Ki Modern Japanese + Bar

The story

Crafted with passion, served with love

Where Toronto's Financial Core Meets Modern Japanese Cuisine

Ki Modern Japanese + Bar sits inside Brookfield Place, the Santiago Calatrava-designed atrium complex on Bay Street that remains one of downtown Toronto's most striking architectural landmarks. The setting is fitting: ki's serene, contemporary design holds its own against the soaring parabolic glass above, offering a composed counterpoint to the energy of the financial district just outside.

At the kitchen, Executive Chef Hing Wong leads a menu that balances traditional Japanese technique with modern influences, drawing from both a full hot kitchen and a dedicated sushi bar. The philosophy is seasonal — Japanese cuisine, as ki describes it, continuously celebrates the ingredients that each time of year brings forward, and the menu shifts accordingly between traditional and contemporary sushi dishes and hot plates.

A Beverage Program That Stands Alone in Canada

The bar is the room's focal point — dramatic, high-profile, and deliberately social. But what distinguishes ki beyond atmosphere is the depth of its drinks offering. Beverage Director Michael Tremblay holds the title of Sake Samurai and leads a team of more than ten certified Sake Professionals. Together they have built what ki describes as Canada's largest Japanese sake program, sourcing hand-crafted premium sake from breweries across Japan as well as locally produced bottles. The list spans the oldest kura in Japan through to contemporary boutique expressions.

The wine program earned ki a Wine Spectator Award of Excellence, and the restaurant also stocks an array of boutique Japanese craft beers. It is a beverage offering designed to move in step with everything from delicate cold sushi plates to Miyazaki A5 Wagyu.

Lunch, Dinner, and Izakaya in the Heart of the City

Weekday lunch brings an extensive à la carte selection alongside bento platters and hot plates — a practical and considered option for the business crowd that surrounds ki on all sides. Come evening, the room shifts register: the bar and lounge hum with signature cocktails and izakaya snacks, while the dining room settles into a fuller expression of modern Japanese cooking.

General Manager Fabrizio Doria rounds out a leadership team that has clearly invested in making ki more than a convenient address. With Union Station, Scotiabank Arena, and the Theatre District all within walking distance, it serves as a natural gathering point before or after events — but the kitchen and sake list give it plenty of reason to be the destination itself.