Zen Japanese Restaurant

One of the best omakase restaurant I have tried in Toronto. We ordered the omakase course set. It came with everything you would expect from an omakase restaurant: freshly grated wasabi, rice at around body temperature, fish that are not too cold, etc. The chef was very friendly, attention to detail, and customizes the sushi to each customer: rice portion, amount of wasabi. The appetizer was special, not something you would find at an average restaurant. My favourite in particular was the hair thin seaweed in a vinegary dressing. The nigiri sushi was excellent. One of my favourite thing was the printed copy of the fish being served on the day of, which I have kept until this date. The dessert was also delightful. I would definitely recommend Zen, whether for special occasions, or if you just want top notch omakase.

Zen is literally my favorite restaurant in the whole wide world. Okay maybe oneee of my favorites because I cannot choose just one. But definitely my favorite Japanese restaurant! We came from NYC with hopes of splurging one night at ZEN. We ended up making reservations again to splurge for TWO nights. Honestly it was all worth it. Good Omakase sushi from NYC can cost up to $800 or more per person. We have gone to places that serves 9 pieces for $165 too. However for $165CAD 130USD, you can get 13 pieces, one handroll, appetizers, starter, soup, dessert, and a satisfied belly with a big smile. It is such an amazing deal. For those negative reviews complaining about the price, they don't know about the struggles of finding fresh clean authentic omakase in North America for an actual reasonable price. From the service to the food, the workers showed positivity and enthusiasm, we felt super welcomed. The head chef was so nice and we also got to speak a little, he seemed genuinely interested in our stories and even shared some of his stories about his NYC visits with us. He was so kind and happy to be there. On our second night of visiting again, the waitress asked about our trip in Toronto so far she remembered we were from NYC and the same head chef that served us that night came to our table and asked about us too. They truly care for their customers. The hospitality was 100/10. The food was just as amazing. We got the omakase course for one. We started off with a lobster dish. My boyfriend is allergic to lobster so he got cold noodles with tempura eel. He loves eel so he was super hyped about it. My lobster dish was so delicious, from the plating to my tongue, it was so satisfying. The appetizers were also really delicate and put together super nicely. There is creativity in flavors and plating. The fish is sourced from Scotland, Japan, Canada, etc. everything was extremely fresh. Watching him prepare and make our sushi was such a wonderful experience. After 6/7 nigiris we got a miso soup, it was nice to have something warm and savory to wash down before finishing up with the rest of the nigiris. We finished off with some house made desserts and a Japanese honeydew. The honey dew is extremely sweet and extremely juicy, we never had honey dew like that before. The house made sweets was so warm to the heart. Coming to zen, you experience more than just the food. You can feel the love and care with each bite. Their hospitality drew us back as soon as possible. We took my mom for the second time for her birthday and she was ever so delighted. We look forward to visiting Toronto again just so we can visit Zen.

For the price I would say good food not amazing though but quite overpriced. The service was corteous and attentive. What I liked most was the wagyu nabe the beef was really tender without totally disintergrating. Sushi was good but the fish lacked depth and the sushi rice could have more vinegar notes.

Wow! Such a great experience. This was my first time having an Omakase meal and Zen has set the bar high. The service was extremely friendly and accommodating, the sushi chefs were a pleasure to watch and very kind, and not the mention the sushi was top tier. Can't wait to go back!

Attentive staff, fresh fish tuna from Boston at the time of our visit. More on the pricey side for the average foody so keep that in mind. Grabbed a table but bar seating would be fun to watch the chefs at work.

4.5 stars Excellent experience. Servers are friendly and professional. All courses were amazing with the exception of the sashimi dish. Sashimi wasn't super fresh like the sushi. Wagyu dish and sushi were superb. I also didn't end up getting served the tamago egg which was on the menu. Overall I'd recommend! They also have a great selection of fish

Love love love this place. The food and service was extraordinary! Absolutely delicious, every bite was balanced and perfect. The Wagyu was melt in your mouth. Perfect amount of food. Servers were very personable and the Master Chef was super friendly. Top tier . Would absolutely come back and highly recommend!

You might just have to go to Japan to get much better. A little pricey, but wow! Omakase and premium sake flight were well worth it, for a special occasion.Recommended dishesWagyu, Matcha Ice Cream, Sashimi, Lobster Tempura, Saba, Mackerel, Japanese Wagyu Steak, Omakase Sushi, Hand Roll, Sushi

Though Canada probably is "a country that loves Japanese cuisine the most except Japan", it is still hard to find a really good Japanese restaurant from Vancouver to Toronto. Compare with East Sea, the types of seafood that both north Pacific & Atlantic ocean can provide is a little behind, which limited chef' skills & imaginations. But Zen showed its potential, by earing their foods, you can feel how hard chef is trying to break the limitation, and the result is a real surprise to me. The omakase I've tried today is a master piece, I would say it is the best one I've ever had in Canada. It is fresh, delicate, elegant & delicious, and in a proper price. 99% of the staffs are Japanese and very well trained, but the most skilled waitress is a Chinese girl who is the only non-japanese employee in the restaurant. She speaks Japanese, Cantonese & Mandarin, very professional & fully understand customer's demand. She herself worth a five star though I gave a four to the restaurant.

Excellent quality of fish, attentive service, the appetizers were the best imo. The variety, taste and texture were so well done. Presentation is top notch. Downsides are price being on the high end, good for an occasional splurge. Sushi and sashimi omakase didn't have the same types of fish as sushi omakase and no tamago although price is the same. And increasing wasabi as the meal progressed