[Toronto] Ja Bistro

Location Review
222 Richmond Street West
Toronto, Ontario
647-748-0222
Website



After hearing so much rave for this modern Japanese eatery, I finally took a visit to Ja Bistro (@JaBistro222) in the financial district of Toronto. Boasting a menu of ingredients shipped from all over the world and delicately crafted sushi by Chef Koji, the place has racked up a list of loyal customers as well as red carpet celebrities including Scarlett Johansson during TIFF!

Ja Bistro

Yukke ($11) - angus beef tartare, gochujang, quail egg, nori seaweed

The Yukke beef tartare is served neatly on a wooden board separated into its distinguishable components. After mixing everything up into a homogeneous paste, it is consumed with crispy sheets of nori seaweed.

Yukke ($11) - angus beef tartare, gochujang, quail egg, nori seaweed

Sashimi Platter ($50)

A chef's selection of fresh fish, this Sashimi Platter cannot be described other than glorious. Seriously. The waitress carefully explains what each piece is and where it was shipped from, but somewhere between salmon from Australia, lobster tomalley from the East Coast, geoduck, and fish scales from Vancouver, I got distracted by how meticulous this platter was. Every piece of fish is delicately sliced and beautifully presented, only to be exceeded by the way it tastes. So fresh and a heavenly umami in every bite.

Sashimi Platter ($50)

Ja Bistroll ($22) - salmon, snow crab, uni, cucumber, tobiko

Ja Bistro has a couple different rolls to choose from, but we went ahead with the namesake JaBistroll. I like to think that it has the characteristics of a melty tub of ice cream: creamy and unstructured. The charred fish on top gives it a slight smokey flavour, but is largely overtaken by the sharp flavours and mushy texture of uni and mayonnaise. Oddly enough I enjoyed it, despite not falling under my normal taste and texture preferences.

Gindara ($22) - black cod, bacon, shrimp toast

An order of the Gindara black cod comes with a perfectly cooked piece of fish, crusted in bacon, pistachios, and a savoury-sweet glaze. The shrimp toast was a tad bit oily, but packed a flavourful crunch alongside the fish.

Miso chocolate truffle

Miso dark chocolate truffles made in-store to cap off the meal. Conclusion? Amazing. Stick with the simplistic sashimi and sushi platters, and it'll be worth all the hype. Prepare for nothing less than the best cuts of fish and innovating dishes. Go - just go.