Fulin’s Asian Cuisine – Knoxville North

We’d previously dined at the Fulin’s Asian Cuisine location in the Town Center Shopping Center at Pellissippi Parkway (I-140) and North Shore Drive in Knoxville.  Even though it’s a bit of a drive, we had a Groupon in hand so we made the journey.

Well, once again I purchased another Groupon for Fulin’s…and this location is in yet another part of Knoxville, one where we’d had never previously ventured… 

This is the Fulin’s Asian Cuisine restaurant that’s located right next to I-75 at Merchant Drive on the north side of town.  There are a total of 12 Fulin’s locations for this apparently up and coming Asian restaurant chain.  Knoxville and Oak Ridge Tennessee have 3 Fulin’s locations between them.

The interior of Fulin’s in north Knoxville seemed to be a tad more upscale than the location on the south side.  At least it felt that way to both of us.  In any case, Fulin’s restaurants are tastefully decorated and they project a warm and welcome image…

We decided that we’d both indulge in an adult libation.  I had my usual Miller Light ($4.00) and Laurie ordered a Sake Martini. ($8.00) Her martini was made with Absolut Vodka, Sho Chiku Sake and Stock Dry Vermouth.  She liked her martini but she still prefers a good “Dirty Martini”…

We both ordered a cup of hot and sour soup. ($2.50) The soup was fine but we thought that the hot and sour soup at the South Knoxville location was a bit spicier…which is our preference.  Each cup of soup was accompanied by some decent rice crisps…

We saw that the chef had a special spicy shrimp appetizer on the menu…so we decided to split an order. ($10.00) We like the ‘Bang Bang’ type of shrimp dish that Surin of Thailand and Bonefish Grill serve and so a critical comparison was inevitable. 

Fulin’s in North Knoxville was the winner!!  These 8 large tempura style shrimp were terrific… We’d told the waitress that we wanted them spicy and the chef came through, drizzling them with some extra spicy sauce.  We even mixed the sauce with lettuce and enjoyed a little ‘salad’.  

Fulin’s menu is focused on both Japanese and Chinese cuisine… Laurie loves both sushi and sashimi!  So she took the opportunity to order the Sashimi Dinner. ($22.00) Her plate of sashimi included 3 pieces each of salmon, tuna, yellowtail and white tuna plus 2 pieces each of red snapper and octopus.  She loved her dinner! 

Sashimi is OK with me but I prefer Chinese cuisine.  For my entrée I went with a modified spicy orange beef and zucchini with broccoli instead of green bell peppers.  It came with fried rice. ($13.00) I ordered my dinner ‘extra spicy’ and the chef got it just right!  I enjoyed my dinner but I’ve decided that I prefer the crispy beef version of this dish even more than this one…

Our waitress was helpful and sweet.  We’ve tried Fulin’s twice now and we will return, even without a Groupon!  Fulin’s Asian Cuisine in north Knoxville is located at 120 Merchant Drive.  Phone: 865-281-3371.  Website: http://fulins.com/knoxville-drive/welcome/.

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by and sharing our dinner with us!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave