Wow. TKO is serving up some amazing Chinese/Southern fusion dishes! I had the frill mustards salad, fried cauliflower w/ pork rinds, egg roll, and pork and beans w/cornbread crumbs. All were so delicious. Nashville you need to jump on this now if you haven't! Definitely coming back! read more

TKO - Pork & Beans w/ Cornbread crumbs! Soooo gooooood - Chinese Near Me - Nashville, Tennessee

My wife and I love this place. Don't come here for typical Americanized Chinese food though. Ryan, the chef/owner and only cook at TKO does some fun things with adding a southern twist to some dishes. He'll also make a great Xian Bing bun which is a pan fried mushroom bun. Wow, so good. I've read negative reviews of his egg rolls which I don't understand. We love them! Tender veggies inside with a crunchy wrapper fried up good and hot. They're $4 each but are huge, big enough to split. I've tried all the fried rice dishes and just about everything else on the menu. Sometimes there are a few things available that are not listed on the menu, ask Ryan or your server and they'll let you know. Oh yeah, the drinks are fantastic as well. Give it a try, you should be glad you did. read more

My fiancé and I decided to give TKO a try because it's literally a mile from our home and it sounded appealing. Being a vegetarian I'm aware that there are limited options but there was literally only one entree option for me. Even the fried rice was fried in pork fat (which the waitress was kind enough to disclose). My fiancé got the fried rice and I got the lo mein. Rice and noodles.. very low-cost food....17 dollars each entree. The no gratuity concept is great, except they raised their prices to compensate and the wait staff is lackluster at best. The taste and seasoning was well done, but not worth the money. I'd suggest adding more veggie options and fresh vegetables, almost everything was fried and meat. We won't be back. read more

Food was amazing, next time we will eat in bc it is stupid expensive for take out for even 2. Wish they'd knock off a couple bucks for take out orders and I would be there every week for sure. We had the chicken livers, pork ribs, veg stir fry and lo mein and everything was really good. read more

Amazing!!! Can't say enough positive things about this place. Definitely need to try when you're in east Nashville. Owner operated. They clearly have an honest passion for their craft. Great atmosphere and delicious food. read more

We loved this place! Great service and wonderful food. We got back from a trip to China a few weeks ago, and we were really craving Chinese food. TKO is an amazing twist between legit Chinese food and some Tennessee favorites. We had the mushroom buns, green beans and pulled pork, mapo tofu, and upside down cake for dessert. They were all delicious and we can't wait to go back! read more

I don't understand some of the reviews on this place, it was spectacular! The owner/chef greeted us when we walked in and was so friendly and welcoming. We decided to have a drink and get takeout instead of dining in which was a great option in a open and clean dining room. We asked him to just make some of his specialties and were not disappointed!! The Kung Pao chicken was by far the best I've ever had, he made Spam Buns with pineapple that were delicious were our favorites. All in all a great experience and will definitely be back. read more

We stayed overnight in a nearby RV park and ordered delivery from here. It was absolutely delicious and worth the price.

This place was absolutely amazing. The mushroom lo-Mein is to die for and the fried broccoli is definitely add this to one of your stops if you're in Nashville! Could tell that all of the ingredients were super fresh. Way to go TKO! My tummy is super happy right now! read more

It was okay but definitely not good. We got the fried rice... excessively greasy and lacking taste. Also had the tofu... it was just okay. Spice level good but greasy and lacking taste again. White rice seemed old and was very dry. The Lo Mein was the best thing we had. I would rate that dish alone a 4 starts but everything else was.... not good. Will likely not go back with all the good options in east Nashville. read more

My wife and I decided to try this restaurant because it is so close to our house. On entry, the furnishings are definitely spartan and the chairs made me a little nervous because they did not appear structurally sound; but I was wrong, the chairs are fine. Our waitress was very helpful and made suggestions when asked. The menu is mercifully short and has dishes that should appeal to all tastes and dietary restrictions. We started with an egg roll and the twice fried sweet potatoes. Both were very good but the sweet potatoes were excellent; very yummy. Next, we tried the Fried Tofu with orange sauce, the TKO chicken, and the fried rice. Both the tofu and chicken were excellent; the chicken had a spicy Kung Pao sauce that exploded in our mouths. The fried rice was good but pretty ordinary. For desert, we tried the Pineapple Cake. What and excellent dish! We were tempted to lick the plate clean. All-in-all, it was a delicious experience and we plan to return in the near future. N.B., a few reviews mention the "no tip" policy but this is clearly not the case. Also, reviews prior to the Fall of 2017 are pretty much out of date and should probably not be used as a definitive guide to TKO food quality, service, or menu breadth. read more

Dropped in on our way to downtown Nashville and we were not disappointed. Trendy, yet comfortable environment and the Office was on tv - WIN! We had the TKO Tofu which was amazing, and the generals chicken, also perfect. The "secret" drink was my favorite part of the menu, as it gives the bartender some creative freedom while still honoring your requested no-go liquor. If we lived in town this would for sure be a frequent visit for us. Would give 6 stars if we could. read more

We absolutely LOVED every bite! Succulent chicken with the best crunch... impeccable sauces and the bok choy I'll crave for weeks!!

Fusion food is often an excuse to cook multiple types of cuisine poorly. I had the pork fried rice, mapo tofu, and spicy noodles. The spicy noodles were low quality noodles with some cut up vegetables and maybe some oyster sauce, no complexity, no flavor. The fried rice was super overpriced ground pork, mayonnaise, and oyster sauce. The mapo tofu was similar to the authentic dish with the chili's abd flavor sucked out of it, tofu chunks were too big. I've lived in China for ~6 months abd eaten many meals prepared by my sister in law from Shanghai, I can certify this isn't real chinese food but also not good southern food as someone who has lived in Texas, Georgia abd now Tennessee. Skip this overpriced mess, drive down to Atlanta and get yourself the real deal. read more

Curbside pick up was easy. Food was overall good. Egg rolls were tasty. Portions were a little small for the cost. Will go back.

Most expensive bowl of rice I've ever had! Rice hard and not thoroughly cooked, squash so thin and hard peeling left on! Big disappointment- plus too expensive$17 for mostly rice - very little vegetables or taste. Don't bother. Even after complaining no response! read more

Im sure the owner means well but seriously you can't call this Chinese. You just can't. Even fusion or combo or whatever word you want to describe the mixture of different cuisines. Im not entire sure what i ate. Got the Mapo Tofu and all can i say is the rice was decent. Couldn't finish the dish itself. The taste was weird and the aftertaste was worse. Service was terrible. I don't care if you're busy, im paying to enjoy my time; not to make your job easier. If I have to interact with the wait staff close to 10x a dinner then there's something wrong. Why must they treat individuals in a party of 8 like separate diners? let us finish then clean up. When you keep on coming back to take one plate, one glass, one menu, and ask us each what we want over and over, it just means you're inefficient, not attentive. Not only that, you interrupt our conversations and the flow of the dinner. It defeats the whole purpose of eating out with friends. Might as well facetime each other at different restaurants; you get the same experience. I dont go to dinner to talk to the waiter. When you're eating with friends and you see that 3 of 8 plates are gone because 3 different waiters have come and gone with their plates you then have to rush through your plate because you dont want to be rude and let the other people just sit there staring at each other. Please please understand the concept of Dining. It's not to get the order, the food, the water, and plates cleared as fast as possible. It's to enjoy the food and company. When the food is blah and the wait staff ruins experience then what's the point. Seriously. read more

Meh. I was so excited that there was going to be an "Asian" restaurant in the area. But this is a very weird fusion with a crazy price point. They tried really hard and the food wasn't awful, but it left us very disappointed. The no tipping would be cool if you didn't realize that was built into the extremely overpriced menu items. Once the new wears off this place it's sure to be another victim of the restaurant business. The menu needs serious work. Asian/southern fusion is a terrible idea, especially when it's poorly executed. Overall we wouldn't go back unless they nuke the whole menu and start over. All our friends that have tried it are in agreement. read more

Tip 1 bring salt...put it in your pocket or purse...you will need it. The bad: Got the mystery dinner. 2 apps 2 entree. You do not know what you are getting and its 50 bucks. I was feeling adventurous surely it would be worth the money. Nope. 1 egg roll that was good and the apple sweet and sour sauce was really good and a dumpling bun stuffed with sausage gravy with a honey taste. It was interesting but more bun than anything. Oh egg drop soup that was so forgetful I forgot to mention. It was seriously like egg whites in water it was awful. Then I get this calamari that was good but it was basically another appetizer that you pay 8 bucks for at a Chinese place. Oh it had peppers and onions whew. The other dish was literally bean noodles onion and broccoli, wtf. No salt no seasoning that I could tell. It was one of the worst things I have ate at a restaurant. The spicy honey donuts suck. Oh and 4 dollars for a can of coke. You can buy a 12 pack on sale for 4 dollars. I get 2.50 anyway. The good: The SMF half chicken was really good but no side whatsoever just chicken. Its a good portion and the sauce was good but just chicken. The pineapple cake was really good and different. The chairs suck bad...I felt like mine was going to break the whole time I was in it. It feels like a chair you would get out of a barbie dream house. I am a big guy but never broke a chair. I felt like this one was going to collapse the whole time I was in it. And service was extremely slow. I get they are kinda new and busy but wow. So why did I give it a 3. Well they have potential and the cake and chicken were really good.They also need to think about their price for the portion and maybe add a side. read more

We've been here twice and have been pleased with our meals both times. The first time, we opted for the mystery dinner, and I was not disappointed. It allowed my husband and I to try things we wouldn't normally order. My only complaint is that I really wish there were more options for vegetables. Like a hearty amount of veggies, not just the few you get in some fried rice. I get that the menu is dependent on what's available, but it's summer! Everything is in season. All in all, though, this place is tasty, and everyone there is really nice. read more

While I was really excited (ask my friends how excited I was) about a restaurant being so close I could walk. Disappointment has taken over for the excitement. I went on their opening night with high expectations but tempered with the knowledge that opening nights are not a true test of future meals. The service was great opening night, the food no so much. I ordered the Lamb Mapo Tofu which should have a bit of spiciness and seasoning but it contained neither. I sat at the counter watching the chefs prepare the food and did not see them taste any of what they were cooking, leaving the dish to be just bland. Lamb was all that was on the plate, no rice no nothing and at $19 they could have served it with rice. I mentioned the lack of spice to the server and was told to ask for the hot sauce next time. I shouldn't have to ask for hot sauce for a szechuan inspired dish, it is by its nature spicy. So I gave them some time to get in some practice before giving them another try. This time I ordered the fried rice and an egg roll (meh). Service was still good just not as good. Lighting is odd. Feels a bit mall food court. I sat at the counter again and observed the same methods of not tasting the food to insure it was seasoned properly. On top of improper seasoning, the oil in the wok was allowed to get to the smoking point thereby giving the dish a slightly burnt taste. Oil should not get to that point especially since rice picks up flavors. Burnt is not a good flavor. I should have sent it back but I ordered it to go and by the time I got it home, which is around the corner it was too much of a pain to take it back. At $17 fried rice should be fantastic but it was not. I am really pulling for this restaurant but they need to get a lot better and raise the flavors of their food and meet the expectations of the customer to match the high prices. read more

It was our first time visiting TKO last night, but I promise it won't be the last. Our food was incredibly good and delightfully different. The chef put his own spin on traditional Chinese food and to say it was spectacular is an understatement. Plus, he changes the menu regularly so you always have something new to try. The prices are very good and the portions are almost too much to eat at one sitting, but I certainly urge you to try. I know we'll be back again soon. read more

I like judging Asian restaurants by their fried rice. Seems to work for me. I ordered their vegetarian fried rice and also an egg roll... yes ONE egg roll... for $4. Their fried rice was decent, but it was slightly burnt and didn't have much flavor. It's just a little better than your average Chinese takeout. Is it $17 good? Hell nah. The egg roll was also slightly burnt on the inside and was just average. It is not a true Asian egg roll and definitely not worth $4. Save that money for gas! read more

Not sure why this place has 4 stars. Service was nice. The food is outrageously overpriced though. Especially for food that has no flavor. We got like 5 dishes and they were all tasteless. Everything was just really bland. I know it's a no gratuity restaurant but even takeout would be tastier and still half the price. Panda Express has better orange chicken for a fraction of the price. I wanted to like this place but after the bill, it was just a huge disappointment. read more

I really wanted to love this place. It's close to my house and I miss decent Asian food (growing up in a country heavily populated by asians) The meal I had was rather boring. Too heavily vinegar based it felt like. The cocktail was good, but extremely expensive. All in all, overpriced for what it is (even taking into account the included gratuity etc) Rather disappointed. Probably won't come back. read more

We had the opportunity to try this eagerly anticipated Chinese-Southern Fusion restaurant run by Margot veterans Ryan and Ann Bernhardt on its second night of operation and it shows real potential. Located in a new building a half mile south of Briley Parkway, this brings a novel concept to an area of Inglewood short on dining options. The dining room features long counters facing an open kitchen with 24" woks and cook stations, a bar, and bare wood tables with elegant white chairs in a simple sparse dining room. The service concept is new to Nashville featuring service included (no tip). Nashville is a city short of fine Chinese options where finding anything above subpar venues means dealing with maddeningly uneven spots off Charlotte Pike or Green Hills or a trek to Brentwood. The idea of fusion is not entirely new to Nashville as attested by P. F. Chang, but the notion of southern mix in a West-Meets-East-Meets-South is decidedly novel. How does it measure up even during its maiden week? We cannot attest the drink menu which include wines, a cocktail, and a couple of high gravity beers, owing likely to Nashville's arcane beer laws. The food menu is relatively short in a world where more conventional Chinese restaurants create a cacophony of dishes out of a few simple themes. Two of us sampled three out of the 7 "SNX" plates and two out of the six "PLTS." The chips and dips billed as "fried wontons, clam dip, scallion" is more fried noodles made out of wonton skins with a sour cream based clam dip that takes one back to the middle of the last century. Tasty and pleasant. The steamed bun--their version of bao--has the requisite fluffy almost bread-like wrapper filled with sausage and gravy. This did not work as well because the inside was still cool and the filling, which would normally be savory and often a bit saucy in the real Chinese, did not fully stand out. Given the vast variety of possible filling, TKO should consider this to be an open canvas ready for new painting. The winter squash and apple salad was a refreshing mix of cukes, peanuts, onions topped with ginger dressing with medium small pieces of winter squash. The squash still had skin on, which might not be to everyone's taste. Because of the size of the apple pieces, it's better eaten with a fork than the option of disposable chopsticks with which diners are also supplied. For the mains, we tried the "fried SMF chicken" with apple sweet and sour sauce. The four pieces of chicken were piping hot with a crisp crust in the tradition of a good southern-fried chicken. The sauce mercifully leans more on the sour than the sweet, avoiding the tendency to over-sweeten. Still apple cider vinegar was the dominant note. We were left wondering how this dish might be elevated with another kind of vinegar were substituted from a slightly funky Zhenjuang to even sherry vinegar. A touch of citrus might have also added dimension. Mapo tofu is classic Szechuan comfort food named roughly as "pockmark-faced old woman" after a disfigured old-lady who served it from a road-side stand in Chengdu. It is a dish traditional of wide variety of ingredients based on tofu, meat, Szechuan hot bean paste, copious amounts of finely chopped fresh ginger, scallions, sometimes garlic, perhaps dried wood-ear mushrooms, and a sprinkle of ground lip-numbing Szechuan peppercorn. Chinese chefs debate whether to use ground fatty pork or beef as the meat source. TKO substitutes ground lamb shoulder, keeps the hot bean paste in restrained proportion, and uses onions instead of abundant scallions. Other ingredients were pared back to regular pepper. The lamb works quite well but somehow the other ingredients do not quite come together. My wife felt it to be a bit bland, certainly compared to home cooked. How might one create a better fusion version? In the land of hot chicken, a bit more hot bean paste would not really add much fire--it or some chili sesame oil would fleck the tofu a more appetizing color than the less appetizing brown for the gravy. Fresh ginger and shallots would also add dimensions. Keep the lamb for sure--it is inspired. But the classic version has almost a custard-like consistency that melds beautifully with rice. TKO's sauce is brown, watery, and lacks a glistening texture or clinging ability that just a smidgen of thickening would provide without making it all gloppy. The Szechuan pepper is listed in the ingredients but the prickly feeling somehow was missing. Prices might get a few complaints from those who forget that tip is included. Mains are $19 with $17 rice or noodles. $7 small plates with a bit less for egg rolls, salad, and steamed buns. Service was quite friendly and attentive In sum, TKO is a welcome addition not only to Inglewood, but to the Nashville food scene and we can all look forward to the inventiveness of its cuisine as it matures and evolves. read more

Always good. Limited menu. Made with quality fresh ingredients. Eat in or order some great Asian with a southern twist. No disappointments.

Had the mystery dinner and was one of the best meals if not the best in East Nashville. Great amount of food, 3 starters a main and a large rice dish. Great flavors throughout. Decor feels like it's missing something but the star of the show is the food. $55 no tipping required plus drinks. read more

Bland and overpriced. Ordered on Postmates. Only received two of the four things I ordered including the tko chicken and egg drop soup. Egg drop soup was fresh but very bland. Tko chicken which seems like their " thing"was not spicy at all (where's the pow in the Kung?) and mushy fried blandness. Considering it's about 3 times the price of Chinese takeout and smaller portions, never again. Higher quality ingredients prepared poorly /Just slightly better than Panda Express and worse than most Chinese takeout. Sucks I would have loved to at least like local... read more

Amazing! We had the chef's mystery special for two and each course of the meal was unique and delicious. We also tried a few mixed drinks from the bar which were spot-on. We are so lucky to have this place just down the street from us. We will definitely be back! read more

First time visiting TKO. When first reading the menu it looked like for $14 you would get a good portion of the ordered food, but I was soon to find out that was not the case. The bourbon chicken fried rice hardly had any chicken and was mostly rice. The egg roll was decent at $4. My husband had a $14 chicken dish with pomegranate sauce which was very good, but if you wanted rice you had to pay $2 extra. The cauliflower and tofu dish was also $14 and the portion was small and bland. I figured it was overpriced by at least $10. If you want mediocre food at a ridiculously high price then this restaurant may be for you! read more

Ate here with friends. The good: interesting menu, imaginative combinations and preparation. We had broad sampling of dishes, all very good. No tipping concept is nice change. The not so good:.Noise. Concrete floor and bare walls amplify every sound. It was about half full on a Thursday night, but other diners trying to talk over the music made table conversation difficult. read more

Amazing meal! We went on a Wednesday night. It may seemed dark from Gallatin road, but once inside, it has a cool vibe. We ordered 2 appetizers, an entree, and a side. The pork fried rice was great! Really nice, crispy char on the pork, great flavors in the rice. We also had the watermelon as a side. I think I could've eaten 4 bowls of this. It was just a little salty, and a little spicy, and a lot perfect! Our server was really nice, attentive, and gave us suggestions about the menu since it was our first time eating there. I would definitely recommend this place! read more

the worst delivery service on the planet I've ordered here three times and it took them over an hour and a half I never got a call and then they messed up my order read more

TKO was a great surprise. The food and service were outstanding. The smoked fish dip and fresh warm wontons for dipping is a perfect appetizer- not-too-fishy, thick dip and a salty wonton. Had the stir fry beef and lo mein noodles. Both were great dishes, if not exactly Chinese but certainly super well prepared, properly seasoned and very fresh. It's our expectation we will put TKO on our regular rotation. read more

Although their atmosphere is incredibly hipster, and they are a scratch kitchen, that fact was emphasized by the semi-indifferent waitress. Everything must be kept the same, and very few changes were possible. The egg roll and bun were both some of the most premier Asian fare in Nashville. The egg roll was Cantonese as they made sure to mention. The bun was delightful, fluffy, and the vegetables and chicken inside were absolutely delicious. However good the appetizers were, conversely, the main course was the opposite. One compatriot of mine had the fried rice with an egg on top. The egg, she posited, was delicious, but it was incredibly small. The fried rice portion, which was 95% of the dish, was one that could be found better in the suburbs. My other companion had the catfish. "There wasn't that much to it," he complained, "I liked it, but it didn't hold my interest." Nothing stood out, and he wouldn't order it again. These two items deprecated from my meal, the fried chicken. The chicken was crispier than the Colonel's extra crispy recipe, and had a distinct orange flavor due to its sauce, which may have been a bit too dominant of the flavor of the chicken. With the culmination of underwhelming service, an underwhelming meal, and a hefty price tag, this meal earns a 3 star rating. I recognize the critical nature of this review, and this is one of the better Asian places in Nashville, but our expectations were a bit higher for TKO. read more

This place is fantastic. I was skeptical of the whole Chinese with southern flavor concept, but was blown away by the meal. We got the mystery dinner and it was wonderful. And at $55 for two including tip, a great value. read more

Great food and friendly staff! I will definitely be back again. We ordered the sweet & sour chicken in addition to the pork fried rice. Super delicious would recommend to anyone! read more

We came here on a whim on a Saturday night around 7. We were seated right away and the best thing about this place was that the service was SUPER fast. Everything was fresh and tasty but the large plates seemed to be a bit overpriced for the portions and the flavor. We were more satisfied with the small plates. We felt like the cocktails fell flat as well. We spent about $30 per person (tip included). I think this is a great addition to the neighborhood and look forward to trying it in the future after they've been around for awhile. read more

TKO is a little hard to find, but worth it! The drinks are interesting and delicious. The broccoli app was soooo good. Excellent choices for vegans - the TKO tofu and sweet & sour tofu were both excellent, and the servings were large enough for leftovers. The service is friendly and quick. Loved it! read more