The big question for indecisive diners at Wako Japanese Sushi in Murfreesboro, Tennessee isn’t “what should I eat?” — it’s “what should I eat next?”
While customers can limit their meal to an item or two from the extensive menu, the inclusive all-you-can-eat meal is the real draw.
To make the most of the $20.95 lunch extravaganza, diners should get to know the rules and sit down with a sushi strategy.

One rule that could make a meal more expensive: Wako charges diners a la carte prices for food left on the plate. Ordering multiple rolls to eat a few pieces of each is not a cost-effective option, but being a member of the clean plate club is. Another rule that could affect dining strategy: no sharing! This rule may or may not be enforced, but to break it is to go against the spirit of a trip to Wako.
As for strategy, arrive hungry. Breakfast may be the most important meal of the day, but consider skipping it before a Wako lunch. Tea or water reign over soda, because carbonation bubbles take up valuable real estate in the belly.
The $20.95 all-you-can-eat lunch includes tea or soda, salad, soup, appetizers and ice cream in addition to main dishes like sushi rolls and teriyaki. Servers take customers’ orders as many times as necessary. Starting small is advantageous. A cucumber salad or a serving of gyoza (addictive potsticker dumplings that come four to a plate) can buy time to decide on the next dish or three. Other starters worth ordering include tuna tataki (Wako serves these thin slices of lightly seared tuna over matchstick cucumber and sprinkled with sesame seeds,) steaming miso soup and spicy kani salad. Small plates in varying shapes with attractive garnishes make for an aesthetically pleasing table setting.

After warming up, diners can think bigger. The kitchen menu includes single pieces of sushi as well as simple rolls and cones. However, specialty rolls rule Wako. The Spicy Girl roll, with two kinds of tuna, salmon, spicy mayo and a bit of crunch stands out. So does the Fall in Love roll, with shrimp tempura, snow crab and cool cream cheese. The menu includes plenty of options for the seafood averse. Sweet potato, avocado and bean curd each star in vegetarian roles, and the Aac roll (that’s asparagus, avocado and cucumber,) is a delight.

Servers deliver plates and continue to serve orders until customers can’t take it anymore. End the meal with chocolate, vanilla or strawberry ice cream — or think outside the cone with red bean or green tea. No need to narrow it down to one flavor, because indulgence is the Wako way.
Wako’s dining room is spacious. Diners can also sit at the extra-long sushi counter to watch the chefs assemble roll after roll. The bar offers daily drink specials for customers. In case there’s no time for a leisurely lunch, Wako also offers the all-you-can-eat option for dinner. Lunch, however, is more cost effective and gives customers more time to digest before ending the day with sweet dreams of sushi.
Wako Japanese Cuisine
740 NW Broad St, Murfreesboro, TN 37129
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