Had a most delectable dinner with my friend Austin at Kinka Izakaya:
Smoked duck tataki with jalapeños and pickled onions
Assorted sashimi platter
Oyster Kakimayo with mushrooms, spinach, and clam chowder
Salmon tartare with creamy avocado and nori
Saba oshizushi with pickled ginger and onions
Tuna tataki with ponzu, yuzu miso dressing, and green onions
Tokyo Calamari tossed in secret spicy sauce and wasabi mayo
Tokyo Fries with garlic mayo, tonkatsu sauce, and bonito flakes
Takoyaki with tonkatsu sauce and mayo
Matcha tiramisu
Hojicha crème brûlée
Aside from the saba oshizushi not being either seared nor pressed and the takoyaki being deep-fried instead of pan-fried, everything was incredible. Highlights for me were the smoked duck tataki, sashimi (fat, fresh slabs of buttery fish and silky scallops), baked oysters, and both desserts — which ended up being some of the best fusion Japanese desserts I've ever had. The pricing is most certainly not the same as izakaya in Japan (where they are generally cheap drinking establishments, whereas in North America, they're upscale Japanese tapas restaurants), and Kinka can get pretty damn pricey (the two of us ordered 11 tapas, which ended up being just over $80 per person before tip), but I do think that, overall, it's worth the splurge. Our server was great, too: She was nice and welcoming, had recommendations at the ready, was attentive but not cloying, and was super-efficient at both serving us the food and clearing the table. As someone who loves izakayas, I'm only surprised that I hadn't been to Kinka before. I can't wait to come back.
Kinka Izakaya
110 Harbour St., Unit 108A
Toronto, ON M5J 0B7
(647) 348-0110
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