Hanmoto

Great spot for some quality late night dining. I highly suggest the Enoki mushrooms and Salmon Aburi. Small space so might be tough to get a table with a big party, but super cool, laid back environment with amazing décor.

Not a day goes by where I don’t crave Hanmoto (and I live upstairs, so the temptation is there). The tartare, buns, Dino wings, drinks — all of it, delicious. Make sure to get there for 6 to get a table, otherwise you take a lucky chance (it’s usually an hour or so to get in). Either way, you won’t be disappointed.

At first i was really annoyed that they didn’t have a phone number, and they don’t take reservations, but once I tasted the food all of that negative energy was gone. Yes, it requires some effort to get a table, but you’ll be glad you did.

Hanmoto really impressed me. It has been a while since I’ve been to a restaurant and had tasted something I haven’t before.
The Dino chicken wings were good but you only need to eat one as they are coated in a super rich sauce.
I HIGHLY recommend the Okra and Salmon Aburi.
I tried the curry bun but it was not my fave.
The cocktails are also solid and they compliment the food nicely.
Love this place I would go back in a heartbeat.

A really great spot! It’s a small hole in the wall, and well worth the wait if there’s a line.
If you don’t like hip-​hop, you may not love the atmosphere as the music is a little loud — but i love it and it made my experience a lot more fun.
You must try the Dyno Wings and Salmon Haburi — really delicious, and super different than anything else I’ve ever had!
Their dessert was to die for too — the miso icecream was again, so different than any other icecream i’ve tried. The portion looks small, but it’s dense and splitting it between 2 is perfect!
The drinks are a little expensive, but taste great.
It’s one of my favourite new restaurants, and a really fun place to come for a date and small group of friends.

Unique. Amazing food at a good price point. I’d normally bitch about the beer but the Brooklyn lager is not a run of the mill lager. Anyone who gave this place a bad review is an idiot

This place is really fun to go to. It’s like a lively casual Izakaya with more upscale food and cocktails. The atmosphere and food feels/​tastes like something totally new and unexpected, transports you out of Toronto. Love the glass garage doorway hung with little vintage saki cans. It’s amazing that it appears to be in an old garage. Actually around 4.5 stars, 5 for the atmosphere, 4 for the creative and delicious food, 4.5 for the service. Service is friendly/​casual, young but very quick and attentive. The food is a few steps above typical izakaya food, with creative flavors and everything was perfectly cooked with fantastic textures. We had the eggplant with crispy beets, hamachi tartare, okra, and curry and katsu buns (ordered best to good) The vegetables were surprisingly delicious, so rich and flavorful enough to be a full meal. We had Asahi and it went with the food really well, however the cocktails looked good too. The buns were mostly fast-​food like, way above average bar food, and very satisfying if you’re hungry! Can’t wait to go back and try everything else.

There’s very little seating available so the wait times can be long if you come during peak dining hours. Good for a date or with a small group of friends.
For 2, the portions were not bad as we were pretty full off 4 dishes but I would imagine that a bigger party (of even say, 4) would have to order doubles of a single dish to get a real bite.
It’s a small menu but everything sounded very appealing and at reasonable prices too. We ordered the hamachi tartare, moto eggs, dynowings and salmon aburi.
Hamachi tartare ($ 12) was very good but perhaps the least memorable dish for me. Loved all the components and it had great texture but there was just a tinge of acidity to it that I wish something else on the dish would help balance out.
Moto eggs ($ 7) was fantastic. The chicken skin and sauce really completes it. Everything worked so well together!
Salmon aburi ($ 10) was great too. Evenly torched salmon that comes with nori sheets for DIY wraps which was fun.
My favorite and reason why this place captured my interest in the first place was the Dynowings ($ 8). Pork dumpling stuffed in a jumbo-​sized chicken wing accompanied with spicy tare sauce? Yes please! It’s a dish that really gives you a lasting impression and it would be the main thing I come back to this place for.
Didn’t get a chance to try any of their signature drinks. They all sounded really cool and I’ve heard good things but they’re on the pricer side ($ 12 – 13) in comparison to the food.
Food is fantastic. Service is passable. I would recommend it!

So the food here is actually fantastic. But there are some reasons why I might head elsewhere instead of coming back: the too-​loud music, the service, the long wait time to get a table.
The first time I tried coming to Hanmoto, there was an hour and a half wait, and I ended up eating elsewhere. Came back another night and the restaurant was pretty much bare. We asked if we could sit at one of the benches/​bigger tables, and were told that we had to sit at a small one. The whole time we ate there, no one else came into the restaurant, and no one else was using the big tables. It definitely would have been a more comfortable dining experience if the server had granted our request.
Ordered the hamachi tartare, eggplant, salmon aburi, and moto bun. All of these were absolutely delicious and well presented. We also got the miso ice cream, but I didn’t enjoy it much. Found it to be too salty.

Ordered everything on the menu with a group of four people. Dishes are very small.
Standouts are the eggplant dish, hamachi, aburi, okra (not for everyone though), and the steak special was phenomenal (they should make it a regular).
Drinks were good, we really like the cops and raba.
Service was weird, there were too many waiters for the space and they looked bored but a few times they didn’t notice our drinks were empty and we had to flag them down for refills. Also, food was paced very quickly. With 12 dishes & 2 rounds of drinks ordered, we were out in 1 hour 20 mins.
Overall, decently priced, good for a casual weekend meal. Dishes were fun and interactive. Would come again.

Let me first start off by warning you to pick off hours to come and eat here. They have enough room for maybe 16 people, and none for groups bigger than 4.
This place gets a legit 4.5 stars. If you don’t mind tight spaces, or walking around in circles to find it (hint: it’s beside Churchill), you can get delicious izakaya for cheap. Had the hamachi tartare (warning it has wasabi), the dyno wings (dumpling inside a wing… what?!), moto and katsu buns. The buns and wings are super rich — try the okra and enoki for a good mix. The katsu bun tastes like a glorified sweet mcchicken. I recommend everything including the cocktails. Quickly becoming my top 3 spots for late night dining.

We came here because I wanted to check out what this new Japanese snack bar was all about, since I was a fan of Swish by Han and of Oddseoul.
The food here was very interesting, creative, and very flavourful. We were a party of 4 and ordered the whole menu, along with a few drinks, and everything was quite tasty. All items, raw and hot, are made to share tapas style.
Our favourites for the night.
Salmon Aburi (410) — Do it yourself torched salmon sushi (comes with nori sheets, wrap yourself). We ordered this twice!
Nasu Dengaku ($ 8) — Roasted eggplant with fried beets and miso hollandaise. Very unique flavours.
Dyno Wings ($ 8) — Pork dumpling stuffed into a giant chicken wing. The boys raved about this dish. Each order comes with 2 wings.
Moto Bun ($ 7) — Japense curry with jamaican slaw on a coco bun.
Hot Hot Tofu ($ 6) — Cold silken tofu with chili oil, pickled cucumbers, onions, and nori. We also ordered this twice.
Hamachi Tartare ($ 12) — Thinly sliced hamachi with sweet chilli ponzu, shiso, cilantro, and avocado.
Miso Ice Cream ($ 7) — Condensed milk with white miso, topped with nori powder and japanese toasted rice balls. This was savoury and sweet, and kept me wanting more!
This tiny, cozy, hole-​in-​the wall snack bar is a great spot to have drinks, with an amazing menu to boot. It is definitely easy to miss, so remember it is right at the corner of Lakeview Avenue and Dundas Street West. The vibe was chill, it reminded some of us of Thailand or Vietnam, and the music was great, 90’s R&B and Hip Hop, if you dig that.
Overall, we had a great time with good friends, and we’ll definitely be back for another round of drinks and good food.
Parking; Street parking along Dundas Street West or along the small residential streets
Space: Very small and tiny
Hours;

Hanmoto is a tiny, hole-​in-​the-​wall-​izakaya-​dive-​bar (is that even a thing?) located on Lakeview Avenue, a tiny street west of Dundas and Ossington. It is definitely easy to miss if you do not have your eyes peeled.
My girlfriend and I ordered the following dishes:
— Salmon Aburi: Torched salmon, sushi rice ($ 10)
— Hamachi Tartare: Sweet chill ponzu, shiso, avocado ($ 12)
— Uni-​Bomb: Uni roe, chicken skin chips, sushi rice ($ 15)
— Katsu Bun: Panko crusted 24hr pork belly, soy remoulade, lettuce ($ 7)
— Dyno Wings: Stuffed chicken wings ($ 8)
— Miso Ice Cream: Nori powder, toasted rice balls ($ 7)
The unanimous favourites included the salmon aburi, hamachi tartare, uni-​bomb, and miso ice cream. The miso ice cream was particularly an eye-​opener, with the saltiness of the nori pairing exceptionally well with the sweetness of the ice cream. While the katsu bun was super flavourful, it was a bit too fatty for our palates (i.e. fried pork belly + a ton of mayo, or «soy remoulade») — it is definitely for sharing. The dyno wings were also pretty good, but compared to some of the other amazing dishes, ultimately became more of an after-​thought.
Overall, the food, combined with the intimate vibe and coziness of this establishment makes it great if you’re taking someone on a date, or simply catching up with some friends. Definitely recommended.

It’s easy to miss this little hole in the wall from the outside, but look behind the Clinton’s on the corner for an unassuming box with a door and a long bench outside.
The décor is alleyway grungy cool, with a neon red glow that floods the right side and a dimly lit bar/​main dining section. The music seems to shift between mellow R&B to upbeat hip hop tracks (thumbs up). I’d say this is not a place to come with a large large group (6 people at most) as the space itself is very cozy.
We ordered the hamachi tartare, dyno wings, salmon aburi, enoki and the miso ice cream to finish. The tartare was delish, great layered flavours. I also really enjoyed the enoki (buttery and soy-​miso flavours) but it could have used a bit of acidity to cut the richness. The dyno wings were very good, but I wish I could have just ate the crispy skin with some rice as it was the best part. The aburi was good, though the rice was a bit dry and wasn’t anything super memorable. I’d recommend skipping the miso ice cream even though it sounds really cool — it was cloyingly sweet, the miso was too subtle and not enough of the nori sprinkling to cut the sweetness. Save room for dessert and head down to bang bang ice cream or up to little italy. Overall for $ 28 each with tip it was a good amount of food for the price and we were full for quite a while after.
We didn’t sample the drinks this time but I’d recommend checking them out, they all sounded really good and would pair well with the richer food. We came just a bit past 6pm on Sat and were seated right away (granted it was a long weekend). It’d recommend this place for a date night as the seating arrangement works well for this or catching up with a small group of friends.

This review is based on the food and atmosphere.
I was there with a couple of friends after work on a Monday night. You would need to get their early as space is extremely limited to 6 tables only (4 tables that fit up to 3 people and 2 tables that fit up to 6 people) no reservations.
The good:
Food was awesome, we got the salmon, chicken, okra and bao. This was split amongst 3 of us and we were all full :)
The bad:
The music volume in this place will literally give you a headache, they need to turn it down a notch. Can barely hear yourself. When I say it’s hot in there due to tight space and an open flaming kitchen wear less clothing. It’s dark and dungeon like in there, almost looking dirty which isn’t a good thing, my window sill had dead bugs, not pleasant to look at when I’m eating.
If you’re a restaurant owner, you must take pride in the space you are serving. It’s about getting repeat customers and not one timers.

I’ve appreciated Izakaya’s around the world from the ultra-​traditional in small-​town Japan, where they are much better at sitting on the floor than me, to the ultra-​hip Toronto version of Guu Izakaya. Approaching Hanmoto, there was no moat of flaming dog turds, just a building that looked like a shack with ultra-​loud music and papered-​over windows. In contrast to both the traditional and hip versions, there were no shouts of «Irasshaimase!» to greet us upon arrival, merely a flannel-​clad waitress looking bored.
The meal did start well-​enough. There are indeed several interesting cocktails on the menu (all $ 12-​$ 13), which incorporate Asian flavours like kaffir lime and ginger in variants of classic cocktails. Our first dish to arrive, the Hamachi Tartare ($ 14), was by far the best, and at the level of the small plates served by far fancier places like Bent. A beautiful tartare accompanied with some ponzu, avocado, and elements of crunchiness.
We then proceeded to the Nasu Dengaku ($ 7), the Japanese eggplant, which was lovely in flavor and texture and covered with crunchy fried beet slivers that provided an interesting contrast. The menu advertised a miso hollandaise sauce, but the sauce that accompanied it was as similar to that as Sesame Street is to The Walking Dead. Instead, it was so sweet, that I highly recommend it be adopted immediately as the standard medical treatment for hypoglycemia.
«Can I get you more drinks?» No, we’ve only had our cocktails about 10 minutes.
We then proceeded to the interesting Katsu Bun ($ 7/​piece) which consisted of a marinated pork belly served in an aggressively salted soy remoulade. Too big for a tapas portion for one person, but impossible to share, as the restaurant refuses to provide a knife or cut it in half. Clearly, it would ruin the «integrity» of the dish.
«Can I get you more drinks?» OK, let’s have a round of Asahi’s ($ 8 on tap). Some passable enoki mushrooms ($ 7) arrived.
«Can I get you more drinks?» No, we’ve only had the beers 5 minutes, but maybe you can check on the Uni Bomb we ordered long, long ago that has been forgotten. I regretted that request immensely.
Our «Uni Bomb» ($ 15) arrived, which was a do-​it-​yourself sort of dish of a small portion of uni on top of sushi rice with nori to wrap it in and a few sprinkles of salmon roe. 3 out of 4 of us proceeded to make our little uni wraps and started to eat it. Unfortunately the uni tasted like rancid iodine… if iodine could somehow spoil. In the entire collective memory of everyone who knows my boyfriend, he has never sent a dish of food back. Here, and we were in unanimous agreement, we had just been served disgusting, rotten uni, and he politely called the waitress over…
«Can I get you another drink?»
«No, actually, I’m afraid we can’t get eat your uni. I’m afraid it’s gone bad, and we want to send it back. You really should alert your chef so that you don’t serve this to anyone else.» She turned and walked in silence away. She whispers with the chef in the corner. We ponder if someone will come to apologize, or offer a substitute, or acknowledge the problem. No one comes back to say anything, so we finally succeed in distracting the waitress from the cell phone. By now the readers at home know what she will say:
«Can I get you another drink?»
«No, just the bill, please»
Lo and behold, the «Uni Bomb» we returned, which contained the worst bit of seafood ever to cross my lips, is still on the bill for $ 15. After being ignored for a solid 15 minutes of candy crushing, the waitress comes over and we ask her to remove the uni from the bill.
The Michelin-​trained waitress explains that they discussed removing it from the bill, but more than 50% of the uni was gone, so they didn’t want to take it off. Aha, well, 3 of us had miniature spoonfuls of it, which we all hated. She reluctantly agrees to take it off the bill.
Before, we can get the new bill, we’re greeted by the manager. 100% sure of the quality of his food, he proceeds to lecture us that maybe we don’t know what uni tastes like. My boyfriend’s mention of living in Japan and eating it often did nothing to shake his confidence. He proceeded to mention that this was uni from BC, not the Chilean uni they had been serving before, and we might be unaccustomed to its taste. Ah, so you’re saying that sea urchin from BC should taste like the fish that’s been thrown out of the dodgy fish markets in Kensington and left to rot for a few days in the sunshine… sure! Not once was there an apology.
We finally get our revised bill. We ask the waitress to split it two ways. «Sure, but I just don’t want to do the math. You do it,» comes the response.
We departed with no shouts of «Arigatou gozaimashita» or even nods from flannel-​clad waitresses. Unfortunately, the taste of the rotten uni persisted. The 3 of us who had the «Uni Bomb» also got to discover its gastrointestinal «bomb» counterpart the next day.

Hanmoto is quick to remind me that I’m getting old. It’s dark, impossibly cool and the music is too damn loud.
Myself and two buddies came in for some cocktails and dinner and weren’t disappointed. I had the lime-​vodka cocktail, Cops and Rabas It was refreshing and went down a little too quickly.
As for the food, I really enjoyed their oysters and deviled eggs, but the rest of the stuff was a little too high concept. Dumplings in chicken wings are fun in theory, but in the end are much too much. No matter how good one might think it tastes… they smell horrible to your neighbour. The buns are sandwiches and big enough to be meals on their own, and they don’t have knives making them tricky to share, but I would definitely have the Japanese curry one again for myself.
Overall, an A-​OK experience. But seriously, sonny, turn down your tunes.

I’ve heard some amazing things about this place but since it was popular and only seated 30 people I figured my chances to get a table were slim at 9 pm. Fortunately, I managed to make it there when they opened and it was delicious.
This place is hidden away at Ossington and Dundas, I walked past this place several times since it didn’t have a sign. The interior was small, dark and a boom box playing beach side music. If I was ever at a Japanese beach and going to get beach food this is what I would expect.
The menu consisted of 10 items and I think its best to share with your table. The prices range from $ 7 to $ 15 dollars a dish.
I strongly recommend the hamachi tartare, a great blend of citrus, wasabi and that creamy taste from the avocado was amazing!
Dyno wings: a deboned chicken wing, stuffed with bacon and pork. Deep fried with a sweet soy sauce and Japanese Mayo. Need I say more?
The salmon face was a bit disappointing. The salmon was torched and left a bitter taste. Wasn’t my favourite dish of the night.
Moto eggs: Japanese style deviled eggs with chicken skin chips and king salmon roe. This was amazing, each component just worked together and tasted great!
Then the moto bun: this can’t be shared and is better for one person. The is a Jamaican spiced Japanese chicken curry with a coleslaw and was deliciously spicy. Oh, did I mention the bun was deep fried?
This place is fantastic! A must go to hidden gem in Toronto.

Behind Churchill on Dundas st. is Hanmoto, I state this because it can be a bit tricky finding the place. It’s a small eclectic space, seating a maximum of maybe 20 just by eye. It’s cozy, warm and dim.
I wanted to come visit because I am a fan of Oddseoul, a Korean snack bar. Hanmoto is a Japanese snack bar which features Japanese flavors in very creative and delicious ways.
I had the whole menu and everything was quite tasty, I was very impressed with the food they whip out of the kitchen. All items are made to share so visiting with a group of 4 – 6 is a get way to try a lot for much less. Portions are larger than you think and what you may be used to at snack bars, I appreciate that!
My Favorites:
Salmon Aburi — DIY torched salmon sushi (comes with nori sheets, wrap yourself)
Nasu Dengaku — Roasted eggplant with fried beets and awesome miso Hollandaise
Dyno Wings — Dumpling stuffed crispy sweet chicken wings, blew my mind
Passable
Salmon Face — I’m a eater, but a salmon head is a bit daunting, boney & not worth $ 12
Shishito Peppers — a tad flavorless despite bonito flakes, needs a sauce or mayo
Overall, I really enjoyed my meal. The items were all pretty unique, prepared in creative ways but sound and taste simple. Everything makes sense, every bite comes together and portions are surprisingly larger than you may expect.

Hanmoto is a new spot that serves up raw and hot items in izakaya style! The portions are snack sized and are meant for sharing.
The spot is nestled away on Lakeview and the inside is VERY small. There are two larger picnic tables that can accommodate a bigger group but then there’s just a few smaller two-​seaters and bar stools in the rest of the space. It is dim-​lit, art-​grunge and the music is pumping (hip hop).
The menu is small and carries hot items, cold/​raw items, cocktails and beer. We ordered 85% of the menu to share between the 4 of us.
Highlights:
Dyno Wings — 2 jumbo deboned chicken wings stuffed with pork dumpling and glazed with some ridiculously tasty sauce! A definite winner!
Moto bun — This is Japanese curry chicken with slaw on a bun! Very flavourful and messy, hard to cut in half so if you’re hungry order one of these to yourself.
Nasu Dengaku — Japanese eggplant, fried beets and miso sauce. BEST dish on the menu which was a shocker. I don’t even care for eggplant but this dish has an explosion of texture and flavourful, that miso special sauce is DELICIOUS!!!
Miso Ice cream — Shiro Miso icecream in a slab dusted with nori powder and puff rice balls. This was a nice subtle flavour. Not too sweet and the rice balls gave it a nice crunch. A nice treat to split.
Basically everything we tried was really good, the only thing I didn’t care for was the shishitso peppers. Usually I love these peppers at Spanish restaurants but they were quite flavourless here. They topped the peppers with bontio flakes which were wayyyyyy too fishy tasting, we barely finished this dish between 4 people.
The large salmon dish wasn’t really worth it either. Seemed like there was not enough meat in the salmon and it was hard to pick at and they just dumped a load of coleslaw on top. The other salmon dish was excellent though, the aburi salmon!
Cocktails looked good, but were pricey. I had a beer instead. The beer list is short but some decent options.
Great place, would go back just for those wings and eggplant, mmmmmmm!