Restaurants › Japanese
Japango
- 122 Elizabeth St. (at Dundas St. W.) • View on map »
- 416-599-5557
Visit this microscopic, 20-seat, hidden gem often enough—two or three times a week—and you too might be one of the chosen ones, rewarded with your very own pair of fancy chopsticks. A row of wooden cases containing beautiful lacquered or steel utensils, each bearing the name of a devotee of pristine raw fish hangs behind the sushi bar. The small, narrow room, fills to capacity quickly with sushi aficionados from way uptown, dating couples and Japanese ex-pats (don’t be late as staff turns tables in a flash). Its enduring popularity is easy to explain: the presentations are beautiful, the flavours are clean and pure, and the prices offer tremendous value. Silky soba noodles and crispy, light, greaseless tempura comes with a warm, sweet miso broth and a raw quail egg; once the egg is cracked open and stirred in, it’s a spectacular and elegantly simple dish. Spicy salmon hand roll brings a generous fistful of delicate cubes of fish, topped with impossibly fine filaments of crispy fried shallot. Maki are just about perfect, with more filling than lovely soft rice. Some sashimi is torched or lightly seared, adding smokiness and interest to an already delicious, artfully displayed array. Iced Japanese plum wine, cold Sapporo, or sake—hot or cold—are essential, as is a call, one day ahead for chef’s omakase menu. Oddly, for such a tiny room, service can be a tad neglectful. Mains $12–$29; omakase $70.
122 Elizabeth St. (at Dundas St. W.)
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