Sanko Trading

This place is amazing ! The service was good and helped me to find some few things and they have my favourite drinks I give it 5 star

First things first: This is not the cheapest import store in the city. With that in mind, carry on.
This is the most robust import store in the city. It has everything you’d need from Crème Brulee flavoured Kit Kat, to authentic Pocky. They have tasty rice triangles, and beautiful tea sets.
If you’re looking for Udon, or other noodles (and have nearly given up out of frustration) this is where you want to go.
Finally — they have Pocari Sweat. A personal favourite of mine!

I like this shop
Hi quality stuff
Good food
not a fast food level — IMHO .
I wish — more shop like that in Toronto
(Big Carrot, Healthy Butcher, …)
&:-}

It’s difficult to post a review for a place where options of things that interest me are very limited and yet still say I really like the store, but that’s what it is with Sanko, a cool little Japanese trading store right in the heart of Queen West.
There’s actually quite a bit of good stuff that I like in this store. The only issue I have with it is the prices are pretty high on some things, but given the geography it makes sense. The rent in Queen west isn’t cheap. Nonetheless, $ 5 for a red bean Kit Kat feels like it’s eclipsing the exotic candy/​price threshold. Drinks and certain items like the dishes are definitely pricier than you’ll find in Chinatown, sometimes by a considerable margin. But it is quite possible that the quality is that much better and thus the price differential, and that’s the impression I get. It would seem to be a poor business model to over piece things just to keep it to scale with the price of rent: Why not just rent in Chinatown and make the prices lower? Anyhow, that’s basically hypothesis and something I have no real interest or way to verify.
What I do really like is the uniqueness of having a shop like this in my neighborhood. It’s got a good selection of popular ramen, fairly priced. If fresh ramen is more your thing, they carry that too. Just drop in boiling water and it’s done. Looking for something unique to drink? They have ‘Pocari Sweat’ an oddly named but tasty ion enrichment type drink from Korea and a variety of popular aloe drinks as well. The owner and staff are very friendly, much more personal than most Chinatown stores of similar ilk, and they also carry a large selection of ceramic knives from Kyocera.
Depending on what you’re buying, the prices can most likely be overlooked for the availability of things in an area they’d otherwise be unavailable in.
Worth the trip

It’s a really fun place to browse for Japanese goods, but the prices aren’t as fun! :(
Upon entering the store, there’s a large variety of kitchen utensils and dinnerware. Some of the stuff really is crazily priced, such as lunch boxes no bigger than a pokemon box for thirty dollars, and a cat tea-​ware set for $ 100! So, the goods certainly are steeply priced but they’re very unique and interesting. As you head further into the back, you’ll find various noodles and groceries. I didn’t realize there was actually Yuzu which was a giant bummer, I would have loved to purchase some! I don’t know of any other place that sells Yuzu in Toronto, I don’t even think H Mart sells it. They have a huge variety of sauces that I drooled over, and they have bonito flakes which are surprisingly hard to find! They also have a variety of rice seasoning and basically anything you need for Japanese cooking!
The candy selection is seriously awesome, but the prices are seriously upsetting. It didn’t stop me from purchasing a dear box of Pocky, though. At first, I was disappointed upon seeing that they had your typical Pocky flavours from T&T, but then I saw Azuki and Matcha!!! They were seven bucks for a box, but I caved and purchased it anyways even though I really can’t justify it! They had various candies as well, but I didn’t bother since I already purchased a treat for myself. They have a wide variety of Kit Kats, such as Green Tea and Strawberry, which for the small bags were $ 7 (same as T&T actually), and for the small boxes which have about three mini ones I’m assuming, $ 5. They come in Strawberry, Green Tea, Azuki, and Oolong (or Black/​Red?) Tea, seriously amazing. They also have Strawberry Aero! They feature Regional Kit Kat as well, which are larger boxes and seem like a perfect novelty gift aside from its price. $ 30 could get you Wasabi Kit Kat, Matcha Kit Kat, Hot Chili Kit Kat, or Rum and Raisin Kit Kat. I could REALLY use a break after seeing all that, I was in love.
Unfortunately, I didn’t get a chance to take a picture with the side graffiti art, but let’s be real, I’m probably coming back here sometime, LOL! Super awesome place, it’s a complete mind boggle to be in here. If you’re interested in Japanese culture and looking to purchase some uncommon goods, this place is SNAZZY!!!

Great japanese products at great prices. I love the rice balls that are made with a unique japanese way that ensures the flavor hits the pallet before the rice. Cool system. Prices aren’t as expensive as mentioned in other reviews, some items are even less expensive in comparison to the other asian supermarkets; such as the snacks and seasoning. Overall, great service and you pay for what you get.
Also a good place for candies from Japan.

I’m lucky enough to work close to Sanko, and pop in as often as I can to indulge in onigiri. (Pro tip: the onigiri is delivered around noon… don’t get there early and loiter awkwardly as I have done!). They have a few kinds and all are delicious: kombu (seaweed only), ume (sour plum), enoki mushroom, spicy tuna mayo, and salmon. It’s a perfect portable snack… and if that isn’t enough, grab a container of inari sushi or a package of dorayaki. I also stop over at Sanko to grab staples, like dashi, miso paste, soba and curry. They even have everything to make okonomiyaki (including Kewpie mayo, okonomi sauce and mixture).
That product run-​down is just the tip of the iceberg though. It’s a small shop, but there’s lots to discover. They even have a beautiful knife and pottery display.
Sanko is a little pricier than bigger Asian markets like P.A.T, but it’s charming and well-​stocked with condiments, dry goods and other paraphernalia I don’t necessarily get close to home. For example, I’ve never seen Yuzu in my local market, or many of Sanko’s Japanese candies. The owners are sweet, you may have a few awkward experiences, but it’s a refreshing stop on the Queen West strip and stocked with goodies.
(Note: side parking for Sanko customers! close to a streetcar stop!)

The outside is SO CUTE! Perfect for photos! There are a wide variety of authentic Japanese foods and gifts inside, though you can get many of the foods and gifts at other Asian gift shops (and even from T&T) for a lower price. The staff was very friendly. Will I come back again? Most likely, but I’ll probably be more interested in taking pictures of their wall mural.

Went in looking for a good knife, as an Xmas gift.
Got talked down to by the fat/​balding guy behind the counter (son of the owners?), saying the good knives (which were fully within my expressed budget) were for «higher class people», even mentioning every few minutes that all the kitchen stuff was final sale and he didn’t want me thinking about a refund.
This literally happened a few hours ago. I’ve been there in the past, but unfortunately never had the pleasure of interacting with the lovable son.

I have no idea what I was doing in this store but I spent some time browsing the shelves while my buddy (who knew what he was doing) bought some meats.
The owners who I believe were the old couple were super nice. The chappy started asking me about my winter coat and we had a conversation of some sorts. I believe it was their son or grandson who helped my buddy out with his requests.
The old chap told me that everything is direct from Japan, all legit stuff. That explains the real high prices.
I guess being on Queen St West it has no competition, then again I have never seen Japanese people around here so curious to whether this place will stick around for the long run.

This grocery store has the best variety of Japanese goods an avid fan of Japanese cuisine can ask for. I was buying soy sauce one day, and there are a lot of to choose. The cashier was really helpful when he recommended another brand of soy sauce which tasted better than the one I picked. I tried it at home, and the dish has a beautifully unique taste to it!

Source of many Japanese products I have not found anywhere else, and everything seems to be of nice quality.
The price is expensive but not unexpected, as quality Japanese products usually are and they are in a downtown location. So it is fair, all considered.

A fun little shop located somewhat unexpectedly on Queen West. I’ve noticed other reviewers commenting on the small size of the shop, but to me that’s a plus! Sometimes I want to go to a huge Asian market. .. and sometimes I want to go to a smaller place, where there’s less to look at and its easier to make a decision. Don’t get me wrong, Sanko has LOTS to choose from, if you’re looking for Japanese goods. On my last visit I bought some bowls, and I appreciated browsing through one shelf, not a never ending aisle of bowls.

This shop didn’t do anything for me. I’m an Asian market fan so I made a cross-​town trek to check out this one. It didn’t live up to expectation. T&T, Sunny, PAT, Galleria, Chinatown all beat this one. The place is tiny. Nothing like the other Asian markets. It’s about the size of your average Subway Sandwich restaurant. The selection is very focused on Japanese products which is good since they are a Japanese shop, just don’t go there expecting variety. The prices are jacked up. Like most things are at least two dollars more than at other places. People say the jacked up prices are worth it due to the location. I’d suggest taking the $ 3 and hopping the Bathurst streetcar/​bus and going a few streets north to PAT Central. It’s way bigger and way cheaper and carries Japanese products.

Excellent shop for Japanese products. It’s second-​best to J-​Town which is really OUT THERE and very East of Finch Station by bus, so the location can’t be beat.
They do have higher prices here but it’s due to their location. This is THE PLACE for Japanese stuff, but specific Japanese stuff that you can’t find in Chinatown that is.

Sanko est une épicerie japonaise, vous y trouverez la plupart des produits typiques, entre sushis, nouilles traditionelles, ustensiles de cuisine et gadgets en tout genre.
Coup de coeur: les canettes collector et les batons d’encens Dragon Ball Z.
/​/​Sanko is a japanese grocery and gadget stores. You will find all the traditional products such as sushi, traditional noodles, kitchenware and gadgets.
We love: collector Dragon Ball Z soda cans and encens burning sticks.

This little japanese grocery is nice to have in downtown Toronto, the inventory is not huge, but it has all the basics for japanese cooking like sushi rice, vinegar, ingredients to make dashi, or premade dashi, etc. They also have a variety of japanese snacks.
The prices are kind of high for the products and some of the products look like it has been on the shelf for a bit, since they were a bit dusty…
Overall, I appreciate having this place in downtown Toronto, but a lot of asian groceries like T&T and Lucky Moose carry some Japanese goods at more competitive pricing (due to economies of scale), also this place a little out of the way for me, so if I can not find the item that I am looking for at a more convenient location, I will check here.

BOTTOM LINE: This is THE place for Japanese groceries on the west side.
(3.5 STARS)
Other Unilocalers have written about how Sanko doesn’t offer more than J-​town or T&T in terms of selection or prices, but the fact remains it’s still one of the only places in the downtown core that sell some of the rarer Japanese ingredients. Until there’s more competition, Sanko gets 3.5 stars.
I would still recommend going to China Town for the common stuff like the noodles, snacks and bowls — it’s WAY cheaper there; however, if you want some high quality miso paste and some coveted yuzu, this is where you want to be! An old Japanese couple own the store and haven’t given me bad advice yet! Their recommendations for which miso paste and yuzu to use with my miso black cod and miso soup recipes were spot on, and now it’s hard for me to imagine shelling out the big bucks for miso black cod in restaurants when it’s so easy to make at home!

I visited this spot after a long long time. Things haven’t changed much the place offers a decent range of Japanese goodies.
Prices are OK but not the greatest. Decent selection of snacks and other Japanese groceries and cooking utensils etc. However this place is by no means an alternate to J-​Town or even T&T supermarket for that matter. Location is accessible by TTC when comparing the competition in downtown.
They also are a receiving depot for Nippon Express which is one of the cheapest way to mail items to Japan
I wouldn’t mind coming here to get my fix of Japanese stuff if I can’t make it to the other bigger stores.

Sanko Trading looks so out of place in this part of Queen Street West! I was so surprise to see a store that devoted to all Japanese culture and items in this area of town!
The high standard and quality of Japanese goods and kitchenwares does reflect in the pricing at Sanko. I kind of used to the idea of Made in Japan VS Made in China, Expensive VS Cheap, Imported VS local…
I would never have guess the cute little teacups I have at Sushi Tei (
) cost $ 16 each! But they sure are cute and good quality!
Love the noodle selections here! Some of them I cannot get in the usual Chinese grocery stores I been too…
Maybe one day I have to try cooking some real Japanese food with the help of some of the premade ingredients in Sanko Trading!

Coming from the suburbs, I guess I have been desensitized to the whole Japanese Grocery scene specifically with Heisei (J-​Town). Similarities except that Heisei has co-​existing shops next to it that can support a wider variety of items (i.e. Bakery, Meats, Fish).
On it’s own in this area of town, it is a breath of fresh air especially for me. It stands out from all the Dog Boutiques, Art Gallery, Menswear, Patisserie of western origins and all needing a healthy wallet or at least look proper to go in without being questioned.
I would still go inside and browse/​shop however my value-​conscious mind wouldn’t let me get some items. At the same time, there might be a few items of value to me that caught my eye but the selection is limited.
There’s a couple Tomago Pan that I saw one was roughly $ 30 while the other was upwards of $ 70 I believe. I noticed a Oshizushi Box as well. Maybe when I go into Unilocal retirement, I will slow down and have time to focus on mastering those items.