Kintako Japanese Restaurant

Kintako was the first out-​of-​downtown sushi restaurant I’ve been to. And I enjoyed it thoroughly.
+ Authentic décor. The entire restaurant felt authentic and true to its roots
+ Food arrived fast and all together
+ Menu selection is great, along with some sushi that aren’t even offered at other Japanese restaurants
+ The staff was very accommodating, even for a large crowd of roughly 12 people
+ Food is presented beautifully on the plate. One of the other tables even had a wooden boat as a serving vessel for their sushi selection
+ Great customization of bento box, was nicely balanced between the carbs and the protein
+ Sushi was both beautiful and delicious
+ Price is adequate for the quality of food that they’re offering
— Wasabi was not offered nor was it on the sushi. It needed to be requested
— Some of the sushi rolls were not well formed, causing them to tip over and fall
— Water was not refilled, as we had to ask for more water
— Space is a little bit cramped, but not excessively
Certainly one of the better sushi restaurants I’ve experienced. If I were to visit this part of town again, I’d certainly come back in for a nice dinner and a nice ambience to back it up.

This might be my favourite sushi spot in Toronto. Chicken Katsu is one of the best I’ve eaten. Friendly and welcoming staff and the owner came by to ask how meal was going. We got to learn that it is a husband and wife team and her husband is the chef. Hidden little gem definitely worth checking out.

4.5
Came here for a meal after a group event. Some of the better sushi I have had in the city.
Pros:
Very well made sushi
Friendly staff
Cons:
No actual parking
Prices a tad high (worth it though)
We came as a group of 12 and the place although on the smaller side, easily accommodated us. The atmosphere is very ambient and provides a nice quiet dining experience. We brought our little one with us and she was by far the loudest in the entire place.
Kintako offers a wide assortment of items that you can find at a Japanese restaurant. The prices are a little higher than other places I have been but after eating there, it’s well worth it. The sushi and sashimi were some of the best I have had in the city. There house favourite and special is the volcano roll which I have pictured. The dish comes out flaming and is a mix of spicy and creamy tastes. I recommend this roll if you should happen to come by.
The service here was pretty good. The servers were quick to refill water and our orders were filled promptly even though we had 12 of us there. They were super polite and answered any question we may have had.
Kintako seems to not have any parking spaces of their own though, You either take your chances with street parking or park across the street in the plaza with the TD bank, On a cold night as were came on, this can be a tad inconvenient.
Overall this is a great sushi place and if I’m the area I would definite frequent again.

Fantastic little find!
I’m fairly new to the area. Driven past here many times. About two years old.
With so many sushi places in the city I would probably never have noticed this place if I didn’t see these Unilocal reviews. Very gracious and friendly host. I ordered the Katsu dinner and my girlfriend the Hot Night roll as well as a California maki. All was absolutely wonderful. The Katsu was the best I’ve ever eaten. Nice and light batter with proper chicken, not fatty or grizzly. Came with a wonderful array of sides to include, tempura yam, tofu, rice, seaweed salad and soup. also had complimentary soup to start. The price was very reasonable for what we had. Everything was fresh with decent portion sizes. At the end of our meal the host came up to us and asked how everything was. We got chatting for a while and learned that they had taken over the place two years prior. I believe her name was Jean and her husband was the chef and owner. It will be a spot that we will now frequent for sure!

Green tea was on the cool side. Spicy Salmon oily tasting and not spicy. Overall lacked flavour.

Best sushi experience my wife and I have ever had! From the complimentary noodle soup at the beginning to the black sesame ice cream at the end with the melt-​in-​your-​mouth sushi and rolls in between — and the constantly friendly and personable service! A lot of our conversation was figuring out when we can go back!

Oh man. I wish more restaurants could be like Kintako. Kintako reminds me of what going out to eat was like when I was a kid — in my small town, the places we’d go as a family were also family-​owned and operated. They were homey and cozy, the food was sooooo good and it felt special to go out, yet it wasn’t too expensive or fancy. Kintako has got all of this going for it, and it’s just so awesome. I really enjoy it, every time I’ve been there, it’s just the best. As a westside girl, it’s a hike for me to get to Kintako, but it’s worth it. The sushi is really, really good — fresh fish, inventive rolls, strong wasabi, perfect rice. The service is so nice, so welcoming. You don’t have to dress up or spend a lot of money to go there. One of the servers has a little toddler girl who is usually at the restaurant, and she is just the cutest. It’s a place that makes you feel like family.
Toronto tends to have two kinds of sushi restaurant — the crap Annex throwaway sushi, and the high end reservations only $$$$ sushi. Kintako is the in-​between where you can get a quality meal, with yummy noodle soup, salad with ginger dressing, hot savory miso soup, and SEVERAL substantial, delicious rolls for the $ 9.95 lunch special. That’s incredible.
Lastly, us Japanese hybrids know that you have to feast on Japanese food for New Years — Kintako was open on NEW YEARS DAY. Truly, the perfect start to my year.

Nice cozy ambience, good sea food miso soup, great Unagi & good crunchy spicy salmon roll.
Would definitely visit this again — for taste of food, value for money & decent service.

Had all the expectations that this was going to be a great meal based on the excellent reviews.
We ended up ordering the takeout menu rather than sitting down to eat, and this made all the difference. The does that mean you are smaller than expected and the fish tasted a little off. We also ordered edamame, which too was disappointingly cold.
Well I can’t vouch for the sit down menu, I do not recommend the takeout menu.

Went to Kintako yesterday for dinner. Ordered: 10 fresh oysters with ponzu sauce, Sashimi Omakase Solo, Soft shell crab, torched mackerel, beef tataki, and the sushi and sashimi combo. Complimentary noodle in soup and salad were served. This was enough food for the two of us. Sashimi was great, it came with torched butter fish which was really delicious. The mackerel was also really good. I wasn’t a big fan of the soft shell crab, the batter was light (not the same batter as tempura), but not crispy, it was almost soggy and we didn’t enjoy it as much as we wanted to.
The sushi fell apart when we picked it up, which was a bit disappointing, however the quality of fish was still really fresh. The beef tataki was cooked closer to medium throughout (first time I’ve seen this) instead of being rare, but the taste profile was still delicious.
The service here is top notch. Everyone is very polite and helpful. It’s a very welcoming atmosphere. I noticed they have a lot of regulars coming here because they know people’s names and interests. It seems to be a popular place in the area, I can see why.

As I write this review, Kintako still sits at a score of 4.5÷5 and is quite deserving of it. I’m skeptical when trying new sushi places because of the ubiquitous choices that line almost every street in Toronto. However, Kintako was a pleasant experience and has opened my eyes to the endless creativity of sushi chefs and owners alike.
The food (4.5÷5): We started with the chicken karaage which was soft and juicy and served in bite size portions. The sauce isn’t mayo, but a mix of soy sauce and balsamic vinegar with oyster sauce (?) It was fairly strong but complemented the karaage very well. Next up were the spicy medallions. It’s more like sushi pizza topped with spicy salmon and avocado/​cucumber. It’s got a hint of spice in it, however not too different than a regular sushi pizza. Now the volacano roll was great. Comes half wrapped in tin foil and lit on fire (very fitting for its name). You don’t need soy sauce here as this roll is well slathered in flavour. Topped with juicy butter fish and stuffed with avocado, scallops and other various delights, it’s something I would definitely order again. AND OMG THE BAKED SALMON ROLL. My favourite dish of the night! Looks like the volcano roll when it first came out and piping hot when you try to eat it right away. I’ve never eaten hot sushi before but after blowing some heat away, it’s the melt-​in-​your-​mouth salmon that make you blush because it’s sooo good. It was also our second roll that is covered in sauce so no soy sauce required! Lastly, the black sesame ice cream was pretty good! I’d say it belonged in the middle tier of black sesame ice creams I’ve tried because it was flavourful, however alittle on the icy side, so not as creamy nor smooth as other places. But the presentation was delightful and the oats and chocolate sauce were great addition :)
Price (⁴⁄₅): ~$ 8 – 10 per dish, ~$ 4 for dessert. Not necessarily a bargain, but not over priced either. The volcano roll and baked salmon roll were definitely unique, so very worth!
Service (⁵⁄₅): There were 2 waitresses who had served us at our dinner that night and each one was welcoming, kind, and very attentive. Each dish came in a timely fashion and plates were taken away equally so. We were consistently asked how each dish tasted and never had an unpleasant moment. This is the type of service that should be rendered at any establishment, good job Kintako!
Ambiance (⁴⁄₅): Coming into the restaurant is alittle shocking as they have the word SUSHI written in all caps and plastered all over their front, however its a well decorated and inviting small space. It’s mostly lined with spacious booths for 4 but there a couple tables in the middle to accommodate larger groups.
SO… long story short — would I come back? Definitely.

It is my first visit here for dinner on a weekday, I give it a 2.5 star (½ star is the bonus for the service). Maybe it was the food we chose, I found the food (at least those we ordered) was not as impressive than I would expect due to the overall high rating. My uncle wanted a pork katsu but reliazed that the restaurant served only chicken and fish katsu. We went for the chicken katsu instead. The chicken meat was fine but the deep-​fried bread crumbs were made too thick. They were crispy but hard. Same issue with the tempura I ordered. The batter was not light and crispy enough. My mom does not like her favorite green dragon roll. I found the chef used way too many cucumbers. They made the roll crunchy but it was not the way it should be I believe? Also, why did they make green dragon roll with imitation crab meat, and was there any shrimp tempura in it at all?
The service, however, was welcoming and attentive. The complimentary noodle soups were the best of all.
Parking around the area is also an issue. In general, we still had good time but I am sure I will not drive all the way back there again. Sorry!

Service is amazing, and food is great. Definitely a hidden gem.
Love the complimentary noodle soup, volcano roll and baked salmon roll. Excited to try the other things on the menu.

Food wise this place is hands down a 5star sushi spot. The fish was super fresh and the they take the presentation of their food very seriously. The staff was very attentive and I was secretly paying attention to see if I could catch the chef letting anyone leave without shouting «thank you goodbye» but it never happened.
I ordered the beef tataki, spicy salmon roll, and the sushi sashimi dinner (it came with Toro!). I only managed to get a picture of the tataki because I was too hungry and forgot the other two.
This is a very small and cozy place that has a very homey feel to it. The food is amazing and service is great. But I wouldn’t recommend coming here for a birthday dinner or large group gathering.

I quite enjoyed my meal with my family (wife and 2 young kids). Both kids have peanut allergies and the waitress was quite accommodating in answering our questions and looking out for them.
The kids meal was plentiful and my kids love to eat.
The soup was delicious as previous reviewers have mentioned. My kids stole mine. The salad was fresh and tasty.
The volcano roll was great just remember blow out the fire before trying to get a piece. My daughter loves the udon.
Overall will be coming back even though it’s not in our neighborhood.
Street parking starts at 5pm Monday to Friday.

Great service — there was only one server when I was there but you could tell that she was trying to serve every table best she could
Great food — presentation of the food was awesome and they tasted so good. Definitely recommend the volcano roll. The appetizer that they served on the house was hot noodle soup and it’s the best I’ve ever had.
Great price — we all expected the meal to be expensive, given the presentation and quantity of the food, but it came out to be 20 $ lower than expected.

Hidden gem in my neighbourhood, authentic Japanese food where the rolls and sashimi are always fresh.
Service is A+ and there’s a cute little patio in the back for hot summer nights.
Must go place, you won’t be disappointed!

Im quite a regular here especially for dinner. A little Japanese restaurant tucked at laird drive. The staff here are so friendly and the food is excellent. I’ve gotta say quite authentic too. The portion are reasonable (especially if you order donburi bowls or set meals). Sushi and sashimi are always fresh. You also get cold (or warm) noodles with the delicious broth to start off. For salad that comes with donburi and teshoku meals, you have an option of either sesame or the ginger dressing. Both quite good. I always order the kaizen don. I totally recommend this restaurant.
Update: almost here every week. One of our favourite Japanese restaurant. I’ve tried almost all of their dishes and everything was right down amazing. From their side dishes to their sushi rolls. Highly recommend volcano and hurricane rolls if you want something different and creative.

We went to this place at Thursday around 4pm, there’s no customers at that time, so we get the food very quickly, and the service is helpful. The atmosphere is delightful, the plates r adorable.
As for the food,
They serve free noodle soup to start, and it’s quite good.
We ordered Gyu Dun (beef rice),
Backed salmon roll (this one is the must have dish)
Cucumber covered roll,
Grilled squid (the squid is fresh and they don’t put as much sauce as other restaurants, in stead, they add fresh mango cubes and sweet pepper cubes, and the squid was just grilled perfectly.)

This review is based on my lunch experience at Kintako.
Sushi Set ($ 9.95) with 6 pieces of nigiri sushi and half of them was salmon! The shari rice was packed a little too loose and most of them just fell apart when I was trying to eat them.
Service was attentive and pleasant.
I also like the idea that they making a lot of their sauces in house without MSG.
Nice patio at the back if you like to eat sushi outdoor.
Kintako is a good neighbourhood Japanese restaurant, but not worth a special trip just to come here to eat.