 or less ahead of us instead of holding a couple of tables to slide together for us. Most times we sit apart like this last visit. The food is good, but getting drinks refilled is almost impossible. You generally get one refill and I always run out of water. The fried shrimp is always fried too much making it tough and dry. The fish has a thick breading and is usually a little soggy. The rest of the food is great. Their chicken is tender, boiled shrimp tender and flavorful. Traditional Chinese food is very good along with a steak they serve. You have a grill available for individual choices. Great for parties of 4 or less BUT NOT FOR LARGE PARTIES BECAUSE OF SEATING. AND, THERE IS NO APOLOGIES FOR SEATING DELAYS. AS A MATTER OF FACT, YOU SORT OF LOOKED AS AS AN INCONVENIENCE TO THEM. THIS DEFINATELY NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED. THEY CAN STAY FILLED WITH SMALL PARTIES AFTER CHURCH AND DO NOT MAKE EFFORTS TO ARRANGE FOR LARGER PARTIES. THEREFORE, WE OFTEN GO TO OTHER RESTAURANTS WHERE LARGER PARTIES ARE QUICKLY AND EASILY...

I really like this Chinese buffet. The food is always steamy, fresh, and tasty. Of course, there are plenty of choices. There's the classic chicken with broccoli in a brown sauce and also the sweet & sour chicken (?)--the doughy breaded chicken. That's the one my husband gets. They have lemon chicken, which i like alot. There's sautéed garlic string beans, sweet carrots, lo mein, also the one with the rice noodles; Lots of seafood choices, a dessert bar/ salad bar, eggrolls, crab rangoon, soups, etc... Let's just say, there are enough choices, I've gotten to try new things. The staff is constantly checking, replenishing and keeping busy. They're pleasant. Prices are as expected... higher for dinner and weekends, slightly less for lunch. I've not seen bugs. Bathrooms are clean. There's a big fish tank with an Oscar fish that seems to follow you with his googly eyes! Yes, I'd recommend it, as I'm going to keep coming...