Celebrity chef Akira Back's Toronto outpost in the Bisha Hotel delivers Japanese-Korean fine dining with dramatic presentation and a rooftop setting that overlooks the Entertainment District. The AB Tuna Pizza has become one of Toronto's most Instagrammed dishes, but the omakase menu reveals the kitchen's real ambition.
Neighbourhood: Entertainment District (Bisha Hotel) · Address: Bisha Hotel, 80 Blue Jays Way, 2nd Floor, Toronto, ON M5V 2G3 · Hours: Tue–Thu 5:30–10pm | Fri–Sat 5:30–11pm | Sun–Mon Closed · Phone: (416) 962-8000
Why Visit
Akira Back is Toronto's most dramatic Japanese-Korean fusion restaurant — the AB Tuna Pizza is just the entry point, while the monthly omakase reveals the kitchen's real ambition. The Bisha Hotel rooftop setting adds special-occasion energy.
What Makes It Unique
No other Toronto restaurant combines celebrity chef Japanese-Korean fusion with a rooftop hotel setting and an omakase program at this level. The monthly changing tasting menu and the theatrical presentation create a dining experience that is genuinely distinct from both traditional Japanese and Korean restaurants in the city.
Akira Back opened in the Bisha Hotel in 2017 as celebrity chef Akira Back's first Canadian restaurant, bringing his Japanese-Korean fusion concept to Toronto's Entertainment District. The restaurant occupies the second floor of the hotel with a design that channels contemporary Tokyo through dark woods, dramatic lighting, and a sushi counter that serves as the kitchen's theatre stage. The rooftop terrace, shared with the hotel's rooftop pool, offers outdoor dining with views over the Entertainment District that are particularly striking at dusk.
The AB Tuna Pizza is the dish that defines Akira Back in the public imagination, and it deserves its reputation: a thin, crispy tortilla base, topped with raw tuna, micro shiso, white truffle oil, and a ponzu drizzle. The construction is precise — the tortilla must be thin enough to shatter, the tuna must be sashimi-grade and properly chilled, the truffle oil must be applied with restraint (too much overwhelms, too little underdelivers). It is genuinely excellent, and the Instagram fame is not undeserved.
But the AB Tuna Pizza is an entry point, not the destination. The kitchen's real ambition is expressed in the omakase menu — a multi-course tasting that traces Akira Back's Japanese-Korean fusion through seasonal ingredients, contemporary technique, and the dramatic presentation that has made the chef's restaurants destinations in Las Vegas, Seoul, Dubai, and now Toronto. The omakase changes monthly and requires advance booking through the restaurant's reservation system.
The a la carte menu covers the fusion range: wagyu tacos (Korean-marinated beef on house-made tortillas), Korean fried chicken with gochujang glaze, sashimi and nigiri selections, and composed mains that bridge Japanese precision with Korean boldness. The bar program includes Japanese whisky selections, sake pairings calibrated to the omakase menu, and cocktails that incorporate Korean and Japanese ingredients (shochu, soju, yuzu, matcha).
Service is polished and theatrical — the staff are trained to the standard of luxury hotel dining and understand that a significant percentage of guests are celebrating. The pacing is deliberate for the omakase (approximately 2.5–3 hours) and slightly faster for a la carte (1.5–2 hours).
Akira Back is expensive: the omakase runs $180–220 per person, a la carte mains $38–68, the AB Tuna Pizza $32. A full dinner with sake pairings is $250–320 per person before tax and gratuity. The bar menu offers more accessible entry points — small plates and cocktails at roughly half the dinner price.
Reservations are essential and should be made 2–3 weeks ahead for dinner, particularly Friday and Saturday. The omakase books further ahead and requires direct booking with the restaurant. Book via OpenTable for a la carte, or call the restaurant directly for omakase reservations.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the AB Tuna Pizza?
The AB Tuna Pizza is Akira Back's signature dish — a thin, crispy tortilla base topped with raw tuna, micro shiso, white truffle oil, and ponzu drizzle. It is designed to shatter when bitten, with the cold tuna and warm tortilla creating a temperature contrast that has made it one of Toronto's most photographed dishes.
How much does the omakase cost at Akira Back?
The omakase tasting menu runs $180–220 per person, with sake pairings adding approximately $80–120. A full omakase dinner with pairings is $250–320 per person before tax and gratuity. The omakase changes monthly and requires advance booking.
Is Akira Back authentic Japanese or fusion?
Akira Back is Japanese-Korean fusion — chef Akira Back (born in Korea, raised in Aspen, trained in Japanese kitchens) combines Japanese precision and technique with Korean flavours and boldness. It is not traditional Japanese cuisine but a distinct fusion identity that the chef has developed across his international restaurant group.
Do you need reservations?
Yes — reservations are essential 2–3 weeks ahead for dinner, especially Friday and Saturday. The omakase books further in advance and requires direct booking with the restaurant. Book a la carte via OpenTable; call directly for omakase.