Kibo Sushi House

nice little place! great atmosphere, great food and the presentation is great!

I dined in once for the Unagi don and the portion was really tiny. for such a price.
I often come by during lunch hours and get the already made sushi maki rolls (spicy salmon with avocado and salmon with avocado) $ 5 per box and it’s pretty filling, fresh, and good.
we can’t eat there if we’re buying the special takeout though.
not sure if I’ll be back to dine in for the menu

ambience: ⁹⁄₁₀
— great décor, each little table was sectioned off away from the others and v private
— quiet, not too busy
— overall a great place to eat on your own or on a date or with a small group
food: ⁹⁄₁₀
— got the maki b set and the sashimi b set. both were quite good, especially the maki set which had some really excellent spicy salmon, but almost all the sashimi came out still with the tinges of having been frozen
— no complaints about the salad, which had a dressing that was less sweet than most japanese places make it
price: ⁷⁄₁₀
— for the amount of food my sister and i got and the prices we paid, we could have just as easily gone to fushimi or another $$~$$$ range ayce place and probably been offered a little more in terms of variety. basically, this place isn’t really the place to go to if you’re looking for great, authentic sushi at a bargain price.
service: ⁶⁄₁₀
— the servers were nice enough in the beginning, and i typically don’t care if the servers are authentically japanese or whatever, but at one point there was just a lot of korean being hollered from downstairs to upstairs and it knocked a point off the ambience, which had been awesome till then
— they cleared away my plate literally after i put the last piece of sushi in my mouth. my mouth was full and they were whisking all my things away, which i found hella rude. attentive service is nice, and i appreciated that they came regularly to refill water, but i didn’t need to feel like i was being watched
— overall i’d say we got rushed out of there faster than anywhere else i’ve been in a very long time. it was clear the staff was ready to go home, having just had dinner themselves at the tables at the side, but for somewhere that closes at 10:30pm they were bent on getting us out of there way before 9:45pm.
the food was great, and the décor was great, and if i had a date somewhere in the area i might go back. i wouldn’t go out of my way to head out to parliament again just to visit this place, though, and i probably wouldn’t recommend it to anyone unless they found themselves in the area and didn’t mind paying ~$ 30/​person for good (not great) food.

Great food. Excellent service. It’s a small place, but well worth the trek to Kibo. This is our go to Japanese restaurant.

Thanks Owner Bo at Kibo for introducing us to a few of the Chef Specials! It was an outstanding way to sample a variety of creatively prepared sashimi & sushi. The other dishes we ordered off the menu were equally tasty and we recommend the edamame, karaage, spicy tuna cone and the Dragon Rolls. Mark, our server, was attentive & polite and the overall service we received from everyone at the restaurant was amazing! We don’t live in Toronto but if we did, this would be one of our favourites for Japanese food!

Enjoyed my dinner here a lot. The sushi combo was really great deal, yummy and tasted very fresh. At the price you would expect something lower quality but everything about this restaurant operates at a higher than expected scale — from the food to the service to the presentation. I just moved to this neighborhood and will definitely be back here often!

Had the vegetable tempura and chicken teriyaki for takeout. The food was excellent and the staff were very polite. Reasonably priced as well. Will definitely be coming back. This is the best sushi spot in Cabbagetown by far.

Great staff, and delicious sushi. This is our favourite sushi place! We just moved to Toronto and there is literally sushi on every corner, this place has remained our favourite though. Spicy crunch dynamite! So good!

I’ve been to Kibo several times now and every time I’m almost shocked by how great it is. The staff is genuinely happy and very nice to talk to, and are more than helpful.
For the price the food is great, really delicious and the sushi comes in presentations that obviously had effort and thought put into them.
Sometimes they have even given us entire extra entrees on the house. Yesterday an entire bowl of udon just as extra.
Definitely my number one go-​to spot in the neighborhood now!

Service: good. The server was a bit flustered and confused, but whatever, that could have been for any number of reasons. Maybe her mother died. Anyways, she was good and provided us with what we needed.
Maki: hm. Subpar. I love maki and am making it a summer goal to eat at as many sushi joints in the downtown area as I can. So far this maki rates at below average. At the end of the day, the product is what you come for, and it just wasn’t great. My search continues!

I’ve since eaten here a few more times and it’s always consistently good.
I was in a rush once and called ahead to let them know what time I would get there so I wouldn’t have to wait for my order. I arrived and my sushi was perfectly set out on a table waiting for me. Once I sat down they brought me soup and tea and everything was perfect.
Overall great sushi spot in Cabbagetown.

Where: Cabbage Town
Ambiance: Casual
Price: $$
Food: We ordered the Sushi Love Boat for 4 people. This included salad, soup (not miso, more of a broth-​y style soup) and an assortment of fried appetizers. This included deep fried chicken gyoza, tempura (shrimp, eggplant, king oyster mushroom) and what I believe is deep fried karaage with dipping sauce. Following that was an assortment of Maki, Sushi and Sashimi.
Impressions of the food: there were too many deep fried offerings, including deep fried maki rolls. The actual rolls themselves were not bad but nothing really stood out either.
On the plus side, after we finished, the really pleasant server offered us free cocktails!
Bottom Line: friendly service, lots of (average) food, good prices.

Whenever someone mentions Kibo to me, it’s physically difficult not to respond with an exacerbated sigh.
It wasn’t always like this. When they initially opened in 2012, with a lovely wait staff and above average food, it was a consistent 4 star experience. I would frequent this place after work, and have pleasant chit chat with the manager. However, as the months went on, I saw the steady decline in service and the food (portions became noticeably smaller yet appreciated in value?)
Now in 2014, their $ 5 dollar lunch specials are the portion size that could rival some of the more upscale sushi restaurants closer to the core. I would much rather use that $ 5 to drive up to Taro’s and have high grade sushi at a similar price.
But their menu has always been a hot mess. Their menu is a dead giveaway that it is not Japanese owned; Sui Mais /​Ha Gow (Chinese dim sum dish.), bimbibap (Korean), the misspelt «karage», I could go on.
Kibo, I’ve given you so many chances, but it’s about time I officially called it quits.
***2 stars because the décor is gorgeous, and it smells like tempura every time I walk by.***

***This is based solely on takeout never been inside this restaurant***
When my hubby and I has this a week ago and ordered. The price was reasonable and the driver himself was dressed professionally with aprons on (that was cute) We had the love boat which was delicious but my husband and I found fish bones in our spicy salmon sushi.
For the 2^nd attempt, we decided to order again from them despite the mishap. We ordered sushi rolls (I can’t remember what we order that’s how good it was)! Same driver again came with the cute apron on.
I won’t hesitate to order from them again.

Japanese-​owned, excellent food, reasonable price, relaxing music, good atmosphere. I go to this restaurant at least once a week.

We’ve been here twice now. Remarkably this place is not always busy which is a bit of a bonus but doesn’t seem right. From the crisp Sapporo draft to the excellent prices to the freshness of the fish to the friendly prompt yet casual service this place is a standout.
Take the extra 10 minutes to get here if you are looking to eat Japanese anywhere downtown or in the village, it’s seriously worth it.

I started coming here thanks to Unilocal and all the great reviews. I’d been looking for a good sushi place in my neighbourhood and I guess I always missed this one. Luckily Unilocal helped me find this gem.
I usually get my food to go but sometimes I eat in and I love the experience. The restaurant is calm and it is easy to relax and enjoy your food. Sushi is always fresh and flavourful. Love you Kibo, never change!

I’d highly recommend paying Kibo Sushi a visit if you’re in the Cabbagetown area. Amazingly fresh sashimi prepared by a chef who has a great eye for food styling. While the décor isn’t traditionally Japanese, I thought it fit the restaurant very well. Brightly lit, yet intimate, with fresh yellow tulips at our table; in a word, elegant.
We had the set course for three which was a huge (see panorama) platter of assorted sushi and sashimi, along with green salad, miso soup, and edamame. Chicken kara-​age and a selection of tempura were also featured. After tax and tip, this ran about $ 97, but the level of service and cuisine was well worth it. A phenomenal experience all in all. I look forward to returning.

This was my first time at Kibo after finding it in Unilocal and it is definitely one of the best sushi experiences I’ve had. The atmosphere is very unique with chandeliers and weathered wood and jazz playing in the background. It gives the place a sense of occasion you usually only get from the very high end sushi restaurants. This place is definitely a step above you’re regular AYCE place but still casual enough to be your regular every day sushi place.
The staff is very friendly and polite. It did take them a while to refill our green tea and water but I’m sure we could have just asked and it would have been done right away with no issues.
For food I got the $ 35 matsu set. A little on the pricier side but worth every penny! You get so much food! Miso soup Gomae (sp?)
Unagi, tempura and a 15 piece mixed set of sushi/​sashimi that was top quality. I’m definitely excited to come back and I’d recommend anyone trying it out!

Zakkushi was closed because all their workers were at Yonge and Dundas Square for Matsuri, the Japan Festival. The wait for Kingyo was going to be over an hour so we decided to give this little place a try. What a nice surprise!
The four of us ordered one love boat for two, and two combos, one with Sapporo and one with Sake. We ate as if it was all you can eat! Since we ordered the way we did and shared everything, we got to try:
soup, salad, edamame, various rolls, sushi, aburi sushi, sashimi, tempura, and chicken karaage. The servings were very generous and for the price, definitely great value. Kibo was a nice find. Where can you get a filling combo with a choice of beer or sake for 18 bucks?