Tokyo meets Lima in the Financial District — Chotto Matte's Nikkei (Japanese-Peruvian) concept translates into a cocktail program built around Peruvian spirits, pisco, and Japanese whisky. The vibrant, multi-coloured space draws a stylish crowd for pre-dinner drinks and post-dinner dancing equally.
Neighbourhood: Financial District · Address: 161 Bay St, Toronto, ON · Hours: Mon 11:30 AM – 10:00 PM | Tue–Thu 11:30 AM – 11:00 PM | Fri 11:30 AM – 12:00 AM | Sat 12:00 PM – 12:00 AM | Sun 4:00 – 10:00 PM · Phone: (416) 988-8097
Why Visit
Chotto Matte brings together a one-of-a-kind Nikkei cocktail bar experience with bold Japanese-Peruvian flavours and a high-energy crowd in the heart of Toronto’s Financial District. It’s one of the rare downtown spots where you can start with pisco sours and end up on the dance floor—all without changing venues.
What Makes It Unique
Unlike Toronto’s typical cocktail bars, Chotto Matte draws its inspiration and ingredients from both Tokyo and Lima—think yuzu-infused pisco, lychee martinis, and rare Japanese whiskies. The immersive, technicolour interior (complete with a retractable roof) transforms from dinner hotspot to nightlife hub around 9pm, pulling in a cosmopolitan crowd you won’t find at more casual spots.
Chotto Matte in the Financial District is Toronto's most glamorous Japanese-Peruvian fusion restaurant and bar — a concept that originated in London and has built a global brand on the Nikkei cuisine tradition, which developed in Peru's Japanese immigrant communities over the past century and produces one of the world's most distinctive and sophisticated fusion culinary styles. The Toronto location brings this international concept to the city's corporate entertainment corridor with production values that match the price point and the clientele.
The bar programme at Chotto Matte is as significant as the food — a cocktail menu built around Japanese and Peruvian spirits, including Pisco, Japanese whisky, shochu, and sake, in combinations that reflect Nikkei culinary logic applied to drinking. The cocktails are sophisticated and well-made, and the presentation is executed with the visual attention to detail that the brand's aesthetic standards require.
The food is the more celebrated component. Nikkei cuisine at its best combines Japanese precision and technique — the sushi and sashimi tradition, the emphasis on quality raw ingredient — with Peruvian ingredients, citrus acidity, chili heat, and the vibrant vegetable culture of Andean cooking. The tiradito (Peru's version of sashimi, dressed with aji amarillo and citrus) and the Nikkei ceviche are the clearest expressions of the fusion at work. The robata grill section adds Japanese charcoal-grilling to the mix.
The Financial District location means Chotto Matte operates predominantly for corporate entertainment, expense-account dinners, and the after-work crowd from the surrounding office towers. This isn't a neighbourhood restaurant in any conventional sense — it's a destination that serves Toronto's business community's need for internationally positioned, high-production-value dining and cocktail experiences.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Nikkei cuisine?
Nikkei cuisine is the culinary tradition that developed within Peru's Japanese immigrant communities over the past century — a fusion of Japanese technique and precision with Peruvian ingredients, citrus, chili, and Andean flavours. It produces dishes like tiradito (Peruvian sashimi) and Nikkei ceviche that are distinctly different from both Japanese and Peruvian cooking individually.
Is Chotto Matte expensive?
Yes — Chotto Matte operates at the premium end of Toronto dining. Expect to spend $80–150 per person with drinks in a full dinner format. It's positioned for corporate entertainment and special occasions rather than everyday dining.
What should I order at Chotto Matte Toronto?
The tiradito and Nikkei ceviche are the dishes that most clearly express the Nikkei concept. The robata skewers, maki rolls, and black cod miso are also consistently strong. The cocktail programme built around Pisco and Japanese spirits is worth exploring alongside the food.
Where is Chotto Matte Toronto?
Chotto Matte is at 145 Richmond Street West in the Financial District, near Osgoode station on Line 1 and a short walk from Union Station. The location is in the core of Toronto's corporate entertainment corridor.