Pulling up to the restaurant, I was not optimistic about what I would find. This place used to be a Ponderosa Steakhouse back in the day and, walking through the doors, much of the decor was still there. Western prints of cowboys hung on the walls, the wood slat interior separated the leather booths, and the familiar neon green light still shone in the recesses of the ceiling. The buffet had been replaced with a nice bar and food prep area, but that was the only indicator this was no longer a Ponderosa -- even the faded letters of Steakhouse on the outside of the restaurant could still be seen beneath attempts at whitewash. But this was an absolute delight once I bit into some sushi. I have eated sushi for decades -- I've had strip mall sushi, Japanese cuisine made by men from Hong Kong and Beijing trying to replicate the foodstuff of Tokyo. I've had sushi at a buffet and hand-rolls that would make the Emperor proud. The sushi at Toko Japan was by far the best I have found at any type of buffet -- they do not skimp on ingredients, and use only the highest quality fish and seafood. There is nothing about this restaurant that says 'mass produced'. At just over $20 for all you can eat sushi, I was pleasantly surprised at the high quality I found here. Beware, though: if you order 20 pieces of sushi and can only eat 15, you may be charged for the extra sushi you wasted. This makes sense, as some people might order too much and let the rest go to the garbage bin. Such a policy they have here helps to safeguard against waste, and I applaud their unconventional approach to keeping prices low and reasonable. Fear not, though: you can order and re-order as often as you want, with a few reasonable limits placed. For a total of just just over $20, I ate three pieces of surf clam , four pieces of eel, four pieces of octopus, a piece of striped bass sushi, a 6-piece shrimp tempura roll, a 6-piece soft shell crab roll, a bowl of miso soup, a seaweed salad, and five deep-fried calamari rings. I live in Akron but will gladly drive the 20 minutes to kent for a dinner as excellent as this. The service was excellent -- my glass of tea was never empty and always refilled, and the server was extremely polite and courteous.
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