Sakura Restaurant

The sushi was good and had a friendly atmosphere. They also have a full bar. Prices where very reasonable.

Bad experience! There were 5 adults and 1 child in my party. The service was good until the server brought two of our meals out 15 minutes before the others. So we sat staring at our food until the rest came out. Then the chicken meals smelled bad, almost like it was uncooked. When I approached the server about our food, she said the chicken had to be cooked because that’s how it comes off the truck. What??? Bad! They took one of the two chicken meals off the check but charged us for the other! I will never support this restaurant again. The first time I came here the food and service was exceptional; however, this time was a total disappointment.

Don’t let the shopping center exterior fool you. Sakura is definitely worth a stop if you are in the mood for good food. My husband and I ended up going twice in one week. Partially because of the lack of choices in Franklin but also because we enjoyed the food so much the first time. Between the visits we tried a variety of sushi, including the sweet potato (my favorite), the Philadelphia (a close second), the spicy Krab (yum!), and the chicken tempera (wasn’t thrilled with this one). Our waitress the first time seemed a little distracted and even forgot to bring the sake we ordered then charged us for it. This was taken care of by the manager. The waiter the second time was very friendly and quick. We would not hesitate to return if we came back to town and highly recommend it.

The food was fairly good here a year ago, but it’s been steadily declining. Tonight spent $ 70 for dinner for 2 and it was terrible. Not sure what corners are being cut, but the same rolls I usually order looked different and tasted bad. We were a party of four, but each entrée came out at different times– 15 minutes from first to last. Generally a bad experience, won’t go back.

Service is very poor and slow.
Slow on getting food to you.
Food is good.

our experience at sakura was fabulous! The food was wonderful and entertaining. The chef was very friendly and funny. He was also real good at what he did. All six of us loved the meals and the price was comparable to other Japanese steakhouses. Thank you Sakura for bringing something better to Franklin!

If you’re a sushi snob you probably won’t like it. But if you’re the type of person who’s a sushi snob, what are you doing in Franklin anyway? This place is goooooooooooood.

When I saw the surprisingly low prices on the menu I expected the worst, however, the sushi here was really, really good. My only complaint about anything is that the tempura was a bit like Long John Silvers.

Love love love this place !!! Honestly I’ve only gone there for sushi, but I go frequently … The food is fresh and bursting with flavor and the service and atmosphere match beautifully ! I’ve never had a bad experience here — try the volcano roll!

I love this place! I go frequently! I’ve never had a bad experience, the sushi is to die for! I would recommend this place to anyone! The atmosphere is great and the service is too! Overall awesome place to go for sushi!

Food was OK, Kobe express was better for me. Had hibachi chicken

IMO sushi is about fresh fish.
I do like the steak hibachi, as it has been tender and nicely medium rare at least three times.

Dinner prices are ridiculous, triple the lunch prices. Soup is fish based, eww. Main entrees were good although portions were small. The restaurant was clean and cute but smelled like musty old folks. Service was great… almost like they didn’t even know the food was gross!

We were so happy to find a sushi restaurant in the area! The food was very good! More importantly, the service was FANTASTIC! We were celebrating our 25^th anniversary and… what a nice evening! Thank you!

love this place, best place to get sushi in Western Carolina. The only thing that I can say they need more verity for their sushi dishes besides spicy tuna. Also very disappointing that they don’t have ikura. (Salmon Roe) all they have is Flying fish roe. If you are in the mood for sushi this is the place to go!

For the location, this is one of the best restaurants you can go to!!!
We went on New Year’s Eve and it was one of those nights where a restaurant can prove itself as dynamic – can definitely go classy or casual. I live in NYC now and I would put this right up there with any of the Japanese/​Asian fusion restaurants you can find, except ½ the price! Hip décor, great lighting (I’m picky about that), and incredible, unique menu… get the lobster appetizer! I also had a couple different kinds of sushi (both amazing) and the salmon teriyaki dish (which I got the biggest portion of salmon I’ve ever been served! Enough to save…). The cocktails look amazing too; although I didn’t try it, ‘Birthday Cake’ with sprinkles on rim is a really fun idea I’ve never seen! The waiters and hostesses were very kind and smily, and the portions are wonderful… Go here if you’re down to try something new and enjoy a great atmosphere and amazing quality :)

Environmentally I rate it 4 stars. I used to visit this location way before when it was a Mexican restaurant. It also was Italian after that, but I hadn’t been there. So the perception I have is the décor went from really basic to quite nice. They put good thought and attention into the interior design details. The booths down the middle section seem a little close to your neighbor, so ask for the side wall.
For cleanliness and food handling I rate it 2 stars. I went there twice and both times my booth table had a gross film on it, like they weren’t wiping it with clean cloths and giving it a good polish. I wiped it with my napkin and there was a shiny table surface under the film. I also ordered the delicious Sakura hot tea twice, and both times the wait staff brought me the mug and palmed it like a basketball over the rim. I was totally grossed out by this. That’s what the mug handle is for! I never want to see any drinking utensil handled where I’m going to drink from. Also my first visit had almost a full house, and they were busy. My waiter was obviously moving fast, which is a good thing, but he was sweating all over his forehead and sideburns. He should have and could have patted his brow with a napkin once and a while to have a cleaner appearance. I gave them both a 20%+ tip, but my best tip is to be more considerate when food handling. The appearance of what you did should have cost you your tips, but I know what you go thru just to make a living. I dated an multi award winning waitress and I got to hear all about the horrors of the business!
For the food I ordered I rate it 4 stars. I pretty much had the same vegetarian order both times. Miso soup, House salad with ginger dressing, cucumber/​avocado rolls, mango/​avocado rolls and Sakura house tea. All the food was delicious and fresh. No complaints whatsoever.
I would love to go back and see the minor corrections for the cleanliness and food handling. That would move my overall rating up to 4.5 stars. And it would make me want to recommend it to all my family and friends that actually live in Franklin! But I’m happy to see ethnic variety in such a small town.