Super popular modernized izakaya in Toronto that opens late.
I was really hungry and was looking for hot food and found this chain izakaya in Toronto that's not too far from the subway so I went there, and found out the line is about 45mins - 1 hour wait. My suggestion is to go approx 1 hour (or 1.5 hours before on weekday) as the waits usually die down around that time.
The food menu is extremely limited for an izakaya, but its adequate. It have all the essential elements of izakaya.
1) Sashimi - uni/sweet shrimp/monk fish sashimi. Fresh, but definitely not sushi restaurant grade, and you are not paying the sushi restaurant price either.
2) Fried Chicken - juicy, tender, but not salty enough.
3) Baked Oyster - Its pretty Americanized taste. Think of scallop dynamite with oyster instead.
4) Beef Tataki - I personally preferred Beef over Maguro tataki here.
5) Lobster Salad - Skip it, its very small portion.
6) Exotic Pork - Skip it, its nothing to write home about
7) Oden - order the daikon and egg, its sooo good!
8) Yakiudon - its really good, the scent of mushroom blended in with the udon. Its one of my favorite dishes.
Try not to wear your fancy outfits here as your clothes will be stained with the smell of izakaya!