Zen Sushi & Grill

Wing Lam opened Zen Sushi & Grill, located at 3751 S. Stonebridge Drive, in 2006. He said selecting McKinney as his location was an easy choice because the city’s residents are so nice.

Lam, who started in the restaurant business as a sushi chef in 1993, opened Zen Sushi & Grill as a family business and said he prides himself on the quality of food served.

“Our sushi speaks for itself,” he said. “Now every corner has a sushi bar, but we are still here after 10 years.”

When Lam is getting his customers to try sushi for the first time, he said he always suggests the popular Crunchy Roll.

“Everyone always likes the California Roll,” he said. “But here it’s the Crunchy Roll for first-time sushi customers. Then I suggest the Sexy Cowgirl, which is shrimp tempura and cream cheese, topped with avocado, crabmeat and sweet and spicy [sauce]. It is a favorite.”

Lam said his business relies on its repeat customers, adding that 80-90 percent of his customers are repeats.

“They are very loyal, and they like that we are a family business and kids are welcome,” he said.

Although Zen Sushi & Grill is known for its sushi, Lam said the grill is also popular.

“Everyone loves the sushi once they try it, but we have a lot of customers who come for the grill,” Lam said. “The most-ordered [grill items are] the teriyaki chicken, teriyaki beef and grilled salmon.”

Lam said he often takes advice from his regular customers and sushi connoisseurs to come up with new menu items.

“After I get to know my customers, a lot of the time they will tell me what they like, and I will make sushi based on their preferences,” Lam said. “I listen to them because some of their suggestions have ended up as some of the more popular items on the sushi list.”

Some of these customer-inspired rolls include the Baylor Bear, Jay Hawk Roll, Texas Tornado and Red Raider.