Awai

We love this restaurant so much we went twice in one week! The ambiance is calm and inviting. The staff are attentive and friendly. The flavours are unique-you want to savour every bite. Prices are very reasonable. Lots of options for you to explore different creative eating options-highly recommend the chef tasting menu which is pay what you like and takes you through all the different meal courses. Best enjoyed if everyone in your dining party orders it. This place is an eating experience so it takes time but is well worth it.

My friend and I were excited to find a new fine dining vegan restaurant. There are so few choices in Toronto.
The restaurant decor and ambiance was calm and tranquil feeling. It would make a nice place for a date.
We arrived at 7PM and the restaurant had only a couple tables. We ordered wine and some herbal tea. It took about 15 mins before it came to the table - never a good sign. I reminded myself the restaurant was new and maybe staff was still being trained. We each ordered a soup - they were delicious but not nearly warm enough. I did ask the waitress to let the kitchen know. My friend ordered a flatbread. It was ridiculously small and so overcooked it was hard to cut. I ordered another dish over rosti potato. I offered half to my friend since hers was so tiny. Both items were bland compared to the yummy soups we'd just had. We split the apple tatin which tasted like an apple pie. Good but nothing special. I know vegan food can be spectacular so I was disappointed. The service was far too slow. Our dinner took over two and a half hours - oh, and service is included in the prices so...?
I plan to take my husband to try a few more items and hopefully I'll have a better experience. I really want to like it enough to make it a usual spot for us.

One of the best veg fine dining restaurants I've ever been to anywhere, and easily the best veg food in Toronto! Not the usual hippie/hipster/health nut food, but instead upscale culinary delights! Definitely one of the most interesting restaurants around, veg or not. I've taken non-veg people and they all loved it.

I had the porcini soup, which was by far the best mushroom soup I've ever had, and my girlfriend had the caldo verde soup, which was also amazing.

The flatbreads are all delicious too. Shishito peppers with garlic sauce and olives, and an intensely flavourful cherry tomato one.

We absolutely loooved the truffle paella! The chef comes out and shaves fresh white truffles over the dish, and it creates this intense aroma.

The location is not in the core, but it's easily accessible by subway and really doesn't take long to get there.

Nathan is an artist who makes masterpieces with food. Every dish will leave you feeling like you've stepped off a plane into a new and wondrous place you haven't been before--flavours you've never tasted, spices you didn't think could go together blending perfectly--it's truly a sensory experience to dine here. With an emphasis on local and sustainable ingredients, a thoughtful wine list and an inviting ambiance, Awai is a must visit for anyone who loves food.