Akira Back is a japanese restaurant in King West, Toronto.
Akira Back at the Bisha Hotel is chef Akira Back's first Canadian outpost since 2017, the 2nd-floor Japanese-Korean fusion room behind the hotel lobby.
Signature dishes: Tuna pizza, Korean-Japanese plates
Must order: The tuna pizza and the AB tacos with hamachi.
Tip: Reservations on OpenTable. Sister Kost on the 44th-floor penthouse upstairs.
Address: 80 Blue Jays Way, 2nd Floor, Bisha Hotel, Toronto, ON M5V 2G3
Lapinou on King West is a French neo-bistro since 2019, Michelin Guide listed, regional French dishes by chef Jamie Ullrich with a focused natural-wine list.
Signature: French neo-bistro plates, Natural wine
Order: The duck a l'orange and a glass from the Loire section.
Tip: Lapinou rabbit en cocotte the must-order; the bar pours French growers by the glass.
Lapinou on King West is a French neo-bistro since 2019, Michelin Guide listed, regional French dishes by chef Jamie Ullrich with a focused natural-wine list.
Signature: French neo-bistro plates, Natural wine
Order: The duck a l'orange and a glass from the Loire section.
Tip: Lapinou rabbit en cocotte the must-order; the bar pours French growers by the glass.
Allen's on the Danforth has run an Irish pub kitchen since 1987, 340 whiskies and 140 beers, the strip's longest pub two stops from Broadview station.
Signature: Irish pub fare, Irish whiskey flights
Order: A shepherd's pie or burger with a flight of Irish whiskey.
Tip: Walk-ins welcome. Live Irish music Tuesday and Friday nights; the back garden runs through summer.
Alo on the third floor of 163 Spadina has run Toronto's reference contemporary tasting room since 2015, a Michelin one-star kitchen under chef Patrick Kriss.
Signature: Contemporary tasting menu, Seasonal Canadian-French plates
Order: The full tasting menu; the kitchen drives the night.
Tip: Reservations open 90 days out at 10:00 EST on the website. Set a calendar alarm; Friday and Saturday seats clear within minutes.
Edulis on Niagara Street has been chefs Tobey Nemeth and Michael Caballo's truffle-and-game tasting kitchen since 2011, Michelin one-star since 2022.
Signature: Seafood tasting, Wild mushroom dishes
Order: Whatever the kitchen sends out; the menu is set per booking.
Tip: Book at exploretock.com/edulis well ahead. The room is small and the menu is tailored, so dietary notes go in your booking.
Quetzal on College at Bathurst earned Toronto's first Mexican Michelin star in 2024, a wood-fire kitchen under chef Steven Molnar with an agave-driven bar.
Signature: Wood-fired Mexican plates, Agave cocktails
Order: The wood-fired sharing plates and a flight of mezcal at the counter.
Tip: Wednesday and Sunday seats book the fastest. Walk-ins from 18:00 at the bar window if you arrive on time.
Canoe on the 54th floor of the TD Bank Tower runs a Canadian-ingredient tasting menu since 1995, the city's reference business-lunch and skyline dinner.
Signature: Canadian regional tasting, Wood-fired bison
Order: The full Canadian tasting menu with the wine pairing.
Tip: Closed weekends and statutory holidays. Lunch at 11:30 is the cheapest way into the room; full dinner runs $200+ per head.
