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| - We came here as a large group of 25+ people during the Christmas Season. In terms of organizing the event, Mia and Emily from Reservations were both very helpful and accommodating. The prix fixe group menus are very good and range from $65 to $85. In my opinion, this is a very reasonable price range from the type of venue and the caliber of food served. There is also no minimum for groups, which is awesome.
We were given a semi private space upstairs and had the freedom to get up from our seats and mingle. Several times I felt like we were in the way of the servers, but they were on top of their game, and always smiling.
The food is served in a "family share" style. We had starters of Bitter Greens, Mac and Cheese, Brussels Sprouts and Chicken Karaage. All of those were great and the Karaage were delicious. The steak which is the star of the show, came in the form of Ontario 10 Oz Canadian Angus Strip Loin and 16 Oz Canadian Angus Bone In Rib Eye; both of which were just excellent. Although, as a caveat, if you are going to Nao to try Kobe, everyone should know that know that until very recently Japan has never once exported Kobe beef to anywhere in Canada. Unless I have missed something, even now, the only Kobe beef you can have is in a single restaurant in Montreal. Anything else you are having is simply not Kobe beef, but likely a high grade Waugyu. Nao does mark some items on its menu as "Kobe", but that being said, technically, there is no appellation of origin on the word/region of Kobe, so presently anyone is allowed to label something as "Kobe". Nonetheless, the Wagyu or Angus you will have at Nao is perfectly cooked, sublime and will stay with you long after you've had your meal. The impressive steak knives that come with your meal are also a nice touch, but needed some sharpening when we were there. Outside of that, we had a perfect evening at Nao. I would love to come back to try the other items on their menu; and I would definitely recommend Nao for group events, if the price point fits your budget. If it doesn't, I'd try and make some room. The steak is certainly worth it.
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