2 Irwin Avenue, Toronto, ON
Koyoi
If you live in Toronto and you enjoy eating Japanese food, you would've probably been to many well-known places like Fin Izakaya, Guu or Don Don, which offers a tapas-style menu with no main courses. Well, I bet you are missing out on this one: it's time to add Koyoi on your list!
Even though it's not as well-known as the other restaurants, Koyoi isn't short of the authentic Japanese food. Perhaps, it offers even more varieties of chilled appetizers and seafood that are extremely hard to find in Toronto. Monk fish liver, the baby squids and yuzu-takowasa (Japanese octopus marinated with wasabi sauce and garnished with yuzu - a type of citrus fruit) are just one of the few items that became my new discovery of authentic Japanese food. If I walked in to an all-you-can-eat Japanese buffet right now, I would not be satisfied with the food because nothing beats the freshness of the seafood served at Koyoi. Based on my previous experiences with all-you-can-eat buffets, the sashimis were never FRESH, and you know when the sashimi is 1) warm (disgusting!) and 2) when it makes you gag.
if you ever go to Koyoi, I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. =)
-Anna
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| interior of koyoi |
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| ninja turtle - gin/blue curacao/orange juice |
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| chilled appetizers |
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| it looks slimy....but it was GOOD! |
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| smoked salmon with cream cheese |
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| monk fish liver |
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| smoked salmon salad |
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| must try: beef tataki |
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| salmon onigiri |
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| green tea cheesecake |
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| spicy french fries with beef and curry |
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| grilled pork jowl aka pork "cheek" |
service || excellent. japanese people are always so attentive and courteous. the staff was very friendly indeed.
food || ninja turtle: my drink was nothing special, it's suppose to be a cocktail but i tasted no alcohol, instead, it tasted like grapefruit juice. quite disappointed because i wanted to drink the night away with that one drink (*sad). but apart from that, all the food i devoured was absolutely amazing, the ones worth mentioning was the monk fish liver - DELICIOUS, it was my first time eating monk fish liver and it tasted very creamy. i thought i was eating cream cheese for a moment because it didn't taste raw at all and it melted in my mouth. the yuzu-takowasa (octopus bits marinated with wasabi sauce) was chewy and the wasabi sauce gave it an extra kick that covered the rawness of the octopus, i love spicy food so i might be a bit bias here! grilled pork jowl: at first, i thought i was eating pork neck because the texture tasted just like it - a little bit rough but very chewy. the grounded ginger/sea salt sauce they provided gave the jowl more of a lemony flavoured. FYI: the jowl is the cheek part of a pig. baby squids (i forgot the real name of this dish, sorry!): i cringe when i eat something that is squirmy, i was so hesitant to even lick the squid but when i ate it, i was surprised how tasty it was! i don't know what kind of sauce they used, but it felt like i was eating some salty jellyfish. it's hard to describe!! smoke salmon salad: greens topped with smoke salmon, olives and avocado! it's like heaven placed on a plate, what can i say. beef tataki: raw beef that is slightly seared that is marinated in vineger and topped with white ginger paste and green onions. i generally don't eat beef because i get skin allergies but i had to try a piece because it smelled so good! i love putting tons of green onions in my mouth when i eat this because it kills the bacteria of the beef and also spices the overall flavor of the tataki. this dish is a must-try, the top on my list. thinking of it is making me drool right now. urghhhhhhhhhh
price || not-so-cheap. if you are the type that eats a lot at an all-you-can-eat buffet, well, then get ready to pay $40-50 per person. tapas-style restaurants offers varieties of food, prepared in different styles of cooking (i.e. grilled, fried, etc) but prepared in small portions. tapas-style dishes are meant to be shared! be prepared to open up your wallets if you want to have a good food experience! regardless, i highly recommend koyoi because you get what you pay for - fresh food that is totally worth it.
decor || modern japanese cuisine, the place was small (yet cozy). the restaurant could probably occupy around 7-8 tables. i loved how the shelves were decorated with japanese wine bottles and japanese paintings, it makes you feel like you are eating in an urban restaurant located in japan. there were no loud music playing in the restaurant so it gave an overall quiet, comfortable and peaceful environment.
what I ordered || drink: ninja turtle (LOL!), edamame, miso soup, yuzu-takawasa, smoked salmon salad, beef tataki, spicy french fries (with beef and curry), gyutan (beef tongue), grilled pork jowl, salmon onigiri, monk fish liver, baby squids, cream cheese covered with smoke salmon, dessert: green tea (rare) cheesecake and some type of shellfish (it was a chilled appetizer).
