Guu Izakaya in Toronto

Absolutely fantastic service and food here! We were in a rush and the server made sure everything came out quickly even though the place was packed!! Seared salmon sushi, yaki udon and takoyaki were all phenomenal. Highly recommend this place, and I will definitely be returning. Dietary restrictions: They have Gluten Free options for their sushi!

Foods below average for the price and the interior is a little disappointing.

Over the years, Guu has shown little improvement, and the food quality has consistently declined. While the service is good, the menu resembles more of a teenagers choice rather than appealing dishes. I won t be returning unless significant changes are made

Ive been a couple times. wasnt sure what Japanese with a sushi focus was all about so tried it. casual, easy. beer battered shrimp and seared raw salmon on nigiri type rice was fantastic. good deal on Japanese beers as well.

Excellent service and attention. The food is very good. Everything we tried tasted very good. The location is good. Recommended.

Great food, solid karaage

Something different. The tuna flakes look alive. They dont taste much but together with the rest it tastes pretty good.

Food was so so so good and amazing value. Need to get sake bombs next time they looked super fun. Will be back for sure

Always amazing!

Damn I moved away from the neighbourhood and forgot how phenomenal this place is. The foods delicious, I can get my shochu with hot water like the old man I am at heart, and the staff really hustle and seem to like working there.

An incredible place that reconciled us with the neighborhood. The tasty and very fine dishes, truly a moment of sweetness for the taste buds. Very warm service. I recommend without hesitation!!!

really salty

Solid Izakaya, similar vibe to the ones in Toronto but different menu (less sashimi options)

The sieves was so fast the fried oysters were amazing I don t even like oysters but it tasted like a hole new food the workers were the nicest people on earth

Real nice restaurant thank you for a great evening Food

The food here is amazing! Get the chicken karaage very tasty! Service was fantastic, a very fun atmosphere to bring a group of friends.

great food but seems our order got lost twice? in the near hour we were without any food we were checked up on twice, never offered drinks just asked if we were waiting on anything groups of 5+ forced into 18% tip so I don t know how much the no incentive for service had to do with it even the slightest apology would ve been appreciated

Had their beef skewer when they were catering at Cold Tea on Sunday during the day and those beef skewers were BUSSIN I m coming to see yall soon.

One of my favorite places in the city. Delicious food and great atmosphere. If youre looking for fun then ask for a sake bomb

They. Are. Beautiful. People! Everyone that i ve ran into that works there is an extremely nice person that care about your food and experience. Excellent food, great service. Highly recommend.

Amazing!! Loved everything! Food was perfection and so was the service. Friendly, fun. And delish!! What more can you ask for!! Cheers!

Dope food, sweet servers, will come again

Everything was perfect! Absolutely nothing to complain about. The food was excellent and the portions sufficient. The price is justified in view of the quality of the products. The service was very pleasant, the servers available and smiling. In addition, I have a food allergy and this is the first time that the server really inquired with the chef to find out if the dishes were good for me. Thanks again for that! I recommend this restaurant 100%.

A different Japanese cuisine .. not only sushi great variety .. the best black cod in the world ..! Unique dumplings .. dishes from different regions great adventure!

This is a fun place to have some snacks and drinks with your friends! Fun vibes and the sake bombs are fun to get!

Went here with a friend of mine the other night and was just amazed with the quality of everything. I m not very fond with duck but it truly changed my perspective with the dish I tried that night! Also I didn t expect too much from the cheese bibimbap (not pictured) but even that blew my mind away. Would come back again if I m in the city :)

It s hard being a *slight* Japanese food snob. Well, not really, because: Guu. Bring your wallet and your taste buds. Keep playing those awesome beats, Shu and crew!

Love the staff here, kind and friendly. The food never ceases to amaze me. Get the salmon oshizushi and you will not be disappointed! Friggin heck get a sake bomb too!

Good atmosphere and food. This was my third time going and order pressed torched sushi. However it was served cold and not fresh, unlike the previous times i had it. When I asked, i was told thats how it is which was a lie as I had it before. Overall that disappointed me because I know they serve good food and I would expect it to be the same on every visit.

Extremely slow service

So much fun. Menu featured amazing sharing dishes as well as a wide selection of drinks and beer! Perfect spot for a casual but lively dinner!

Food was tasty but I had a stomach upset after. Might have been the mayo on the chicken karaage special. The scallops with roe sashimi were really good. Spicy Salmon sushi was not to my liking. That too had mayo in it. I really liked the place but the food threw my stomach off.

Made a reservation for 7 PM on a Saturday night, and as we expected it was extremely busy. To remedy this, we ordered all our food at once. We didn t get everything immediately which is completely understandable. However, we had to constantly remind our server (who seemed to disappear for 30-40 minutes at a time) that we didn t get our karage. Around 9:15 PM we decided it was time to leave without getting all of our food. To our surprise, we were billed for 2 servings of karage and a serving a fries that we didn t receive. We got those removed, but the sad thing was that as we were paying at 9:15 PM, 2 hours after our initial order of karage, they bring the karage out. We decided against tasting the karage and left. I get it, you re busy but this is a busy city, and you re in the service industry.

We came here on a weekday night, and it was easy to get a reservation for 3. We ordered the specials, including the tako wasabi, scallop, and grilled cod. Unfortunately, they had run out of grilled oysters that day. There were a lot of alcoholic beverages to choose from - not too many from the non-alcoholic side. The food and service were fantastic, and the atmosphere was lively. Accessibility: no automatic door opener, the washroom is downstairs through a narrow staircase, and floors were ok with crutches. Parking is available in the front.

First time trying this local spot, I was very excited. But felt left down. Pros- atmosphere and enthusiastic staff. Fried chicken and pork gyoza were amazing. Cons- We were promptly forgotten about after getting our table. Had my partner not reach out we would not have been served. Drinks and food My partner got her cocktail around ten minutes after I got my beer, I don t mind waiting just serve them together. Half the items I wanted were sold out which is understandable but still a let down. Finally the yaki udon was the worst I ve ever had. My partner wouldn t even touch it! I really wanted to like this spot, but I don t see myself going again.

Amazing food! Fantastic vybz! A really good experience! Love coming here.

Amazing Izakaya! Enthusiastic service!

We went with a group of 20 and had the best night! The team loved everything on the menu, food and drinks. The servers were absolutely amazing despite the large crowd, they were professional and attentive. Thank you!

Great place, very vibe-y. The food has always been good but it seems better than ever these days.

Came here with high expectations. We expected more grilled dishes on the menu but not... Average food, shrimp tempura is disappointing.

Nice environment, foods variety is much limited than expected and nothing special tbh, the matcha pudding is really good tho:)

The food and atmosphere were simply incredible. I would trek back the mileage from Boston just to get dinner here - its that good. The menu was available in kana, which was awesome as a JP learner :D!

Overall great experience, definitely try the sake bombs! I think the salmon ozusushi was really good. Must try the mushroom bibimbap it was the highlight for me.

consistently good

Ive never felt more home at a restaurant/bar than when Im at Guu. With their long history in Toronto, Im so glad that theyve been able to maintain a comforting and welcoming experience with the best and most consistent main menu, served alongside exceptional daily specials. Theyve done a phenomenal job curating new and exciting specials and cocktails season after season. Surprising me at every corner, where Ive built into my daily schedule to check their instagram stories to know whats new and exciting. Love the drawings they use to spice up each menu, adding a personal flair. Attila and Gai, along with all of the other staff, have always made a habit of welcoming everyone with open arms, remembering regulars/locals orders and making all their new clients feel like their best friend. Dont take my word for it. Head over to find out yourself!

My neighborhood izakaya. Lost a bit of it s luster from pre-covid. Would love to see some more variety in the menu from time to time outside of the weekly specials. The service is always good and friendly. Keep it up!

It s an occasion every time you dine at Guu Izakaya.

Love this Guu location. Friendly staff, very warm, chill vibes. Only thing to note is their menu is smaller than other Guu, but still plenty of options.

AmazIng experience, great food, fun atmosphere.. will definitely be back!!

Good shareable food and drinks!

Food here is amazing and everything they have in the menue is delicious and professional done.

Real cozy bar with delicious Japanese food made by Japanese chefs. The owner or manager personally hand draws the menu with the specials every few days in Japanese/English with amazing animation artwork. How many places ever do that? Drinks are good and food is good cant ask for more.

Very nice Izakaya place, great place to go drinking and hang out, their food was good for its value, definitely enjoyed my time. I tried out their salmon, karaage and takoyaki and it was

Delicious food with great cocktails. Had some of their specials and was not disappointed and their regular menu was great. Id definitely go there again

Great place, great food, great atmosphere. We had an amazing night, tried the cold eggplant, torched salmon, gyozas, duck breast, bibimbap, tempura oreo with mochi ice cream and matcha creme brulee with a couple of cocktails, all was delicious, such a gem in Parkdale. Cant wait to come back!

Food drinks and service were great. Awesome place with a great atmosphere.

Love this place! Get the torched sushi

Great izakaya. Lively atmosphere, great food, sake bombs. Highly recommend the Kokimayo. Sit at the bar if you on a date ;)

The duck breast was yum

Amazing food and friendly staff.

Very good food. Everything I had was great. Fast service and food is really good. Its very noisy though ( I dont mind) but just so you know what to expect.

Was really hoping for this to be a better experience than it was. Service was abysmal - three items on the Specials menu were unavailable, which is disappointing when the menu is not overly extensive. No white wine available either. Server abandoned us halfway through the meal and passed us on to another server to manage the fall-out. Food was fine, but not memorable nor worth the poor service.

Overall very negative experience and would not recommend. Took my family here who are visiting Toronto and this had place had decent google reviews. The place itself has cool decor but then had multiple flaws: 1. Ordered edamame beans and they were out this was was at 7 30pm on a Saturday - felt a bit surprising for a Japanese restaurant staple 2. Ordered the Pinot Grigio, the only white wine on the menu and they didn t have a bottle chilled available - they said they would chill one for us and it would take 20 mins we never got it as they said it was never cold enough to serve (they server then told me they wouldn t include it on the bill ) 3. Generally the service was very poor and slow (apart from the guy behind the bar who made an effort and was very nice and apologetic our main server was terrible) 4. They food is very average - if you want sushi, go to somewhere else as there are way better places in Toronto this is NOT a 4.6 rating worthy restaurant

Amazing food and cocktails - highly recommend a sake bomb when there with friends!!

Delicious food and friendly staff!

Guu is a staple in my neighbourhood! I love dining in and delivery! I crave the pressed salmon sushi - OMG so good!! The duck is spectacular! Noodles, gyoza, all so delish. I would eat here every day if I could! I will try everything on the menu!

Fun place to grab a drink and some bar food downtown. Everything tasted great, but was a bit pricy for the portion sizes. For the same price, you can order a nice meal for two and a decent bottle of wine at a nice restaurant. Really depends what ambience you want. My only complaint is that service was slow for the food.

Ate here yesterday night with my girlfriend and friends. We absolutely loved the food and the ambiance of thr place. It was a chill place to hang out with friends. The spicy salmon and their chicken karaage was my go to order here, recommended.

With a score of 4.6, you are destined to have no mistakes even in your blind spots.

This is the most underrated Izikaya in the city. From the Miso soup to the desserts everything is amazing! I also think the Yaki Udon is the BEST in the entire city - and I have tried A LOT of Yaki Udon s!!!!!!

The food is so good, the staff are friendly and the vibe is so fun

Guu is the real deal! The food here is nothing short of busin it s delicious and hits the spot. I loved the unique touch of 80s Japanese rock music playing in the background it added to the ambiance and made the dining experience memorable. And let s not forget the sake it was top-notch and paired perfectly with the dishes. If you re looking for a place that serves fantastic food, has a cool vibe with some great music, and offers quality sake, Guu is the place to be!

Came here randomly on Saturday night and was thoroughly impressed. Didnt make reservations but we were accommodated with a seat at the bar and were given a show by their cook who prepared us a great selection of dishes. Dakishime ginger Margarita Mise soup The sous vide pork and steak were

Believe the hype it s amazing!

Pretty middling izakaya food. Very loud.

Good

Really enjoyed this place! It s Japanese Tapas/small plates. All the food was delicious, we tried the Karaage, Ebimayo(battered prawns) from the regular menu and the fish sliders and Takoyaki from the seasonal menu. They also have great cocktails were the cocktails, my favourite was the Ichigo Crush that has lychee. The atmosphere is cute, casual vibe and you can see the chefs cooking. Would definitely come back here.

A hidden gem! The food was authentic and outstanding. Small menu, which is exactly what we wanted. Loved every part of it.

Great for sampling and sharing.

Guu is one of those spots you can basically order anything off the menu and know it will be delicious! One of the, if not the first Izakayas in Toronto, Guu is still showing the rest how its done. It was my first time visiting in many years as I usually dont come to the area and while I know it was always a favourite of mine, I forgot how good it actually is. My favourite dishes here are the Kakimayo, Aigamo Tataki, and Kinoko cheese bibimbap - all must tries imo, but as stated before Im sure your tastebuds will be happy with anything you order. This time we had the Kakimayo, Aigamo, and Kale Gomaae and they were all delicious and prepared with a high degree of care. Service is excellent and the vibes are on point. Energetic yet not overly loud, the perfect setting for dinner and drinks while on a date or with friends. I go to Izakayas quite a bit as its one of my favourite ways to enjoy food with drinks, and honestly this visit reminded me that Guu might truly be the best Ive had. Ill definitely be coming down to this area a lot more just for Guu, and you should too! Bonus points for the Ichigo easter egg!

Fantastic food and great service. I really liked the daily photocopied menu that they offer. Thought the Saki bomb ritual that they do for every time that someone orders it, gets a little loud for that small space.

I d like to start off by saying that I had two great experiences at Guu. The food and vibes were so good on those two occasions that I brought my whole family with me to experience it a third time. Sadly, I don t think I ll be going back again as all of us left disappointed. The quality of the dishes were not even comparable to what I had eaten there previously. For example, the miso cod was FULL of bones this time around. I had to spit out bones with each bite I took when the last two times I had it the fillets were completely deboned. My sister in-law also let the server know that the tuna didn t taste fresh; it had a strong taste and was very dark in colour. However, we were later informed that it was supposed to have a fishy taste. Overall, my family was shocked that this was the restaurant I chose to bring them to. Needless to say that this level of inconsistency led to my 3 star review as this negative experience changed my entire view of the establishment. My recommendation is to go to this place on a weekend as their standards are seemingly higher.

Try the Guud saké.. it s one the the best I ve had.

Shout out to Vu great server super attentive. And he makes every sake bomb so much fun. It was really busy and there were only 2 servers but he did a great job taking care of us

Every time i come here i have the best server in the entire world! His name is VU He is so sweet and always gives the BEST customer service. Usually our group is 5plus people and he does everything so quickly. I only want him to do our sake bombs! he s so cool!! We literally go to this restaurant just for him, highly recommended!!!!!! He deserves good tips

one of my favourite Japanese restaurants in Toronto with amazing cakes

easily my fav izakaya in the GTA!

I am sorry but I honestly do not understand why there were people rated this restaurant 5 stars. The food was overly salty. Doesnt matter what you order, there is only one flavor---- soy sauce. The torched sushi was the only dish ok. Everything else was barely edible. TOO MUCH SALT !!?. I was always a fan of Izakaya place, and always had good experience. But this one is not recommended. Waste your money somewhere else.

This restaurant is an experience!!! I dont know how it slipped my radar that many years ago, they moved locations. I thought it disappeared! Happy to be back after many years to once again enjoy the unforgettable food and service

We love Guu Izakaya. Amazing small plates, perfect for sharing with a large group with a mix of seafood, meat, and vegetarian dishes.

Absolutely delicious and well prepared Izakaya staples here at Guu! One of the Toronto OGs. Great service, great atmosphere and the food is just undeniable. Visit, repeat, repeat!

Covid protocols followed well. The food was all very tasty. Definitely get the sesame kale, pressed torched sushi and the gyoza. The karaage and spare ribs were also superb. The miso black cod was okay.

Delicious food with a great vibe and friendly service. Well worth a visit!

The original GUU!!!! Different vibe but the same old taste. After all these years with the opening of hundreds of Izakaya in GTA, this place is still one of the best!

Very very warm hospitality and great bites at this parkdale outpost of the OH Izakaya group. Takowasabi every time - don t sleep on the sushi specials. Sapporo the size of your head.

Every plate had its own exquisite taste! Lemonade is 100%

Fun welcoming atmosphere and good food and drinks

Always fabulous food. We are never disappointed. There s a good ambience here and I every visit is superb.

The restaurant is worth trying. Food is good. A lot of drink options. Service was fast. What I didnt like is the noise level. It was so high that I couldnt properly hear the person next to me. Prices are very reasonable. I say good value for money.

We sat at the bar and the cooks were super friendly! We very much enjoyed our meal. Thanks!

The vibe is so cool, the food is delicious and so fresh, drinks were tasty. The staff was also really friendly!!

Very good food with unusual options. Perfect of you want Japanese flavors that are not available in the regular places.

This place is a real treat!! The food is super fresh, and yummy!! The staff are super friendly - I had the Yuki Udon, and karaage it was delicious! I cant wait to come back for more!

Very good food with specials each day. Good selections. Place cozy with great service and friendly staff. Paid parking along street.

Nice ambiance, great drinks and yummy food! Order a SAKI BOMB! I will definitely order that the next time I go there

Delicious food, great vibe and ambiance & friendly staff! Recommend :)

Flavors, flavors, Flavors! Great food, wonderful staff too. Recommend get there not to late before the specials go!

Ive been to Guu Izakaya before in different locations before. This restaurant does not disappoint still living up the hype for it. The server were very nice. The special are very fresh and food are yummy. I highly recommend this place.

Service was really slow. We waited 30 mins for a dish that never came, we followed up a couple times.. We were frustrated and asked for the bill which took another 20 mins...

We had a great time my family and I and Vu made it exceptionally special. Thank you Em Kim

Had really good time here. All the staff super welcoming.

Good food if you are in the area, but Toronto has many other better Izakayas

Really good food and drinks!

This place is super fun. Excellent menu and presentation. Great people running the place.

Great izakaya place! The dim lighting and sleek design provided a great ambience for an izakaya place. The staff were great and the chefs were friendly as well! The yuzu lemonade is a must have if youre a fan of authentic yuzu flavour. The takowasabi, takoyaki, and kakimayo were all fantastic if youre a seafood fan, the takoyaki is as good as any other place that does it well but the takowasabi and kakimayo were notably delicious. The aigamo tataki *seems*pricey but you wouldnt believe how much duck you really get with the dish, its well worth the cost! This place is an easy 5 stars, definitely worth it and a must go if youre in the area!

Not sure if it s going downhill or we got unlucky. Our waitress was cute but clueless. Forgot half the orders and didn t acknowledge it. Didn t know what a high ball was and said it it s not on the menu they won t offer it. However they were fine giving us a wiskey soda . Just weird compared to all our previous experiences. The food was good though as always.

Walked in on a super busy Friday night with no reservation, the host tried his best and cleared a table for us (I do suggest you make a reservation as this place is very popular). The combination of the food, atmosphere, and service made for an amazing experience. If you ve never been to an Izakaya, make this your first stop.

I ve been there a few times, and the drinks + food + service are always on point and the music is good too!

Great dinner, food was all fresh and tasty, with well balanced cocktails and a nice sake list. Will absolutely return!

Consistently delicious, new menu items all the time. Ebimayo is our favorite. The edamame is a bit bland, in that its only seasoned with salt, an isnt always the most fresh.

Overall a fun experience. The cold veggie plates (eggplant dish and the kale dish) were very good. Recommend trying it out if youre in the neighborhood.

Havent been to a Guu in AGES, so it was great coming back. Loud atmosphere but super fun. Food was amazing. We lucked out and got one of the last Udon Carbonara daily specials and it was incredible. The black cod was tasty, karaage is always great and the takoyaki balls are amazing. Had a great meal!

Very tasty food, and service was great. We enjoyed the kimchi udon, kalbi, karaage, all washed down with a big bottle of Asahi.

Service was slow, likely due to it being busy and our large group size. The food was good, especially the Kale which was phenomenal. Unfortunately I wont go back due to a severe lack of cleanliness where my group was seated, it spoiled the experience.

Food tastes great but portions are super small for the price and unfortunately the place is extremely under staffed. We had a table of 5 with two birthday people among us and we ended up waiting 20 or so minutes for each dish which made the experience horrendous. Server was extremely kind and helpful but they were the only person (with a host who also cleaned out the tables and dishes) on a Friday with the restaurant packed and a line up of people waiting. Until the restaurant improves the staffing situation I wouldn t go back.

Went there because of a friend, who likes hyped up places. Food and drinks are definitely priced unreasonably above their value, even after considering the whole experience - ie. service, presentation and taste. Average beer price at $11. Food that s on special is average about $17, with small bit size portions so definitely expect to pre-eat before going. Wouldn t recommend if you care about getting value for your buck. The music is so loud, can t even hear the person sitting across.

So this place used to have 2 locations I believe. I wentto the other locatio previously at Carlton and church but that location doesnt se to exist any more and is now under a different name. In any event, although this place carries the same name as the other place I was thinking ita menu is completely different to what I remember. Staff is friendly and attentive. Food took a little bit longer than expected to arrive. Beef short ribs could use some better flavoring and same with the chicken karaage. Overall I dont think I will be returning but I probably would still recommend to those in the area and would like to try this Izakaya place out.

This was my first going to an Izakaya style restaurant, it was overall a great experience. The sushi, sashimi and bibimap were amazing and service was fast. Only negatives to note was the noise (its a small space) and lack of chairs vs bar stools to dump your coats. Ill look forward to another visit

Always super welcoming! Great as always, that Kimchi Udon was BOMB definitely must try!

So good on all fronts. We walked in without a reso and low hopes that we d get in, but my husband found this place on Google and we thought we d try our best. We walked in and they were able to take us between reservations!! So already after being welcomed so kindly we were sat and given immediate service and attention in a pretty full restaurant (all of the wait staff were rockstars). We ordered takoyaki, edamame. karrage and salmon belly (special). All of the food came out steaming hot and so fresh. I really can t find anything wrong. The prices were more than fair for the quality and flavour of the food. The takoyaki was my favourite, so soft on the inside! The experience was so fun (order a sake bomb!) and we were so happy to be accommodated to make my husbands birthday super special. We ll definitely be back (with reservations!)

ROSE: Great location, friendly staff, when people order shots there s a whole show with the staff in Japanese, very lively atmosphere, the toilets are on another floor. The food is divine. New menu every day. THORN: Barely any vegetarian option, the toilets are not wheelchair accessible. It s loud and crowded. It s one of those places where you have to scan the menu with your phone BUD: Maybe a joke in the toilets to match the lively friendly party atmosphere? Like a funny Japanese proverb for instance. Also: it was difficult for me to find the name of the place. Maybe mention it on the menu!

When we made the reservation, they told us there s 15 minutes buffer time but when we actually show up. They told us that they canceled the reservation as we didn t show up in 5 minutes. We ended up heading to another restaurant. Very bad experience.

My favourite sit down restaurant in Parkdale. I always get the beef udon its super creamy and rich. The edamame is the best here and I love their margaritas!

Have been multiple times and the food is consistently amazing with a great vibe.

Nice little (but loud) place. The food came out super fast and it was really really good. The service was meh - the guys were nice and they tried but we felt overlooked. However, I do think this place is worth coming back to!

Very cool location to come with friends for drinks and snacks. I really like their specials-menu which rotates as well as their udon, which has the perfect consistency. The last time, I came here with just one other person and the portions of the dishes were just right but if youre coming with more people you may want to double up on your orders. The food is in-between casual and fine dining, so expect quality over quantity. It is an izakaya so it can get rowdy and loud especially later in the evening but if you go earlier it feels more like a restaurant.

He is consistently general.

A fun, lively experience. Delicious Japanese style tapas.

I went for the first time on a Saturday evening and every single thing we ordered was absolutely delicious. The atmosphere was great- a lot of energy. We got a variety of things from baked oysters to the bibimbap and shared it amongst three of us. The cocktails we got (lychee & sangria) were great too! Everything came out in a timely manner and the staff was very friendly and accommodating.

One of my favorite izakayas in the city, perhaps the best, food-wise. I ve been frequenting this place for a couple of years now and the service and quality is always consistently great. I ve never had a bad meal and always feel well taken care of. If you want a cool vibe and tasty Japanese bites, this is it!